Mommy and Me time...

Sitting here with Momma for my normal Friday-night dinner date.  With Nathan working now, it's usually just her and I.  Tonight we were talking about the meaning of Good Friday, Easter Sunday and the origin of Easter.  Although we both pretty much knew the answers, I google'd to see what we could find:

Good Friday is the Friday immediately preceding Easter Sunday. It is celebrated traditionally as the day on which Jesus was crucified. If you are interested in a study of the issue, please see our article that discusses the various views on which day Jesus was crucified. Assuming that Jesus was crucified and died on a Friday, should Christians remember Jesus' death by celebrating Good Friday?

Why is Good Friday referred to as “good”? What the Jewish authorities and Romans did to Jesus was definitely not good (see Matthew chapters 26-27). However, the results of Christ’s death are very good! Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” First Peter 3:18 tells us, “For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit.”

The Bible makes it clear that Jesus was resurrected on the first day of the week, Sunday (Matthew 28:1; Mark 16:2,9; Luke 24:1; John 20:1,19). Jesus' resurrection is most worthy of being celebrated (see 1 Corinthians 15). While it is appropriate for Jesus' resurrection to be celebrated on a Sunday, the day on which Jesus' resurrection is celebrated should not be referred to as Easter. Easter has nothing to do with Jesus' resurrection on a Sunday.

The origins of Easter are rooted in European traditions. The name Easter comes from a pagan figure called Eastre (or Eostre) who was celebrated as the goddess of spring by the Saxons of Northern Europe. A festival called Eastre was held during the spring equinox by these people to honor her. The goddess Eastre’s earthly symbol was the rabbit, which was also known as a symbol of fertility. Originally, there were some very pagan (and sometimes utterly evil) practices that went along with the celebration. Today, Easter is almost a completely commercialized holiday, with all the focus on Easter eggs and the Easter bunny being remnants of the goddess worship.

In the Christian faith, Easter has come to mean the celebration of the resurrection of Christ three days after His crucifixion. It is the oldest Christian holiday and the most important day of the church year because of the significance of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the events upon which Christianity is based. Easter Sunday is preceded by the season of Lent, a 40-day period of fasting and repentance culminating in Holy Week and followed by a 50-day Easter season that stretches from Easter to Pentecost. ~ http://www.gotquestions.org/

We then began talking about Tyler Perry's newest movie "Madea's Big Happy Family" though we watched it in the play version on DVD.  I think that I like that version better because Tyler Perry/Madea goes off-script some.  Anyway, the message was a powerful one and I thought the message about material possessions and the real meanings of life, happiness and family shouldn't be centered around them was of particular importance to today's generation.  I wish that I could have shared it with some of my friends at work, but I'm not sure that the message would have been accepted, especially it's method.  Either way, to those few who may or may not read this blog you should watch it ASAP. 

There are other things that I wish I could discuss with you, but unfortunately, the World Wide Web is a little bit too big of an audience to air ALL of my laundry.  Just know this, I'm working on myself, my life and the things that are supposed to make me happy.  Wish me luck!