Halloween

What It Is From A Christian Perspective

Many Christians will allow and even encourage their children

to pay respect to the devil on October 31 without knowing they do

so.

Churches will fully sanction the event with parties that

will be decorated with witches, cats, brooms, jack-o-lanterns and

bobbing apples. What is the harm? How did this originate?

The custom of Halloween is traced to the Druid festival of

the dead. At that time the Roman Pantheon was built by Emperor

Hadrian in 100 A.D. as a temple to the goddess Cybele and other

Roman deities. It became the principle place of worship. Roman

pagans prayed for the dead. Rome was captured and the Pantheon

fell into disrepair. Emporer Phocas captured Rome and gave the

Pantheon to Pope Boniface IV in 609. He reconsecrated it to the

Virgin Mary and resumed using the temple to pray for the dead,

only now it was "Christianized", as men added the unscriptural

teaching of purgatory.

In 834 A.D. Gregory IV extended the feast for all the church

and it became known as All Saint's Day, still remembering the dead.

Samhain, a Druid god of the dead was honored at Halloween in

Britain, France, Germany and the Celtic countries. Samhain

called together all wicked souls who died within the past year

and that were destined to inhabit animals.

This celebration of the dead honored the god of the dead on

this particular night. Druids believed that souls of the dead

returned to their former homes to be entertained by the living.

Bonfires were built atop hills so they might find their way.

Suitable food and shelter was provided for these spirits or else

they would cast spells, cause havoc, steal infants, destroy

crops, kill farm animals and create terror as they haunted the

living. The spirits demanded placating by giving them a type of

worship and offering. This is the action that "Trick-or-Treat"

emulates today.

The Samhain celebration used nuts, apples, skeletons,

witches and black cats. Divination and auguries were practiced

as well as magic to seek answers for the future. Black cats were

considered to be reincarnated beings with the ability to divine

the future. During this festival supernatural beings terrified

the populace. Even today witchcraft practitioners declare

October 31st as the most conducive time to practice their arts.

The Christian church tried to eliminate the Druid

celebration by offering All Saint's Day as a substitute. As

Christianity spread over Europe and the British Isles, it

attempted to replace the pre-existing pagan cult worship of

Apollo, Diana or Ymir, but to no avail.

Although the outward forms of such worship disappeared, the

belief in these deities did not. They found an outlet during the

Middle Ages in the open practice of witchcraft which is presently

enjoying a revival in many countries, including the U.S. In

Germany the occult is considered more prevalent than in the

Middle Ages. The deistic cults held periodic meetings known as

witches sabbaths, and it is the same today with October 31st

being of more importance.

Pranks and mischief began to by played out to represent the

mischievious behavior attributed to witches and the fairies.

Trick-or-Treat came from and ancient Druid practice. One of the

basic tenets in witchcraft is to control the will of another by

use of fear. Even in jest, when one threatens to punish if a

treat or offering is not given, they are imitating an occult

practice of controlling the will of another by use of fear.

Prosperity was promised to all who were generous donors, and

tricks to all who refused during the Irish Druid event of trick-

or-treat. The contributions demanded were in the name of Muck

Olla, and early Druid deity.

Traditional Halloween symbols appeared in the U.S. during

the late 1800's. Witches, black cats, death's head cut from a

pumpkin, candles, masks, parties and pranks were used.

In rural areas, aggravating and destructive acts were done,

such as removing gates and placing them atop barns. The same was

done with outhouses and wagons.

The uninformed Christian has no idea that there truly are

demonic spirits which are contacted and activated as people call

out to them in jest or in seriousness. Every act around

Halloween is in honor of false gods, which are spirits in the

realm of the Satanic. Those who have been deeply involved in

witchcraft and who are now free, declare that even those who say

they worship spirits of nature are in actuality contacting the

Satanic realm without knowing it.

To pray for the dead is against scripture. If one knows

Jesus before death, their spirit is already with the Lord. Paul

says to be absent from the body is to be at home with the Lord,

II Corinthians 5:6. If one is an unbeliever at death, the

scripture says there is no second chance as it is appointed unto

man once to die and after that the judgment. Therefore, prayer

for the dead is in opposition to God's Word and a pagan practice

that became "Christianized". While living, one must make a

choice "for" or "against" Jesus and that determines the

destination at death of the spirit. No amount of prayer can

reverse the decision made on earth by the person concerned while

they were alive.

The Bible instructs us to have nothing to do with the deeds

of darkness. Both Christian and Jew are forbidden to participate

in the occult practices listed in Deuteronomy 18:10.

Necromancing is the delving into contacting the dead. God said

all such practice was an abomination to Him.

Some may reply, "But we only do this in fun...we don't

practice witchcraft." That which represents Satan and his domain

cannot be handled or emulated "for fun". Such participation

places you in enemy and forbidden territory and that is dangerous

ground.

Through the ages, Halloween has gone by various names but

all have been tributes to the same dark force, Satan. There is

no place in the life of the Church or the Christian for such

participation.

Mrs. Gloria Phillips

Bay View Church

P.O. Box 9277

Mobile, AL 36691

(used with permission)

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