Should Christians participate in Halloween?

Should We Celebrate Halloween?

Halloween is one of the strangest holidays mankind celebrates. It is an amazing paradox, an unusual mixture of Christian terms and ancient pagan religious rites.



Music by Randy Vild http://myspace.com/orchestrations
The Truth About Halloween: http://blowthetrumpet.org

Love, Sex, and Parenting...at Halloween

By Carl F.H. Henry @ http://henryinstitute.org/

As Linus Van Pelt waits for the Great Pumpkin (if you don't know what I'm talking about; good for you. Your parents more closely monitored television intake than did mine), two current articles seek to point out what Halloween reveals about contemporary attitudes toward sex and parenting.

The Los Angeles Times features the lament of a busy Mom who worries that the elaborate costumes of her neighbors' children just reminds her how inadequate she is as a parent. Brett Paesel, author of Mommies Who Drink: Sex, Drugs, and Other Distant Memories of an Ordinary Mom (On second thought, never mind the television. My Mom was just fine), writes this:

I suggested that my 6-year-old wear a shirt and a tie and go as a politician, but he wants to be a Komodo dragon. I told my 3-year-old that I could paint bruises on his arms and legs and he could go as a kid who falls down a lot. But he wants to be a red cat because a friend of ours works at the REDCAT Theater downtown, and he's been obsessed with the image ever since he heard of it. I'm figuring that we'll do red sweats and a few whiskers drawn on with a lip liner. The Komodo dragon is going to require some re-imagining of last year's T. rex costume.Things used to be a whole lot easier for underachieving moms. In addition to being one, I'm the daughter of one -- and she seemed to have more like-minded company in the '60s. One year, she and my dad couldn't be bothered to take us trick-or-treating. They gave my brother and me some crepe paper and newspapers to take upstairs and told us to make a different costume for each time we came back down into the living room. My parents then kicked back to discuss the day over martinis; every time we emerged in a new paper creation, they threw candy at us.The next day my mother told a neighbor about our evening. She was impressed and passed on her own timesaving tip: "I threw a black wig on Grace and told her to go as her evil twin." I long for those days when a mom could throw a sheet over a kid to make him a ghost without worrying that she's falling short of everyone's expectations. Or simply her own.

The Albany Times Union points out that the daughters of high-achieving parents have a growing theme in Halloween costume trends: sexiness. Reporter Kelly Smith writes:

The idea of sexy Halloween is not necessarily a new one. For years, Halloween parties have had their share of hot nurses and seductive pirates. But these are parties for adults, right? Not anymore. With names like "Transylvania Temptress,"..."Major Flirt," and "Red Velvet Devil Bride," there is no doubt that costumes marketed to children and teens have become more suggestive. Such costumes, which typically feature plunging necklines, fishnet stockings, knee-high boots and very short skirts, dominate the display at most costume shops and party supply stores, and parents are having a hard time avoiding them.

Thankfully there are "experts" who can help parents cope with whether or not their daughter should dress up as a sex huntress for Halloween. These tips include:

Use this as an opportunity to talk to your daughter about sexuality and appropriate ways of exploring and expressing it. Talk to girls about what they fear as well as hope for in terms of intimacy and teach them that there is more to sexuality than looking sexy for a guy. She said dressing up in sexy costumes is a way of presenting oneself as sexy, not of expressing oneself sexually.

and:

Add an element of power to the character she chooses. If she wants to be a fairy, let her imagine she's a fairy in charge of her whole kingdom. If she wants to express her sexuality, suggest that she be a toga-wearing goddess of wisdom. It's not that wanting to look pretty or sexy is bad, it's just that it's the only option girls are being presented with.

Whatever one's views on Halloween, the haze of confusion couldn't be more evident than it is in contemporary parenting, at Halloween or at any other time of the year. Why can't we see our poverty when we can afford to dress our children up in elaborate costumes, and our daughters wish to disguise themselves as sexual playthings for men?

It will take more than Linus's Great Pumpkin to get us out from this one. Thankfully, the young man also knows how to turn that blanket into a shepherd's gear just in time to speak of good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people.

If you don't know about Linus's shepherd speech or what that has to do with a blanket, again, thank your Mom and Dad. If you don't know what the good tidings of great joy are, give me a call.

