HALLOWEEN!!!
What's it mean to a child of God?
Without getting to much into Druid origins, or Catholic sugarcoating, let us judge this tree by it's fruit. If a person want's to judge something to see whether it is right or wrong, they need to hold it up against the one and only true standard, the word of God.
Terrorism depends on fear. Big business plays off fear with scary movies, books, amusements, etc. Halloween plays off fear also. But - is this type of fear akin to Godliness?
Halloween in the 21st century encompasses a wide range of activities. It means different things to different people. Let’s look at some excerpts from an on line encyclopedia. Any underlining was added by me for emphasis:
Encyclopedia Article from Encarta: Halloween
Halloween, holiday observed on the evening of October 31 in most areas of North America and in some areas of Western Europe. The holiday is symbolically associated with death and the supernatural. Halloween falls on the eve of All Saints’ Day, also known as Allhallows or Hallowmas, a holy day in the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches. Originally a pagan festival of the dead, All Saints’ Day was established by the Catholic Church in the 9th century to honor Christian saints. All Souls’ Day, a holy day established by the Catholic Church in the 10th century, is also closely linked to Halloween. All Souls’ Day, on November 2, is observed to help purify the spirits of the dead.
Halloween is historically related to similar folk holidays celebrated in other countries. The Day of the Dead, a Mexican holiday that coincides with All Souls’ Day, blends Roman Catholic and Native American traditions about the souls of the dead. On the Day of the Dead, Mexicans decorate their homes with playful imagery of animated human skeletons, leave offerings of food for wandering spirits, and tend the graves of their deceased relatives.
II Contemporary Customs
Most Halloween festivities are based on folk beliefs concerning supernatural forces and spirits of the dead. Halloween decorations typically feature imagery associated with supernatural beings such as witches, werewolves, vampires, and ghosts. Images thought to symbolize bad omens—such as black cats, bats, and spiders—are also commonly featured in Halloween decorations.
The most celebrated Halloween decoration is the jack-o’-lantern, traditionally a hollowed-out pumpkin carved to resemble a grotesque face and illuminated by a candle placed inside. The jack-o’-lantern derives its name from a character in British folktales. According to these tales, the soul of a deceased person named Jack O’Lantern was barred from both heaven and hell and was condemned to wander the earth with his lantern. Orange and black, colors associated with pumpkins and darkness respectively, figure prominently in most Halloween decorations.
Dressing in costume is one of the most popular Halloween customs, especially among children. Traditional costumes usually represent witches, ghosts, and other supernatural beings. However, costumes inspired by contemporary popular culture, such as politicians or movie characters, have become increasingly common in recent years. Adults often favor costumes with satirical or humorous overtones.
Trick-or-treating is another Halloween tradition, in which costumed children go from house to house soliciting candy or other treats from their neighbors. According to this custom, children greet each homeowner with the cry “Trick or Treat,” suggesting that some sort of prank will be played unless treats are provided. Formerly, trick-or-treaters vandalized the house if no treats were produced or if the treats met with their disapproval. Since the early 20th century, however, the threat of tricks has been largely ceremonial. Beginning in the 1970s, the practice of trick-or-treating went into a sharp decline after unsubstantiated rumors spread about homeowners distributing poisoned Halloween candy to children. Many parents also became concerned about their children wandering through the neighborhood after dark. Today, many parents accompany children when they go trick-or-treating.
In some areas of the country, costume parties have replaced trick-or-treating as the favored form of Halloween entertainment. Hosts of these parties often hold contests to select the best costume among the guests. Traditional Halloween diversions have also enjoyed renewed popularity as party activities. For example, many Halloween parties feature contests of bobbing for apples, a centuries-old game in which contestants try to retrieve apples floating in a tub of water using only their mouth. While children’s Halloween parties are generally held in private homes, many bars and nightclubs sponsor modified versions of such festivities for adults.
