Easter Bunnies ... check!  Decorated hard-boiled eggs ... check! Baskets filled with goodies for the kids ... check, check, check! There's even those strange marshmallow "Peep" things.  Can these possibly tie in with Easter Sunday?

It has been rumored that Easter has pagan roots. In fact, this is true. The E. B. actually got his start back in 13th century Germany when the goddess Eostre was symbolized by a bunny. After all, a rabbit is known for its ability to reproduce and Eostre was the goddess of fertility and spring. Easter baskets actually got their start from children making nests for the bunny to lay and egg into overnight.

All of this celebrated the newness of the spring season, worshiped the goddess, and made for a great story to tell. 

No one really celebrates Eostre anymore, do they? The rabbit, along with the eggs and the tradition of a spring celebration began to be marked by a different celebration: the resurrection of Jesus Christ! As time went on, people stopped thinking about that mythological goddess and spent this holiday focused on the real-life person known as Jesus.

But that doesn't mean that everyone who celebrates Easter is celebrating Jesus. Some families just celebrate the holiday as a day like many others: with family, a feast, and all of the trappings sold in the stores.

You can really "Get" Easter – When you look beyond all of the tradition of pagan goddesses and beyond rabbits and eggs, you find a celebration that truly embraces a new life: which is the very things symbolized by the rabbit and eggs! Easter is ultimately the celebration of the Greatest Story Ever Told: God has redeemed mankind!