Trick or Trite?

http://www.christiancrafters.com probably goes too far:

“Pumpkin Prayer”

{cut off top of pumpkin}
Lord, open my mind so I can learn new things about you.

{remove innards}
Remove the things in my life that don’t please you.
Forgive the wrong things I do and help me to forgive others.

{cut open eyes}
Open my eyes to see the beauty you’ve made in the world around me.

{cut out nose}
I’m sorry for the times I’ve turned my nose at the good food you provide.

{cut out mouth}
Let everything I say please You.

{light the candle}
Lord, help me show your light to others through the things I do. Amen

from here

Halloween Fast Approaches

John MacArthur @ www.gty.org was asked, "Is there anything wrong with children going out 'Trick or Treating', like Halloween, and if so, what specifically is bad in it, and what do the MacArthur kids do? And, should Grace get involved in any alternatives?" His response was as follows:

"I think, it's not a wise thing to have children go out trick or treating. I mean, I think it's kind of dumb for Christian kids to dress up like ghosts and witches and weird things, and devil suits, and trouble-makers, and all that. I think, for example, you know, the whole thing of All Saints Day or All Hallows Eve has connotations, first of all of Roman Catholic tradition. It has connotations of demons and spirits. Plus the fact that little kids are exposed to screwballs as well as to cars, and all kinds of other things...What we do in our family is we have an alternative. Like you said, we do an alternative thing. We do something fun for the whole family. It varies from year to year, and our church has always done that, too, for the kids. Have parties and socials and things."

He feels the day holds too many negative connotations and that Christians should find a more sacred alternative. Certain things must be acknowledged:

• This is an issue of conscience.
• Although the scriptures do not directly address this activity, there are principles that can guide us on the issue.

Tim Challies @ http://www.challies.com responded:

My conviction is that it is a very poor witness to have the house of believers blacked out on Halloween. Halloween presents a unique opportunity to interact with neighbors, to meet their children and to prove that Christians are part of the community and not merely people who want only to interact with Christian friends or to only interact in our own way and on our own terms. At the same time I despise how evil Halloween is.

A simple observation of your neighborhood would show:

Already our neighborhood has ghosts hanging from trees and evil plastic figurines stuck into lawns. One section of houses nearby always feels the need to go the extra step, playing recordings of scary music, dressing in occult costumes and generally glorying in evil.

What are some reasonable activities:

To this time we have allowed our children to go out trick-or-treating, provided they do not wear evil or occult costumes. It is a compromise, and admittedly not one I am entirely comfortable with. Over the past several years churches in our neighborhood have offered an alternative to Halloween with "harvest parties" or similar events. These tend to be parties in a nearby community center that allows children to dress up and get their fill of candy in a less-pagan environment. But there are other churches that encourage families to be present in their homes, to greet their neighbours and to look for opportunities to interact with them. A couple of the pastors in a nearby church are going so far as to hold neighbourhood barbecues before dark and inviting people to come and share a meal with them. I think this is a great idea.

Realize that evil is real and consider how you regard your own actions:

Perhaps the greatest fallacy Christians believe about Halloween is that by refusing to participate in the day we are somehow taking a stand against Satan. And second to that, is that participation in the day is an endorsement of Satan and his evil holidays. The truth is that Halloween is not much different from any other day in this world where, at least for the time being, every day is Satan's day and a celebration of him and his power. A member of the discussion discussion list wrote the following last year around this time: "Yeah... I've heard all of the 'pagan' reasons Christians should avoid Halloween. The question is whether we are actually participating in Samhain when we participate in Halloween? Who or what makes the 'Witch's League of Public Awareness' the definers of what Halloween is, either now or historically? Such a connection between Samhain and my daughter as a ladybug or my son as a Bengals Boy is highly dubious." And it is highly dubious at best.

I am guessing my neighbourhood is all-too-typical in that people typically arrive home from work and immediately drive their cars into the garage. More often than not they do not emerge again until the next morning when they leave for work once more. We are private, reclusive people who delight in our privacy. We rarely see our neighbors and rarely communicate with them. It would be a terrible breach of Canadian social etiquette for me to knock on a person's door and ask them for a small gift or even just to say "hello" to them. In the six years we have been living in this area, we have never once had a neighbor come to the door to ask for anything (except for this time). Yet on Halloween these barriers all come down. I have the opportunity to greet every person in the neighbourhood. I have the opportunity to introduce myself to the family who moved in just down the row a few weeks ago and to greet some other people I have not seen for weeks or months. At the same time, those people's children will come knocking on my door. We have two possible responses. We can turn the lights out and sit inside, seeking to shelter ourselves from the pagan influence of the little Harry Potters, Batmans and ballerinas, or we can greet them, gush over them, and make them feel welcome. We can prove ourselves to be the family who genuinely cares about our neighbours, or we can be the family who shows that we want to interact with them only on our terms. Most of our neighbors know of our faith and of our supposed concern for them. This is a chance to prove our love for them.

