| Halloween Hype |
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By Gerard Chrispin Just to recapIf you look up Wikipedia on the web you will learn that ‘Halloween, or Hallowe’en, is a holiday celebrated on the night of October 31. Halloween activities include trick-or-treating, ghost tours, bonfires, costume parties, visiting “haunted houses” and carving jack-o-lanterns. Irish immigrants carried versions of the tradition to North America in the nineteenth century. Other western countries embraced the holiday in the late twentieth century. Halloween is celebrated in several countries of the Western world, most commonly in Ireland, the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and occasionally in parts of Australia. In many Latin American countries it is known as Noche de las Brujas (Night of the Witches). Perhaps the biggest factor in Halloween is now the commercial one. In many shops it is big business to sell things associated with Halloween, such as costumes and toy witches. Some say it is just harmless fun. But is that correct?
Spooky origins and dangerous paths aheadIts origins are certainly spooky! They date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced ‘sow in’). 2,000 years ago Celts living in Ireland, the UK, and northern France kept November 1 as the end of summer and the start of their New Year. On New Year’s Eve (October 31) they believed that ghosts of dead people returned to earth. The presence of their spirits supposedly caused trouble, damaged crops, and made it easier for Druids (Celtic priests) to predict future events. They had no other source of direction during winter’s dark months ahead. Tthey lacked the clear teaching and principles of the Bible, God’s Wword, and so superstition and fear were rife. We need to be very careful today. As a nation we already flirt seriously with the powers of evil in astrology, Ouija boards, fortune telling, tarot cards, spiritism, witchcraft, devil worship, black and white magic, and unhealthy entertainment and books based on the dark supernatural. We have largely ignored or rejected the wholesome light of God’s Word, and are reaping a frightening harvest in society. Why should anyone want to celebrate such an ungodly and benighted superstition? Yet we pay much money as a nation to do so, and our children are sucked up into it, knowing neither about Halloween’s dark origins nor of its dangerous paths ahead. The Bible teaches that we are wise not to dabble in such things. Good newsFor those caught up in any form of satanic activity or illegitimate supernatural phenomena, we have good news. The Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Lord of Glory who became Man, lived a spotless life and died on the cross to take our sins and the punishment for them that it would take us an eternity to pay. He arose again from the dead in righteous and holy power and lives today. For all who will confess their sins and rebellion against God, forsake them, and trust themselves wholeheartedly to Jesus and to His mercy, He is willing to enter their lives by the Holy Spirit. He forgives the past, changes the present, and guarantees a home in heaven for the eternal future. That same good news is also needed by those who have not dabbled in the occult or the supernatural, but who know that they have sinned against God and hurt their fellow men, women and children. To know Christ is the answer to all our wrongdoing. Some practical suggestionsHere are some suggestions to combat the Halloween hype. First of all, make sure that you are trusting the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour and following Him. Then take the opportunity, when appropriate, to point out to people the difference between Halloween and Christianity. If you are parents of young children or if you are in a position of influence in a church, why not run a party for the kids that really is wholesome good fun, and why not end it with a short children’s story to help the youngsters think about the Saviour who loves them? Be kind to any ‘trick or treaters’ if you decide to open your door. Why not give those of them who can read a New Testament and an invitation to your church’s youth meetings as your ‘treat’ for them? |
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On Saturday 18 October 2008, thousands of people will be taking part in ceilidhs up and down the country in support of WaterAid.