The Christian, the Church, and halloween

[tzalam2]

Ephesians 5:11-12 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. {12} For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret.

Do not let Satan neutralize your Christian walk, by mixing with it pagan or satanic practices. If it is not of God it is of the flesh and the world: Ephesians 6:12
http://www.bibletruths.org/holidays/hallowen.html

Lest I be accused of gathering slanted information, and putting
a spin on what Halloween is today, I went to this website,
set up and maintained by a person who obviously is NOT born again,
nor a fundamentalist Christian in any way. His website has been
As a “caverns of blood†link of the month, as you will notice on the bottom
Left side of his page, and the bottom right side has a witche’s pentagram symbol.
I’ve also listed websites at the bottom of this topic, from sources
other than pagan/witchcraft people.
http://www.neopagan.net/Halloween-Origins.html

Here’s a site that balances out the first site: http://www.bibletruths.org/holidays/hallowen.html

Here are quotes from the satanic/pagan website:

Halloween is the modern name for Samhain, an ancient Celtic holy day which many Neopagans  especially Wiccans, Druids and Celtic Reconstructionists  celebrate as a spiritual beginning of a new year.
Halloween is a time to confront our personal and cultural attitudes towards death and those who have passed on before us.
Halloween is a time to lift the veil between the many material and spiritual worlds in divination, so as to gain spiritual insight about the pasts and futures.
Halloween is a time to deepen our connection to the cycles of the seasons, to the generations that have come before us and those that will follow, and to the Gods and Goddesses we worship.



http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN% ... 57-7668045
I learned a lot from this book and I consider it essential reading for everyone (especially neo-pagans) who has an interest in this subject.
As a neo-pagan I wouldn't want to have this vast subject explained to me in one sentence - I want examples as to why a certain custom or seasonal festival is important/necessary in the wheel of the year.
****************************************************
Hutton debunks everything he presents; after a while it kind of got on my nerves. Virtually every description and explanation is followed by some sort of "but this probably didn't happen" or "this probably wasn't really the way it was" disclaimer. After reading several chapters, my attitude morphed into "why are you wasting my time telling me about stuff that didn't happen?

http://www.neopagan.net/Halloween-Origins.html
At various times and places in the Middle Ages, customs developed of beggers, then children, asking for “soul cakes†on All Souls Day.

In 19th Century America, rural immigrants from Ireland and Scotland kept gender-specific Halloween customs from their homelands: girls stayed indoors and did divination games, while the boys roamed outdoors engaging in almost equally ritualized pranks, which their elders “blamed†on the spirits being abroad that night.

skeletons and skulls joined the ghosts as symbols of the holiday. Again, there’s nothing evil here, at least to the innocent in heart. Indeed, in Mexico, where the holiday is known as Los dias de los Muertos, or “Days of the Dead,†(combining All Saints Day with All Souls Day) skeleton and skull toys and even candies are made and enjoyed by the millions, many by and for devout Roman Catholics.

Most psychiatrists and psychologists seem to agree that Halloween’s emphatic celebration of death serves to bring out our culture’s suppressed feelings about the topic,

Celebration of death. Hmmm….
Ever heard of the phrase, the death culture? That’s the body of people today, who support
Abortion, ( premeditated death of a child, which is the abortionist convincing the pregnant woman to be a god, and decide who lives, and who dies) euthanasia(death of anyone inconvenient) suicide(the taking of one’s own life, thus, elevating yourself to the status of God), and all sorts of other cheapening of human life. Evolution cheapens the human,
but, we won’t go there right now.


http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/de ... 8&v=glance

Here is a book that brings witchcraft out of the shadows. The Triumph of the Moon is the first full-scale study of the only religion England has ever given the world--modern pagan witchcraft, otherwise known as wicca. Meticulously researched, it provides a thorough account of an ancient religion that has spread from English shores across four continents.

Do you still get involved in ANY WAY with Halloween?
Are you a born again Christian?
Do you know what God says about the occult, and about witches, wizards, familiar spirits,
Do you know what God says about witchcraft, sorcery, divination, oaths, charms, enchanters,
and all things associated with this root of following satan?

Why do churches insist on confusing children, and holding their yearly
“fall festivals� They give out candy, (just like antiChristians do) they encourage
The little ones to dress up in costumes (just like antiChristians do), they play games
And hold their Halloween gatherings after dark, (just like the antiChristians do)
WHY DO YOU CONTINUE TO LINK YOURSELF TO THE DEVIL?
Come out from among them, and BE YE SEPARATE.