The same contributor to the email list concluded his defense of participating in Halloween with these words: "One night does not a neighbor make (and one night does not a pagan make), but Halloween is the one night of the year where the good neighborliness that flows from being in Christ is communicated and reinforced. We are citizens of another Kingdom where The Light is always on."

The truth is that I have several convictions regarding Halloween. I despise the pagan aspects of it. I am convicted that my children should not dress as little devils or ghosts or monsters. But I am also convicted that there could be no worse witness to the neighbours than having a dark house, especially in a neighbourhood like ours which is small and where every person and every home is highly-visible. We know that, if we choose not to participate, the neighbors will notice and will smile knowingly, supposing that we feel too good to participate. We have nothing to fear from our neighbours or from their children. So my children will dress up (my son as a police officer and my daughter as a princess) and we will visit each of our neighbours, knocking on their doors and accepting their fistfuls of candy. Either my wife or I will remain at home, greeting people at our door with a smile and a handful of something tasty. If the kids are deemed too old to trick-or-treat, they'll be forced to sing a song to merit any handouts. Our door will be open and the light will be on. And we trust that the Light will shine brightly.

My encouragement to you today is to think and pray about this issue. I do not see Halloween as a great evangelistic occasion. I do not foresee it as a time when the people coming to your door are likely to be saved. But I do think it is a time that you can prove to your neighbors that you care about them, that you care about their children, and that you are glad to be in this world and this culture, even if you are not of this world or this culture. Halloween may serve as a bridge to the hearts of those who live around you who so desperately need a Savior.

Thoughts on Halloween

By Darrell Brooker @ http://drbrooker.net/ responded to the Halloween arguments of involvement. He starts with a general comment:

I do not think that Halloween is an innocent, benign, or neutral event that is only an opportunity for kids to get some candy. It is a day when death and darkness are glorified and celebrated, and the world revels in those things that Jesus Christ died to redeem us from. The popular sugar-coating of much of it only serves to desensitize ourselves and our children to the evil and darkness that Halloween represents. No one will convince me that all the decorations, (tombstones, ghosts, witches, vampires, etc.), regardless of their “cartoonish” nature, do not represent the darkness of this world and the Ruler of it. I sincerely think it naive to believe otherwise.

Argument #1 - Historically speaking, Halloween really means this…or signifies that, etc.

This argument is completely irrelevant to the discussion. The history, which is not as positive as some like to portray, matters not one whit to what is actually celebrated today. Whether it originated from pagan roots or medieval Catholicism is moot; we should not be quick to ally ourselves with either. Do a quick search of the web and you will see that this is the day of celebration for pagans, wiccans, Satanists, etc.; that is to say, those in direct opposition to Christ. The day is hardly benign to those who glory in evil and darkness and use this day, above all others, to celebrate that which is evil in God’s eyes.

Argument #2 - It is a poor witness for our neighbours to see a darkened house.

I don’t understand this line of thinking. In fact, I think just the opposite is true. I think it is a better witness to show our neighbours that there is a difference with us and that we are a people willing to stand (or sacrifice) for that difference. Must we participate in worldly things in order to reach our neighbours for Christ? I think the answer is obvious.

Our first responsibility is to glorify God in our actions, not show our neighbours that we’re just like them (ie. likeable people) in order to make Christianity look appealing. What should appeal to them is our stand for that which is true. One of Jesus’ key evangelistic demonstrations was to show his power by casting out demons and opposing the forces of darkness. Rather than worrying about causing offence, Jesus was more concerned that the reality, truth, and power of God be made manifest to those watching. Our opposition to the powers of darkness should be just as visible. By participating in Halloween we blur the line between ourselves as Christians (a people set apart), and the world, and in turn impair our witness. Perhaps, viewing Christ’s example, we should consider becoming more bold and more outspoken in our opposition beyond just non-participation in the day.

