Mardi Gras and Carnival

Ash Wednesday and Lent

Easter

Mardi Gras and Carnival

According to the Bible, the celebration of Easter is idolatry. Many people, in these times, ignorantly follow this tradition which they believe is a celebration of the Death and Resurrection of Christ.  Unfortunately, those who honour and keep the customs and traditions that are affiliated with this day are breaking the commandments. The celebration of Easter does not honour the Heavenly Father nor Christ.

Matthew 22:36-37  Master, which is the great commandment in the law?  (37)  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

Exodus 20:3-6  Thou shalt have no other gods before me.  (4)  Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:  (5)  Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;  (6)  And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

For Catholics and some other denominations of Christianity these idolatrous celebrations begin a few months before the actual day of Easter. The festivals known as Mardi Gras and Carnival are the true beginning. How are these celebrations related to Easter? Both Mardi Gras and the Carnivals that are kept in the Caribbean Islands, Brazil, and other parts of the world occur before the period of time known as Lent or the holy season.  These celebrations give honour to Bacchus, who is the Greek god of wild parties (revelling), orgies (fornication), and drunkenness.  For those that practice this tradition, it is an opportunity to break the Heavenly Father’s commandments and do all manner of wickedness before the beginning of their “holy season.” In the past, the Israelites that were in captivity during the time of the Greeks were forced to break the commandments and keep celebrations honouring this idol.  In this time many people who profess to be Christians, keep these idolatrous customs willingly and forsake the commandments of the Heavenly Father and Christ.

II Maccabees 6:1-8  Not long after this the king sent an old man of Athens to compel the Jews to depart from the laws of their fathers, and not to live after the laws of God:  (2)  And to pollute also the temple in Jerusalem, and to call it the temple of Jupiter Olympius; and that in Garizim, of Jupiter the Defender of strangers, as they did desire that dwelt in the place.  (3)  The coming in of this mischief was sore and grievous to the people:  (4)  For the temple was filled with riot and revelling by the Gentiles, who dallied with harlots, and had to do with women within the circuit of the holy places, and besides that brought in things that were not lawful.  (5)  The altar also was filled with profane things, which the law forbiddeth.  (6)  Neither was it lawful for a man to keep sabbath days or ancient feasts, or to profess himself at all to be a Jew.  (7)  And in the day of the king’s birth every month they were brought by bitter constraint to eat of the sacrifices; and when the feast of Bacchus was kept, the Jews were compelled to go in procession to Bacchus, carrying ivy.  (8)  Moreover there went out a decree to the neighbour cities of the heathen, by the suggestion of Ptolemee, against the Jews, that they should observe the same fashions, and be partakers of their sacrifices:

Ecclesiasticus 15:13  The Lord hateth all abomination; and they that fear God love it not.

Ecclesiasticus 15:20  He hath commanded no man to do wickedly, neither hath he given any man licence to sin.

I Corinthians 6:9-10  Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,  (10)  Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 

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Ash Wednesday and Lent

The celebration of Carnival varies in length throughout the world but it comes to an end on what is called Fat Tuesday or Shrove Tuesday. Shrove comes from the old English word “shrive” which means to absolve people of their sin. This further proves that many so called Christians believe that they are forgiven for all the abominations they commit during the season of Carnival. Mardi Gras is the more popular name for Fat Tuesday.  After Fat Tuesday comes Ash Wednesday which marks the beginning of Lent the so called “holy season.” Now the switch is made from honouring Bacchus to honouring the goddess of fertility. Isis, Ishtar, Ashtaroth, Diana, and the Queen of Heaven are just a few of the names that people have called her over the years, but it is still the same idol.  On Ash Wednesday she is honoured by baking hot cross buns.  Do the scriptures make mention of this?  Yes!

Jeremiah 7:18  The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto other gods, that they may provoke me to anger.

 In the past, the children of Israel knew they were committing idolatry but continued to serve these idols believing that  they would receive carnal blessings (money, houses, food, etc.) in return. In truth they only provoked the anger of the Heavenly Father bringing more wrath upon themselves.

Jeremiah 44:16-17 As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the LORD, we will not hearken unto thee.  (17)  But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for then had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil.

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Easter

The so called “holy season” of Lent comes to an end on Easter Sunday. Easter is observed by most denominations of Christianity as the celebration of the resurrection of Christ. Also, they ignorantly observe so called “Good Friday” as the day of the death of Christ. According to the Bible, Christ told the disciples that he would rise after three days.

Matthew 12:40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

Matthew 28:1-6 In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. (2) And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. (3) His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: (4) And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men. (5) And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. (6) He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.

Genesis 1:5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

Three days and three nights confirm that Christ was crucified on Wednesday and rose as it states in Matthew 28:1-6, on Saturday (the Sabbath) before the first day which was Sunday. Therefore, it is impossible for Christ to have been crucified on “good Friday” and raised on Sunday. Easter Sunday is in truth a pagan festival which has nothing to do with Jesus Christ. The Holy Bible does not teach us to observe Easter which is a celebration that honours a fertility goddess.

Judges 10:6  And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim, and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and forsook the LORD, and served not him.

I Samuel 7:3-4  And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If ye do return unto the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the LORD, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.  (4)  Then the children of Israel did put away Baalim and Ashtaroth, and served the LORD only.

Psalms 96:5  For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.

I Corinthians 10:20-21  But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils.  (21)  Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils.

Since the beginning of time, the Lord has repeatedly warned us about following the idols and false religions of the world. The gods, celebrations, and religious traditions of this world come from the worshipping of idols and Satan. Easter is the worship of a fertility goddess and not Christ. That is why symbols of fertility like rabbits and eggs are associated with this pagan day. As followers of Christ, we are not to partake of these celebrations.  If we do not repent, the Lord will punish us in this day as he did in the past. Our duty now is to repent of these sins, which some of us have done in ignorance, and begin to follow Christ’s example as it is written in the Holy Bible.

Acts 17:29-30  Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man’s device.  (30)  And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:

It does not matter what your church, pastor, reverend or friend teaches you!  The celebration of Easter is idolatry.  To accept the traditions of this world is to reject Christ, the commandments, and the Heavenly Father.

Mark 7:9  And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.