Halloween

[Criada]

In England harvest festival has been celebrated for hundreds of yesrs, so can't really be called "new age:y. But - have never really considered its origins...
Our church doesn't celebrate it, but my kid's schools all do.

 

[Macrina]

We don't celebrate it. I think the whole thing is very dark.
I think it is a little different in England, tho - not quite such a big thing, and possibly closer to its origins than in the US.

My children don't have anything to do with it - fortunately it is usually in the half term holiday here, tho I have had to ask their school not to include them in the 'spell writing' lessons once...


When they were tiny, we used to go out for a meal on that evening to avoid them being scared by the trick or treaters...now every restaurant seems to be decorated with witches....


I like black cats and pumpkin soup tho!

EDIT: I have nothing against Harvest Festival - is there a connection?

Spell-writing?


As for the Harvest Festival, I say that because a number of churches will hold celebrations by that name on the same day as Halloween, and there will be costumes and candy and all that stuff. Sometimes people criticize it for being essentially Halloween but under a different name, but many people consider it a good way to give the kids all the fun without endorsing Halloween.

 

[Criada]

Harvest festival here is earlier than hallowe'en, and is just a service to thank God for the harvest...usually people bring food which is distributed to the needy. May well have paga root, but is harmless enough.

The spell-writing was part of the literacy lessons - six-year olds being asked to write a spell to curse their enemies....
The teacher said it was 'just a bit of fun..."

 

[Lisa0315]

Halloween, when I was a kid?

Halloween, today?

I just say it is okay, but parents should be extremely cautious.

Lisa

 

[GreenMunchkin]

Harvest festival here is earlier than hallowe'en, and is just a service to thank God for the harvest...usually people bring food which is distributed to the needy. May well have paga root, but is harmless enough.

The spell-writing was part of the literacy lessons - six-year olds being asked to write a spell to curse their enemies....
The teacher said it was 'just a bit of fun..."

Of all the things to write about, a spell to curse their enemies was chosen? Ack, that really makes me think of the thing Greg posted. That "Plan" list.

It's true, Sarah, isn't it, over here it just seems different than in the States. In America it's a big thing, whereas in the UK, it really is quite dark.

It got me thinking, though. Christmas was initially based on a pagan holiday, so is it any different? Its roots, I mean. Halloween is, ostensibly, a kitsch celebration of paganism and darkness, but rooted in fact, and Christmas is a kitsch celebration of the wonderfulness of Christ, but rooted in fact, mixed in with paganism. So is either more or less ok than the other?

 

[free2be]

Of all the things to write about, a spell to curse their enemies was chosen? Ack, that really makes me think of the thing Greg posted. That "Plan" list.

It's true, Sarah, isn't it, over here it just seems different than in the States. In America it's a big thing, whereas in the UK, it really is quite dark.

It got me thinking, though. Christmas was initially based on a pagan holiday, so is it any different? Its roots, I mean. Halloween is, ostensibly, a kitsch celebration of paganism and darkness, but rooted in fact, and Christmas is a kitsch celebration of the wonderfulness of Christ, but rooted in fact, mixed in with paganism. So is either more or less ok than the other?

I agree Anna. As I struggled with celebrating (or participating in) Halloween, I felt the same struggle at Christmas. My husband only became a Christian last year so had no understanding of where I was coming from...he thought I was out to lunch . We do celebrate Christmas, but (to my family's disappointment) I tell my daughter the truth and only the truth...including the truth about the whole Santa thing.

Doesn't it say somewhere in the Bible that Jesus doesn't want us to celebrate His birth?

 

[jad123]

I voted other. While my wife and I decided several years ago to skip the typical Halloween stuff I do not hold anything against those Christian that still celebrate it or feel they are really doing anything wrong. We go roller skating with our church.

 

[ContentInHim]

I voted other. While my wife and I decided several years ago to skip the typical Halloween stuff I do not hold anything against those Christian that still celebrate it or feel they are really doing anything wrong. We go roller skating with our church.

This sounds like much more fun!

 

[ContentInHim]

....

It got me thinking, though. Christmas was initially based on a pagan holiday, so is it any different? Its roots, I mean. Halloween is, ostensibly, a kitsch celebration of paganism and darkness, but rooted in fact, and Christmas is a kitsch celebration of the wonderfulness of Christ, but rooted in fact, mixed in with paganism. So is either more or less ok than the other?

As a Messianic, I gave up Christmas without a whimper. Actually, his real birthday would be sometime around now, the Feast of Tabernacles. "He came and tabernacled among us" - paraphrase from the Gospel of John!

 

[jad123]

This sounds like much more fun!

It is. We have a blast. We use to go trick or treating but our kids prefer this and still candy. Plus they get the added bonus of watching dad make a fool of himself on roller skates.

 

[MrJim]

This is from here; my boys never did the Santa thing, but something to think about...

Santa Claus: Another "God"?

Through the so-called Christmas season, Santa Claus is much in the mind of American children. Books portray him, TV displays him, songs remind us of him, and the stores even give the opportunity to meet him! Just how Santa will climb down the chimney, how he will keep from becoming overheated in Texas weather, and how his sleigh will function without snow pose little problem to the imagination of Santa's admirers.

How many parents who profess to worship God and serve Jesus Christ have acquiesced to the Santa Claus myth simply because the world around us exalts him! Is the Santa fable really innocent fun? Should it be accepted in our families and promoted by Christian fathers and mothers this time of the year? Does the Bible have anything to say about this contemporary emphasis on a mythological Santa?