Argument #3 - Halloween presents an opportunity to interact with our neighbours, to meet their children and to prove that we are part of the community, for the purposes of evangelism.

There are 365 days in a year and if we’re serious about it, our witness should be on a continual basis. We should be looking for opportunities to engage them, whether it be as they walk their dog by our house, or when we see them at a local store; it should be something that we think of doing at every opportunity. A key to our witness is an uncompromising integrity to the transcendent truth of the gospel, a truth that exists above man and his ways. We are bound by that which God calls good and evil, not what we may think is good or evil. Our witnessing reflects what we have become: new creatures, and representatives of the light. Consistency with this truth demands a separation from evil; even those things that have the appearance of evil. Part of our evangelistic task is to highlight the differences between “light” and “dark,” and expose the evil in the world. Our differences with unbelievers are the very basis of good evangelistic discussions with our neighbours as we can both show and tell them about what separates “children of light” and “children of darkness.” I believe participation in Halloween only weakens our overall witness to our neighbours and opens us to charges of worldliness and hypocrisy. We must necessarily show them, for the sake of the gospel and their salvation, that our differences are real and distinct.

An integral part of this consistent evangelical witness is the elevation of Biblical truth as a testimony of our lives both in word and deed. Is Halloween evil? Is it representative of evil? I think it is. But for those who disagree, you will have to concede, at a minimum, that it glorifies evil, and as I said previously, it glorifies those things which Christ died to redeem us from. The scripture tells us to abhor and avoid (even the appearance of) evil:

1 Thessalonians 5:22 - “Abstain from every form of evil (KJV the appearance of evil).”
Romans 12:9 - “Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.”
Romans 12:21 - “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
Romans 16:19 - “For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil.”
Galatians 1:3-4 - “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father…”

Our battle is not against little children in costumes trick or treating, but against demonic forces that disguise themselves as light and innocence. What better way for children to become desensitized to the reality of evil powers in this world, and the demonic realm that exists all around us, then to view it all as something akin to loveable cartoon characters. The whole idea of witchcraft and demonic activities that our culture celebrates at Halloween is the antithesis of the person of God. These forces exist to oppose the very purposes of God! We are to be “aliens” in this world, that is to say “other-worldly,” and separation from the world unto holiness is an integral part of a pure and true witness of God’s work in our lives. We are here to transform the world, and not conform to it on the basis of a weak and sentimental counterfeit love for an already over-indulged generation of children who want candy. We need to show our children by way of example that the life of a follower of Christ is one of sacrifice and separation from the world, and that example needs to be strong, for they will pick up on even the slightest compromise. We are children of light, why do we still want to play with darkness?

My wife and I have explained to our children from early on why we do not participate in Halloween, and thankfully, they have never questioned or complained. The day simply comes and goes like any other. We feel no necessity to take them out trick-or-treating just so they don’t have to be embarrassed when other kids ask them what they dressed up as. And if they are asked, I hope the occasion for boldness early in life will be used by God to strengthen them to stand against the world for what will hopefully be a life of opposition to it.

Argument #4 - I read one comment that said something to this effect: One of the greatest fallacies Christians believe about Halloween is that by refusing to participate in the day we are somehow taking a stand against Satan. And second to that, is that participation in the day is an endorsement of Satan and his evil holidays…The truth is that Halloween is not much different from any other day in this world where, at least for the time being, every day is Satan’s day and a celebration of him and his power.

While I agree with the last line of this argument, one needs to ask, What is Halloween if not a unique celebration of evil? The world may not see it as such but it is a celebration geared towards themes of darkness, evil, and the occult; all things overtly in oppostion to God. The fact that it has become mainstream and involves children and candy proves Satan’s success in making these things appear good, fun, and normal. “And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14 ). By refusing to participate in a celebration of darkness, no matter how positively it is perceived by those who don’t have the Spirit, we are opposing Satan and his purposes in this world. There is an enormous difference between Halloween and every other day and to suggest otherwise, to my mind, seems wholly inaccurate.

So, if you knock on our door on October 31st, no one will answer until the lights come back on at about 9pm. And if you see us after that and wonder why we did not particpate, we will be glad to share with you why we did not get involved in a celebration that glorifies those things that Christ’s death purposed to save us from.

