By COGwriter
Let's get real about Halloween.
What is Halloween?
Was it an original Christian practice?
Where did it come from?
Is it a holiday that the God of the Bible approves of? Do Halloween and Christianity belong together?
Here is a link to a related sermon: Let's Get Real About Halloween.
Basics and Origins
Halloween is an old English word which means "hallowed evening."
It is the night before the Roman Catholic holiday that they claim to have adopted from the Eastern Orthodox now called All Saints Day (which in Mexico is celebrated as "the Day of the Dead"; see also All Saints Day and the Day of the Dead).
Part of the public Roman Catholic rationale for All Saints Day is that they have so many saints they wish to honor that they decided to lump all those without a specific day into this one. (Here are links to two related sermonette length videos: Halloween: Are there 7 reasons for Christians to celebrate it? and International 'Halloween' Should Christians observe Halloween?)
It seems that more and more adults are participating in this annual event--though there have also been more objections to it than in the past. Way back in 1998, CNN reported that Halloween was the second biggest holiday of the year for many businesses--a 2007 news story also seemed to confirm this.
Notice also:
September 20, 2018
According to the National Retail Federation’s annual survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics, total spending for Halloween is expected to reach $9 billion, the second highest in the survey’s 14-year history. The figure is relatively the same as last year’s previous record of $9.1 billion.
Celebrants are planning to spend an average of $86.79, up from last year’s $86.13, with more than 175 million Americans planning to partake in Halloween festivities this year. https://nrf.com/media/press-releases/halloween-spending-reach-9-billion
Since many promote Halloween, we put together a video sermon titled: Debunking 17 reasons to celebrate Halloween.
It is believed that Halloween contains many of the remnants of an autumn holiday celebrated by the Druids called Samhain (apparently pronounced "sah-van" though some say SAH win or SOW in--and apparently meaning "summers end"). There historically have been pagan figures with names that are similar to this. For example, there was a Celtic hero named Samain or Sawan who supposedly owned a magical cow. In other pagan religions, there was Samana ("the leveler") the name of an Aryan God of Death (a.k.a. Yama, Sradhadeva, Antaka, or Kritanta) according to the ancient Veda scriptures of Hinduism and Shamash was the Sun God of the Assyrians and Babylonians. Some of the idea for modern costumes came via France.
Essentially, the timing of Halloween seems to be related to certain movements of the sun. Notice the following:
Halloween is date of astronomical interest. It has to do with seasons: Halloween is a cross-quarter date, approximately midway between an equinox and a solstice. There are four cross-quarter dates throughout the year, and each is a minor holiday: Groundhog Day (Feb. 2nd), May Day (May 1st), Lammas Day (Aug. 1st), and Halloween (Oct. 31st).
"Long ago, the Celts of the British Isles used cross-quarter days to mark the beginnings of seasons. Winter began with Halloween, or as they called it, Samhain," says John Mosley of the Griffith Observatory.
"Halloween marked the transition between summer and winter, light and dark -- and life and death. On that one night, according to folklore, those who had died during the previous year returned for a final visit to their former homes. People set out food and lit fires to aid them on their journey -- but remained on guard for mischief the spirits might do." (Spooky Astronomy. http://spaceweather.com/ present 10/31/07).
October 12, 2020
The modern-day rituals of donning masks, wearing costumes, and bobbing for apples can be traced back centuries to pre-Christian-era Celtic celebrations, says Fred Supp, a history professor at Ball State University.
He points out that a majority of Halloween traditions originated with the ancient Celts and their priests, the Druids. Other civilizations adopted and modified the Celtic rituals, such as bobbing for apples or donning disguises.
“The Celts can be traced back to 800 B.C., to what is now southern Germany and include the ancestors of the Scottish, Irish, Manx, Welsh, Cornish and Bretons,” said Suppe, an expert in Celtic folklore. “Particular motifs of modern-day Halloween — such as the date and time it is celebrated, children trick-or-treating, the jack-o’-lantern and bobbing for apples — are related to Celtic traditions.”
When Christianity was introduced to the Celts, church leaders tried to persuade them to abandon their pagan celebrations and adopt the Christian calendar. Because these traditions were culturally ingrained, the church provided alternative holy days such as All Saints’ Day on November 1. https://www.bsu.edu/news/press-center/archives/2020/10/halloween-traditions-date-back-centuries
No, the true and faithful Christian church did not try to do that. But a compromised one did.
Here is something about dressing up and going door to door:
October 12, 2020
Before 'Trick or Treating', Scots would go Galoshin' or Guisin' where they would dress up in costumes often darkening their faces or wearing masks before donning old clothes.
The earliest form of this tradition stemmed from the need for villagers to "hide" the young to avoid them being “taken” by the evil spirits around Samhuinn.
Later, when it was adopted by Christians, disguised villagers 'tricked' all evil spirits to reveal themselves in order to ensure the following day (All Saints day) was cleansed and purged of any lurking negative spirits.
The practice of door knocking is believed to have come from the village elders and pagan druids collecting food for the Samhain feasts or gathering offerings for the aos sí (fairies) to ensure the community’s livestock survived the winter. https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/scotland-now/halloween-traditions-words-you-only-22832656
Notice that in Asia, versions of this day, somewhat like the Celts and the pre-Hispanic Mexicans, it is celebrated near the first of August:
Japan has its own Halloween-type celebration known as "O-bon," an old Buddhist holiday meant to honor ancestors. It takes place in mid-August or July. Graves are visited and cleaned, food offerings are made, lanterns are hung in front of houses to guide spirits, and a ritualized dance called "bon-odori" takes place to welcome them. On the last day of O-bon, to guide spirits on their journey, the Japanese partake in a ceremony called "Toro nagashi," in which paper lanterns are floated down a river.
O-bon originates from the Chinese Buddhist celebration of "Ullambana," which has the same notion that during this time, spirits are able to move among us.
The Ullambana Sutra, a traditionally Indian story, is the scripture that addresses this day, with the story of Mahamaudgalyayana, a disciple of Buddha, whose mother had been reborn into a lower realm. Though interpretations of the story vary, Buddha's instructions to his student mirror modern practices of the day, which is to offer food and pray for the souls of both living and dead relatives. People also would give donations to monks.
The current celebration in Taiwan and China of the Ghost Festival pays homage to this Buddhist holiday, but includes the practices of burning money, clothes and goods, which are believed to then make it to the spirit world in full, as well as the release of paper boats and lanterns into rivers (Meaning, sanctity of Halloween is lost in translation St. Cloud Times, MN - Oct 21, 2007 http://www.sctimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071021/OPINION/110210041/1006/NEWS01).
Hence, the foundations of Halloween include Eastern positions, and certainly are not of Christian origin.
Satan has successfully gotten many of his holidays endorsed by many cultures and religions of the world.
There is actually another day, somewhat like Halloween, that is observed April 30th mainly in parts of Europe. For more information on it, please see Walpurgis Night: Witches’ Sabbath?
Druids and Bone Fires
Growing up I was familiar with bonfires, and simply thought that they were warm and provided light. But later I learned that their origins were related to Halloween.
Notice that:
The Druids, and order of priests in ancient Gaul and Britain, believed that on Halloween, ghosts, spirits, fairies, witches, and elves came out to harm people. They thought the cat was sacred and believed that cats had once been human beings but were changed for punishment for their evil deeds. From these Druid beliefs come the present-day use of witches, ghosts, and cats in Halloween festivities...The custom of using leaves, pumpkins, and corn stalks as Halloween decorations comes from the Druids. The early peoples of Europe also had a festival similar to the Druid holiday...In the 700s, the Roman Catholic Church named November 1 as All Saints' Day. The old pagan customs and the Christian feast day were combined into the Halloween festival [Halloween. World Book Encyclopedia, vol 9. Chicago, 1966: 25-26].
The origins of Halloween specifically can be traced back to the ancient Celts (who lived in what is now known as Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Northern France) and their Druid priests. The end of October commemerated their festival of the waning year ... Druids believed that during this season spirits walked, and evil held power over the souls of men. On October 31, their New Year's Eve, great bonfires were kindled, which were thought to simulate the sun to procure blessings for the entire succeeding year. The fires remained burning as a means to frighten away evil spirits. The Druids held these early Halloween celebrations in honor of Samhain, also known as Lord of the Dead, whose festival fell on November 1. There bonfires, or "bone fires", were also used in animal and human sacrifice--thus the name. The tradition of lighting a bonfire has continued to modern times (Coulter F.R. Occult Holiday--or--God's Holy Days--Which? York Publishing Company, Hollister (CA) 2006).
Lord of the Dead? Three immediate issues come to mind.
The first is something Jesus said:
27 He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living. You are therefore greatly mistaken. (Mark 12:27)
The second is that the dead know nothing:
5 For the living know that they shall die, but the dead know nothing more, (Ecclesiastes 9:5, DRB)
Third, notice:
43 Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. 44 You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. 45 But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me. 46 Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? 47 He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God. (John 8:43-47)
Halloween is a lie. The dead do not become more accessible then. Saints do not answer prayers.
But those who cannot accept the truth are not of God.
bonfire ... late M.E. bone fire, i.e. a fire with bones for fuel (Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language. Gramercy Books, New York. 1989, p. 168).
Growing up, no one I knew ever mentioned that bonfires originally were bone fires.
Jack-o'-Lanterns
Here is the probable origin of of lanterns:
The practice of creating lanterns stems from the use of fire to scare off evil spirits. 10/12/20 https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/scotland-now/halloween-traditions-words-you-only-22832656
A claimed origin of jack-o'-lanterns is somewhat amusing.
The Irish have a story that a man named Jack died who was too much of a miser to be with God and was not allowed to be with the devil since he had played practical jokes on him. Since Jack had nowhere to go, he was to walk the earth carrying a lantern until Judgment Day.
In Ireland and Scotland, originally, carved turnips were used for jack-o-lanterns, though most now use pumpkins.
Here are some more on origins:
According to historian Ronald Hutton, in the 19th century, Hallowe'en guisers in parts of Ireland and the Scottish Highlands commonly used jack-o'-lanterns made from turnips and mangelwurzels. They were "often carved with grotesque faces to represent spirits or goblins". In these areas, 31 October to 1 November was known as Samhain and it was seen as a time when spirits or fairies were particularly active. Hutton says that they were also used at Hallowe'en in Somerset (see Punkie Night) during the 19th century. Christopher Hill also writes that "jack-o'-lanterns were carved out of turnips or squashes and were literally used as lanterns to guide guisers on All Hallows' Eve." Some claim that the jack-o'-lanterns originated with All Saints' Day (1 November)/All Souls' Day (2 November) and represented Christian souls in purgatory. (Jack-o'-Lantern. Wikipedia, viewed 04/05/15)
Guisers are people in disguises, such as mummers and those wearing a mask.
