Why are eggs and bunnies used as symbols for Easter Sunday?

Easter eggs - Why are eggs made to symbolize Easter Sunday? Easter Sunday would now be next Sunday, not this coming Sunday and I'd like to know what's the significance of these eggs? :)
Philippines
March 29, 2007 3:45pm CST
This is for the Christians or to anyone who knows the answer. I don't have any knowledge why eggs are used as symbols during Easter? As far as I could think of, since Easter is the day Jesus has been risen from the dead, that means there would be new life and new salvation. Maybe the egg is being used to symbolize our repentance from our sins and this is the day where we can also make our lives anew. Do you think my idea can be right or wrong? Do you have any idea?:) What do you think?:) As for the Easter bunnies, that's the thing I don't have any clue at all.:)
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4 responses
@Modestah (11179)
• United States
30 Mar 07
Eggs are definitely Christian symbols of the Resurection. During times of severe persecution, Christians exchanged eggs with others as an acknowledgment and testimonial. It has something to do with Christ Bursting through the tomb, as the chick bursts through the shell. I will try to remember to look it up later, I have to go right now...but I think it is found in my book called the Festal Year written in 1873 Bunnies however get their celebratory roots from earth based religions and symbolize fertility.
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@Modestah (11179)
• United States
30 Mar 07
I beg to differ from the previous poster's statements. The Paschel time (also known as Resurection Sunday, also known as Easter) has always been observed since the time of the Apostles. Even the Jews had their Easter. This modern day propaganda that states otherwise is fiction. While some claim that the word Easter refers to an old Teutonic "goddess" of spring, Ostera or Eostre - still others state that it refers to the Eastern or East Star where we turn to look for the coming of the Christ! It really does not matter if you call it one or the other, what matters is the celebration and the season is About the Resurrected Christ - and not a stranger goddess. Lent was also practiced by the Apostles, it commemorates many things but most importantly the 40 day fast of Our Lord in the desert. Of course there are also the 40 years of captivity that "our fathers did eat manna in the desert" The 40 days of lent are also our Tithing of the year, back to God. I find it curious as well as distressing that someone would begrudge us this pius practice. A Christian is to be an imitator of Christ, or "Little Christ" after all. There is the Easter of the Israelites and the Easter of the Christians, the Pentecost of Sinai and the Pentecost of the Church. This just reinforces that Christianity is not a new religion, but rather the same religion fulfilled. as far as the egg representing the tomb, myworld, it was not in the book I mentioned earlier - I will have to ask my husband if he remembers which book it was in.
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@Riptide (2758)
• United States
30 Mar 07
I was just wondering, if that is the case, why jewish people don't celebrate easter then? Christmas and Easter were pagan holidays at ne point and were integrated into the christian believe to attract pagans to convert.
@Modestah (11179)
• United States
30 Mar 07
Christmas as you probably know is a contraction of the words Christ's Mass. We properly call it the Nativity of Our Lord. Nothing pagan about it. The days of the week and months of the year I would say have some pagan connotations, however. Sun(day) named for the ancient egyptians chief god so it gets first day of the week. Mo(o)nday second in brightness to the sun gets second honors. Tuesday is for Mars their god of war called Tise or Tiwes. Mercury was the planet nearest the sun and gets Wednesday as he was known by the name of Woden (wodensday becomes wednesday) Thor is given Thorsday (thursday) and to Venus they sacrificed on Friday; because she was known by the name Frig or Friga. I am not very gifted in Spanish but I think that at least some of their days of the week are much more Christian oriented. lunes - monday refers to the moon martes - tuesday (does this refer to the Martyrs?) miércoles - wednesday(I am thinking refers to Miracles?) jueves thursday (I have no guess of its etymology) viernes - friday ( ? ) sábado - saturday (refers to Sabbath) Saturday domingo - sunday (refers to God)
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• Philippines
30 Mar 07
Long before the first Easter was celebrated both eggs and rabbit are already fertility symbol. Easter sunday symbolizes new life so this is also used as symbol for Easter. One Emperor also claimed that Resurrection are like EGGS turning red so this might be another reason why egg is use as a symbol. Theres nothing wrong with the idea. Its only a symbol of the celebration so I have nothing against that. :)
• Philippines
30 Mar 07
I agree with you. That's what I have also thought that since Easter Sunday symbolizes new life because of Jesus' resurrection, then it can be that the eggs are used as symbols to new life too. :)
@Kaeli72 (1229)
• United States
29 Mar 07
Times like this...I wish I was at the 500 mark...but this is such an importan question that I'll suffer from carpal tunnel just for you. :D Easter...what is it really? First off, Easter has NOTHING to do with the resurrection of Yeshua. (Taken from my Yahoo! 360* blog Thursday, February 15, 2007) The name "Easter" is a merely the slightly changed English spelling of the name of the ancient Assyrian goddess Ishtar, pronounced by the Assyrians exactly as we pronounce "Easter". She was a consort of Baal, the Sun god, whose worship is denounced the Adoni as the most abominable of all pagan idolarty. The apolstles observed the Passover as did Jesus. Easter is one of hte pagan days Paul warned the Gentile converts they must not return to observing. Jesus observed no Lent...so why start? "The forty days' abstinence of Lent was directly borrowed from the worshipers of the Babylonian goddess. G-d only wanted seven fests to be observed...and Passover is one of them. The origin of the Easter egg is recorded in the Davies Druids, p. 208, that the ancient Druids bore an egg as the sacred emblem of their idolatrous order. On p. 207, the same history, it is recorded that the mysters of Baccush, as celebrated in Athens, part of the idolatrous ceremony consisted in the consecration of an egg. Hidnu fables celebrate their mundane egg as of a golden colour. It has been ancient customs in Japand to make their sacred egg a hard brazen colour. In China, dye or painted eggs are used on "sacred' heathen rituals. In the idolotry of ancient Greece and Eypt, eggs were used in their religious rights. Jesus did not start this custom, nor did any of the apostles and early Christians. Ugh...I hope this answered your question...if not, time for me to do some more studying. :D
• Philippines
29 Mar 07
Yeah, it does helps. And i think I should have to study more too. I was just curious as to why easter eggs became prominent during easter sundays. THanks a lot! :)
@creematee (2810)
• United States
30 Mar 07
I have nothing to add to this discussion, except I wanted to give you a + for asking the question, and getting the answers. I've learned a lot, and wanted to thank you!! :)