I’d like to hear from any pastor, preacher, priest, or church leader who LIKES
To have Halloween festivals at their church.
I’d also like to hear what true Christians do, instead of practicing this demonic
Festival.
What do you do, to sanctify yourself, and to be obviously DIFFERENT from
The pagans who delight in and promote this satanic gathering?

I do not participate in any way, personally. Halloween is treated as
a regular day of the week, a regular night of the week, in that I don’t use the money
God gave me, to buy candy, or costumes, or jack o lanterns, or anything to do with
this wicked night. God gave me the income, and I plan on spending it on things
other than Halloween.
And you?

http://www.historychannel.com/exhibits/ ... gins1.html

http://wilstar.com/holidays/hallown.htm

http://www.halloweenishere.com/history.html
The word itself, "Halloween," actually has its origins in the Catholic Church. It comes from a contracted corruption of All Hallows Eve. (the plot thickens!)

http://www.chick.com/default.asp
http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/5012/5012_01.asp
http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0058/0058_01.asp

Peter I 5:8 Be sober, be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking some one to devour.
1Thessalonians 5:22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.
1Timothy 4:1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by giving heed to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons.

 

[cuiq]

When I became a teen I stop celebrating because I thought it was silly. When I became a christian I realized that it was more than silly but worship of satan (like Santa Claus) even if I was not thinking that at the time.

Today I will not allow my children to celebrate or participate in any school activities related to it. However I have allowed them to write papers (at their request) on Martin luther and the 95 thesis tacked on the Church door (where advertiments were put in those days), no we don't celebrate Martin Luther either. But we recognize what that day means for the church today.



peace V

 

[stray bullet]

http://www.halloweenishere.com/history.html
The word itself, "Halloween," actually has its origins in the Catholic Church. It comes from a contracted corruption of All Hallows Eve. (the plot thickens!)

Yes, Halloween is the Eve of "All Saints Day" which has nothing to do with ghosts or goblins.

It really amazes me how people like to take fun away from children and replace it with paranoia.

There is nothing Satanic about children putting on custumes and going door to door asking for candy.

Just out of curiousity, do you have birthday cakes, blow out candles?

 

[Lyric's Dad]

http://www.halloweenishere.com/history.html
The word itself, "Halloween," actually has its origins in the Catholic Church. It comes from a contracted corruption of All Hallows Eve. (the plot thickens!)

Yes, Halloween is the Eve of "All Saints Day" which has nothing to do with ghosts or goblins.

It really amazes me how people like to take fun away from children and replace it with paranoia.

There is nothing Satanic about children putting on custumes and going door to door asking for candy.

Just out of curiousity, do you have birthday cakes, blow out candles?

Do you know where the practice of costumes, begging candy, jackolanterns, broomsticks, etc. etc. came from?

I know that many things we celebrate have pagan history but I have found a way to redeem them to be glorifying to God. How do you do this with halloween? I certainly do not see how it can be done. We have a great time that night. Our church does a harvest party with games and activities and more candy then if the kids went trick or treating, and not one single reference to halloween throughout.

 

[stray bullet]

You Church is still having a celebration on Halloween because of Halloween.

It never ceases to amaze me how churches scare other Christians into going to their church on halloween instead of trick or treating.

Just out of curiousity, was money at all involved at your church?

Many churches love to have carnivals, whatever on Halloween. Thus, they convince the congregation that halloween is evil and they instead spend the night at their church, giving them money.

Nice racket they got going.

There is nothing Satanic in the kids intentions. When you blow out candles on a birthday cake, your children as celebrating a pagan tradition- blowing out candles on tiny cakes in the temple of Artemis for good luck.

 

[broken]

I agree with stray bullet.

 

[Lyric's Dad]

You Church is still having a celebration on Halloween because of Halloween.

It never ceases to amaze me how churches scare other Christians into going to their church on halloween instead of trick or treating.

Just out of curiousity, was money at all involved at your church?

Many churches love to have carnivals, whatever on Halloween. Thus, they convince the congregation that halloween is evil and they instead spend the night at their church, giving them money.

Nice racket they got going.

There is nothing Satanic in the kids intentions. When you blow out candles on a birthday cake, your children as celebrating a pagan tradition- blowing out candles on tiny cakes in the temple of Artemis for good luck.

What is all this psycho babble about?? Nobody said anything about money. In fact, there is not a dime exchanged. People in the church donate bags of candy for the kids and stuffed animals for the stuffed animal walk. The church volunteers to run the games and we even take photos for the people there FREE! Nobody is "scared" into anything. We simply offer a safe alternative to what is going on in the world.

Your conspiracy theories are a tad overboard.

 

[Mystery]

To those of you who are concerned about Halloween, what do you think about Christmas and Easter? Do the pagan traditions associated with these holidays bother you, too?