Certainly, jack-o'-lanterns are not biblical.
The Bible
In Leviticus chapter 23, it lists:
2 The feasts of the LORD, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, these are My feasts. (Leviticus 23:2).
All Saints' Day evening (Halloween) is not a biblically enjoined feast day for Christians (it even seems to be warned against in Deuteronomy 4:15-24). Actually the Bible warns against worshipping God the way the pagans, etc. did (Leviticus 18:3; Deuteronomy 12:31, Jeremiah 10:2-3).
The Bible repeatedly warns against the practices of witches (Exodus 22:18; Deuteronomy 18:10, Galatians 5:20) and dealing with ghosts/etc. (Deuteronomy 18:11, I Chronicles 10:13).
In addition the Bible specifically teaches:
19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: ... 20 idolatry, sorcery, ... outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 ... drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21).
Halloween is clearly a heresy that with elements of revelries that the Bible teaches against.
Halloween is rebellious against God and specifically promotes aspects of witchcraft. Furthermore notice:
10 There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, 11 or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. 12 For all who do these things are an abomination to the Lord, and because of these abominations the Lord your God drives them out from before you. 13 You shall be blameless before the Lord your God. 14 For these nations which you will dispossess listened to soothsayers and diviners; but as for you, the Lord your God has not appointed such for you. (Deuteronomy 18:10-14).
23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. (1 Samuel 15:23).
17 And they caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire, practiced witchcraft and soothsaying, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke Him to anger. 18 Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel, and removed them from His sight; there was none left but the tribe of Judah alone. (2 Kings 17:17-18).
The original KJV also has this statement:
"Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live" (Exodus 22:18 KJV).
Of course, we do not kill nor advocating the killing of witches by people now (capital punishment was always supposed to be implemented by the civil authorities). But Christians also should not participate in a holiday that glorifies or otherwise honors them either.
Back in 1969, Anton Lavey wrote The Satanic Bible. What does The Satanic Bible say about Halloween? On page 96 on the 1976 version, it mentions the following
After one's own birthday, the two major Satanic holidays are Walpurgisnacht and Halloween (or All Hallows' Eve) ...
Halloween - All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Day - falls on October 31st or November 1st. Originally, All Hallows' Eve was one of the great fire festivals of Britain at the time of the Druids. In Scotland it was associated with the time when the spirits of the dead, the demons, witches, and sorcerers were unusually active and propitious. Paradoxically, All Hallows' Eve was also the night when young people performed magical rituals to determine their future marriage partners. The youth of the villages carried on with much merry-making and sensual revelry, but the older people took great care to safeguard their homes from the evil spirits, witches, and demons who had exceptional power that night (Lavey A, Gilmore P. The Satanic Bible. Avon, September 1, 1976, p. 96--note it is on page 53 of an online version I found also).
So, yes Halloween is something that certain Satanists do celebrate (for information about birthdays, please see the article Did Early Christians Celebrate Birthdays?).
Notice something related to an ex-Satanist turned Protestant:
John Ramirez spent much of his early life with strong ties to the devil--he drank animal blood, conducted sacrifices, was baptized with the devil and got married in a demonic wedding on Halloween. ...
"I wonder why people celebrate Halloween these days," the 55-year-old told Fox News. "Because in essence, I know what Halloween is about. I was in witchcraft for 25 years ... selling my soul to the devil, I was a general for the devil ... as a warlock."
He added: "Have you ever heard a Satanist say, 'I can't wait for Good Friday to go to church with you?' So, why would the Christians say, 'I can't wait for Halloween to say I want to dress up' ... It's cheating on God, really."
Ramirez, who grew up in the Bronx, was part of a Satanist church from when he was 8 years old to 35 years old. ...
He showed Fox News the marks on his body, the "mark of the beast," as he reached the "highest rank of devil worshippers" and a "name chosen by the devil himself," after kissing a human skull and being cut open and burned in demonic ceremonies. ...
Ramirez said he threw away thousands of dollars worth of witchcraft materials in the closet -- including human bones, cemetery dirt, etc. ...
He said all the witches claiming to do witchcraft against President Trump, "That was a hoax, just to make money."
The author of "Destroying Fear," said, "The devil's greatest weapon is fear," 10/30/19 https://www.foxnews.com/faith-values/halloween-celebrate-christian-satanist-evangelist
Should Christians celebrate Halloween or let their children celebrate it?
One article at the mislabeled Christianity Today starts out with the statement:
I love Halloween (Mendenhall D. A Halloween Solution. Christianity Today, October 31, 2005. http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/novemberweb-only/13.0.html).
In the past Christianity Today has sold various trinkets associated with the observance of Halloween (one year, it was advertising Jack-o-Lantern car magnets when I checked).
Another article at the mislabeled Christianity Today starts out with the statement:
Halloween has always been a tricky day for conservative Protestants. (Lee M. Christianity Today, October 28, 2020 https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/podcasts/quick-to-listen/death-covid-darkness-halloween-coronavirus.html)
By "conservative," presumably this means one who may realize that Halloween is a pagan observance that Christians should not be part of.
One headline at the mislabeled Christianity Today was:
"Why Should the Devil Get Halloween?" (Rivadeneira C. Christianity Today, October 29, 2010. http://www.christianitytoday.com/women/2010/october/why-should-devil-get-halloween.html viewed 10/01/13).
Well, the simple answer is that it is NOT a biblical holiday and the Bible says not to worship the true God like the pagans worshipped their deities.
Notice also the following:
October 20, 2014
In light of his new film "Saving Christmas," Kirk Cameron is also speaking out on Halloween celebrations, urging Christians to get into the spooky spirit this year.
"Kirk Cameron's Saving Christmas" hits select theaters on Nov. 14, ... Cameron addressed the same theories as they are applied to Halloween, clarifying why Christians "should have the biggest Halloween party on your block."
"The real origins have a lot to do with All Saints Day and All Hallows Eve," the actor told The Christian Post. "If you go back to old church calendars, especially Catholic calendars, they recognize the holiday All Saints Day, with All Hallows Eve the day before, when they would remember the dead. That's all tied in to Halloween."
Moreover, the "Unstoppable" star went on to cite the meaning behind dressing up in frightening costumes on Halloween, clarifying the meaning of Oct. 31.
"When you go out on Halloween and see all people dressed in costumes and see someone in a great big bobble head Obama costume with great big ears and an Obama face, are they honoring him or poking fun?" Cameron asked.
"They are poking fun at him," the actor said, answering his own question before comparing the concept of costumes to early Christianity.
"Early on, Christians would dress up in costumes as the devil, ghosts, goblins and witches precisely to make the point that those things were defeated and overthrown by the resurrected Jesus Christ," Cameron continued. "The costumes poke fun at the fact that the devil and other evils were publicly humiliated by Christ at His resurrection. That's what the Scriptures say, that He publicly humiliated the devil when He triumphed over power and principality and put them under his feet. Over time you get some pagans who want to go this is our day, high holy day of Satanic church, that this is all about death, but Christians have always known since the first century that death was defeated, that the grave was overwhelmed, that ghosts, goblins, devils are foolish has-beens who used to be in power but not anymore. That's the perspective Christians should have. http://www.christianpost.com/news/kirk-cameron-on-halloween-christians-should-have-the-biggest-party-on-the-block-128345/
Isn't the perspective real Christians should have is what does the Bible teach and what did early Christians do?
The Apostle Paul wrote:
8 Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day twenty-three thousand fell; 9 nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents; 10 nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer. 11 Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. 12 Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. (1 Corinthians 10:8-12)
No, we are not to follow heathen practices because we may think we will not be affected.
Consider also the following by Jason Mankey:
Cameron continues in the interview:
“Over time you get some pagans who want to go this is our day, high holy day of Satanic church, that this is all about death, but Christians have always known since the first century that death was defeated, that the grave was overwhelmed, that ghosts, goblins, devils are foolish has-beens who used to be in power but not anymore. That’s the perspective Christians should have.”
Everything in this quote shows extreme diarrhea of the mouth. Christians right up until the modern day have been afraid of devils, goblins, and ghosts, and that fear often manifested on Halloween. To the Christian of the Middle Ages the night was full of terrors, and things didn’t really change until the 20th Century. http://www.patheos.com/blogs/panmankey/2014/10/kirk-cameron-doesnt-get-halloween-like-most-people/#udp0U90wBMfduxrG.99
Despite Kirk Cameron's claims, the Bible condemns pagan celebrations and early Christians did NOT dress up as witches and devils. Related to that, someone properly commented, "If there is anything Kirk Cameron is fond of, other than bananas, it is making up his own facts about things. ... this week, he brings us his version of the history of Halloween" (https://www.deathandtaxesmag.com/229911/kirk-cameron-explains-how-jesus-invented-halloween-to-mock-obama-or-something/).
Christianity Today ran the following interview with the author of Prayer in the Night: For Those Who Work, or Watch, or Weep, Tish Harrison Warren. She also was a columnist and a priest in the Anglican Church in North America:
OCTOBER 28, 2020
What would you say that our celebrations of Halloween say about our culture's beliefs about death and how we understand it?
Tish Warren: That's an interesting thing to think about Halloween tied to our culture's beliefs about death. Because typically it's silly, right? It sort of trivializes darkness in some ways and the portrayals of death are kind of funny or silly.
And actually, this is part of historic Halloween. Part of the idea of people dressing up like goblins and that sort of thing is that it was to mock the devil, to mock evil, to basically say “you have no power over us.” Some folks would say historically it wasn't really about glorifying darkness as much as mocking the powers, showing them that they're not all that powerful. So I don't think Halloween is a true reckoning with death. I think it sort of makes light of it.
What's interesting to think about with Halloween though is the supernatural. I read somewhere recently that more people believe in demons than angels. I'm not sure why that is, but even that is made kind of light and silly on Halloween. https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/podcasts/quick-to-listen/death-covid-darkness-halloween-coronavirus.html
The Bible teaches:
10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; (Ephesians 6:10-17)
The Bible does not teach to put on costumes of witches or other things associated with darkness. Early Christians did NOT dress up as witches. True Christians rely on the word of God.
The Catholic Encyclopedia admits that Halloween was not part of the original faith:
In the early days the Christians were accustomed to solemnize the anniversary of a martyr's death for Christ at the place of martyrdom. In the fourth century, neighbouring dioceses began to interchange feasts, to transfer relics, to divide them, and to join in a common feast; as is shown by the invitation of St. Basil of Caesarea (379) to the bishops of the province of Pontus. ...
