Passover & Easter Christianity and Judaism are the few examples of religions that are originated from Western Traditions. These religions take different approaches to representational art and iconography which is found in their religious festivals. The Christian celebration of Easter and the Jewish Passover differentiate in their approaches to these icons in the history, the celebration and the symbols used during the commemoration of these holidays. Passover and Easter have many hidden representational art and iconography that are reflected in the historical stories behind Judaism and Christianity. For Jewish people, the Exodus story narrated the Israelite’s liberation from slavery in Egypt which dates back to the 13th century BC. The story begins with a Shepard named Moses who hears God calling his name in the form of a burning bush. God tells Moses to return to Egypt and demand Pharaoh to let his people go. Many Jews believed that the burning bush represented the Israelite people in bondage, and the fire symbolized the forces of persecution that the Egyptians exercised on their Jewish ancestors (Holiday Celebrations). Just like the bush being burnt, but not consumed, the Israelites were being tormented but refused to perish from Egyptian’s oppression. Due to the Pharaoh’s unwillingness to free the Israelites, God delivered upon the Egyptians ten plagues; water turning into blood, frogs, lice, flies, livestock, boils, hail, locust, darkness, and death of the first born (Exod. 7-14) . In a sense, these plagues represented God’s almighty power over the Egyptian gods. Each plague was an attack on a particular Egyptian god. Moreover, not only was God’s purpose to reduce Pharaoh’s resistance and free the Israelites with the plagues, it also displayed God’s power conquering over the Egyptian gods; proving He is the one true God (Holiday Celebrations). Because of the plagues, Pharaoh finally surrendered and freed the Israelites from slavery. For Christians, the story of Jesus’ resurrection is celebrated on a holiday known as Easter. The narration begins with Jesus being arrested for exclaiming that He was the Son of God. He was taken to the Roman governor, Pilate, who delivered Him to be crucified. The soldiers took Jesus away and cast a crown of thorns on His head and a reed on His right hand (Matt. 27:28-30). To Christian... ... middle of paper ... ... 211). Both religious festivals, Passover and Easter, have different approaches to representational art and iconography that is found in Western religions such as Judaism and Christianity. These art and icons are vital resources in portraying each religion apart from one another. Without these important elements, the diversity of different religions that make up the spectrum of the religious world would cease to exist and all appreciation for individuality would be lost. Works Cited Curtis, Barbara. “Celebrating Jesus’ Resurrection.” The Plain Truth Online. 1999. . Farstad, Arthur. The New King James Bible. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1979. Holiday Celebrations. “Passover on the Net.” Studio Melizo. 2004. . Tobias, R. C. “Easter.” The New Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol. 4, 210-211. Chicago: Encyclopedia Britannica, 1768. Tobias, R. C. “Passover.” The New Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol. 9, 88-89. Chicago: Encyclopedia Britannica, 1768. Oxtoby, G. Willard. World Religions: Western Religions. Canada: Oxford University Press, 2002.
Samhain is probably the most celebrated and most controversial of the witch’s holidays. Samhain is sometimes referred to as “THE Great Sabbat” and perhaps the most important of the four High Holidays (Nichols, 1988). This holiday is known to many in the Wiccan world as the time of year when the veil between the physical world and the spiritual world is the thinnest. Laurie Cabot (1989) writes that originally Samhain was the Celtic feast of the dead and celebrated to honor the Aryan Lord of Death known as Samana. Over time, this celebration developed into festivals to celebrate the spirit world, rather than any one deity. It was also to mark the “ongoing cooperation between that world and our own of denser matter.” Offerings to ancestors is also an important Samhain tradition; in modern times it is to reflect on those who have passed and honoring any important aspect of their teaching, life, relationship, etc. However in ancient times, offerings were made with the belief that unhappy or disgruntled ancestors would take advantage of a thin veil and come to our world to do harm t...
Pesach begins on the 15th day of the Jewish month of Nissan. It is the
It is still unknown what the cause of Rheumatoid Arthritis is but there are some theories that have not been proven. The oldest theory states that viruses and bacteria are the cause of Rheumatoid Arthritis. Now with all the research being done, scientists believe that Rheumatoid Arthritis is hereditary. Specific genes have been found to make people more likely to get Rheumatoid Arthritis. Some scientists also think that some environmental factors and infections might cause the immune system to attack. Contributing factors are smoking and being exposed to silica metal. So although the exact causes are unknown, the result is that the immune system is ready to make the joins and tissues inflamed by activating immune cells.
Causes of these disorders include immune-system reactions and the wear and tear of aging, while research indicates that the nervous system may often be equally involved. About one out of seven Americans exhibit some form of arthritis. INFLAMMATORY CONNECTIVE TISSUE DISEASES This varied group of diseases produces inflammation in the connective tissues, particularly in the joints. The signs of inflammation--warmth, redness, swelling, and pain--may be apparent. Microscopic examination of the lesions reveals prominent blood vessels, abnormal accumulations of white blood cells, and varying degrees of wound healing with scarring.
