Halloween can be a troubling holiday especially for Christians.
Many of us carry fond memories of Halloweens long ago, back when we were growing up. Many of us remember it as innocent fun-a special day just for children.
I remember dressing up in silly costumes and going door-to-door begging for candy. When I was little, I carried a small, decorated bag. When I got a little older, I began to carry a pillowcase-the better to carry my loot home. My favorite house to visit was in the country where a bachelor lived who gave out hands full of candy from a bowl and my grandmother's house where she gave out homemade hard-candy like fudge. That was a time before parents would check all unwrapped candy.
In some places, it has been common practice for people who owned outdoor cats to bring them inside in October, especially if they were black cats. Experience showed that as Halloween approached, unwatched pets would begin to disappear, and it wasn't just due to childish pranks.
There are those who have a hard time dealing with Halloween.
What's a Christian to do with this event?
The short answer is found in 1 Corinthians 10:31:
"Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God."
So how does a Christian deal with Halloween in a way that glorifies God?
First of all, become informed about Halloween's pagan origins (e-mail me and I will send you some history that I shared with my congregation on the "origins of Halloween.")
Second, become informed about the ways that the pagan origins of Halloween are reemerging.
Halloween is still a high holiday for pagans and Wiccans.
What is Wicca?
It is one of the fastest growing cults in America according to my research. Wicca is a neo-pagan nature religion with the doctrine of or belief in more than one god or in many gods inspired by various pre-Christian western European beliefs, whose central deity is a mother goddess and which includes the use of herbal magic and benign witchcraft.
It can be traced back to the United Kingdom during the late 1940s. Wicca is based on the symbols, seasonal days of celebration, beliefs and deities of ancient Celtic society. The Druids worshipped elements of creation, and not the creator himself. In addition to ancient Druidic beliefs and practices, Wicca incorporates Masonic and ceremonial magical components from recent centuries.
Modern witches (Wiccans) celebrate eight main holidays; the most important of these is the Druidic new year's festival (in other words, Halloween). This is the most important holiday because this is the time when the veil between the worlds of the living and the dead is supposed to be its thinnest point in the year, making communication easier.
We even may have people within our community who confess to be "Wicca" followers.
There's no getting around it. Halloween, even in its secular and commercial form, glorifies death and honors symbols of evil.
The third thing we can do is, reach out with the light of truth.
Whether or not you do the trick or treating thing, you have a great opportunity to shine the light of Jesus (see Matthew 4:16 and 5:16; John 1:4-5; John 8:12)
Simply "profess Christ, not just protest Halloween!"
So let me offer a few things to help in that regard:
Don't turn out the lights and ignore it. Halloween won't go away. So if you don't support this holiday, determine to turn a negative into a positive;
2. If you're staying home: buy some candy, answer the door and when you put candy in the children's bags include a Christian tract;
3. If you go "trick-or-treating, take some a Christian tracts to hand out along the way. I mean, think about it: how often can you go door to door on a day when almost everyone will answer the door with a pleasant attitude?
4. Instead of playing scary music, play Christian music;
5. Buy a pumpkin and carve a cross in it, placing a candle inside to symbolize that Jesus is the light of the world;
6. Pray for the safety of the children who will be out on that night and the Gospel that will be shared.
Celebrate if you will, but celebrate in a way that glorifies God and lifts up Jesus Christ. Use tomorrow night as an opportunity to shine the light of Christ.
Major Grayling Crites is the commanding officer and pastor of the Salvation Army's Thompson Corps at 305 Thompson Dr. N.
