Halloween

Halloween is an ancient holiday and has been observed in many parts of the world for centuries. It is part of a three day religious festival long associated with departed spirits, fairies and witchcraft. Today, of course, very few people place any real stock in the spiritual implications of the day. It is a time for pranks and foolishness, a day for the children to have a good time; it is totally harmless… or is it?

What we’d like to do in this little article is trace the origins, examine the Scriptures, and find out just how innocent Halloween is or isn’t- - especially from the Christian’s point of view: for the believer owes it to himself and to God to carefully examine all the implications of such a day before carelessly partaking in it.

Halloween is an abbreviated form of Hallo Even, the eve of Allhallows or All Saints’ Day. These are followed by All Souls Day, or the Day of the Dead. In many predominantly Catholic countries, these days are a very important religious observance. It is possible to trace them much further back than their adoption by the Catholics, however.

THE ANCIENT DRUIDS

The Druids were Celtic priests that lived in Ireland and practiced their dark arts as early as the third century B.C November first, and the evening proceeding it was quite a baig day for them. For one, it was a festival to the Sun God, thanking him for the harvest, and mourning the coming of shorter days in the winter months. It also coincided with one of the four times in the year that bonfires were lit on the hills in honor for Bel, the Biblical Baal.

Most notable, however, were the beliefs and practices concerning Saman or Samhain, Lord of the Dead. The Celts believed that on October 31st, Saman gathered all of the souls of those who died in the past year, and who had since been confined in animal bodies. In order to appease Saman, and release the departed souls that they might enter into Druid heaven, horses and humans were sacrificed by burning them in wicker cages. (In later European customs, black cats replaced horses and humans.)

These animal sacrifices continued after the Christianization of the British Isles. Pope Gregory the Great instructed Augustine, the first Archbishop of Canterbury, to allow them to continue but to do it “in honor of the saints and sacred relics.”

HOLY DAYS?

It wasn’t for another 250 years that the feast of Saman was officially fixed by Pope Gregory IV as ALL Saints’ Day, a day dedicated to all of those saints and martyrs that didn’t have a day in their own honor already. The fact that this particular day was already associated in the popular mind with departed spirits was thought to be advantageous, and also very much in keeping with the Roman church’s policy of incorporating pagan folk ideas into the framework of the church.

By the eleventh century another feast day to the dead was added, All Souls Day, a time of intercession for the departed sinners, became fixed at November second. The Day of the Dead, as it is known in many countries, was by no means a new idea. Almost all primitive religions and cults believe that on a certain day the spirits of the dead return to their former habitations. The ancient Egyptian legends surrounding Osiris and Isis are but one example of this. This day in both pagan and Catholic traditions, has long been associated with special hymns for the departed, the preparation of meals for them, and the various other observances that both honor and placate them.

Outside the church, Halloween continued on in the old tradition. Soon, not only the dead wandered about on the eve of All Saints’ Day; but goblins, fairies, demons, and Satan himself were joining them. It became a night to mock God and His Kingdom, to hold “black masses”, and engage in all manner of foul things- - like decorating the church with human waste, and other forms of vandalism.

INNOCENT PRACTICES TODAY

Many of the costumes surrounding Halloween today are not as innocent as they seem to be, but can be directly linked to its darker past. The roasting of nuts, bobbing for apples are all old divination and fortune-telling practices. The common “jack-o-lantern” is also associated with the spirits of the dead murderers and other evil men, although stories about its origin are many and somewhat varied. Even our modern practices of giving treats and candy to children dressing as ghosts and witches is a kind of peace offering- - lest they should vandalize our property and play “tricks” on us. This custom can be traced back to Saman and the sacrifices offered to appease him.

Halloween wasn’t observed at all in America until the 19th century. The early fathers of our country, mostly devout Christians, abhorred the idea of the whole thing, including the two religious days of the dead which were regarded as unscriptural and morbid. But with Irish immigration following the potato famine of the 1840s, the various observances soon caught on here, as well.