Unlike the Christians who believe that salvation is an inward experience, Jews believe that redemption is achieved through physical means. Passover’s most significant symbol is the triumph of hope and freedom over the oppression exerted by humans. It proves that “human beings are meant to be free” and “God is concerned” (Greenberg, 35). The Torah stresses the association of spring to Passover in the cultural context, and it is a paradigm of the relationship between nature and history (Greenberg, 59). The Torah teaches that the natural phenomena and human biology are intertwined with the transcendent realm (Greenberg, 60). Spring is the archetypal symbol of rebirth, a symbol for the triumph of life over death (Greenberg, 60). Spiritually, it is also a time for redemption when love and hope overcomes death and evil (Greenberg, 60). It symbolizes the soul breaking out of the slavery of the material body to spiritual salvation (Greenberg,
When Jesus visited Jerusalem around 29 AD, he found enthusiastic crowds greeting him as the messiah. However he was arrested for not worshiping pagan Roman gods and was sentenced to death on a cross. While he was hanging awaiting death he forgave those who had killed him and those who had worshipped him the day before were denying him. After his crucifixion he was placed in a tomb, on the third day he rose, and greeted his followers, further convincing them that he was the messiah.
Rheumatoid arthritis is an auto immune condition where immune system affects the lining of the joints which affects all the body joints, usually smaller joints, such as hands and feet. But sometimes larger joints can also be affected such as hip and Knee. Rheumatoid Arthritis affects the joints by causing inflammation and damage. (Arthritis Australia, 2017). Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can cause restrictions in self-care activities such as showering, dressing, eating, walking, toileting, grooming and bladder or bowel control.
Due to the common occurrence of plague and disease during the epagomenal days it is to be believed that the Ancient Egyptians held a great amount of fear and distress towards this time of the year. The outbreak of disease and plagues, credited to the emissaries, arrows, of Sekhmet, was
Arthritis occurs when the body incorrectly identifies its own tissue as foreign matter and attacks it. Arthritis includes a set of more than eighty autoimmune diseases. Arthritis attacks connective tissues and joints. It causes stiffness, pain, inflammation, and swelling of the joints. Some kinds are crippling, but rarely leads to death. There are many different kinds of arthritis, the main ones being Osteoarthritis and Rheumatoid arthritis; others include gout and ankylosing spodylitis.
ChristmasThe year's most celebrated holiday is celebrated on December 25th, both in homes and churches worldwide. The meaning for Christmas is to recognize Christ's birth, of which the exact date is not known. During the fourth century the Bishop of Rome set December 25th as Christ's birth date. Some authorities claim that the choice of December 25th was made because it coincided with Chanukah, Mithraic's feast of the sun god, and the people of northern Europe's winter solstice feast. The winter solstice is the time of year in the Northern Hemisphere when the noon sun appears to be farthest south. (All About American Holidays, 1962 Encyclopedia Encarta, 1998)The Saturnalia was celebrated for seven days, during the period of time when the winter solstice occurred.
on the cross for man's sins. On the third day He rose from the grave, proving
Holidays are a major part of culture around the world. No matter where someone goes, the culture that surrounds them may have their own unique holidays. In the culture that has surrounded me my whole life, we celebrate 18 holidays. Every holiday has their own reason to be celebrated, whether it’s a holiday to remember something or someone who has made an impact on our society, or if it is to celebrate pagan holidays that were established back in biblical times, we always have something to celebrate. The one holiday that stands out to me the most, is Easter.
...after death. Note the contrasting between Christian holidays and Pagan ones. Note their wavering loyalty between Almighty God and ‘the old stone gods’ that they sacrificed to and made heathen vows to when things became desolate. In conclusion, Christianity is made up of more than its own traditions and, back then, the transition sometimes faltered. Sometimes, people would fall back to what they knew before: Paganism.
One of the traditions of my family growing up was what happened on Easter Sunday morning. On Easter Sunday morning we’d get up early before church and go searching for easter eggs. Sometimes though, I think we feel the same way about finding the will of God in our lives. Except that the search for the will of God isn’t nearly as fun as searching for easter eggs. It’s frustrating to search for something that sometimes seems impossible to find. Most of us, around the age of high school or Jr. High, we were told we needed to start searching for God’s will in earnest. Because God’s will should determine all these decisions you have to make, like what career path’s you’d take or who we would marry or where we would live. And we’re told that God’s will for us is great, and it’s fulfilling, and it’s satisfying so we gotta find it! We gotta find it, we gotta search for it, we gotta figure it out, and then once we find it we gotta stay in it.
In the Christian religion, Easter has become a grand day of celebration in honor of the resurrection of Christ. Easter falls on the first Sunday following the first full moon after a specific time and varies on how the day is followed throughout. Each denomination of the faith varies on the celebration day, hosting various outings and activities. Specifically, the Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox denominations of Christianity view and celebrate the Holy Day of Easter differently. In addition to the various amounts of changes throughout the denominations, Easter has become modernized to what the world now sees as a big bunny handling colorful, candy-filled eggs for little children, making smiles appear left and right. However, the real question