Halloween Issues and Articles
The
Truth About Halloween
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Truth About Halloween
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Good News and
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Demons, Deception, and Deliverance
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A pig may wear lipstick, but it’s still a dirty farm animal. The pig will return to its ways of rolling in the mud and eventually smear the Mary Kay paint. Like this proverbial pig, we can reason excuses for Bible believers to celebrate Halloween but the argument does no good. Does it matter that this holiday is evil? Should it concern us that the customs involved in Halloween were once used to worship demons? “Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil,” 1 Thesalonians 5:21-22. Halloween practices, from dressing in costumes to bobbing for apples, were once part of pagan worship. These actions are repeated today by people who are unaware or simply don’t care about their true meaning. Time may have passed but their origins and true purpose remains the same.
The history of Halloween as an evil day of Satanic worship can’t be denied. It is a historical fact. "The observances connected with Halloween are believed to have originated among the ancient Druids, who believed that on the evening, Saman, the lord of the dead, called forth hosts of evil spirits, New Encyclopedia, Vol. 12, p. 152.
“The Druids, an order of priests in ancient 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 as a punishment for evil deeds. From these Druidic beliefs comes the present-day use of witches, ghosts, and cats in Halloween festivities. The Druids had an autumn festival called Samhain, or summer's end. It was an occasion for feasting on all the kinds of food which had been grown during the summer,” The World Book Encyclopedia, volume 9, page 25.
Is Halloween really an evil celebration? "During this time interval on October 31 the normal order of the universe is suspended, the barriers between the natural and the supernatural are temporarily removed, the sidh lies open and all divine beings and the spirits of the dead move freely among men and interfere sometimes violently, in their affairs," Celtic Mythology, p. 127. Clearly, Halloween is an ancient religious holiday that over time has evolved into a secular celebration.
Today ancient customs that were once used to conjure up spirits have been adopted by the modern world of entertainment and profit. Some cultures call it the “Day of the Dead” or “All Saint’s Day” but the holiday is still the same.Dressing up children for trick-or-treating or walking through a haunted house may be fun, but such actions are inherently immoral. The Scriptures tells us to "Abstain from all appearance of evil,” 1Thessalonians 5:22.
How did Halloween become part of the current society? What does church history teach? "The celebration of All Saints' Day is attributed to Pope Boniface IV, who dedicated the Roman temple, the Pantheon, to St. Mary and the Martyrs on the thirteenth of May, 610. Boniface set the day aside as a memorial to early Christians who died for their beliefs without official recognition of their sanctity, so that 'the memory of all the saints might in future be honored in the place which had formerly been devoted to the worship, not of gods but of demons'. The clergy encouraged their flock to remember the dead with prayers instead of sacrifices. People were taught to bake 'soul cakes' - little pastries and breads - to offer in exchange for blessings rather than trying to appease the spirits with food and wine. Villagers were also encouraged to masquerade on this day, not to frighten unwelcome spirits, but to honor Christian saints. On All Saints' Day, churches throughout Europe and the British Isles displayed relics of their patron saints. Poor churches could not afford genuine relics and instead had processions in which parishioners dressed as saints, angels and devils. This religious masquerade resembled the pagan custom of parading ghosts to the town limits. It served the new church by giving an acceptable Christian basis to the custom of dressing up on Halloween. In addition, the Church tried to convince the people that the great bonfires they lit in homage to the sun would instead keep the devil away - God's mortal enemy in the new Christian religion, Halloween, An American Holiday, An American History, by Lesley Pratt Bannatyne. Thanks to Pope Bonifice, new Christian meanings were given to ancient pagan practices. Is this acceptable to the Almighty?
The only thing worse than blatant outright Satanic worship is secret homage to demons that is disguised behind seemingly normal practices of society.
Bible believers have been called to be “in the world but not of the world.” Halloween is an excellent opportunity to take a stand for righteousness and be a light to society. "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind,” Romans 12:2.
In Matthew 10:5 the Savior said, “do not go in the way of the pagans.” Paganism is practices and principles that are not Christian or Biblical in origin. Many Pagan practices, like Halloween and other holidays, have been borrowed by the contemporary Church and thus polluted much of the faith. Christians should sway from such practices and prove create a distinction in the world.
Some churches compromise with Halloween alternatives like harvest festivals or Biblical costume parties. Again, such compromise is not allowed by the Scriptures. Pagan practices can not be transformed into holy deeds. Paganism can not be redeemed. Paganism can only be avoided.
The truth about Halloween can be found in encyclopedias, Internet searches, and even the on History Channel television network. This holiday is evil and should be avoided by those who claim to worship the Almighty of the Bible. Lipstick on a pig doesn’t change the pig and nothing can change Halloween. To find more of the truth, from a Scriptural perspective please visit www.findemet.com or www.emetministries.com.
