Is Halloween evil?

[JMJ_coder]

Hello,

Christmas is the longest night of the year, traditionally the relighting of the fires occurred on the winter solstice, signaling the return of the sun, which turned into the Birth of the Son.

Easter was a fertility festival called Ostara, that included the symbols of bunnies, eggs and other very virile fertile critters.

I am fantastically Orthodoxly Catholic, but the histories of our holidays have pagan roots

I am talking about the Catholic holy days - not the commercial holidays that have been spun off of them.

Yes, many pagan religions had a celebration for the winter solstice. The ancients had the feast of saturnalia that Saint John Chrysostom condemned. But where does Christmas come from? No one knows when Christ was born (the exact date). The early Church though that symbolically it would be appropriate for the Son of Man to appear on the first day of Spring, which is March 25. But He did not become man at His birth, but at His Conception at the Annunciation. A baby takes nine months to be born, so nine months after the first day of Spring is Christmas - December 25.

Easter is the day the Christ rose from the dead. I don’t know what goes on in your Church, but in mine there are no bunnies. Again, most pagan religions had a spring festival.

We must look at the difference between the secular holidays and the religious holidays. Halloween is a secular holiday (actually a very pagan one). All Hallow’s Eve, All Saint’s Day, and All Souls’ Day are very religious holy days.

I hope that clears things up a bit.

 

[whatevergirl]

How’s it harmless for kids to model themselves on demons - who if you don’t ‘reward’ them, can pay you back.

It’s like having them dress up in little Mafia suits and ask people for protection - from them

LOL–That is a stretch! I think if parents make bigger deals out of it that in it…that’s more of a problem. I trick or treated, and never became a wiccan or part of the occult…neither have my kids…we all look at it as dressing up (never as demons though, they always dressed as someone from a movie, or superhero) and getting candy is all it should be viewed as.

If you want to think your child will be psychologically scarred from the evening, then leaving him/her out of the trick or treating is a wise idea.

 

[JMJ_coder]

Hello,

If you want to think your child will be psychologically scarred from the evening, then leaving him/her out of the trick or treating is a wise idea.

I think the concern is that they will be spiritually harmed.

 

[whatevergirl]

Hello,

I think the concern is that they will be spiritually harmed.

I don’t see how, but everyone is entitled to his/her opinion. Children can be spiritually harmed by the likes of tv programming, and what is taught in the classroom, far more than an hour or two of walking around a neighborhood gathering goodies.

 

[JMJ_coder]

Hello,

I don’t see how, but everyone is entitled to his/her opinion. Children can be spiritually harmed by the likes of tv programming, and what is taught in the classroom, far more than an hour or two of walking around a neighborhood gathering goodies.

It can be likened to something like reading books like Da Vinci Code or watching Harry Potter. It seems harmless enough - the book even claims to be fiction and just for fun and entertainment, but it is very harmful.

There is an analogy to ant poison. I use a product called Terro. It is basically borax dissolved within a sweet syrup. The ants come and drink up the sweet carrier. They tell all there ant buddies and they all come to take a drink. They love the sweet syrupy goodness, not realizing the poison they are taking in. Before they realize the dangers of the concoction, it is too late - they are dead. Well, its like that, but for the soul.

Well, that’s my :twocents:

 

[whatevergirl]

Hello,

It can be likened to something like reading books like Da Vinci Code or watching Harry Potter. It seems harmless enough - the book even claims to be fiction and just for fun and entertainment, but it is very harmful.

There is an analogy to ant poison. I use a product called Terro. It is basically borax dissolved within a sweet syrup. The ants come and drink up the sweet carrier. They tell all there ant buddies and they all come to take a drink. They love the sweet syrupy goodness, not realizing the poison they are taking in. Before they realize the dangers of the concoction, it is too late - they are dead. Well, its like that, but for the soul.

Well, that’s my :twocents:

Now, I do agree with you about DaVinci…because I won’t give money to an author who blasphemes Christ. Halloween…at least for me, and my husband…was about walking down the street with friends on a fall night–gathering candy, and laughing. Never about mischief…never about throwing eggs. Just about clean fun. I do see it going too far with some people, no doubt. But, with all in life to really concern myself with in what could influence my children to anti-Christ things, this isn’t one of them. But, again, just my thoughts.

I did not read DaVinci, though. I think reading a book, can damage someone’s senses, though. (and plant thoughts, even if it’s fiction)

 

[whatevergirl]

I do like your analogy though.

 

[JMJ_coder]

Hello,

I do like your analogy though.

Thanks, I got it from my father.

 

[DanteAlighieri]

Hello,

It can be likened to something like reading books like Da Vinci Code or watching Harry Potter. It seems harmless enough - the book even claims to be fiction and just for fun and entertainment, but it is very harmful.

There is an analogy to ant poison. I use a product called Terro. It is basically borax dissolved within a sweet syrup. The ants come and drink up the sweet carrier. They tell all there ant buddies and they all come to take a drink. They love the sweet syrupy goodness, not realizing the poison they are taking in. Before they realize the dangers of the concoction, it is too late - they are dead. Well, its like that, but for the soul.

