Halloween

Chris - posted on 09/25/2009

At our church we have Trunk or Treat. We have this event the night of Halloween. As a Halloween alternative for families. I don't think there is anything wrong with dressing up in family friendly costumes. Or getting candy from safe places (like churches, schools, malls, and other businesses). This gives you the opportunity to tell your kids the truth about Halloween and why Christians don't celebrate the pagan holiday. But a time to spend with family and friends, this is also a great way to reach out to other non-Christians. Have fun, but be safe. Use this time to minister to others and bring them to Jesus. That's the most important part.

Summer - posted on 09/25/2009

Quoting Chelsea:

I am ashamed of you! All I asked for was an opinion and an idea of what you will be doing this fall and here you are attacking each other! If you don't agree you don't agree, just don't attack each other. This is clearly not in the spirit of the Lord, because I am seeing things come from a point of superiority and pride.

I am new to being a christain and reading what some of the ladies post makes me wonder if its about "who the better christian is". Everyone has the own opinions and have a right to it. I think Halloween is what you make it out to be, as is every holiday. As a child i always went trick or treating and not once did i think it was evil or had to do with satin. As a child it was about going and getting free candy from my close  trusted neighors/friends. I went to my friends church a few time and they had pumpkins and even  a haunted house ( it was a Southern Baptist Church). I think If you don't teach your children that Halloween is evil they won't think of it as evil all they will know is they get to play dress up and get candy. What child doesn't like that??? Even as an adult i still think of it as childish fun with free candy, it's all about the candy to me.   :)

Chandra - posted on 09/25/2009

Quoting Victoria:

We don't go out as we believe it is promoting something very satanic, even if we do dress up as angels and such. We do seed plant though. Our Pastor asked God one day what we should do & he lead him to a scripture that we type up and tape onto bags of chips every year. We take a Wednesday night service & do the work with our children of preparing the seeds, we pray that God would send his angels to keep the seeds into the homes of those that get them & that he would water them, we call this night hallelujah night. The people of the church bring in treats for our kids & fill up bags for them to take home and enjoy as they do the work of seed planting the seed treats on halloween night. We've had dress up birthday parties, but always at another time of year not associated with halloween.

Pleade tell me what scripture yall use I want to do that for the kids that come to our door for treets! thank you!! Chandra

Chandra - posted on 09/25/2009

Quoting Victoria:

We don't go out as we believe it is promoting something very satanic, even if we do dress up as angels and such. We do seed plant though. Our Pastor asked God one day what we should do & he lead him to a scripture that we type up and tape onto bags of chips every year. We take a Wednesday night service & do the work with our children of preparing the seeds, we pray that God would send his angels to keep the seeds into the homes of those that get them & that he would water them, we call this night hallelujah night. The people of the church bring in treats for our kids & fill up bags for them to take home and enjoy as they do the work of seed planting the seed treats on halloween night. We've had dress up birthday parties, but always at another time of year not associated with halloween.

Pleade tell me what scripture yall use I want to do that for the kids that come to our door for treets! thank you!! Chandra

Dayna - posted on 09/24/2009

Quoting Chelsea:

I am ashamed of you! All I asked for was an opinion and an idea of what you will be doing this fall and here you are attacking each other! If you don't agree you don't agree, just don't attack each other. This is clearly not in the spirit of the Lord, because I am seeing things come from a point of superiority and pride.

Amen! At first I was thinking this post was going good, and then abruptly the whole spirit changed! Arguing and insulting eachother is not of the Lord, and to use His scriptures to do it!

I grew up in a home where we did not celebrate Halloween. Back then not many churches had alternatives either, so my mom would just buy a bunch of candy and set it out for us to enjoy...that way we wouldn't be jealous of the other kids and their bunches of candy. Our parents pulled us out of school when the Halloween parties began, and we got the "reward" of going home from school early. Also, we did not wear costumes either.

After a while, we started to go to a church that offered a Halloween alternative. We had to dress in Bible costumes and we got to play games and get candy. It was fun, and it also served as an opportunity to bring our friends to church too...an opportunity to plant seeds. As a teenager I was also involved in a church that offered a Haunted House alternative called The Nightmare. Instead of ghosts and goblins, the visitors walked through sceens of "Life of Sin"  and the hell it can lead to, and then a recreation of Christ's crusifixion and that his blood can wipe away all that sin and guarantee a place in heaven. At the end, there were members of the church waiting for anyone who was touched and wanted to learn more about Christ and His Salvation. It brought in all those who loved going to the gory haunted houses and showed them another story.

As a mother, I have chosen that my children will not be celebrating Halloween. They will not attend school parties, they will not go trick or treating, but if we go to a church that offers a fun pary for them to attend I have no problems with alowing them that fun. To my way of thinking I am protecting my kids from not only not celebrating an evil holiday, but also taking away any desire to as well.