Gregory III (731-741) consecrated a chapel in the Basilica of St. Peter to all the saints and fixed the anniversary for 1 November. A basilica of the Apostles already existed in Rome, and its dedication was annually remembered on 1 May. Gregory IV (827-844) extended the celebration on 1 November to the entire Church. The vigil seems to have been held as early as the feast itself. The octave was added by Sixtus IV (1471-84). ( (1907). All Saints' Day. In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company)
So, November 1st did not become the widespread practice until the 9th century--this is after the Church of Rome began dealing with many of the Druid faith which did observe the night of October 31st.
Now, here is something related to Justin Bieber's wife Hailey:
October 18, 2019
Hailey Bieber caused some confusion when she posted an Instagram story explaining that she is “claiming” Halloween for Christians
“I’m a Christian. Do you have any idea what that means historically?” she wrote. “It means I redefine everything in culture. Pagan Feast of Winter Solstice? Oh that’s now JESUS BIRTHDAY. Pagan Feast of Spring Planting? Oh that’s now EASTER WEEKEND. Pagan Celtic Festival involving dressing up and warding off evil spirits? Oh now it’s ALL SAINTS DAY and we celebrate the VICTORIOUS CHURCH THAT HAS BEEN OVERCOME BY THE BLOOD OF THE LAMB!!! CANDY PLEASE!!!” https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2019/10/8594141/halloween-christian-holiday-hailey-bieber
Yes, I do understand historically what it means to be a Christian (see also Continuing History of the Church of God)--but apparently Hailey Bieber does not.
Furthermore, multiple wrongs do not make a right. No, none of the pagan holidays have been embraced by true Christians--but compromisers claiming Christ continue to do so (see also Hope of Salvation: How the Continuing Church of God Differs from Protestantism). The Church/Churches that promote Halloween are not following the ways of Jesus.
Some claim it is fine for "Chrstians" to celebrate it. Notice the following from Isabella Bass of St. Edward’s University (a Roman Catholic-based institution):
Opinion: Should Christians Celebrate Halloween, or does it conflict with their values?
October 20, 2021
Halloween is a fun day for both children and adults because it is so versatile and conducive to self-expression. ... Some Christians have an opposition to celebrating Halloween, while others see no problem with the holiday. In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with celebrating Halloween as a Christian. If someone’s religious beliefs conflict with the holiday, there are other ways to get into the Halloween spirit.
Halloween originated from the Celtic “end of summer” festival of Samhain, as the Celts celebrated their new year on Nov. 1. During Samhain, crops and animals were sacrificed to the Celtic gods and it was seen as a day where the living and dead came together. According to this tradition, spirits were able to roam free during Samhain, and the Celtics hoped to see their loved ones who had passed. This celebration seems like it was rooted in something very positive, but Halloween has evolved into more negative connotations as time has gone on.
The condemnation of Halloween by some Christians is rooted in the belief that Halloween is a pagan holiday, and that it glorifies both evil and the Devil.
“As a professor and in my personal life, I don’t see any intrinsic conflict between Halloween and Christian values,” religious studies professor Jennifer Veninga said. “In fact, I think that Halloween provides rich opportunities for faithful celebration of life and recognition of the reality of death.”
I think this is a very interesting way to look at Halloween, and it is a take I haven’t heard of.
I agree with Halloween being inherently spiritual, as it celebrates life, death, and potential afterlife. It would be beneficial, in my opinion, if more people looked at Halloween with this mindset. It would bring more positivity to the holiday. https://www.hilltopviewsonline.com/24376/viewpoints/opinion-should-christians-celebrate-halloween-or-does-it-conflict-with-their-values/
Note the her OPINIONS and feelings that lying about love ones make Halloween good and interesting. Halloween gives a false impression about death. Furthermore, real Christians understood that Jesus taught:
23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. (John 4:23-24)
Halloween is NOT based on truth and real Christians understand that. Real Christians accept the words of Jesus above their opinions or temporal feelings.
Notice also the following "justifications" by Protestant Pastor Alan Rudnik:
Here are 7 ways Christians can take back Halloween:
1. Understand that All Hallows Eve (Halloween) and the ancient pagan festival of Samhain are not the same. ... Gregory III (731–741) and Gregory IV (827–844) moved the Christian holiday All Saints’ Day from May 13 to November 1 to replace the pagan rituals on October 31 and November 1. Gregory III instructed people to dress up as saints. Let the occult have Samhain, we are taking All Hallows Eve back.
2. The establishment of Christmas and Easter in Europe had pagan connections but we do not abandon these holidays. Neither should we abandon All Hallows Eve. ...
3. Understanding that early Christians contextualized early pagan holidays into Christian holidays helps us to see that we do not have to compromise our beliefs with pagan ones. Anthony McRoy, a Fellow of the British Society for Middle East Studies at Wales Evangelical School of Theology reminds us:
Of course, even if Christians did engage in contextualization—expressing their message and worship in the language or forms of the local people—that in no way implies doctrinal compromise.
4. “Evil” themes in our current secular Halloween observances were not always present. Thus, we can recapture the spiritual with the innocent. Halloween does not have to be a holiday filled with Draculas, bloody masks, or witches. ...
5. If you still think Halloween is an evil day, then maybe you should see All Hallows Eve as a time when Christians can laugh and even mock evil. Anderson M. Rearick, assistant professor of English at Mount Vernon Nazarene College in Ohio, challenges us to rethink Halloween:
Should the forces of evil be mocked? Should Satan be laughed at? He most certainly should be. At the beginning of The Screwtape Letters, C. S. Lewis includes two telling quotations, the first from Martin Luther: “The best way to drive out the devil, if he will not yield to texts of Scripture, is to jeer and flout him, for he cannot bear scorn.”
6. Christians should focus and teach the concept of celebrating All Saint’s Day, November 1st in churches.
The term “saint” is used over 60 times in the New Testament. We protestants use the word saints to describe the Christians living and dead. We can also honor our loved ones who have given us Christ, such as our parents, grandparents, etc… We thank God for them and pray that the living “saints” may live in community. Churches can use All Saints Day to light candles as an act of prayer for thanking God for the special people (“saints”) in our lives.We can also learn from the saints of the church for the last 2,000 years. We protestants have often been fearful of honoring and learning from the Church saints for fear that we are venerating them as Catholics do.
7. Christ holds the “keys to death and Hades” (Revelation 1:18). We can take comfort in the fact that Christ defeated death. Even the mere name of “Jesus Christ” can make evil shutter and even follow the commands of God. (Pastor Alan Rudnik. 7 Reasons why a Christian can celebrate Halloween. October 28, 2010. http://www.alanrudnick.org/2010/10/28/7-reasons-why-christians-should-celebrate-halloween/ accessed 10/18/15)
Christians cannot "take back" what is anti-biblical--Halloween was never a Christian observance.
But apparently according to that Protestant pastor, if you feel that the Bishop of Rome has authority over your spiritual life (1), that you are to venerate dead saints and/or consider them mediators in conflict with 1 Timothy 2:5 (1,6), that modified paganism pleases God (1,2), that multiple wrongs make something right (1,2), that adopting pagan customs is not doctrinal compromise (3), that although vulgar and bad costumes are often used that because not all costumes are that way this is holiday is okay (4), that people spend Halloween mocking evil and the devil when they celebrate a pagan holiday (5), that you should venerate dead saints and light candles like the Church of Rome (6), that Halloween is a type of memorial to Christ's death (7), and that keeeping Halloween is following the commands of God (7), then you clearly do not believe the Bible, so, if this is how you 'take back' Halloween, then clearly you worship a different God than we in the Continuing Church of God do. Jude wrote:
3 Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. 4 For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. (Jude 3-4)
Halloween, Christmas, and Easter were NOT part of the original faith. All three have aspects that promote lewdness, eg.: lewd costumes for Halloween, Christmas mistletoe for physical contact, and sex goddess promotion for Easter (the name of a sex goddess).
Even though it somewhat endorses it, according to Christianity Today, Halloween is clearly of pagan origin:
More than a thousand years ago Christians confronted pagan rites appeasing the lord of death and evil spirits. Halloween's unsavory beginnings preceded Christ's birth when the druids, in what is now Britain and France, observed the end of summer with sacrifices to the gods. It was the beginning of the Celtic year, and they believed Samhain, the lord of death, sent evil spirits abroad to attack humans, who could escape only by assuming disguises and looking like evil spirits themselves. The waning of the sun and the approach of dark winter made the evil spirits rejoice and play nasty tricks. Most of our Halloween practices can be traced back to the old pagan rites and superstitions ...
Chrysostom tells us that as early as the fourth century, the Eastern church celebrated a festival in honor of all saints...Some people question the whole idea of co-opting pagan festivals and injecting them with biblical values. Did moving the celebration to November to coincide with the druidic practices of the recently conquered Scandinavians simply lay a thin Christian veneer over a pagan celebration? Have we really succeeded in co-opting Christmas and Easter, or have neopagans taken them back with Easter bunnies and reindeer? In a sense, it's always been the same debate: do we ignore a pagan romp, merge with it, attack it, or cover it up with seasonal fun?...
However we must never be superficial about it. Evil exists. It impinges on our world. Jesus, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, was never naive about evil. Some, hearing the call for celebration of the light, would reassure all with a Disneyesque church production on heaven's delights.
Unfortunately, the more gruesome aspects of Halloween observances carry a certain authenticity ...
Those who feel squeamish about immature children identifying with evil should not be too lightly dismissed. Nor is it necessarily healthy for witches to be depicted as darling little black-magic miscreants, as if all evil were simply a silly folklore heritage for our enlightened contemporary amusement ... (Myra H. Is Halloween a Witches Brew? Christianity Today, October 22, 1982. http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2000/octoberweb-only/42.0.html verfied 10/18/07).
Although the above implies early Christian observance of some type of All Saints' Day, this is simply not true of the early true Christians.
Here is a view from another Protestant:
The origins of Halloween are Celtic in tradition and have to do with observing the end of summer sacrifices to gods in Druidic tradition. In what is now Britain and France, it was the beginning of the Celtic year, and they believed Samhain, the lord of death, sent evil spirits abroad to attack humans, who could escape only by assuming disguises and looking like evil spirits themselves. The waning of the sun and the approach of dark winter made the evil spirits rejoice and play nasty tricks. Believe it or not, most of our Halloween practices can be traced back to these old pagan rites and superstitions.