Post Script:

“And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” -Ephesians 5:11-16

The days are indeed evil, so evil in fact that in the next chapter of Ephesians, Paul tells of the weapons that God has given us in order to stand against such wickedness.

“Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” -Ephesians 6:11-13

Should We Celebrate Halloween?

Halloween is one of the strangest holidays mankind celebrates. It is an amazing paradox, an unusual mixture of Christian terms and ancient pagan religious rites. Music by Randy Vild http://myspace.com/orchestrations The Truth About Halloween: http://blowthetrumpet.org

Halloween - Trick or Retreat?

From Tim Challies @ http://www.challies.com

Will you participate in Halloween this year?

Halloween is once again nearly upon us. Articles about the occasion are beginning to make their way into my RSS reader and I thought I’d keep up with one of this site’s few traditions and write an article on the subject. My thoughts on the subject continue to develop as perhaps long-time readers will notice.

Just this morning Pulpit Magazine linked to a great article courtesy of Grace to You. The article deals well with the subject, seeking to answer these questions: “How should Christians respond to Halloween? Is it irresponsible for parents to let their children trick-or-treat? What about Christians who refuse any kind of celebration during the season—are they overreacting?”

The article spells out several legitimate ways Christians will react to Halloween this year:

• Some will adopt a “No Participation” policy. As Christian parents, they don’t want their kids participating in spiritually compromising activities—listening to ghost stories and coloring pictures of witches. They don’t want their kids to dress up in costumes for trick-or-treating or even attending Halloween alternatives.
• Other Christians will opt for Halloween alternatives called “Harvest Festivals” or “Reformation Festivals”—the kids dress up as farmers, Bible characters, or Reformation heroes. It’s ironic when you consider Halloween’s beginning as an alternative, but it can be an effective means of reaching out to neighborhood families with the gospel. Some churches leave the church building behind and take acts of mercy into their community, “treating” needy families with food baskets, gift cards, and the gospel message.
• There’s another option open to Christians: limited, non-compromising participation in Halloween. There’s nothing inherently evil about candy, costumes, or trick-or-treating in the neighborhood. In fact, all of that can provide a unique gospel opportunity with neighbors. Even handing out candy to neighborhood children—provided you’re not stingy—can improve your reputation among the kids. As long as the costumes are innocent and the behavior does not dishonor Christ, trick-or-treating can be used to further gospel interests.

I appreciate the sensitivity the authors display in dealing with what is a difficult topic. It is my conviction that this is, in many ways, an issue of conscience. I do not believe there is absolute right and wrong here—we can’t be too dogmatic about it. Each person (and, in particular, I believe, each father) must examine the Bible and his conscience to see where that leads him. It may lead him to any of these options, each of which can be legitimate. The Bible says nothing about Halloween, though certainly there are principles we can find that will help guide us. But ultimately I believe we have to trust our biblically-informed consciences and our sanctified reasoning to guide us. Let me share where this has led me.

My conviction has long been that it would be a poor witness to the neighbors if my family were to refuse to participate in Halloween; it would be inconsistent with the way Aileen and I feel we are to live within this neighborhood. This day provides a unique opportunity to interact with neighbors, to enjoy their children and to prove that Christians are part of the community and not merely people who want only to interact with Christian friends or to only interact in our own way and on our own terms. Aileen and I are fully part of the community around us and look forward to being part of the community events that happen here. And so we allow our children to go out trick-or-treating, provided they do not wear evil or occult costumes. It still feels like a bit of a compromise, and admittedly one with which I am not entirely comfortable. Yet I would struggle far more with turning out the lights or finding something else to do that evening.

The truth is that I have several convictions regarding Halloween. I despise the pagan aspects of it. I am convicted that my children should not dress as little devils or ghosts or monsters or otherwise glory in evil. But I am also convicted that it is a poor witness to have a darkened house, especially in a neighborhood like ours which is small and where every person and every home is highly-visible. We know that, if we choose not to participate, the neighbors will notice and assume that we feel somehow above them for not participating (and that we are judging them for their participation). We have nothing to fear from our neighbors or from their children, no matter how they choose to dress for an evening. So my children will dress up (my son as a soldier and my daughters as a ballerina and a princess) and we will visit each of our neighbors, knocking on their doors and accepting their fistfuls of candy. Either my wife or I (I think it’s my turn this year) will remain at home, greeting people at our door with a smile and a handful of something tasty. If the kids are deemed too old to trick-or-treat, they’ll be forced to sing a song to merit any handouts. Our door will be open and the light will be on. A contributor to an email list I participate in once concluded his defense of participating in Halloween with these words: “One night does not a neighbor make (and one night does not a pagan make), but Halloween is the one night of the year where the good neighborliness that flows from being in Christ is communicated and reinforced. We are citizens of another Kingdom where The Light is always on.” That analogy seems particularly appropriate.