Chelsea - posted on 09/19/2009

I am ashamed of you! All I asked for was an opinion and an idea of what you will be doing this fall and here you are attacking each other! If you don't agree you don't agree, just don't attack each other. This is clearly not in the spirit of the Lord, because I am seeing things come from a point of superiority and pride.

Courtney - posted on 09/18/2009

It seems as though II Corinthians 6:14-17 means nothing when it interferes with what we want to do instead of what HE says we are to be..separate!



The Episcopal church endorses sodomy so it doesn't suprise me that they have strong ties to the Catholic church in supporting halloween. The celebration in the Roman Catholic Church, which was later to merge with Samhain, was known as All Saints' Day. All Saints' Day originated in the 7th century when the Pantheon at Rome was wrested from the barbarians, made into a cathedral, and renamed the Church of the Blessed Virgin and All Martyrs. Thus, from honoring "all gods" (which is the meaning of the Greek word "pantheon") the Pantheon became the center for glorifying all saints.

http://www.exposingsatanism.org/hallowee...



The link above exposes the history of bobbing for apples, Skulls and Skeletons, etc.



Christianized paganism is NOT biblical no matter how strongly someone may feel about it. Even if you look at Israel and saw how God dealt with them for adopting heathenistic baal worshipping customs into their worship of him. Some people love calling evil good in Jesus' name.



"Since the eighth century Christians have celebrated All Saints' Day on November 1 to celebrate the known and unknown Christian Saints."



The were not bible believing christians because history shows that they stayed away from practices like these. On All Hallows’ eve, the ancient Celts would place a skeleton on their window sill to represent the departed. Originating in Europe, these lanterns were first carved from a turnip or rutabaga. Believing that the head was the most powerful part of the body, containing the spirit and the knowledge, the Celts used the "head" of the vegetable to frighten off the embodiment of superstitions





ChristianAnswers.net have ok resources but they seem to compromise with the world so much.



Other Resources:

http://www.remnantofgod.org/paganism.htm

http://www.usiap.org/Viewpoints/Culture/...

http://www.christianet.com/bible/paganis...



Halloween

http://www.wilstar.com/holidays/hallown....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloween

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samhain

http://www.exposingsatanism.org/hallowee...

Traci - posted on 09/18/2009

OH MY GOODNESS!SEE THERE YOU ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO TALK ABOUT OTHERS AND HOW THEY DECIDE TO DO THINGS IN THEIR CHURCH.THAT ALONE IS A SIN!]

SO MANY RELIGIOUS PEOPLE!SAYING THOSE ARE THE CHURCHES THAT LET YOU HAVE JESUS YOUR WAY!WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN.

YOU CANT LISTEN TO ALL THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE BY RELIGION AND RELIGIOUS LAW.

ITS ALL ABOUT JESUS AND WHAT YOU THINK IS BEST FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY!

Elisha - posted on 09/18/2009

I've studied the roots of Halloween at length, and it's my personal conviction not to celebrate it or go trick or treating or anything, but my church does a Hallelujah Night, where they have booths with games for the kids, a cake walk, lots and lots of delicious food, pizza, soup, nachoes, caramel apples, and tons and tons and tons of candy. Sometimes I think our kids go home with more candy than the kids trick or treating do, lol. It's just a fun night to let the kids all play and have fun and hang out with friends and just enjoy ourselves.

Heather - posted on 09/18/2009

Here is an article I found at: http://www.halloween.com/christian-hallo... I just wanted to share it with you because it explains my beliefs a little better then I did.

Christian perspective on Halloween
An Episcopal (e.g. Protestant) Christian's view.

Since the eighth century Christians have celebrated All Saints' Day on November 1 to celebrate the known and unknown Christian Saints. Saints are not just those whom the Church has canonized, but all members of that "cloud of witnesses" who proclaim Jesus as Lord - including you and me!

Almost as old as the celebration of All Saints' Day is the tradition associated with All Hallow's Eve. ("Hallows" mean "saints," both mean "holy ones," as in "Hallowed be thy name." "Eve" means the evening before.) So, Halloween means "the evening before All Holy Ones' Day." Today we call that festival Halloween (Hallow's Eve) and we have many fun secular ways of recognizing it in addition to religious ways. However, it's important to remember that its celebration has a long, positive history in the Church.

What sort of history is that? Like many of the liturgical festivals (Christmas and Easter included), All Saints' Day and All Hallow's Eve have some connection to pagan festivals. People of many races and cultures have remembered their dead and have had superstitions about death itself. Christians remembered death itself on All Hallow's Eve and celebrated Christ's victory over death. During the Middle Ages, Christians would gather in Churches for worship and they would remember the saints' victories over evil. Likewise they would put on little displays showing Jesus' victory of Satan, often using unusual masks and costumes to act out the story.