I agree with stray bullet that intent is the most important factor here. Kids aren't thinking about ancient Druidic customs when they're walking from house to house. They're thinking about candy! :wink: Plus, pagan Samhain celebrations are entirely different than the popular Halloween celebrations. Halloween has been completely secularized over the centuries, so I think it's harmless.

 

[Lyric's Dad]

To those of you who are concerned about Halloween, what do you think about Christmas and Easter? Do the pagan traditions associated with these holidays bother you, too?

I agree with stray bullet that intent is the most important factor here. Kids aren't thinking about ancient Druidic customs when they're walking from house to house. They're thinking about candy! :wink: Plus, pagan Samhain celebrations are entirely different than the popular Halloween celebrations. Halloween has been completely secularized over the centuries, so I think it's harmless.

Christmas and Easter (which I do not refer to as easter but Resurrection Sunday) were other holidays that I had to consider in my decisions to practice or not. What I have done with them is to ONLY allow things to be part of them that are able to be redeemed to God and point the person to Him.

For example, on CHRISTmas we do not have any decorations that cannot be seen as representing God. The tree is a triangle, thus the three points of the Trinity. All colors are representative of Jesus, Red-blood, purple-royalty, white-purity, etc.

On Resurrection Sunday we do the same thing. We do have an easter egg hunt but we talk about how we are like the egg and God comes out to seek us and the joy we feel when we find one is nothing compared to the joy God feels when He brings one of us home. We do not do bunnies but my child receives a stuffed lamb each year.

There are many things we do to make the holidays about God. I for the life of me cannot find a way to make witches and demons representative of God. Halloween had to go.

 

[stray bullet]

[quote="stray bullet":201d0]You Church is still having a celebration on Halloween because of Halloween.

It never ceases to amaze me how churches scare other Christians into going to their church on halloween instead of trick or treating.

Just out of curiousity, was money at all involved at your church?

Many churches love to have carnivals, whatever on Halloween. Thus, they convince the congregation that halloween is evil and they instead spend the night at their church, giving them money.

Nice racket they got going.

There is nothing Satanic in the kids intentions. When you blow out candles on a birthday cake, your children as celebrating a pagan tradition- blowing out candles on tiny cakes in the temple of Artemis for good luck.

What is all this psycho babble about?? Nobody said anything about money. In fact, there is not a dime exchanged. People in the church donate bags of candy for the kids and stuffed animals for the stuffed animal walk. The church volunteers to run the games and we even take photos for the people there FREE! Nobody is "scared" into anything. We simply offer a safe alternative to what is going on in the world.

Your conspiracy theories are a tad overboard.[/quote:201d0]

It's not a conspiracy theory, many churches do make money off of Halloween.

What is going on in the world? Kids dressing up and getting candy?

There's no satanic intent on their part. Is God being offended by kids having fun?

 

[Mystery]

There are many things we do to make the holidays about God. I for the life of me cannot find a way to make witches and demons representative of God. Halloween had to go.

How about May Day? I'm not sure if many people still celebrate May Day, but it also has pagan origins (it's known as Beltane). When I was a child, we used to make May baskets every year. We would spend hours preparing the baskets, filling them with candy and flowers, and decorating them with ribbons. Then we would run around the neighborhood, leave the baskets on our neighbor's porches, ring the bell, then run away before we got caught. It was always so much fun. It was almost the opposite of Halloween, with kids giving candy to their neighbors, rather than vice versa. We also had a May pole one year, and I have fond memories of it, as well.

Would you object to this? It's certainly not a Christian holiday, but I think it's just harmless fun. I suppose I like both Halloween and May Day because they bring the neighborhood together. Most holidays are celebrated only with close family members, but Halloween and May Day were always shared with the entire community.

 

[guibox]

What is going on in the world? Kids dressing up and getting candy?

There's no satanic intent on their part. Is God being offended by kids having fun?

Though I agree with you on your churches having 'substitute days' being hypocritical, I disagree with you on the 'harmless fun'.

First of all it is not merely about kids going out and getting candy. Halloween is a celebration of darkness, evil, and fear. Witches, goblins, vampires, haunted houses, communication with the dead, seances, obsession with gore and monsters are all celebrated on Halloween.

Why?

If the leopard has changed it's spots so much, where did such things come from? Why are such things still celebrated if they had no origin, or that origin has changed?

The fact is, unlike Christmas, May days or even Easter, Halloween has never changed its spots. It has always been a day dedicated to evil and is still celebrated as such.

Sure there are some who try to distinguish between the darker side and the 'funner' side, but the fact is, is that it is all interwoven and Halloween's basic nature is to be 'scary'. When Satanists and occultists still celebrate it in its original form (and even more malevolent) that should tell you something.

