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OCTOBER 07th 2007
SHOULD CHRISTIANS CELEBRATE HALLOWEEN?
by Debra J. Hicks
Please check all that apply. This year for Halloween,
I'll probably:
1) Dress the little ones up in costumes and
escort them around our neighborhood to collect
candy.
2) Check out the local haunted house.
3) Get together with some buddies to watch a
scary movie.
4) Dress up in a devil suit and scare the neighborhood
kids that knock on the front door.
5) Turn off the porch light and hope nobody
finds me eating the three bags of Snickers bars
I bought for trick-or-treaters.
Most people see nothing wrong with the activities
listed above. They consider Halloween festivities
to be a harmless way for their children to have
an evening of "fantasy and fun."
But does this standard hold true for Christians?
Is dressing up like ghosts, goblins, and witches
really "no big deal"? Or is it glorifying
and empowering Satan?
If we have truly committed our hearts and our
lives to Christ, we will set ourselves apart
as people who seek to reflect God's goodness
and love to the world. Because we become like
the things we behold, the apostle Paul in Philippians
4:8 counsels Christians to think deeply
about-and to continually fill our minds with-what
is good. A careful, honest look at Halloween
reveals little or nothing that is good. Instead,
it is a day that points toward Satanism, fear,
and gluttony.
"For what do righteousness and wickedness
have in common? Or what fellowship can light
have with darkness? What harmony is there between
Christ and Belial?" (2 Corinthians 6:14-15,
NIV).
Although the word Halloween means "holy
or hallowed evening," history shows that
nothing could be further from the truth. Halloween
is clearly a relic of pagan times, and it has
never reflected true Christian virtues.
The customs connected with Halloween are most
commonly traced to a festival celebrated by
the Druids-priests of the Celtic tribes that
occupied northern and western Europe. This celebration,
which dates back several centuries before Christ,
began each year on October 31 and was called
the festival of Samhain,
the lord of death.
As part of their worship of Samhain, the Druid
priests built huge bonfires on which both animals
and humans were sacrificed. This barbaric practice
continued openly for hundreds of years, until
Rome conquered Britain and outlawed it.
Years passed, and Rome continued to conquer
new territory and increase in power. The people
of each conquered nation were forced not only
to become Roman citizens, but also to become
members of the Roman church. As you can imagine,
these new "converts" cared little
about Christianity and clung tenaciously to
their cherished pagan practices.
So, since the Roman church was unable to get
people to abandon their heathen festivals, it
decided to "sanctify" some of them.
The Druids' celebration in honor of the lord
of death thus became All Saints' Day, which
was to be observed by all churches. Officially,
it was proclaimed a day to honor all the saints
who had died, known or unknown. But in practice,
it remained what it had always been-a pagan
celebration of the "Day of the Dead."
Throughout its history, Halloween has been thought
of as the time when supernatural forces prevail.
Anton LaVey, author of "The Satanic Bible"
and high priest of the Church of Satan, says
that Satanists consider Halloween the most important
day of the year. He says that on this night,
satanic, occult, and witchcraft power are at
their highest potency level, and that any witch
or occultist who has been having difficulty
with a spell or curse can usually achieve success
on October 31st because Satan and his powers
are at their best that night.
Divination, or fortune telling, is also believed
to reach its highest powers on Halloween, as
people are eager to learn what might happen
to them in the upcoming year. Even today, predictions
of leading psychics and astrologers are generally
released about the time of Halloween.
Clearly, the rites and symbols of this holiday
reveal that it is still a day that glorifies
Satan. Look around you. Though October 31 is
still a month away, you can probably see evidences
that Halloween is approaching. Pictures of ghosts,
goblins, witches, skeletons, and devil-faced
pumpkins appear on store windows everywhere.
Horror movies are promoted on television and
in the theaters, and most bookstores give prominent
attention to books dealing with death and the
occult.
As Christians, we are not to associate with
the things of Satan. Christ Himself said, "No
man can serve two masters: for either he will
hate the one, and love the other; or else he
will hold to the one, and despise the other"
(Matthew 6:24).
"For God hath not given us the spirit of
fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound
mind" (2 Timothy 1:7).
Since its beginning, the festival of Halloween
has played upon people's fears. The Celtic people
believed that on the night of October 31, demons,
witches, and the spirits of all those who had
died within the past year roamed about freely.
Most people were afraid to leave their homes
on this night. Those who absolutely had to go
out wore grotesque masks and terrifying costumes.
They reasoned that if they looked horrible enough,
the spirits would think they were one of them
and would do them no harm!
Fear is a big part of modern Halloween celebrations,
as well. Spooky decorations, horror movies,
and haunted houses make a very real impression
on little children. Is there any wonder so many
youth have nightmares or are afraid to be alone
in the dark? Satan delights in filling people's
minds with thoughts of fear, death, and destruction.
It is a tactic he has used for centuries to
keep mankind under his control.
God, on the other hand, longs to give His children
peace. He doesn't want us to be paralyzed by
our fears. In fact, the Bible says that Christ
died "that through death He might destroy
him who had the power of death, that is, the
devil, and release those who through fear of
death were all their lifetime subject to bondage"
(Hebrews 2:15, NKJV).
"Whether you eat or drink, or whatever
you do, do all to the glory of God" (1
Corinthians 10:31, NKJV).
Several days before their festival began,
the Druid priests would go from house to house
demanding food or other items they would use
in their worship of Samhain, the lord of death.
If a villager refused to give them what they
wanted, the priest would put a demonic curse
on the home. It was no idle threat, either.
Someone from that house usually died within
the year. It is from this abominable practice
that our present-day "trick-or-treat"
custom evolved.
While it is true that trick-or-treat is no
longer primarily about curses, it is about
gluttony. Children go from house to house,
filling grocery bags full of candy and then
returning home to feast on their great treasure.
Often, those who stay at home to hand out
the candy consume great amounts of it themselves!
Even this element of Halloween, which in comparison
might seem harmless, does nothing to glorify
God. The Bible says that the body is the temple
of the Holy Spirit. We should not be polluting
that temple with food that clouds our perceptions
and draws us away from God.
"Have no fellowship with the unfruitful
works of darkness, but rather reprove them"
(Ephesians 5:11).
Satan is no doubt jubilant that such a large
portion of this "Christian nation"
views a holiday in his honor as something
that is harmless fun. Could it be that by
our carelessness, we are contributing to the
extraordinary power Satan seems to have on
October 31?
No matter how fun or exciting it may seem,
Halloween is no celebration for a Christian.
If we truly seek to glorify God, then how
can we devote one day of the year to worshipping
Satan? We can't.
The Bible says, "Ye are a chosen generation,
a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar
people; that ye should shew forth the praises
of him who hath called you out of darkness
into his marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9).
Source: Copyright 2007 by Amazing
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