This year we’re doing something else. We’ve invited all of the neighbors over for dinner before the festivities begin. We’ve got at least 40 or 50 people who are planning on coming by for a barbeque. We’re doing this simply because we enjoy our neighbors and love to spend time with them. Halloween evening can be hectic, with parents getting home from work and then rushing to prepare their children, so we thought we’d attempt to relieve one burden by taking care of dinner for everyone. It should be fun and we’re looking forward to it.

My encouragement to you today is to think and pray about this issue so that you can do what your conscience dictates for that day. I do not see Halloween as a great evangelistic occasion and this is where some of my thought on the issue has probably developed most. In the past I may have tried to convince myself that Halloween would offer occasions to share the gospel, but I don’t think this is usually the case. Nor does it have to be. I think Halloween is a time that you can prove to your neighbors that you care about them, that you care about their children, and that you are glad to be in this world and this culture, even if you are not of this world or this culture. Aileen and I feel that God has deliberately placed us here and among these people. We want to celebrate with them, even on an occasion of such dubious importance as Halloween.

---

Addendum - Let me add just one thing here. This year Halloween is on a Wednesday which means it will conflict with many mid-week church services. We did not realize that the two conflicted until after we had already made and spread our plans for the evening. I am generally convicted that we need to be at church when the doors are open. If you are of the same mind, this article may be more theory than practice, at least for this year. We unwittingly made an exception this year, but probably would not have if we had not already invited the neighborhood to our home that night. And yes, we feel a bit guilty about it. My pastor offered this advice for next time: “Get a calendar!” That’s not a bad plan…

Christianity and the Dark Side -- What About Halloween?

By Albert Mohler @http://www.albertmohler.com

Over a hundred years ago, the great Dutch theologian Hermann Bavinck predicted that the 20th century would "witness a gigantic conflict of spirits." His prediction turned out to be an understatement, and this great conflict continues into the 21st century.

The issue of Halloween presses itself annually upon the Christian conscience. Acutely aware of dangers new and old, many Christian parents choose to withdraw their children from the holiday altogether. Others choose to follow a strategic battle plan for engagement with the holiday. Still others have gone further, seeking to convert Halloween into an evangelistic opportunity. Is Halloween really that significant?

Well, Halloween is a big deal in the marketplace. Halloween is surpassed only by Christmas in terms of economic activity. According to David J. Skal, "Precise figures are difficult to determine, but the annual economic impact of Halloween is now somewhere between 4 billion and 6 billion dollars depending on the number and kinds of industries one includes in the calculations."

Furthermore, historian Nicholas Rogers claims that "Halloween is currently the second most important party night in North America. In terms of its retail potential, it is second only to Christmas. This commercialism fortifies its significance as a time of public license, a custom-designed opportunity to have a blast. Regardless of its spiritual complications, Halloween is big business."

Rogers and Skal have each produced books dealing with the origin and significance of Halloween. Nicholas Rogers is author of Halloween: From Pagan Ritual to Party Night. Professor of History at York University in Canada, Rogers has written a celebration of Halloween as a transgressive holiday that allows the bizarre and elements from the dark side to enter the mainstream. Skal, a specialist on the culture of Hollywood, has written Death Makes a Holiday: A Cultural History of Halloween. Skal's approach is more dispassionate and focused on entertainment, looking at the cultural impact of Halloween on the rise of horror movies and the nation's fascination with violence.

The pagan roots of Halloween are well documented. The holiday is rooted in the Celtic festival of Samhain, which came at summer's end. As Rogers explains, "Paired with the feast of Beltane, which celebrated the life-generating powers of the sun, Samhain beckoned to winter and the dark nights ahead." Scholars dispute whether Samhain was celebrated as a festival of the dead, but the pagan roots of the festival are indisputable. Questions of human and animal sacrifices and various occultic sexual practices continue as issues of debate, but the reality of the celebration as an occultic festival focused on the changing of seasons undoubtedly involved practices pointing to winter as a season of death.