IV In the United States
Attitudes toward Halloween varied widely among the various European groups that settled in North America. New England was initially settled by English Puritans, members of a strict Protestant sect that rejected Halloween as a Catholic and pagan holiday (see Puritanism). However, other British colonists successfully transplanted Halloween traditions in southern colonies such as Virginia and Maryland. Irish immigrants helped popularize Halloween traditions throughout the United States in the mid-19th century. As belief in many of the old superstitions waned during the late 19th century, Halloween was increasingly regarded as a children’s holiday.
In the 19th and early 20th centuries, young people often observed Halloween by perpetrating minor acts of vandalism, such as overturning sheds or breaking windows. Beginning in the 1930s, Halloween mischief gradually transformed into the modern ritual of trick-or-treating. Eventually, Halloween treats were plentiful while tricks became rare. Nonetheless, the tradition of Halloween pranks still survives. In some areas, October 30 (one day before Halloween) is called Mischief Night, and vandalism often reaches dangerous levels. In Detroit, Michigan, Mischief Night—known there as Devil’s Night — provided the occasion for waves of arson that sometimes destroyed whole city blocks during the 1970s and 1980s.
Since the 1970s, Halloween celebrations have become increasingly popular among adults. The Halloween parade in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City features elaborate satirical costumes and drunken revelry. Especially popular among the local gay population, the Greenwich Village parade serves as a model for many other adult Halloween celebrations around the country. Similarly boisterous public Halloween festivities are celebrated in San Francisco, California; New Orleans, Louisiana; and Key West, Florida.
Contributed By:
Brent Lanford, B.A., M.A.
Freelance writer.
"Halloween," Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2002
http://encarta.msn.com © 1997-2002 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved. We are (as Christians), to judge things by it’s fruit. As you read the previous text, I would submit to you that the underlined areas represent some of the fruit of this tree called Halloween.
1 Thes 5:21-23: Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 5:22 Abstain from all appearance of evil. 5:23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
1Peter 3:11-12: Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.
2Peter 3:10-12: But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. 3:11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, 3:12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? God is a God of love. 1Jhn 4:16: And we have known and believed the love God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. The central theme of Halloween is death. Again, this is in total contrast to God who is life. Jhn 5:24-26: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from from death to life. (25) Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. (26) For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself; Death is akin to sin, Life is akin to God. Rms 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Some other themes of Halloween are evil spirits / threats / murder / self indulgance / hoolaginism / witches / sorcery / and basically all the darkness Satan can stir up. A Christian defending and participating in Halloween is literally playing with spiritual fire. Jesus said in Mat 12:30: He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad. Are you on the Lord's side? Are you a temple of the Holy Spirit? Then I implore you to get you and your family as far away from Halloween as you possibly can! Ponder this scripture in 2Cor 6:14-18: Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? (15) And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? (16) And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in [them]; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. (17) Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean [thing]; and I will receive you, (18) And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
More could be said, but is it really nessessary? If you love God, why would you want to engage in this Holiday? Even if you don't agree whole heartily with everything I have covered here, would it be so bad to abstain for the sake of others (1Cor 8:13)?
One last plea - please read and meditate on this verse - and then consider God's glorification, and your brothers and sisters edification, before closing your mind to this issue:1Th 5:21-22: Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. (22) Abstain from all APPEARANCE of evil.
Celebrating Halloween is celebrating evil!
Now please compare with some scriptures from God’s word and note the underlined areas here:
Can Halloween be considered part of holy conversation (conduct) and Godliness? Is it peaceful? Without spot or blame?
If the Lord were to return during the Halloween season - would he find you and yours gleefully engaged in celebrating this pagan holiday, or, would he find you seeking holiness and Godliness?
I am not going to cover all of these but we can get a general feel for how God veiws these things (and such like) from Deu 18:9-13:When thou art come into the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. (10) There shall not be found among you [any one] that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, [or] that useth divination, [or] an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, (11) Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. (12) For all that do these things [are] an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee. (13) Thou shalt be perfect with the LORD thy God.