Trying to paint the leopard black to look like a panther doesn't make it a panther.

No matter how much I want to make the upside down pentagram mean "peace and love", doesn't change the fact that it is, and always has been a Satanic symbol.

 

[Mystery]

For the "real" witches, Samhain (which literally means "Summer's End") is a day to celebrate the harvest and to remember ancestors who have passed on. Contrary to popular belief, it's not a day to celebrate evil, fear, or monsterous fiends. I think the "demonic" side of Halloween was created in much the same way the folk image of the "Halloween witch" was created, through the imagination and fear of the common people. Witches didn't create the image of the warty green faced hag flying on a broomstick, the Christians did. I would guess that the devils, demons, blood and gore now associated with Halloween have similar origins. JMO.

 

[guibox]

For the "real" witches, Samhain (which literally means "Summer's End") is a day to celebrate the harvest and to remember ancestors who have passed on. Contrary to popular belief, it's not a day to celebrate evil, fear, or monsterous fiends. I think the "demonic" side of Halloween was created in much the same way the folk image of the "Halloween witch" was created, through the imagination and fear of the common people. Witches didn't create the image of the warty green faced hag flying on a broomstick, the Christians did. I would guess that the devils, demons, blood and gore now associated with Halloween have similar origins. JMO.

The day was also marked by pagan superstition, necromancy and fear of demonic spirits reeking havoc on the people. The Celtic Druids did practice human sacrifice, this is not merely a Christian concoction. Samhain was the god of the dead and the festival of Samhain was not only to celebrate the new year and the harvest, but to appease the evil spirits to ensure a prosperous year.

Considering that the demonic aspect was further developed by Satanism shows that it is not a Christian thing. Why, of all days, is Halloween considered one of the most holy and special days to the Satanist (in addition to one's own birthday)?

 

[Soma-Sight]

Mystery,

You are probably right about that one.....

Halloween is no different than Christmas and Easter as far as its ROOT in pagan religious practice....

So if you get rid of one....

Get rid of all three or you are hypocritical!

Its amazing how much pagan influence there is in the Church practices and cultural holy days......

 

[peace4all]

christmas easter and haloween are al more of a marketing scam now than anything.

No one really has any religous meaning, besides ocasionally christmas cards, and easter mass.

other than that, It is a way to dwell on the insecurities of americans, and make as much money as you can off of it.

 

[Mystery]

Samhain was the god of the dead...

No, Samhain was not a god. It's a common myth that has spread on the internet and there is absolutely no truth to it. Samhain is a Gaelic word that means "Summer's End." The Celts did have gods of the dead, but there is no god called Samhain, and there never has been.

As for the rest, I'm not going to argue with you. You have to follow your conscience, and if you think that walking with your children around the neighborhood to collect candy is somehow as bad as the (alleged) human sacrifices of ancient druids, then so be it. As I see it, Halloween is a secular holiday. It's a time for kids to dress up as superheroes, pirates, and angels, and to binge on candy until they're sick of it. I see nothing religious about it.

 

[guibox]

Samhain was the god of the dead...

No, Samhain was not a god. It's a common myth that has spread on the internet and there is absolutely no truth to it. Samhain is a Gaelic word that means "Summer's End." The Celts did have gods of the dead, but there is no god called Samhain, and there never has been.

As for the rest, I'm not going to argue with you. You have to follow your conscience, and if you think that walking with your children around the neighborhood to collect candy is somehow as bad as the (alleged) human sacrifices of ancient druids, then so be it. As I see it, Halloween is a secular holiday. It's a time for kids to dress up as superheroes, pirates, and angels, and to binge on candy until they're sick of it. I see nothing religious about it.

Well obviously I'm not saying that going out for candy and sacrificing humans is the same thing. Who would? That's not the point.

The point is: Can we go and paint a leopard and call it a panther and then make it acceptable to do so when the painted panther is really still a leopard?

Does going around getting candy in the name of Halloween make it acceptable to celebrate when Halloween is, has been, will always be focused and centered on death, fear, dying, the supernatural, ghouls, spirits, occultism and anarchy? Trying to 'santize' a demonic holiday doesn't make it right out of prinicple regardless of the 'harmlessness' of the activity.

It would be akin for me attending a Satanic holiday celebration and believing that I am worshipping Christ when they all bow down to Satan.
Is there anything wrong with bowing down to Christ? Not on it's own merits, but the meaning is tainted when I try to make it 'different' from the norm and the meaning of the convention is the worship of Satan and not Christ.

My worshipping Christ doesn't make the Satanic convention alright