Thus, the festivities on All Hallow's Eve were the Christian's way of laughing at death and evil, something we can do in certain hope of Christ's victory over the powers of darkness. The Church for centuries, however, has seen All Hallow's Eve not as a glorification of evil, but as a chance to affirm eternal life in the face of the death of our mortal bodies. Just as Easter is a celebration of Jesus' victory over death and evil, so is Halloween!

1995 (with minor corrections and changes over the years)

in response to email castigating Halloween.com for glorifying evil when it was doing anything but that! :-)

For some other perspectives on a Christian Halloween, please see:
• ChristianAnswers.net

Courtney - posted on 09/18/2009

Quoting Kimisha:

Chelsea, I don"t think we should try to fill the gap of Halloween with anything. I believe in a way, we're still celebrating. Halloween is a pagean holiday and Christians don't need to be a part of it in any way whether you dress yourself up as Jesus himself. Take halloween as a day to sanctify yourself and let the world be the world.

AMEN AMEN... I COULD NOT HAVE SAID IT BETTER MYSELF. THE CHURCHES WHO GIVE YOU AN ALTERNATIVE TO HALLOWEEN ARE THE SAME CHURCHES WHO LET YOU HAVE JESUS YOUR WAY...THE CHURCH IS PROBABLY MORE INTO SOCIALIZATION THAT BIBLE BELIEVING..THE BIBLE SAYS YOU ARE NOT TO BE UNEQUALLY YOKED WITH NON BELIEVERS...BE YE SEPERATE SAITH THE LORD...DO NOT PUT TRADITIONS OF MEN ABOVE THE LORD

Courtney - posted on 09/18/2009

ANYONE WHO CONSIDERS CELEBRATING HALLOWEEN SHOULD LISTEN TO ONE OF THESE SERMONS FIRST....GOD GETS NO GLORY BY BRINGING THE OCCULT INTO THE CHURCH...



-Pagan Hellidays (Holidays) in the Church

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.as...

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.as...

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.as...

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.as...

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.as...

Traci - posted on 09/18/2009

HEY CHELSEA,

I ALWAYS TOOK MY KIDS TO THE CHURCH FOR HALLOWEEN.I LET THEM DRESS UP IN A WAY THAT WAS NOT EVIL OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT ,NO WITCHES OR GHOSTS ETC...

MOST CHURCHES HAVE SOMTHING FOR THE KIDS FOR HALLOWEEN.AND THEY HAVE DRINK AND CANDY SORTA LIKE TRICK OR TREATING BUT LIKE MS.ANNE SAID TRUNK OR TREATING.ITS LOTS OF FUN,THEY BOB FOR APPLES AND DO ALOT OF FUN GAMES.I HOPE THIS HELPS.

TRACI FROM ALABAMA

Courtney - posted on 09/18/2009

chelsea,

you are right! halloween is a pagan holiday and no matter how much fun dressing up can be there is no glory to God in celebrating a holiday where Christians were murdred by pagans.... do you know the truth behind trick or treat and bobbing for apples... there is a very good chritian documentary by doc marque who is an ex worlock, who practiced these evil rituals on their high holy day october 31st. we do not celebrate halloween nor can i support any church that has an "alternative" . I would love to talk to you more about it...

Jessica - posted on 09/18/2009

I used to truly hat Halloween and still don't like the evil behind it and the ugly costumes my kids have to see, but last year God began showing me that it can be a great opportunity. What other time of year do we get total straners by the dozens showing up at our door??? It really isn't hard to open the door and greet a child with a friendly smile, some candy or whatever and a God Bless You as they leave. This year I found a whole bunch of cute Halloween stories or tracks at the local bible book store. I'm going to pu them together with a treat adn pass them out. My hope is that just one child will acutally look through the story and pray the simple prayer and be changed. We are not to be of the world but we do live in it nad have to figure out how to shine God's light especially during a dark holiday.

Coya - posted on 09/18/2009

Hi Chelsea,
I see others have replied... but you can always find a local church that does something for the kids to go to instead of celebrating Halloween. My church, Solid Rock in Monroe has a fall festival that is held every year. The kids dress up (no evil/gory costumes allowed), and they play games that teach you things about the Bible, and they have lots of candy and giveaways, and there's food available. It's for kids of all ages. I'm not sure when our's will be held this year, but if you're interested, send me a msg and I'll let you know. Be blessed!

Anne - posted on 09/18/2009

Rebekah, evan though I have never liked halloween even as a chid before I was saved and understood about the pagan part of it, I agree with you about how we can be a light on that night. I had never thought about satan putting our lights out on that night. I know you can buy tracts that have the Plain of Salvation on them. I like your idea of decorating your lawn, especially because so many people decorate their lawns in such a creepy evil way.