But what about today? Perhaps we can still learn from history. In the fourth century, Christians attempted to co-opt the holiday by celebrating the lives of faithful Christian saints the day before Halloween. This was a conscious attempt to provide an alternative and re-focus the day away from ghouls, goblins, ghosts, witches and other “haunted” experiences. Since that time many Christians have decided to allow their children to dress in more “innocent” costumes of pumpkins, princesses, Superman or as a cowboy. Part of this is due to the simple reality that in today’s Western culture it is nearly impossible to “avoid” Halloween.
Just before reaching a conclusion on the subject, I was struck with the thought that I ought to further my search and find out what Wicca, the official religion of witchcraft, has to say about Halloween. Perhaps they viewed the day as a simple fun and innocent neighborhood activity?
“Shock” is the only word to describe what I found. Halloween is a real, sacred day for those who follow Wicca. In fact, it is one of two high and holy days for them. The Celtic belief of spirits being released is current, along with the worship of Samhain (the lord of death) – both are promoted as something to embrace on that day. There is no question in my mind that to those who believe and follow the practices of witchcraft, Halloween represents an opportunity to embrace the evil, devilish, dark side of the spiritual world.
So after discovering this, what is a reasonable conclusion? As Christians you and I are placed in this world to be a light in a world of darkness. There is no lasting benefit to ignore a holiday that exists around us, but it also does harm to celebrate Halloween as it has originated and grown over the centuries. (Watson E. Should Christians Celebrate Halloween? CBN. http://www.cbn.com/spirituallife/onlinediscipleship/halloween/halloween_watt05.aspx accessed 10/18/15)
Furthermore, Halloween/All Saints’ Day is NOT listed in the early observances of even the Roman or Eastern Orthodox Catholic churches as the early writings by Tertullian and Origen show (see article What Does the Catholic Church Teach About Christmas and the Holy Days?).
Notice also:
All Saints' Day
In the fourth century, neighbouring dioceses began to interchange feasts, to transfer relics, to divide them, and to join in a common feast; as is shown by the invitation of St. Basil of Caesarea (397) to the bishops of the province of Pontus. Frequently groups of martyrs suffered on the same day, which naturally led to a joint commemoration. In the persecution of Diocletian the number of martyrs became so great that a separate day could not be assigned to each. But the Church, feeling that every martyr should be venerated, appointed a common day for all. The first trace of this we find in Antioch on the Sunday after Pentecost. We also find mention of a common day in a sermon of St. Ephrem the Syrian (373), and in the 74th homily of St. John Chrysostom (407). ( "All Saints' Day." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. Nihil Obstat. March 1, 1907. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., Censor. Imprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 11 Aug. 2013 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01315a.htm>)
Additionally, three points related to John Chrysostom need to be mentioned.
The first is that a careful reading of his 74th homily (which supposedly is where he declared this observation according to The Catholic Encyclopedia) shows that he discussed the deaths of prophets, but it is not clear to me that John Chrysostom declared the “Christian” observation of something that resembles “All Saints’ Day.”
The second is that John Chrysostom was a hater of Jews (see the article John Chrysostom, Bishop of Constantinople and Antisemite ) and biblical practices (see article Did Early Christians Observe the Fall Holy Days?). So even if he somehow was endorsing something, why would anyone wish to cite him for support of activities for true Christians?
And the third point is that John Chrysostom was speaking over a century after the Greco-Roman confederation took over as the predominant claimers of Christianity (this is discussed in the article The History of Early Christianity), hence John Chrysostom was not even part of the true Church of God when he spoke.
Of course, as even Christianity Today admits, the more gruesome aspects of Halloween reflect undesirable pagan authenticity. So contrary to the leanings of Christianity Today, its own writings should be understood as admitting that Halloween should be condemned and not observed by true Christians.
How All Saints' Day actually became a universal holiday shows another type of pagan connection:
All Saints' Day ... It was first celebrated on May 13, A.D. 610, as the Feast of All Holy Martyrs, when the Emperor Phocas gave the ancient Pantheon to Pope Boniface IV as a church (All Saints' Day. World Book, vol 1. Chicago, 1966: 354).
The Romans built the Pantheon as a temple in honor of all their gods. The name means of all the gods ... Agrippa first built the famous Pantheon in Rome in 27 B.C. (Pantheon. World Book, vol 15. Chicago, 1966: 111).
Druid ... priests worshiped some gods similar to those of the Greeks and Romans, but under different names (Druid. World Book, vol 5. Chicago, 1966: 289).
Of course, some feel that although the Druids worshiped the pagan deities under different names that is wrong, yet they accept the change of the names of the "gods" in the Pantheon to the "Catholic saints" is perfectly acceptable.
Here is a bit more on how and why the Pantheon became acceptable to the Roman Catholics:
In 607 A.D. the Roman Emperor Phocus defeated the Barbarians who were in control of Rome. The Pantheon in Rome, a pagan edifice which had been wrested from the barbarians, was given to pope Boniface IV. Originally, Emperor Hadrian built the Pantheon -- around 100 A.D. He dedicated it to the pagan goddess Cybele and to the other Roman deities. This temple became the central place in Rome where the pagans honored and commemorated their gods. With this splendid edifice now falling into the hands of professing Christians, the question was, What should be done with it?
The pagans had dedicated it to Cybele and all their gods. But the Roman bishop now CONSECRATED IT TO THE VIRGIN MARY AND ALL THE SAINTS of both sexes (see "The Mysteries of All Nations", Grant, p. 120). Thus this pagan building became "holy." No more did the pagan Romans use this edifice to pray for their dead. It was now the professing Christians who employed the Pantheon in praying for their dead.
This re-dedication of the pagan temple to Mary and others occurred in 610 A.D. Now converted into a Christian shrine, an annual festival was instituted to commemorate the event. The day chosen was May 13.
This May 13 commemoration of the dead saints was known by the name of "All Saints Day." It continued to be held in May for over two centuries -- until 834 A.D. In that year the NAME and the DATE WERE CHANGED.
Notice! "The time of celebration was altered to the FIRST OF NOVEMBER, and it was then called ALL HALLOW" -- from where we get the name Hallowe'en, ALL HALLOW merely meaning ALL HOLY, and the "een" is a contraction of evening ("Folklore", James Napier, p. 177).
Thus in 834 A.D. the Church in the Middle Ages began to celebrate Hallowe'en on the FIRST OF NOVEMBER for the first time. This was the very same day the Druids in Britain, the Norsemen in Scandinavia, and the pagan Germans among others were keeping their festival of ALL SOULS EVE, in commemoration of Saman, lord of death, and his demons (Marx, Gerhard O. The Origin of Halloween. Plain Truth Magazine, October 1967).
Furthermore, the adoption of the Pantheon is in violation of what the even the Catholic version of the Bible teaches:
2 Destroy all the places in which the nations, that you shall possess, worshipped their gods upon high mountains, and hills, and under every shady tree: 3 Overthrow their altars, and break down their statues, burn their groves with fire, and break their idols in pieces: destroy their names out of those places. (Deuteronomy 12:2-3, Douay OT)
God said to destroy pagan places of worship; He did not say to switch them for His worship.
There is an expression that "he who is convinced against his will is of the same opinion still." So, with some people, no matter what you tell them about why Halloween is not a holiday for true Christians to observe, they will observe them anyway.
Also, there are certain "modern" pro-Halloween" arguments that I would like to try to address here.
Here are some excerpts from an article in Christianity Today that Halloween endorses Halloween:
On the calendar of events for the Christian college where I teach, October 31 sits in a dark square with no acknowledgment that there is anything special about the date.
"It's Satan's Holiday, Dr. Rearick," affirmed one of my students. "Didn't you know?"
Well, no, I didn't know ... I have always considered Halloween a day to celebrate the imagination, to become for a short time something wonderful and strange, smelling of grease paint, to taste sweets that are permissible only once a year ... "But look at the roots of Halloween," some may say. "Don't you see how evil it once was?" I do, but the operative word in that sentence is was. Samhain was once a time of fear and dread, but at one time so was Yule or Midvinterblot, as it was called in Sweden ...
Christians should instead celebrate Halloween with gusto. (Rearick III, AM. Trick-or-Treat? Christianity Today, October 31, 2008. http://blog.kyria.com/giftedforleadership/2008/10/trick_or_treat.html viewed 10/17/2011)
Hallowing Halloween
Why Christians should embrace the devilish holiday with gusto—and laughter. ...
I have always considered Halloween a day to celebrate the imagination, to become for a short time something wonderful and strange, smelling of grease paint, to taste sweets that are permissible only once a year. How wonderful to be with other children dressed up as what they might grow up to be, what they wished they could be, or even what they secretly feared. (Rearick III, AM. Hallowing Halloween. Christianity Today, October 2, 2000.
The above argument suggests that it does not matter if Halloween was a pagan holiday, it is not one now, so it is okay.
But based on what scripture? The Bible is clear that the God of the Bible did not want His people to adopt pagan customs (Jeremiah 10:2-3). Plus, remember that the Apostle Paul wrote, " let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall (1 Corinthians 10:12).
Furthermore, notice something about the type of costumes that many women like to dress up as in the 21st century:
As everyone knows, the perennial favorite among Halloween costumes for women is "ho," followed by "sexy witch," "sexy nurse" and "Lady Gaga." http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-allen-halloween-sluts-20111030,0,6455906.story
No one can consider how "Lady Gaga" provocatively has dressed to be Christian, and no true believer would ever try to follow her risqué example, or to try to directly resemble some type of harlot as many women apparently like to do now.
The Apostle Paul taught:
9 in like manner also, that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing, 10 but, which is proper for women professing godliness, with good works. (1 Timothy 2:9-10)
Hence, although I have heard some claim that Halloween is no longer a pagan holiday, certainly with many dressing immodestly, no one can seriously feel that Christians are to observe it.
Holidays that encourage women to dress like harlots are not holidays that Christians should want to endorse.
Here are some excerpts from an article in Christianity Today that Halloween endorses Halloween:
America’s preachers also hope they’ll consider coming to church, according to a new phone survey of 1,000 Protestant senior pastors from LifeWay Research.
While a minority (not quite 1 in 10) of Protestant pastors tell church members to skip Halloween altogether, two-thirds say they encourage church members to ask their neighbors to a church-related event like a fall fair or trunk-or-treat.
Half tell their church members to befriend those who trick-or-treat at their doors.
Most pastors see Halloween as an opportunity to reach out, says Scott McConnell, executive director of LifeWay Research.
“This is a time when your neighbors literally come to your doorstep,” he says. “Pastors don’t want their church members to waste that chance to make a connection or invite someone to church.”