Today, Halloween is still serious business in some circles. It is one of four Witches’ Sabbats in the year, that fall on the same days as the old bonfires to Baal (Candlemas, February 2; May Day, May 1; Lammas, August 1; and Halloween.) On those high days of witchcraft and Satanism, thousands of followers in the United States and elsewhere gather for hexing ceremonies, casting spells, sex and fertility rites (with a nude woman as an altar), and even various animal sacrifices. Dogs and cats that turn up missing on Halloween may very well have been sacrificed to Satan. In all of these meetings the devil is worshipped, Christ is mocked, and God is declared to be dead. No doubt because of these ceremonies, there is indeed a marked increase in demon activity on Halloween.

THE CHRISTIAN AND HALLOWEEN

The Bible condemns all such activities as abominations- - one of the strongest words in the vocabulary of God. He is not dead, and He will not be mocked…

“ There shall not be found among you any that… useth divination, or an observer of the times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord…” Deuteronomy 18:10-12

“ But be fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolators, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone; which is the second death.” Revelation 21:8

But, of course Halloween is not really taken seriously by the average American today. We may be imitating the old rites and rituals, but it’s all done in good humor and means absolutely nothing. At any rate, the true Christian knows that there is only one God - - We certainly won’t be burning any bonfires to Baal.

The Apostle Paul seems to address just such a situation in the First Epistle to the Corinthians. The believers at Corinth didn’t worship idols, but they did have an association with idolatrous practices of the day - - they bought meat that had been ceremoniously offered to the gods of wood and stone. Paul told them…

“What say I then? That the idol or that which is offered in sacrifice to the idol is anything? But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye have fellowship with devils. Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of the devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table and the table of the devils.” 1 Corinthians 10:19-21

You see, they knew that the idols were nothing - - and they certainly had no intent of engaging in idolatry themselves- - so they felt they could, with a clean conscience partake of that food. But some things are so spiritually defiling that even an innocent association with them can contaminate you, and seriously compromise your Christianity.

Halloween, I believe, is just a case. I’m not suggesting that we get fearful and superstitious and start looking for demons under the bed. But what I am saying is this. How can a God fearing Christian have anything, whatsoever to do with a day that is so obviously and totally dedicated to the devil? We should be decidedly separate and sanctified from such an unholy practice, that we may show forth what is the good, acceptable, and perfect will of God. (Romans 12:2)

Knowing what we know about the history of Halloween - - and I’ve just briefly touched on it here - - how could we possibly dress our children up as devils, witches, and other characters and send them out “trick-or- treating"? Can we see the hypocrisy in that? What must the Lord think when He looks down and sees little innocents walking around in the trappings of idolatry and witchcraft, making a game out of the thing that sent untold thousands to Christless graves.

It has been the custom at our church to have a Halloween party for the children instead of sending them out onto the streets in years past. They would dress up as Biblical characters instead of bogy-men, there would be plenty of candy, and they wouldn’t feel as though they were missing out on the fun their neighbors were having. We reasoned that we were now Halloween “ as unto the Lord”- - we were taking some kind of stand, and yet pleasing the children. Actually, we were committing the same awful compromise that Gregory and the church had done years ago- - making holy and unholy day so that no one, Christian or pagan, would be offended. In addition, our children were dressing up as Queen Esther, Solomon, and other departed saints- - we were beginning to have our own little All Saints’ Day! It is very sobering to see how exactly history can repeat itself, and how serious just a little compromise can be.

There will be no more Halloween parties here, There will be no special activities at all, except perhaps to encourage the saints to pray against the forces of darkness more diligently than ever. And the children won’t feel cheated when their parents tell them that it is the devil’s holiday and Christians just don’t observe it. We don’t let them cheat and steal and lie, either; and there are certain television shows they aren’t allowed to watch; we hope they will avoid drugs, alcohol, and promiscuity when they’re a little older, without feeling cheated, too. A parent doesn’t have to feel guilty about keeping a child out of Halloween.

Christmas and Easter have been defiled by pagan traditions down through the years, too, but the true Christian can still worship God with a pure spirit on these occasions. Halloween, however, is without any redeemable quality at all. It is, and always has been, a day associated with dark superstitions and all that is evil and ungodly. I think Paul’s instructions to the Thessalonians is an appropriate way to conclude the matter…

“Prove all things: hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil.” 1 Thessalonians 5:21, 22

Written by Kim Harrington, uploaded by Svetlana Van Zee