As Rogers comments: "In fact, the pagan origins of Halloween generally flow not from this sacrificial evidence, but from a different set of symbolic practices. These revolve around the notion of Samhain as a festival of the dead and as a time of supernatural intensity heralding the onset of winter.

How should Christians respond to this pagan background? Harold L. Myra of Christianity Today argues that these pagan roots were well known to Christians of the past. "More than a thousand years ago Christians confronted pagan rites appeasing the lord of death and evil spirits. Halloween's unsavory beginnings preceded Christ's birth when the druids, in what is now Britain and France, observed the end of summer with sacrifices to the gods. It was the beginning of the Celtic year and they believed Samhain, the lord of death, sent evil spirits abroad to attack humans, who could escape only by assuming disguises and looking live evil spirits themselves."

Thus, the custom of wearing costumes, especially costumes imitating evil spirits, is rooted in the Celtic pagan culture. As Myra summarizes, "Most of our Halloween practices can be traced back to the old pagan rites and superstitions."

The complications of Halloween go far beyond its pagan roots, however. In modern culture, Halloween has become not only a commercial holiday, but a season of cultural fascination with evil and the demonic. Even as the society has pressed the limits on issues such as sexuality, the culture's confrontation with the "dark side" has also pushed far beyond boundaries honored in the past.

As David J. Skal makes clear, the modern concept of Halloween is inseparable from the portrayal of the holiday presented by Hollywood. As Skal comments, "The Halloween machine turns the world upside down. One's identity can be discarded with impunity. Men dress as women, and vise versa. Authority can be mocked and circumvented, and, most important, graves open and the departed return."

This is the kind of material that keeps Hollywood in business. "Few holidays have a cinematic potential that equals Halloween's," comments Skal. "Visually, the subject is unparalleled, if only considered in terms of costume design and art direction. Dramatically, Halloween's ancient roots evoke dark and melodramatic themes, ripe for transformation into film's language of shadow and light."

But television's "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" (which debuted in 1966) has given way to Hollywood's "Halloween" series and the rise of violent "slasher" films. Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff have been replaced by Michael Myers and Freddy Kruger.

This fascination with the occult comes as America has been sliding into post-Christian secularism. While the courts remove all theistic references from America's public square, the void is being filled with a pervasive fascination with evil, paganism, and new forms of occultism.

In addition to all this, Halloween has become downright dangerous in many neighborhoods. Scares about razor blades hidden in apples and poisoned candy have spread across the nation in recurring cycles. For most parents, the greater fear is the encounter with occultic symbols and the society's fascination with moral darkness.

For this reason, many families withdraw from the holiday completely. Their children do not go trick-or-treating, they wear no costumes, and attend no parties related to the holiday. Some churches have organized alternative festivals, capitalizing on the holiday opportunity, but turning the event away from pagan roots and the fascination with evil spirits. For others, the holiday presents no special challenges at all.

These Christians argue that the pagan roots of Halloween are no more significant than the pagan origins of Christmas and other church festivals. Without doubt, the church has progressively Christianized the calendar, seizing secular and pagan holidays as opportunities for Christian witness and celebration. Anderson M. Rearick, III argues that Christians should not surrender the holiday. As he relates, "I am reluctant to give up what was one of the highlights of my childhood calendar to the Great Imposter and Chief of Liars for no reason except that some of his servants claim it as his."

Nevertheless, the issue is a bit more complicated than that. While affirming that make-believe and imagination are part and parcel of God's gift of imagination, Christians should still be very concerned about the focus of that imagination and creativity. Arguing against Halloween is not equivalent to arguing against Christmas. The old church festival of "All Hallow's Eve" is by no means as universally understood among Christians as the celebration of the incarnation at Christmas.

Christian parents should make careful decisions based on a biblically-informed Christian conscience. Some Halloween practices are clearly out of bounds, others may be strategically transformed, but this takes hard work and may meet with mixed success.

The coming of Halloween is a good time for Christians to remember that evil spirits are real and that the Devil will seize every opportunity to trumpet his own celebrity. Perhaps the best response to the Devil at Halloween is that offered by Martin Luther, the great Reformer: "The best way to drive out the devil, if he will not yield to texts of Scripture, is to jeer and flout him for he cannot bear scorn."

