Ariel Thomas
Features Editor
If Jesus were here today, would He celebrate Halloween? Would He say its harmless fun?Another silly holiday? Or is it something He would warn against? Today, Halloween is thought of as dressing up in silly costumes and going trick or treating, but how did this holiday start anyway? The answer to that may be spookier than expected.
The origins of Halloween can be traced back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, according to his- tory.com. During this festival people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off evil spirits. It was celebrated on Oct. 31 because it marked the end of summer and the beginning of winter.
Winter, at this time, was commonly associated with death, so a myth came about that on Oct. 31 the lines between the spiritual world and the real world became blurred. Meaning, on that night, evil spirits would roam the earth. The only way someone could protect them- selves was to disguise themselves as one of the evil spirits or leave treats for them in hopes that they wouldn’t harm them.
When Christianity began to spread, rather than eradicating traditions such as Samhain, the church used them as a way to bring pagan- ism and Christianity together, according to bibleinfo.com. As years have passed, the holiday has changed significantly. Rather than dressing up as a way of “survival”, children dress up for fun. Rather than leaving treats out to appease evil spirits, people gladly hand out candy to the neighborhood kids.
Many people see Halloween as just harmless fun. For kids, it’s a day to dress up in cool costumes and get free candy – what could be better? But the question still remains, should Christians partake in this spooky holiday?
Christians that are for Halloween may give some of the following arguments: 1) Halloween does have a paganistic background, but so does Christmas and Easter, 2) the events that unfolded during the festival of Samhain are speculative and 3) Halloween doesn’t have to be celebrated in an “evil” way. A Bible verse that might be used by someone who is for the celebration of Halloween is 1 Samuel 16:7 “For the Lord sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart”.
God can intention behind why people do every- thing they do. Some may use Halloween as an opportunity to glorify evil, others are simply having fun dressing up and getting free candy.
Christians that are against the celebration of Halloween may give some of the following arguments:
1) Halloween celebrates death, God is a God of life, 2) God tells us not to have a spirit of fear, but Halloween is founded on that very thing and 3) Halloween does nothing to glorify God. A Bible verse that might be used by someone who is against the celebration of Halloween is 2 Timothy 1:7 “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
There is no denying Halloween’s spooky nature, and for some Christians it feels wrong to endorse a holiday focused on that.
So, what is the answer? The answer is that there is no clear answer. There are arguments for both sides. A person could feel completely convinced of one side one minute, and completely change their mind the next. If celebrating Halloween feels convicting, the pray about it. If it doesn’t feel right, don’t celebrate it. If it isn’t something that feel convicting, still pray about it, if it still doesn’t feel wrong, then HAPPY HALLOWEEN and trick or treat away.
thebisonnews.com 
Leave a Reply