Well, that’s my :twocents:

If participating in Halloween required behavior that was in any way pagan or devilish, you might have a point – just as if Harry Potter books actually said anything that could possibly be construed as the actual endorsement of actual occult practices, it might be better not to read them. Da Vinci Code is a misrepresentation of reality that claims itself to be true; HP is not. Halloween is not.

Simply because something gives you the willies does not make it objectively evil – especially when the Church has not defined it as such. Your ant poison analogy is a bit over the top.

Peace,
Dante

 

[zerocrossing]

And he’s annoyed because mostly he just gets candy corn which has coagulated into a sticky lump in the bottom of the bag, and he hates that.

So that’s why he’s so ill-tempered!

 

[Montalban]

That’s not how it works. Nobody ever refuses to give kids a bit of candy.

I know my mum did when they asked her. She said it was a ‘demonic’ practice and wouldn’t partake in it - probably a wee bit too much info for the kids. But anyway.

If the adults don’t want to participate they simply leave the porch lights off and the kids don’t go to that house. The houses which do want to participate put the lights on and welcome the kids (I know I do - it’s a lot of innocent fun for the adults greeting the kids as well, and a chance to make a bunch of excited kids happy for a night).

I don’t know how things were done 100 years ago, but I know there is no “reward me or else” in Halloween today.

But that’s the ‘trick’ part of the challenge ‘trick or treat’. We’re new to this here, maybe that’s why

 

[Montalban]

Hello,

I think the concern is that they will be spiritually harmed.

I think this is so, too. There’s a whole lot of culture that promotes ‘magic’, already.

 

[tabcom]

By even asking the question, ‘is halloween evil?’, the Bible takes a stand . . .

1 Thessalonians
Chapter 5

21
Test everything; retain what is good.
22
Refrain from every kind of evil.

Believers are suppose to refrain from anything that appears to be evil.

 

[DanteAlighieri]

By even asking the question, ‘is halloween evil?’, the Bible takes a stand . . .

1 Thessalonians
Chapter 5

21
Test everything; retain what is good.
22
Refrain from every kind of evil.

Believers are suppose to refrain from anything that appears to be evil.

Sigh…

Tell me how kids dressed as princesses and ninjas and monsters and superheros and Captain Jack Sparrow asking for candyappears evil.

The fact that some people celebrate Halloween in an evil way does not make it inherently evil. You might just as well say celebrating New Year’s Eve or Valentine’s Day is evil – there’s probably more widespread evil done on those days, if you think about it. And the evil done on those days is definitely considered part of the festivities, whereas evil done on Halloween is more of a fringe element. Most people celebrate Halloween in a totally innocuous way.

Peace,
Dante

 

[tabcom]

You might just as well say celebrating New Year’s Eve or Valentine’s Day is evil –

I’d add christmas to the list. All of which have pagan origin. I’m not telling pagans to stop doing their festivals. Their suppose to do them! Christians are suppose to separate from these festivals, not put their stamp of approval on them.

 

[VociMike]

I know my mum did when they asked her. She said it was a ‘demonic’ practice and wouldn’t partake in it - probably a wee bit too much info for the kids. But anyway.

But that’s the ‘trick’ part of the challenge ‘trick or treat’. We’re new to this here, maybe that’s why

Well certainly there could be a “learning curve”. Next time your mum will leave her lights off and the kids won’t come knocking. That will be easier on her and much more considerate of the kids - they really don’t come to one’s door looking for a lecture.

As for the ‘trick’ part of ‘trick or treat’, I can assure you that nobody (other than the occasional sociopath, I suppose) takes that seriously. The whole exchange is very well scripted. If you want to give candy to the kids you leave your lights on. If you don’t leave your lights on the kids know not to come to your door.

 

[Montalban]

Well certainly there could be a “learning curve”. Next time your mum will leave her lights off and the kids won’t come knocking. That will be easier on her and much more considerate of the kids - they really don’t come to one’s door looking for a lecture.

No, that won’t work. You’re assuming that it was only my mum that needed to learn. As we’re all (in Australia) new to this festival the kids too would need to know that that’s a special “Don’t knock” signal - made more difficult because at this time of year it gets dark late anyway - so most people don’t have the porch-lights on - sunset today was at 19:22. We’re heading towards summer here!

I’ve not heard anyone mention any kind of signal

You’re looking at the social aspects of this from your own societal viewpoint. It’d be like you explaining to me about how Christmas is a time for snow-shoes and ice-fishing.

However, getting back to the ‘evil’ aspects of it… I think that it is a festival that derives from a supposed ‘last fling’ of demons before the big days; All Saints Day, and All Souls Day. This last fling; that’s not something to commemorate.

 

[Pixie_Dust]

Hallowe’en = Hallowed (Holy) Evening

It’s a Christian Festival. The pagans took it from US.

 

[clmowry]

Hallowe’en = Hallowed (Holy) Evening

It’s a Christian Festival. The pagans took it from US.

Did “pagans” take if from us, or did the candy and greeting card companies take it over?

Chuck

 

[clmowry]

Well we handed out 4 large bags of candy and 200 pencils with “Remember Jesus Loves You!” written on them to hundreds of happy little children on a beautiful evening.

What could be evil about that?

Chuck