On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther began the Reformation with a declaration that the church must be recalled to the authority of God's Word and the purity of biblical doctrine. With this in mind, the best Christian response to Halloween might be to scorn the Devil and then pray for the Reformation of Christ's church on earth. Let's put the dark side on the defensive.

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Is the Reformation over? On Tuesday's edition of The Albert Mohler Program we discussed the past, present, and future of the Protestant Reformation. My guest was Professor Carl R. Trueman of Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. The program may be heard here.

Halloween Blogspotting

By Tim Challies

In the last few days, a good number of bloggers have chosen to discuss the always-difficult topic of the Christian response to Halloween. Because I jumped the gun a little and posted about this topic earlier this week, I thought I would, in my best imitation of Phil Johnson, and using Google's Blog Search feature, do a Halloween Blogspotting, linking back to those who linked my article on the subject. I'm sure others have discussed Halloween as well, but I wouldn't know how to find them. This may just provide a slice of the Christian blogosphere's attitude on the topic.

Dale at Silent Matters says, "As Halloween quickly approaches and stores begin to stock up on costumes, candy, and decorations, I begin to feeling very much 'alienated' from society because my family and I do not celebrate this holiday. Television and movie theatres quickly turn to blood and gore to entertain the masses. Everywhere I go, I can see signs of celebration of death and dying. That has been a part of this society for as long as I can remember..." He celebrates an alternative to Halloween: "There is nothing wrong with playing dress-up, but Tonja and I prefer the dressing-up to be educational and edifying to our children and other children. We heard of a homeschool group celebrate Reformation Day (which happens to fall on Oct 31 as well) in which the children dress as 16th century Christians, give skits, do Reformation artwork, and such. This is what I talked with the SFC staff about and we are considering that for next year but this year proved too soon to organize."

David, a.k.a. Thirsty Theologian gives out candy to the neighbors but does not allow his kids to trick-or-treat (which, admittedly, is better than some our neighbors, who send their kids out but do not give out candy). "Our kids do not trick-or-treat, and we do not have Halloween parties, for the reasons stated in the second paragraph of this article. The axiom 'no harm, no foul' does not apply in our home. It is a matter of principle. However, while we can choose not to actively participate, we do not have the option of ignoring Halloween. Let's consider a few of our options..." He goes on to do just that.

Duzins at Question Everything says something that interests me, as I've often wondered if there is a link between homeschooling and a lack of participation in Halloween. I know few homeschoolers who trick-or-treat and few kids going to public school that do not trick-or-treat. "This year, for the first time, we are considering 'doing' Halloween. My oldest daughter (9) went from homeschool to 'real' school last year, and this is our first Halloween spent in a school. Subsequently we are actually coming into contact again with a great deal of unbelievers. It's very sad to me that we've been so out of the world for so long." I loved to read this: "I know I'm not going to lead anyone to Jesus on October 31. However, the people 2 doors down that we've never met, though we've lived here for 5 years, will get to see those 'believers across the street with four kids' on that night in a relaxed and cordial atmosphere. Will we touch their lives on Halloween? possibly, but probably not; However, we will open a door that has been closed for 5 years and maybe, just maybe, we'll get to plant a seed in the near future."

Richard Campeau at Boarsheadtavern seems to agree with me. Then again, I never can tell when those tavern guys are being sarcastic. Matt Redmond at Discerning the Times seems to agree as well. Jeremy Floyd who blogs at Theology is Practical just wants to talk about the issue rather than study Hebrew. No one talked about it, so I guess he went back to Hebrew. It's probably better that way. Vince, who is a Pot Calling the Kettle, also just excerpts the article without much comment. Funny how that happens.

David Miers at Eternal Weight of Glory complains about Starbucks' Halloween coffee. "In Australia, Halloween is a non-event. Each year we would get maybe one or two visits from some punk kids who already have missing teeth from their sugar habit! So Christians in Australia don't have to think through the same issues as North American Christians." Danielle at Dance by the Light agrees that Halloween is a matter of conscience. Bob Hyatt says my article shows some "good missional thinking... from a self-proclaimed fundamentalist!" I choose to take that as a compliment.

Justin Taylor of Between Two Worlds fame, links to my article as he did last year, thus establishing a tradition. Alex Chediak just linked. So did Heather at Prone to Wander.