Halloween has become a major social and retail event in American culture. Seven out of 10 Americans (69%) plan to celebrate Halloween this year, according to the National Retail Federation. The average American consumer will spend about $83 on candy, decorations, and other goodies. That’s up from $74 in 2015.
Most pastors want church members to take part in the season’s activities as well.
Two-thirds (67%) encourage church members to invite friends and neighbors to a fall festival, trunk-or-treat, or judgment house. Pastors at bigger churches (those with 250 or more in attendance) are most likely to ask church members to invite their neighbors (86%) to an event at the church. Those from small churches (50 or fewer in attendance) are least likely (48%).
Holiness (82%), Baptist (77%), Pentecostal (75%) and Methodist (73%) pastors are more likely to ask their members to invite friends to an event. Lutheran (56%) and Presbyterian/Reformed pastors (55%) are less likely.
About a quarter of pastors encourage church members to hand out gospel tracts at Halloween. [Editor’s note: The most prolific creator of tracts, Jack Chick, died on Sunday.]
But pastors are twice as likely to encourage members to befriend neighbors who trick-or-treat (52%) than to tell members to hand out gospel tracts (26%). Pastors at larger churches (63%) are more likely to want their members to build relationships with trick-or-treaters than those at smaller churches (42%). ...
A 2015 LifeWay study found about 6 in 10 Americans say Halloween “is all in good fun.” But about a third say they either skip Halloween altogether (21%) or avoid its pagan elements (14%).
Self-identified evangelicals are mostly likely to either skip Halloween (28%) or skip its pagan elements (23%).
The more people go to church, the more skeptical they are of Halloween. Less than half (44%) of those who attend religious services at least once a week say Halloween is all in good fun. Most Americans who only go to church on religious holidays say Halloween is all in good fun (82%.) http://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2016/october/trick-or-treat-tracts-pastors-want-gospel-given-halloween.html
Halloween promotes a FALSE GOSPEL (for more on the true gospel, check out the free online book: The Gospel of the Kingdom of God). People claiming Christianity are not helping their neighbors by embracing it. It is NOT GOOD fun. By the way, Christianity Today put the title RESEARCH at the beginning of this article. Yet, its 'research did NOT include scriptures.
The Bible repeatedly teaches:
12 There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death. (Proverbs 14:12)
12 There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death. (Proverbs 16:25)
8 "You shall not at all do as we are doing here today — every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes (Deuteronomy 12:8)
Furthermore, consider:
8 "Now you shall say to this people, 'Thus says the Lord: "Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death. (Jeremiah 21:8)
19 I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live; (Deuteronomy 30:19)
The demonically death-themed Halloween is not the way of life that the Bible advocates.
Notice another story at Christianity Today:
October 28, 2016
Many churches put on wonderful events as Halloween alternatives, and I understand their goal. The last church I planted did so. Some churches do it due to their convictions on Halloween and I respect the theological aspect of that decision. I've seen such events done well.
I, however, also think you should go out and "trick or treat" with your neighbors. My point is simple: don't waste the best opportunity you have each year to meet your neighbors.
As such, here is my suggestion:
- Get a costume.
- Buy candy.
- Put costume on.
- Give candy out.
- Go get candy from your neighbors.
- Meet all your neighbors.
- Build on those new relationships.
Here are four reasons you might want to go trick-or-treating tonight:
1. There is no other night in the year when people you have not met will be coming to your door. You want to be there, meet them, and visit with them. If you are at a Halloween alternative, you miss your neighbors.
2. There is no other night when you get to go to your neighbor's door and introduce yourself without any awkwardness (only if you have kids—otherwise it's creepy and you should stay home and pass out candy). Tonight, you will meet people at your door and at their door—what an amazing opportunity.
Halloween trick-or-treating might be the best opportunity you have to connect with the unchurched all year.
3. You don't have to worship the devil to go up and ask your neighbor for candy. Choose your costume and your words carefully, and many Christians find this an opportunity, not an occult experience. I know the history of Halloween, but your neighbors don't, so don't assume they are participating in some dark ritual if it has lost all that meaning. (Now, if you are opposed to Easter eggs, Christmas trees, and the like, I would definitely not go out on Halloween or else you are being inconsistent to your convictions.)
4. You can meet more neighbors in one night than any other day of the year. Don't miss the best opportunity you have each year to meet your neighbors. And, while you do, get their names and numbers and have them over for dinner. Get to know them, and start tonight.
You can still do your spiritually named "Fall Festival" or "Reformation Day" celebration. Just do it at a different time and be home (or out knocking on doors) when your neighborhood does it. Halloween trick-or-treating might be the best opportunity you have to connect with the unchurched all year. Don't miss it. http://www.christianitytoday.com/edstetzer/2016/october/new-lifeway-research-pastors-and-halloween.html
Costumes and candy are not part of the good news of the Kingdom of God. As far as candy goes, a 2017 study concludes that excess sugar causes cancers to grow (see Nine Year Study Finally Explains The Relationship Between Sugar And Cancer).
Consider something else from the Bible:
14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15 And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? 16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:
"I will dwell in them
And walk among them.
I will be their God,
And they shall be My people."17 Therefore
"Come out from among them
And be separate, says the Lord.
Do not touch what is unclean,
And I will receive you."
18 'I will be a Father to you,
And you shall be My sons and daughters,
Says the Lord Almighty." (2 Corinthians 6:14-18)
One is not separate from heathens by participating in heathen practices.
October 18, 2021
Part of the origin for the Holiday is that the Celts believed this day was one of the days in the year when the barrier between the world of the living and dead lowered so that travel was possible. https://www.forbes.com/sites/walterloeb/2021/10/18/why-halloween-will-change/?sh=7f07a3b5e779
That is a pagan, not biblical, teaching.
Notice something that Christianity Today reported in 2017:
October 19, 2017
It’s that time of year again. Ghosts and goblins are starting to appear on neighborhood lawns. Soon giggling children will don disguises and go door-to-door searching for candy. For most, Halloween is a fun, light-hearted affair. But sometimes Christians feel conflicted about how to handle this holiday. Does participating in Halloween mean that we are celebrating Halloween?
No matter how we feel about the controversial holiday, it presents a rare opportunity. Halloween is one of the few days on which our neighbors will actually come to us. But what should we do with such a gift?
Wayne Cordova, pastor of ministry at Crosspoint Church, in Spring Hill, Florida, has experimented with the concept of servant evangelism for the past decade. Cordova notes that both Jesus and his earliest followers ministered to people by healing and meeting physical needs first. By doing this, they earned the right to share the gospel message. Cordova states that we too need to earn the right to be heard by serving our community before we expect them to come to us. ...
Christians shouldn’t be afraid of using Halloween to engage their community. According to Cordova, “Halloween is a gift. If it is not seized, it is a wasted opportunity to show others God’s love with no string attached.” (http://www.christianitytoday.com/pastors/2017/october-web-exclusives/5-creative-alternatives-to-trunk-or-treat.html)
To answer the first question, yes, participating in Halloween celebrations is celebrating Halloween. Jesus and His earliest followers did not observe pagan holidays and pass out cancer-encouraging substances to gain people's trust. As far as the second question, the Bible teaches that we are not to perpetuate gifts of pagan worship.
The scriptures of Jesus' day taught the following:
29 "When the Lord your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess, and you displace them and dwell in their land, 30 take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, 'How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.' 31 You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way; for every abomination to the Lord which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.
32 "Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it." (Deuteronomy 12:29-32)
But did that go away with the writings of the New Testament?
No.
Notice the following warnings from the Apostle Paul
19 What am I saying then? That an idol is anything, or what is offered to idols is anything? 20 Rather, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord's table and of the table of demons. 22 Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than He? (1 Corinthians 10:19-22)
22 Abstain from all appearance of evil. (1 Thessalonians 5:22, KJV)
Furthermore, the Book of Revelation warns:
18 For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. (Revelation 22:18-19)
The principle that God's people are not to mix paganism with Christianity is in the New Testament.
Christians are supposed to believe "the word of truth" (2 Corinthians 6:7; Ephesians 1:13).
In the world, it has been said if you tell a big enough lie often enough, most people will believe it. Well, those at Christianity Today seem to believe their lie that Halloween celebrations is good.
Places like Christianity Today promote it, as well as other aspects of the false ecumenical agenda (see also Beware: Protestants Going Towards Ecumenical Destruction!).
Here are some comments that several anti-Church of God websites posted from former WCG-writer Keith Stump:
First, there’s no need to point out that Halloween is not found in Leviticus 23. (Duh.) Leviticus 23 is obsolete and irrelevant anyway...Yet some of Halloween’s customs do have roots in pre-Christian (“pagan”) practices...Some of Halloween’s customs can be traced to practices of the Celtic New Year, particularly among the Druids of ancient Britain.
Of course, since the Bible says that the holy days in Leviticus 23 are "'The feasts of the Lord, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, these are My feasts" (vs. 2), obviously those that do not believe that they need to do what the Bible teaches would consider that Halloween was acceptable. It is nice that he admits that current customs often have pagan roots--and followers of the true God are not to adopt pagan-worship practices (Deuteronomy 4:15-16).
Plus, the writings of the Apostle Paul show that Christians are not to adopt pagan worship practices. Paul also wrote:
11 Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ. (1 Corinthians 11:1)
Paul and Jesus kept the biblical holy days and not demonic ones (see also the free online booklet Should You Observe God's Holy Days or Demonic Holidays?).
Keith Stump also wrote:
Others who are reading this have heartwarming memories of Halloween. It’s a slice of genuine Americana ... Halloween reaffirmed social bonds with friends and neighbors. These are hardly the “unfruitful works of darkness” (Eph. 5:11), unless one is a fanatic who interprets that phrase like, well, a fanatic.
Now that is an attempt to try to insult and label people who do not wish to disobey God as "fanatics." The reality is that pagans had fond memories of their holiday practices as well or they would not have continued to have their holidays. God did not say that exceptions should be made for pagan-practices that families liked (cf. Deuteronomy 4:15-16).
Christians were considered to be part of a sect that was everywhere spoken against (Acts 28:22). The Apostle Paul was considered to be part of a cult (Acts 24:14. NLB). Jesus warned that a person's enemies would be those of their own household (Matthew 10:36). Presumably enemies of true Christianity considered those who were faithful as fanatics.
Keith Stump also wrote:
I have seen no evidence of children being psychologically warped or seduced into a life of witchcraft and perversion as a result of innocent Halloween activities.