The Santa Claus myth is a cruel fabrication - a fanciful, destructive lie perpetuated by parents who hypocritically tell their children not to lie! Are we justified in lying simply because a child enjoys the lie? Are we exempt from guilt simply because lying is accepted by a major portion of society? Is the Santa myth simply a good white lie of no consequence? The Word of God quite plainly affirms, "Lying lips are abomination to the Lord" (Proverbs 12:22). We read that God hates "a lying tongue" (6:16, 17). Paul tells us to lay aside "lying" and to "speak . . . truth" (Ephesians 4:25). God assures us that "all liars" will have their part in the lake of fire (Revelation 21:8). This should settle the matter for all of those who prize honesty and truthfulness.

Furthermore, Santa Claus, or Saint Nicholas, is not simply an overweight, whitebearded, jolly old man dressed in a red suit, who lives at the North Pole. To many, Santa is elevated to the level of Deity. In effect, he has become a god. Notice the characteristics of God attributed to this supernatural figure:

• Santa is omniscient like God - knowing whether every child has been "good or bad" (to use the thought from the popular song).

• Santa is omnipresent like God - he can be everywhere in the world during the same night of the year!

• Santa is omnipotent like God - flying through the skies with his supernatural reindeer, carrying tons of toys!

• Santa is a moral judge like God - rewarding good little children and refusing to reward bad children.

• Santa is served by others like God is - he has his group of little workers at his beck and call.

• Santa personifies love, good will, and giving - just as God does.

• Santa is revered by his worshipful subjects - a response suitable for our exalted God and Creator alone!

In these and other ways, the mythical Santa Claus has become something of a god, since he has superhuman attributes. This constitutes an affront to the true and living God. "The Lord is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the Lord made the heavens" (Psalm 96:4, 5). Some tell us that if parents tell their children to believe in both Santa Claus and Jesus Christ, and then later reveal the mythical character of Santa, the children will also have their belief in Christ undermined. How sad to think of parents' willingness to deceive their children and weaken their children's faith simply for the sake of "fun" and a little excitement.

Nothing eternal is to be gained in believing a lie except eventual disillusionment. Nothing is more precious than truth. Christians will remember the virtue of honesty through all seasons of the year. Let us love, trust, and serve the "living and true God" (1 Thessalonians 1:9) rather than giving our allegiance to a fictitious Santa Claus!

What's sad is that the real St. Nicholas (His feast day and my birthday are the same~Dec 6) gets lost in this whole consumer Christmas thing

 

[ContentInHim]

.... Plus they get the added bonus of watching dad make a fool of himself on roller skates.

Always a fun thing to do!

 

[Rhamiel]

Christmas was initially based on a pagan holiday,

Some of the traditions for Christmas were pagan, like the christmas tree and other things. But it is based on clebrating the incarnation of Christ, I think people worry to much about where the stuff comes from

 

[Chococat]

Personally I don't think Christians should celebrate Halloween in the usual way with witches etc as that is glorifying evil (albeit unintentionally) plus Halloween is an important festival for witches, satanists etc. However as it is the eve of All Saints Day why not turn it into a Christian festival when we remember great saints throughtout the ages. I'm sure that would tick the devil off no end.

 

[Macrina]

Personally I don't think Christians should celebrate Halloween in the usual way with witches etc as that is glorifying evil (albeit unintentionally) plus Halloween is an important festival for witches, satanists etc. However as it is the eve of All Saints Day why not turn it into a Christian festival when we remember great saints throughtout the ages. I'm sure that would tick the devil off no end.

A church I was a member of did a cool thing one year when All Saints Day fell on a Sunday. They (this happened before I joined) gathered on Saturday night and went through all the Psalms all night long. It was a combination of reading, singing, and special music, but every word of every Psalm was read that night, and that's how they welcomed in All Saints Day. Cool, huh?

 

[ContentInHim]

Praying and singing the Psalms is VERY VERY powerful.

 

[MrJim]

Praying and singing the Psalms is VERY VERY powerful.

That's what my Catholic & Orthodox friends tell me

 

[ContentInHim]

You know the times when your prayers just run to dust and pebbles? You know you should be praying but haven't a clue what or why? I just pull out the scriptures and hit the floor and cry out The Psalms to the Father.

 

[D'Ann]

I celebrate All Saints Day on Halloween. I also believe that as long as people are not celebrating and also if they are avoiding the cult/occult stuff, I don't see anything wrong with having fun with friends at parties or dressing up in appropriate fun costumes and eating candy.

Based on my faith, this is what the Catholic Encyclopedia says in explaining the All Saints Day:

All Saints' Day


[The vigil of this feast is popularly called "Hallowe'en" or "Halloween".]
Solemnity celebrated on the first of November. It is instituted to honour all the saints, known and unknown, and, according to Urban IV, to supply any deficiencies in the faithful's celebration of saints' feasts during the year. 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 (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). At first only martyrs and St. John the Baptist were honoured by a special day. Other saints were added gradually, and increased in number when a regular process of canonization was established; still, as early as 411 there is in the Chaldean Calendar a "Commemoratio Confessorum" for the Friday after Easter. In the West Boniface IV, 13 May, 609, or 610, consecrated the Pantheon in Rome to the Blessed Virgin and all the martyrs, ordering an anniversary. 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).

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01315a.htm

 

[Melethiel]

It's all in good fun...last year I took my siblings trick-or-treating. This, the organ students at my uni are doing a Halloween concert in conjunction with the bassoon studio. We've got all kinds of fun stuff planned. I get the opening act...I'll be dressed all in black with overdone makeup, and will play the Toccata in d minor.