Did I Hear That Right?

Merry Christmas! What? It’s Easter, not Christmas! But I am sure that I heard a church member say “Merry Christmas” to someone. I can’t remember who said it to whom, but I know that I heard it!
Actually, after some consideration, I think that it is quite appropriate for this time of year. In a unique way, we are celebrating the incarnation of God into humanity in the body of Jesus. For this we can be extremely grateful, but there is much more to it. In our politically correct society, it might be helpful to do a word study to get to the bottom of this issue.
The word “Christmas” unites “Christ”, the Messiah or Savior, with the word “Mass” which actually means death. Mass is a term coined by the early Roman Catholic Church. It was used to describe the death of Christ and how Christ is distributed in the sacrament of Holy Communion (as the “host” flesh and blood is represented by bread and wine.)
The word “Easter” is quite controversial. Easter may come from the word Eostre or Ostera, the Anglo-Saxon name of a Teutonic goddess of fertility. There was a festival celebrated in her name during the vernal equinox or Spring season. Here is the controversy: it is not clear whether the word was borrowed from the name of the Goddess or if the Goddess was named for the holiday. Some churches call it Pashca which is a derivative of the Hebrew word for the Passover. The Bible says, “for Christ, our paschal lamb, has been sacrificed (I Corinthians 5:7). Indeed, the Gospel of John states that Christ died on the day of Preparation for the Passover (John 19:14, 31) While the lambs were being slaughtered for the Passover meal, so too was the ultimate lamb… the Lamb of God. Thus, you may ask the question concerning the Last Supper, “was it a Passover meal or simply a last meal?” (But… that’s another article entirely!)
Linking this passage to the Passover of the Old Testament we find that God brought the final plague upon the Egyptians. This plague killed the firstborn of every household that did not have the blood from a lamb over the door to the home. Through the death of Christ, it is His blood shed for you and I that keeps everlasting death from claiming us. His victory is complete on Sunday morning when the women find the tomb empty and Christ appears… ALIVE! Yes, Jesus Christ, God incarnate gives to each of us the gift of eternal life. Of that, I am extremely joyful! That IS the best gift of all. So, maybe we should be saying, “Merry Christmas!”