I was unaware that Keith Stump is able to look at the heart (cf. 1 Samuel 16:7), though he probably feels that accepting non-biblical Protestant or similar faiths is not a problem. Pagan cultures have many "experts" like Keith Stump who come to similar conclusions about how many practices that are opposed to scripture affect their people. Consider also that there is not evidence that those who embrace Halloween actively promote the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.
Keith Stump also wrote:
Halloween is also a good time to reconsider our own views about death and the afterlife. The unbiblical doctrine of “soul sleep” would be a good place to start. The Bible clearly teaches (and centuries of experience demonstrate) that death does not interrupt self-awareness; personal identity survives death!
Jesus and others in the Bible come to a different conclusion than Keith Stump here (see What Happens After Death? and Did Early Christians Believe that Humans Possessed Immortality?). Also, most people do not use Halloween as time to consider views of their death, but instead view it as a time for a holiday of indulgence. The high prevalence of diabetes in the Western world is the direct result of consuming excessive amounts of sugars and other refined carbohydrates, which is something that modern Halloween practices do encourage.
Keith Stump also wrote:
To all COG members out there: Is your children’s Christianity so feeble as to be endangered by a plastic mask and a few candy bars? Are your children so inadequately grounded in their religion as to be tempted into a life of witchcraft by attending a costume party? Are you yourself so poorly rooted in your faith that you fear your children will ask questions to which you have no satisfactory answers?
Now, the Bible says that no unclean person will enter the Kingdom (Ephesians 5:5). I am fairly sure that the Corinthians thought that they had less feeble Christianity when they tolerated a type of fornicator in their midst. But God inspired the Apostle Paul to write:
1 It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles — that a man has his father's wife! 2 And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you. (1 Corinthians 5:1-3)
Christians should not be "puffed up" they think that they have spiritual strength because they have compromised with pagan-practices.
The Apostle Paul also warned:
33 Do not be deceived: "Evil company corrupts good habits." (1 Corinthians 15:33)
It is not good to participate in corrupt and pagan activities.
Furthermore, Jesus warned that looking at a woman to lust after her was wrong (Matthew 5:27-28). And the Apostle Paul wrote to "flee fornication" (1 Corinthians 6:18). The Bible does not say that men should see how long they can look at or be with an immodest woman and not sin as some type of badge of the strength of their faith. The Bible warns that we are not to give place to sin. It is NOT a sign of spiritual strength to compromise and decide to engage in pagan practices that often involve immodest costumes to engage in various lusts of the flesh.
The anti-COG types can amuse themselves with Keith Stump's pro-Halloween writings (and sadly have done so), but the reality is that those who believe that they need to live by every word of the Bible (Matthew 4:4), would do better by avoiding practices that God clearly does not endorse (and also seems to condemn).
Notice a relatively modern Roman 'Catholic argument:
We’ve all heard the allegations: Halloween is a pagan rite dating back to some pre-Christian festival among the Celtic Druids that escaped church suppression. Even today modern pagans and witches continue to celebrate this ancient festival. If you let your kids go trick-or-treating, they will be worshiping the devil and pagan gods.Nothing could be further from the truth. The origins of Halloween are, in fact, very Christian and rather American. Halloween falls on October 31 because of a pope, and its observances are the result of medieval Catholic piety.It’s true that the ancient Celts of Ireland and Britain celebrated a minor festival on October 31--as they did on the last day of most other months of the year. However, Halloween falls on the last day of October because the Feast of All Saints, or "All Hallows," falls on November 1. The feast in honor of all the saints in heaven used to be celebrated on May 13, but Pope Gregory III (d. 741) moved it to November 1, the dedication day of All Saints Chapel in St. Peter’s at Rome. Later, in the 840s, Pope Gregory IV commanded that All Saints be observed everywhere. And so the holy day spread to Ireland...http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/Catholic/2000/10/Surprise-Halloweens-Not-A-Pagan-Festivalafter-All.aspx
Saying 'Nothing could be further from the truth' is absurd.
For that is not really the case. The holiday was adapted from paganism and many Catholic sources also condemn it (see further below in the Denouncements From Roman Catholics section).
Notice also the following:
Pagan ProgenitorHalloween's origins date back more than 2,000 years. On what we consider November 1, Europe's Celtic peoples celebrated their New Year's Day, called Samhain (SAH-win). On Samhain eve—what we know as Halloween—spirits were thought to walk the Earth as they traveled to the afterlife. Fairies, demons, and other creatures were also said to be abroad.Christian Influence on HalloweenSamhain was later transformed as Christian leaders co-opted pagan holidays. In the seventh century Pope Boniface IV decreed November 1 All Saints' Day, or All Hallows' Day. The night before Samhain continued to be observed with bonfires, costumes, and parades, though under a new name: All Hallows' Eve—later "Halloween."http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/10/101029-halloween-costumes-ideas-history-science-nation/
Halloween is not a Christian holiday.
There is a Roman Catholic blogger named Scott Smith who was claiming that Halloween was in the Bible. Here is some of what his 10/26/17 article states:
The First Halloween ... in the Bible?
Remember what happened immediately following Christ's death? Here's Matthew's account of the succeeding events (Matthew 27:51-53):
And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom; and the earth shook, and the rocks were split; 52 the tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, 53 and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many.
Isn't this an interesting passage? Scary! Most of these things re-occur, by the way, in the Book of Revelation, i.e. at the so-called "End Times". But what are we to make of it? Let's take note of a few things that are happening in this Gospel passage:
(1) The "veil of the temple" was torn in two from "top to bottom" - More on this later, but the veil of the temple, as it did in the Tabernacle of Moses, separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of the Temple and the rest of the world. When the veil was torn in two, the separation between the clean and unclean ended and the Temple was thereby desecrated. This is what Jesus prophesied at John 2 when he said "tear down this temple". The literal tearing down of the Temple occurred when the Jews tore down Jesus' body, i.e. the New Temple, but the Temple was also destroyed, in a very real sense, at Christ's death by its desecration. Note, also, it was torn from "top to bottom," which means this thick curtain was torn apart "from above."
(2) The "rocks were split" - This could be a reference to a spooky place called the "Well of Souls." This is the name of a cave located inside the Foundation Stone underneath the former site of the Temple in Jerusalem. The spooky title, the "Well of Souls", originates from a medieval Islamic legend and likely far more ancient writings that the spirits of the dead can be heard there, awaiting Judgment Day.
The Gospel passage above talks about the raising of the bodies of the dead, right? It is possible that the "rocks" which were split were those near the place where the veil was torn, i.e. the rocks or stones making up the walls and foundation of the Temple, itself. Therefore, the mention of "rocks were split" could be a reference to the Foundation Stone. Were the Foundation Stone to split, it would release the purgatorial souls waiting beneath it in the "Well of Souls."
Note this, as well (we'll come back to this later): the Feast of All Souls, which follows Halloween and All Saints, is the feast for all those souls waiting in Purgatory - are you starting to see the connection?
(3) "Tombs opened", "Saints raised", "Coming out of tombs", and "Appeared to many" - If it weren't for the assurance of the evangelist Matthew that those rising from their tombs were "saints", wouldn't this seem an awful lot like a scene from a zombie movie? Bodies rising out of their graves and all that "Hocus Pocus"? http://www.thescottsmithblog.com/2017/10/the-first-halloween-in-bible-catholic.html
This is false nonsense.
First, Halloween is on October 31, and Jesus was executed in April.
Second, no one was dressed up as witches or ghosts, etc.
Third, bodies were often in caves or other rocky places. Rocks being split before the saintly dead were raised has nothing to do with later myths and legends.
Fourth, no early Christian taught purgatory. This teaching was developed by the Church of Rome centuries after Jesus was resurrected. For details, check out the article: Did the Early Church Teach Purgatory?
Fifthly, it is Scott Smith making up connections that are not there. His opinion is not the opinion of any Roman Catholic scholar I have come across on this.
Scott Smith is pushing a lie.
Do not believe a lie.
Now why was November 1, chosen? Notice the following:
"It was a Druidical belief that on the eve of this festival Saman, lord of death, called together the wicked spirits that within the past 12 months had been condemned to inhabit the bodies of animals" ("Enc. Brit.", 11th ed., v. 12, pp. 857-8). Read what this November celebration was like! It was a pagan belief that on one night of the year the souls of the dead return to their original homes, there to be entertained with food. If food and shelter were not provided, these spirits, it was believed, would cast spells and cause havoc towards those failing to fulfill their requests. "It was the night for the universal walking about of all sorts of spirits, fairies, and ghosts, all of whom had liberty on that night" ("Highland Superstitions", Alexander Macgregor, p. 44). Literal sacrifices were offered on this night to the spirits of the dead, when, so the belief went, they visited their earthly haunts and their friends.
There was a reason why November was chosen for that particular event. The Celts and other Northern people considered the beginning of November as their New Year. This was the time when the leaves were falling and a general seasonal decay was taking place everywhere. Thus it was a fitting time, so they reasoned, for the commemoration of the dead. Since the Northern nations at that time began their day in the evening, the eve leading up to November 1st was the beginning of the festival. According to the Roman calendar it was the evening October 31 -- hence, Hallowe'en -- the evening of All Hallows.
To exorcise these ghosts, that is, to free yourself from their supposed evil sway, you would have to set out food and provide shelter for them during the night. If they were satisfied with your offerings, it was believed they would leave you in peace. If not, they were believed to cast an evil spell on you. "In Wales it was firmly believed that on All Hallows Eve the spirit of a departed person was to be seen at midnight on every crossroad and every stile" ("Folklore and Folk-Stories of Wales", Marie Trevelyan, p. 254).
In Cambodia people used to chant: "O all you our ancestors, who are departed, deign to come and eat what we have prepared for you, and to bless your posterity and to make it happy" ("Notice sur le Cambodge", Paris 1875, E. Aymonièr, p. 59).
This sort of Hallowe'en festival was strenuously observed throughout the non-Christian world. Pagans would pray to their false gods to prevent "DEMONS" and "witches" from molesting them. Notice! "The Miatecs of Mexico believed that the souls of the dead came back in the twelfth month of the year, WHICH CORRESPONDED TO OUR NOVEMBER. On this day of All Souls the houses were decked out to welcome the spirits. Jars of food and drink were set on a table in the principal room, and the family went out with the torches to meet the ghosts and invite them to enter. Then, returning to the house they knelt around the table, and with their eyes bent on the ground, prayed the souls to accept the offerings" ("Adonis", Frazer, p. 244).
This, then, is the way the heathen world celebrated their Hallowe'en, their "All Souls Day". Although some aspects of the Hallowe'en festival varied with each country, the overall pattern and purpose remained the same...
