halloween?

[icebreaker]

Does the devil become un-evil over time?

 

[nima]

i would have to disagree with that. many things have become un-evil over time and i think that halloween is one of them.

Despite the blatant pagan and supernatural imagery constantly associated with it every year?

 

[Polycarp1]

Despite the blatant pagan and supernatural imagery constantly associated with it every year?

Well, nima, I presume you refuse to keep the former pagan feast of Yule or the Spring Solstice, the Feast of Firstfruits, the Passover or the Jewish ritual cleansing rite, and that you refuse to worship God on the days set aside for worship of the Sun or the God Saturn, since these are all days and customs formerly honored by pagans or associated with non-Christian supernatural imagery.

 

[nima]

Actually, you are pretty close. I don't do much Easter celebration, except for the fact that I was baptised on a Sunday during Easter. I don't participate in much of anything else for Easter, including egg hunts, gift baskets, egg painting, etc. Same for Christmas, as it is believed by many that Jesus wasn't born during that time of the year. When it comes to that time of the year, I enjoy the cold weather and some familiy get togethers. Christmas is to overly commercialized, most people are only in it for the gifts, typically material items that we don't need.

Personally I think God should be worshipped and honored everyday, not just 'special holidays', and that is how I prefer to go about my time.

 

[Vedant]

you should come with me to India or another country, Christmas is celebrated, not commercialized there, and i think it's the same in other countries as well. it is truly spiritual.

 

[Vedant]

Does the devil become un-evil over time?

nope

if you're equating devil and halloween, i don't think there is any room for me to argue with you.

if you can see that there is nothing wrong with dressing up and getting candy, maybe you can see that the roots of something don't really matter if nobody associates those roots anymore. ask any kid what halloween is about, and i'm sure they'll say it's about dressing up all scary and getting candy. i don't think they'll say it's a pagan ritual in which...etc etc etc. if kids don't care about the roots so much as to be completely ignorant of it, i don't think it's harmful. i think it is important that people acknowledge history, but i don't think history is as important as the developing customs of today.

today, halloween is not about the pagan rituals.
it is about having fun.
if you believe it is about pagan rituals, then you shouldn't participate, no sarcasm.
i don't think it's about pagan rituals anymore.

 

[icebreaker]

I agree if you ask kids about what halloween means they would say it is just a time of free candy and dressing up. I am just saying that although it is not acknowledged as a pagan ritual in our society doesnt mean it is not still celebrated by pagans etc..

I dont believe in participating in halloween but I dont know the truth and will not judge someone if they participate in it I just choose not to

 

[frdave20]

as long as there is proper explanation of the nature of the true meaning of halloween (ALL HALLOWS EVE, the eve of All saints Day), then I dont have a prob;lem with it. however, i do not like the ghoulish costumes... i think children should dress as saints, or nuns, or priests....

 

[Vedant]

i agree, we shouldn't disregard the history of it. dressing up as the devil and glorifying it isn't good, but there are so many things one could dress up assides from saints, nuns and priests.

what about spacemen, doctors, kings and queens, cartoon characters, superheroes, movie characters, etc. i think those are harmless, and often a lot more fun/funny than dressing up as something evil. i mean, the whole evil thing is just played out too much for me at least.

 

[Kelly]

I'm definitely feeling peer pressure from our church to consider Halloween evil and deny my little girl the opportunity to dress up as her favorite characters.

Honestly, it's the costume first, and the candy second. Beyond that, the day is nothing to my daughter. We'd even go to their Harvest Festival if she could go in her costume (Snow White). She's so proud of her costume.

I still stand by my belief that a day is what you make of it. If you honor God and give thanks for the generosity of your neighbors, that they give a little bit of joy to neighborhood kids, that everything is fine.

I don't feel that my family's souls are at stake over this.

 

[LewisWildermuth]

Did Jesus, his apostles, or 1st century Christians (as recorded in the Bible) celebrate Halloween or Day of the Dead or All Saint's Day......or even the latest new name....Harvest Day?

No, but they also did not celibrate Christmas (whos roots are a germanic pagan holiday), Easter (European pagan fertility godess day) Valentines day (you guessed it, pagan roots again. And they went to church on Saterday, not on Sunday, a Roman pagan sun worshiping day.

 

[Aslan]

Let's see...
Egg- pagan symbol of fertility and rebirth. Guess that means no more eggs for Easter!

Cake & candles- symbol for moon goddess

For me, Halloween has now become a mostly innocent time to dress and have fun. If you feel that celebrating Halloween is wrong for you, than fine. But don't tell others that they are wrong for celebrating it. BTW, there are only two true holidays we should celebrate as Christians, Passover and Easter (even though it is partially derived from a pagan holiday as well.)

 

[lared]

I don't remember where in the Bible it says that the early Christians went to church on Saturday.

Also, I don't remember where it says that Christians are to celebrate only two holidays...Passover and Easter.

 

[Aslan]

Jesus celebrated Passover with his disciples (but of course they were Jewish). We should celebrate the resurrection of Christ, he was raised the Sunday after Passover. Early Christians went to church most likely on Sunday, since that was the day Christ was resurrected.

 

[tcampen]

At the risk of getting back on thread...

Hey everyone, halloween is tomorrow! What are you dressing up as? My 20 month old daughter is going to be a princess, of course - if she'll keep the costume on. Me? Not sure yet. Need some ideas.

 

[Mylinkay Asdara]

Well I don't traditionally 'dress' up but I do wear my gothic looking full length harvest dress (it's a velvet red with gold and black accents). Mainly I'm dressing up for the ritual later in the evening, but most people mistake it for a costume. Mores the better I suppose.

 

[Vedant]

i don't have anything!!! hmmmm, i think i'm going to make a costume...we'll see what comes of it hehe

 

[Vedant]

i think i'm going to go as a robot

 

[savysmommy]

Did you know that dressing up on holloween is celebrating it just like the non-believers do? Druids and ancient scotts used to dress up as ghosts and goblins to scare away ' spirits" or to mix in with them. go to yahoo search, and type in origins of holloween , plese look for a christian backed explaination, it was very enlightening to me.

 

[CurlyCrown]

Did you know that dressing up on holloween is celebrating it just like the non-believers do? Druids and ancient scotts used to dress up as ghosts and goblins to scare away ' spirits" or to mix in with them. go to yahoo search, and type in origins of holloween , plese look for a christian backed explaination, it was very enlightening to me.

So, because people did this hundreds of years ago, that means that if someone wants to put on a silly costume and go to a party or go get some candy, that they're unwittingly participating in a Pagan holiday? Puh-leeze. Even Pagans *today* don't celebrate it that way. Halloween is a secular holiday.

I'm probably just going to wear my Ren. Faire costume, I'm not sure if I have anything going on today other than handing out candy. Though I think just for laughs I'm going to wear my raccoon tail and ears to church.