Rebekah - posted on 09/18/2009

I guess I look at Halloween differently than many Christians. I believe why not be the light on the darkest night of the year?!?! A Christian can not celebrate Halloween and shut off their light on their house and not pass out candy - but I can't help but think how we are letting Satan put our lights out on this night. I'm not afraid of Halloween, I'm not afraid that it's a Pagan holiday - even Jesus went out into places that many of us so-called Christians would never step foot.

The best advice I can give you is to pray about it. If you feel convicted about celebrating Halloween even in a minor way, then don't do it. If you believe God is telling you that you can have fun and ask Him to open up doors to be a light on this night, then by all means enjoy it.

Every year at my house growing up, Halloween was a fun night. My mom and my brother and I we would decorate the front lawn according to Revelation and everyone had a maze to get to the front door. We had a few turn back, but many couldn't resist getting the candy and continued on. But they would end up at the front door to come inside and make a caramel apple, which gave us an opportunity to talk with them about what they saw through the maze and of course they left with candy and many left with more - Jesus.

Kimisha - posted on 09/16/2009

Chelsea, I don"t think we should try to fill the gap of Halloween with anything. I believe in a way, we're still celebrating. Halloween is a pagean holiday and Christians don't need to be a part of it in any way whether you dress yourself up as Jesus himself. Take halloween as a day to sanctify yourself and let the world be the world.

Heather - posted on 09/16/2009

I do want to counter that Halloween is the Pagan version of All Saints day. On All Saints day the Saints would dress up as angels and such. It is a day to remember the dead in Christ, and I like to pair it with thinking about the living and they too will be dead some day and it is our job as ambassadors for Christ to shine his light on the world. So in my opinion Halloween/All Hallows Eve is a common holiday between Christians and pagans. So when I learned that I attached the verse in 1 Corinthians to it “I try to find common ground with everyone so that I might bring them to Christ.” (9:22)

I don't believe that there is a right or wrong here. You can dress up and have fun with your kids, you can meet somewhere in the middle, or you can boycott the holiday all together, as long as you are doing it in Christ then I don't believe that there is a right or wrong. Anything that does not come from faith is sin. Romans 14:23

Victoria - posted on 09/16/2009

We don't go out as we believe it is promoting something very satanic, even if we do dress up as angels and such. We do seed plant though. Our Pastor asked God one day what we should do & he lead him to a scripture that we type up and tape onto bags of chips every year. We take a Wednesday night service & do the work with our children of preparing the seeds, we pray that God would send his angels to keep the seeds into the homes of those that get them & that he would water them, we call this night hallelujah night. The people of the church bring in treats for our kids & fill up bags for them to take home and enjoy as they do the work of seed planting the seed treats on halloween night. We've had dress up birthday parties, but always at another time of year not associated with halloween.

Heather - posted on 09/16/2009

This year my kids and I are going to dress up and go out as the Lord's army. We will wear breastplates, belts and helmets. And we will carry our Bible's instead of swords. At the beginning of the month we will start a Bible study on the Armor of God. We usually go out for about half an hour then come back to the house to pass out candy to other children. We put our candy into baggies with a scripture taped to the front (John 8:12). There is also a great story that goes with pumpkin carving that talks about Jesus taking out all the bad stuff out of our lives, and then he replaces it with his light. And we need to let our light shine to all of the people who come to our home during the night.

Keosha - posted on 09/16/2009

Im starting a new thing with my kids this year. i wont allow them to wear costumes as they hold a symbolic meaning and go hand in hand with halloween and trick or treating. we're having a praise party to show the devil he is defeated. good, lively, upbeat, Godly music to keep the kids' mind where they should be. kid friendly food and games. and of course, prayer. we have to show are kids that they are exceptional and don't have to contort themselves to be accepted in the world. be ye transformed. completely different, not bended.

Anne - posted on 09/16/2009

Hi Chelsea, Our church holds an annual "Tricker Trunk" party. People from the church decorate the inside of their trunk or vans and pass out candy to the children. We hold it as close to Oct 31 as possible. The children can dress up but we encourage NO GORY or witch costumes. They are also fed hot dogs, chips, cookie, and cider. There is a craft and Bible story also.



When our daughters were young we did not have this at our church as it was only started about 8 years ago. We did take our children trick or treating but only to people we knew and their costumes were often made by me. This was often a real stretch on sewing ability, but I did not want the girls to have dangerous or creepy costumes so I did the sewing.



If we had it to do over again we would not have taken our daughters trick or treating because of the reasons you stated. PLEASE understand I am not putting down any parents that do take their children ToT. This is between each parent and God how they are going to deal with Oct 31.