When the German Frankish king Charlemagne invaded and conquered parts of Eastern Germany, he compelled the conquered German king, Wittekind, to be baptized and to accept Christianity. Having no choice and seeing his life was at stake, this heathen ruler who knew little or nothing about Christ -- was forced into this "conversion." And with him his entire people. This policy brought complex problems. These pagans, who were usually baptized EN MASSE, were still pagans at heart. Even though they became nominal Christians, they still yearned for many of their heathen practices, which they were expected to discard...
Wittekind's Germans, now professing Christians, and other conquered pagans, had a profound influence on the ecclesiastical affairs of the church in the early 800's A. D. These barbaric and uncultured people brought with them many outright pagan practices and celebrations, Hallowe'en merely being one of many. They were fervent in clinging to their past ceremonies and observed them openly -- yet supposedly converted to Christianity. What was the church to do? Excommunicate them and thus reduce her membership? This she would not do. Was she to force them into discarding their heathen practices and adopt Italian or Roman ones? This, as she had learned in past times, was not possible.
There remained only one other way. Let the recently converted pagans keep certain of their heathen festivals, such as Hallowe'en or All Souls Day -- but label it "Christian." Of course the Germans were asked not to pray to their ancient pagan gods on this day. They must now use this day to commemorate the death of the saints. To make it easy for them, the Roman Church even CHANGED HER DATE of All Saints Day from May 13 to November 1st to satisfy the growing numbers of Germanic adherents. The Church understood the yearnings the Germans and others had for their old ways (Marx, Gerhard O. The Origin of Halloween. Plain Truth Magazine, October 1967).
What about The Day of the Dead?
In Mexico and some other places, All Saints Day is normally called the Day of the Dead. Its origins are definitely not Christian but pagan, see All Saints Day and the Day of the Dead.
Again, it is not a biblical holy day with Christian practices.
More information on the dead can be found in the following articles:
Did Early Christians Believe that Humans Possessed Immortality? What does John 3:16, and other writings, tell us? Did a doctrine kept adopted from paganism?
Are The Wicked Tormented Forever or Burned Up? How does one explain Revelation 14:11 in light of Malachi 4:3? What happens to the incorrigibly wicked?
Did the Early Church Teach Purgatory? Is there a place called purgatory? Does God have a plan to help those who did not become saints in this life?
What is Limbo? Is There Such a Place as Limbo? What Happens to Babies When They Die? When did Limbo start being taught? What is the truth about dead babies?
What Did Early Christians Understand About the Resurrection? Is there more than one future resurrection? Did early Christians teach a physical resurrection? Did early Christians teach three resurrections?
What Did the Early Church Teach About Idols and Icons? What about the use of the cross, by the early Church?
Universal Offer of Salvation: There Are Hundreds of Verses in the Bible Supporting the Doctrine of True Apocatastasis Do you believe what the Bible actually teaches on this? Will all good things be restored? Will God call everyone? Will everyone have an opportunity for salvation? Does God's plan of salvation take rebellion and spiritual blindness into account?
All Saints Day and the Day of the Dead When did "All Saints Day" and the "Day of the Dead" begin?
Endorsements From Roman Catholics
According to Roman Catholic sources, Halloween is one of their holidays, even though it contains pagan elements:
It should be noted that Halloween is a Catholic holiday. Pope Gregory IV in 835 made it the universal practice in the Roman Catholic Church to celebrate All Saints’ Day on Nov. 1. All Souls' Day follows the next day as the commemoration of all of the faithful who have departed.
“All Hallows’ Even” as the evening before All Hallows’ Day — All Saints’ Day – eventually became shortened to Halloween. Hallow, as in “hallowed be thy name” in the Lord’s Prayer, is an older form of the word “holy.”
It was the Protestant Reformation that rejected the universal practice of devotion to the dead (Martin Luther dropped any references to praying for the dead from his Bible). This Catholic holiday was attacked, much like the church as a whole, for being pagan and evil. Hence I wouldn’t be surprised if this cloud of suspicion hovering over Halloween originated from the spirit of anti-Catholicism.
But Nov. 1st was the day of the Celtic Summer’s End feast of Samhain, the day when the dead returned to the earth. We have retained some of these pagan elements to Halloween, as is true of Christmas and Easter.
Why would a pope put the Catholic celebration of the dead on top of the pagans’ celebrations of the dead? Because the Catholic feasts are in continuity and fulfill the meaning of the pagan ones...
So what about the indulgence in the spooky and scary? Skeletons are spooky, but they are also very Catholic. In fact, one couldn’t find a better haunted house for a Halloween pilgrimage than the various “chapel of bones” that can be found across Europe (Killian Brian. Halloween, as autumn celebration, reminder God’s name is hallowed. Catholic Online International News. 10/31/06. http://www.catholic.org/international/international_story.php?id=21818).
In the 9th century, Pope Gregory IV moved the celebration of All Saints Day (Martyrs Day at the time) to Nov 1...in effect "baptizing" these ancient pagan celebrations (Warner M. Evangelizing with Halloween. National Catholic Register - Oct 31, 2012 http://www.ncregister.com/blog/matthew-warner/evangelizing-with-halloween)
The above is the opinion of a man, yet the Bible itself teaches that we should listen to the Bible above traditions and opinions of men.
Repentance is to proceed baptism (Acts 2:38) and paganism is to be removed, not continued.
Consider the following words of Nehemiah:
29 Remember them, O my God, because they have defiled the priesthood and the covenant of the priesthood and the Levites.
30 Thus I cleansed them of everything pagan. (Nehemiah 13:29-30)
Nehemiah was a leader that God appointed and he rightly stood against foreign pagan contamination that affected what was supposed to be the religion of God’s people. Today, as the New Testament also supports (e.g. 1 Corinthians 10:21), true Christian ministers are to stand against pagan contamination.
Notice that Roman Catholic scholars themselves admit that the day they call "All Saints," which begins the evening before (October 31, "All Saint's Hallowed Eve") was not observed by early Christians, but was a later addition:
ALL SAINTS. As early as the fourth century, the Greeks kept on the first Sunday after Pentecost the feast of all martyrs and saints, and we still possess a sermon of St. Chrysostom de-livered on that day. In the West, the feast was introduced by Pope Boniface the Fourth after he had dedicated, as the Church of the Blessed Virgin and the Martyrs, the Pantheon, which had been made over to him by the Emperor Phocas. The feast of the dedication was kept on the thirteenth of May. About 731 Gregory III. consecrated a chapel in St. Peter's Church in honour of all the saints, from which time All Saints' Day has been kept in Rome, as now, on the first of November. From about the middle of the ninth century, the feast came into general observance throughout the West. (Addis W, Arnold T. Catholic Dictionary, 6th ed. The Catholic Publication Society Co, 1887. Nihil Obstat. EDUARDUS S. KEOGH, CONG. ORAT., Censor Deputatu Imprimatur. HENRICUS EDUARDUS, CARD. ARCHIEP. WESTMONAST. Die 18 Dec., 1883. Imprimatur. John Card. McCloskey, Archbishop of New York. Feb. 14, 1884. Copyright, Lawrence Kehoe, 1884/1887. p20).
ALL SOULS Day. A solemn commemoration of, and prayer for, all the souls in Purgatory, which the Church makes on the second of November. (Ibid, p. 20)
So let's again let's look at the Bible and not the opinions of men.
Thus says the LORD: "Do not learn the way of the Gentiles; Do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven, For the Gentiles are dismayed at them. For the customs of the peoples are futile (Jeremiah 10:2-3).
At the absolute best, Halloween customs are futile and detract from the emphasis to worship the true God.
You shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their works; but you shall utterly overthrow them and completely break down their sacred pillars (Exodus 23:24).
Note that not only are God's people not to worship other gods, they are not to "do according to their works" (of those who did)--like Halloween. This is also confirmed in the passages below:
...do not inquire after their gods, saying, 'How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.' "You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way; for every abomination to the LORD which He hates they have done to their gods (Deuteronomy 12:30-31).
29 'When Yahweh your God has annihilated the nations confronting you, whom you are going to dispossess, and when you have dispossessed them and made your home in their country, 30 beware of being entrapped into copying them, after they have been destroyed to make way for you, and do not enquire about their gods, saying, "How did these nations worship their gods? I am going to do the same too." 31 This is not the way to treat Yahweh your God. For in honour of their gods they have done everything detestable that Yahweh hates; yes, in honour of their gods, they even burn their own sons and daughters as sacrifices!' (Deuteronomy 12:29-31, New Jerusalem Bible, a Catholic version)
No true Christian would want to encourage their children to participate in pagan customs associated with Halloween.
Denouncements From Roman Catholics
Interestingly, the powerful Roman Catholic archdiocese in Mexico City condemned Halloween observance as pagan in 2007, though it is still being observed by practicing Catholics there:
Mexico's Roman Catholic church slammed Halloween as "damaging and against the faith" on Monday, as conservatives sought to stem celebration of the ghouls-and-goblins holiday and return to the country's traditional Day of the Dead.
The U.S.-style holiday has made broad inroads in Mexico, with monster costumes almost as widely sold as the marigold flowers traditionally used to decorate relatives' graves during Nov. 1-2 Day of the Dead ceremonies, when families build altars and leave food, drink and flowers for the dearly departed.
"Those who celebrate Halloween are worshipping a culture of death that is the product of a mix of pagan customs," the Archdiocese of Mexico published in an article on its Web site Monday. "The worst thing is that this celebration has been identified with neo-pagans, Satanism and occult worship."
The archdiocese urged parents not to let their children wear Halloween costumes or go trick-or-treating — instead suggesting Sunday school classes to "teach them the negative things about Halloween," costume parties where children can dress up as Biblical characters, and candy bags complete with instructions to give friends a piece while telling them "God loves you."...
Pre-Hispanic cultures celebrated a similar holiday in August, but after the Spanish conquest, historians say the date was changed to Nov. 1 to coincide with the Catholic holiday...
In another article, Onesimo Herrera-Flores complained that "Halloween, for a variety of reasons, has imposed itself on other nations, displacing native customs."
Celebrating Halloween, he said, citing a church authority, is "like inviting Satan into your home." (Mexico's Catholic church slams Halloween; conservatives call for return to Day of Dead. Associated Press - Oct 29, 2007 http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/10/29/america/LA-GEN-Mexico-Church-Halloween.php
In 2009, the Vatican itself took steps to condemn Halloween:
Vatican condemns Hallowe’en as anti-ChristianThe Vatican has condemned Hallowe’en as anti-Christian, saying it is based on a sinister and dangerous “undercurrent of occultism”.Telegraph - Oct 30, 2009The Holy See has warned that parents should not allow their children to dress up as ghosts and ghouls on Saturday, calling Hallowe’en a pagan celebration of “terror, fear and death”.
The Roman Catholic Church has become alarmed in recent years by the spread of Hallowe’en traditions from the US to other countries around the world.
As in Britain, it is only in recent years that Italian children have dressed up in costumes, played trick or treat on their neighbours and made lanterns out of hollowed out pumpkins.
The Vatican issued the warning through its official newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano, in an article headlined “Hallowe’en’s Dangerous Messages”.
The paper quoted a liturgical expert, Joan Maria Canals, who said: “Hallowe’en has an undercurrent of occultism and is absolutely anti-Christian.”
Parents should “be aware of this and try to direct the meaning of the feast towards wholesomeness and beauty rather than terror, fear and death,” said Father Canals, a member of a Spanish commission on church rites.
Last year a newspaper controlled by the Italian bishops, Avvenire, called for a boycott of Hallowe’en, calling it a “dangerous celebration of horror and the macabre” which could encourage “pitiless [Satanic] sects without scruples”.
Earlier this week the Catholic Church in Spain also condemned the growing popularity of Halloween….
Also notice:
...in recent years the Catholic church has been criticising, for instance, Halloween: it views Halloween as a symbol of subtle and dangerous secular values opposed to Christian ones; and it fears competition from its growing popularity. (Franco M. Is this the Vatican's twilight? Guardian, August 5, 2011. http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2011/aug/05/vatican-ambassadors-holy-see)
In the Philippines, Catholic schools have discouraged Halloween:
The Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP) has called on its member schools to shun Halloween parties...“Iwasan natin ang mga ganyang Halloween party kasi hindi naman Christian holidays... (Let's avoid holding Halloween parties because Halloween is not a Christian holiday...),” CEAP president Fr. Gregg Bañaga reportedly said in a CBCP News article. The report also noted that the Catholic Church has been against the idea of glorifying evil during Halloween rites. (No more Halloween parties, Catholic schools told. GMA News, October 27, 2012. http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/279915/news/nation/no-more-halloween-parties-catholic-schools-told).
It is good when religious leaders discourage those who profess Christ from observing pagan holidays with pagan practices.
Notice also something from the Roman Catholic Church in Poland:
Poland's Catholic Church has warned that modern Halloween rituals risk promoting the occult.
In a statement on its website, the Church said that celebrating Halloween could contradict Church teachings and Christianity.
One archbishop said the 31 October celebrations were promoting paganism to young people.
Archbishop Andrzej Dziega warned that Halloween was behind a "culture of death".
"This kind of fun, tempting children like candy, also poses the real possibility of great spiritual damage, even destroying spiritual life," the archbishop of Szczecin-Kamien wrote in a letter to be read out at Sunday sermons, according to the Polish Press Agency.
10/29/12 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-20131808 accessed 10/14/20He wrote that "irresponsible and anti-Christian fun" introduced young people to a "world of darkness, including devils, vampires and demons" in the name of "fun".
Yes, Halloween promotes the occult.
Halloween is pagan and leaders in many professing Christian churches know this.
From the Worldwide Church of God
The old Worldwide Church of God clearly taught against the observation of Halloween as can be shown below:
What about you and your children? What comes to your mind when thinking about Hallowe’en? The truth of the Bible? Not at all! Instead, weird and FRIGHTENING MASKS — persons PORTRAYED AS WITCHES AND DEMONS. Pumpkins and turnips hollowed out in the shape of EERIE-LOOKING faces! Lighted candles are placed inside to help bring out the more frightful side of these carvings. Dough is baked into small figurines RESEMBLING WITCHES AND SPIDER’S WEB CAKES are baked by the dozen for this occasion. Children, dressed up in the most revolting garments, are let loose on the neighbors, trying to scare the daylights out of them. Let’s be honest. I have before me the Good Housekeeping’s Book of Entertainment, which my wife picked up from the local library. On page 168 of this much-read book, there is a section on what to do on Hallowe’en. Notice the astonishing advice given! “Halloween decorations are quite as important as the food. When planning them, remember that if the room is to be dimly lit (preferably by candle and FIRELIGHT) the decorations must be bold to be effective. Orange, black and red, THE DEVIL’S COLOURS, are the colours associated with Halloween and THIS SCHEME SHOULD BE CARRIED OUT as far as possible . . . . Have paper streamers and lanterns hanging from the ceiling, or, if you would like to have something less usual, you could make a giant SPIDER’S web with black and orange strings, or in narrow strips of crepe paper coming from the four corners of the room, complete with a LARGE SPIDER — one of the DEVIL’S FAVOURITE FOLLOWERS.” Notice where the stress lies! Read further of the black magic associated with this festival. “To decorate the walls, make large silhouettes of CATS, BATS, OWLS AND WITCHES ON BROOMSTICKS . . . . For the supper table small WITCHES WITH BROOMSTICKS can be made by using lollipops on 4-inch sticks.” Weird lanterns, witch-balls, and witches’ cauldrons are some other objects, the book suggests, which must fit into the evening somehow. How pagan can you get?
NOWHERE does the Bible command us to observe Hallowe’en. Hallowe’en and other common festivals which people observe in the Christian-professing world have NO BIBLICAL BASIS. They originated in paganism. The testimony of history stamps Hallowe’en as a HEATHEN festival. It’s built on a PAGAN FOUNDATION. Your Bible warns: “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (I Cor. 3:11). Which is the BASIS of YOUR practice and belief? Turn to Deuteronomy 12:29-31 and read God’s condemnation of Hallowe’en! (Marx, Gerhard O. The Origin of Halloween. Plain Truth Magazine, October 1967).
However, the new Worldwide Church of God (who changed its name to Grace Communion International and wants desparately wants to fit in with the world's churches), while acknowledging pagan elements of Halloween, allows its celebration. But the condemnation of such pagan practices remain in the Bible irrespective of the opinions of men. Remember the Bible teaches:
8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 9 Do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines (Hebrews 13:8-9).
Certainly Halloween contains many pagan practices that Christians should realize are "strange doctrines." Therefore, irrespective of the opinions and traditions of men, true Christians still do not celebrate pagan holidays like Halloween.
We in the Continuing Church of God do not condone the celebration of pagan holidays like Halloween (nor similar days such as Walpurgis Night).
The light of scripture eliminates any ambiguity about Halloween. That is why we in the Continuing Church of God do not observe it.
From the Mormons
Although they have declared that they will not use crosses because they teach it is "purely Catholic", members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS, commonly called Mormons), most LDS will observe the Roman Catholic holiday of Halloween.
However, there is controversy about celebrating it when it happens to be on a Sunday:
Halloween on Sunday
Halloween always causes a dilemma when it falls on a Sunday. In Utah where many parents are LDS and don't participate in certain activities on Sunday, trick-or-treating on the Sabbath is often seen as a no-no. Many LDS families bump up the holiday to Saturday night to avoid the Sabbath day conflict. This basically means many non-LDS reysidents have to follow suit or their kids will have no one to trick-or-treat with on actual Halloween. Many people won't even be handing out candy on Halloween because they already participated in "Mormon Halloween."... Sure, you could dig down to the core of Halloween to argue that it's not a good idea to celebrate a pagan holiday on the Sabbath. But the real question then is whether you should ever participate in a pagan holiday focused on the return of dead spirits. (Deseret News, Salt Lake City - Oct 14, 2010. http://www.deseretnews.com/blog/32/10010289/Just-4-Mom-Halloween-on-Sunday.html)
But since Halloween is not a biblical holy day, it makes little sense that the LDS should observe it no matter what day of the week it falls upon. Sunday, of course, is never once referred to as the Sabbath in the Bible. The Bible enjoins what we now call Saturday. Halloween is not a Holy Day endorsed by either the Old or New Testaments. Instead, aspects of it are condemned in both the Hebrew and Greek scripures. (For more on the LDS, please see the article Some Dissimilarities Between The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and the Genuine Church of God )
Conclusion
The Bible has warnings about the time of the end:
12 lawlessness will abound (Matthew 24:12).
1 Now the Spirit expressly says in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons. (I Timothy 4:1)
Halloween is a lawless observance that involves deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons.
After telling His people not to adopt pagan religious practices, notice something else that God states:
32 "Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it. (Deuteronomy 12:32)
Halloween is not in the Bible, yet its observation is something that many have 'added' to their life.
Many Roman Catholics and Protestants have been embracing this holiday, despite it not being biblical. It is another aspect of 'ecumenical unity' that will not end well (see also Beware: Protestants Going Towards Ecumenical Destruction! and Why Should American Catholics Fear Unity with the Orthodox?).
Of course, the core of Halloween is a pagan holiday and should not be celebrated on any day, Sunday or otherwise.
Christians and Halloween do not belong together.
The Bible also warns:
4 Now this I say lest anyone should deceive you with persuasive words. 5 For though I am absent in the flesh, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ.
6 As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.
8 Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. (Colossians 2:4-8)
Philosophies, traditions, and unbiblical arguments do not make Halloween appropriate.
While there are many false arguments to celebrate Halloween, there is basically one reason not to (beyond the sinful aspects): the Bible does not endorse it and condemns various things associated with it.
Halloween places emphasis on pagan religious practices, and participation in them is futile at best, and biblically considered to be abominable. Christians should rely on the Bible for doctrine (2 Timothy 3:16-17), including doctrines related to the celebration of religiously related days.
The Apostle Paul wrote:
4 But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, 15 and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:14-17)
Halloween was most certainly NOT part of what Timothy was taught to continue. Nor was this something taught by any early true Christian.
Halloween is clearly not a biblically sanctioned holy day and should not be observed by any who claim to believe the Bible.
Halloween is not holy time for Christians.
Since many promote Halloween, we put together a couple of video sermons Here is a link to a related sermon: Let's Get Real About Halloween and Debunking 17 reasons to celebrate Halloween.
For more information on please read Christian's Annual Worship Calendar and Did Early Christians Observe the Fall Holy Days? and All Saints Day and the Day of the Dead. Here are links to two related sermonette length videos: Halloween: Are there 7 reasons for Christians to celebrate it? and International 'Halloween' Should Christians observe Halloween?
Thiel B., Ph.D. Is Halloween a Holy Time for Christians? www.cogwriter.com (c) 1998/2005/2007/2008/2009/2010/2011/2012/2013/2014/2015/2017/2018/2020 /2020 / 2023 1020