Wearing
costumes and trick-or-treating doesn’t make me a Satanist any more than
unwrapping gifts on December 25th makes me a Christ-follower.
It’s that time of year. The joyous time when Christians quaffing
pumpkin-flavored anything draw hard lines about who’s following Jesus the right way, and who’s parading about
with the prince of darkness. And prove
that their side is the God-honoring [read: right]
one by hurling scriptures at one another.
Or maybe that’s just in my
privileged, suburban, one-third of the world.
At any rate, here is where
I hazard to add my voice to the fray.
And brace for potential backlash.
Could I suggest that it’s actually how you live the other
363 days[1]
of the year that mark you as in the enemy’s camp, or in Jesus’? That is, of course, unless you are actually
practicing witchcraft, summoning demonic entities, or attending a “black mass.” If you’re doing those, um…yeah, you’re
directly opposing God and aligning yourself with Satan -- regardless of however
benign the power may at first appear.
And I’d like to give you fair warning: if you’re aligned with Satan, you’ve
picked the losing side. This is said in
the spirit of full-disclosure and is in no means intended as gloating. I digress.
If you’re allowing your kids to dress up (granted,
one has to think about what types of costumes one permits one’s progeny to
wear. A slutty zombie cheerleader or a
blood-splattered ax-murderer? For an
eight-year-old? Really?), traipse about the
neighborhood begging for candy from strangers, and then gorge themselves on
said candies; I guess I’m not sure how exactly you’re glorifying Lucifer. But that could be because I don’t do my
research on the internet (see this article
on kissing Halloween good-bye. It’s
chock full of hard-hitting, academic research…erm, okay, maybe it just quotes other blogs from that bastion of
all knowledge: the interwebs). However, iIf you’re genuinely that concerned
about not giving holy days to Satan, or any entity other than God, you might
consider skipping: Easter, Christmas,[2]
4th of July, Earth Day, Ground Hog Day, both Daylight Savings,
Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, National
Chocolate Day (which is today, by the way), Mother’s/Father’s/Grandparents’
Days, and all birthdays. Oh, and you’ll
need to invest in a Hebrewcalendar. Because, honestly, when was
the last time you hosted a Sedar? Or
even erected a sukkah[3]
in your yard for Sukkot?
Now, I don’t want for a moment to come off sounding
like I’m demeaning the Hebraic holy days.
Quite the opposite. The Officer
and I observe Passover annually with our kids.[4] And we are seriously considering following
the Hebrew calendar for a year at least, so that we might have a better experiential
understanding of so much of scripture.
I also don’t want to give the impression that I don’t
believe in demons. I do. I am convinced by personal experience that
they exist. And that they are tasked
with (and take great delight in) thwarting the gospel of Jesus Christ and the
work on His Kingdom. However, I find NO
scriptural evidence to support the idea that they have increased influence or
power, nor that people are more susceptible to said influences or powers, on
any particular night. This includes Halloween. And Christmas. That being said, I add the following caveat
and propose alternative activities:
Caveat:
Yes, Christ-followers should not cause other
followers (or potential followers) to stumble.
So if you have a friend who is coming out of (or still in) the Satanic
community, you might want to have a movie night instead of dressing up as
zombies or slutty devils or black priests.
If you know a Wiccan, you should probably skip the witch costumes, pass
on Harry Potter, and make
Thanksgiving decorations instead. And if
you have an acquaintance who’s into the occult, it’s best to skip the horror
films, throw out the Oujia board (why do
you have one anyway?), and toss the tarot cards (again, what-the-heck?).
Alternate
Activities:
If these are your close family and friends, then
yeah, you might need to skip Halloween.
Have a Banish the Darkness gathering instead. Serve pumpkin-flavored drinks. Hang twinkling lights everywhere. Dance.
Read poetry. Host a house
concert. Dine. Play games.
Wear period costumes (put parameters around what is & is not
acceptable – it’s your party, after all).
Exchange gifts.[5] Have glitter wars in the backyard or on the
balcony.[6] Have an open-mic session for the budding
comedians in your group. Host a
photo-booth. Paint aprons. As party favors, hand out small mirrors to
remind your guests that they can be the light in the present darkness. And laugh.
A lot. For regardless of the
holiday, God made laughter, thus we should engage in it as often and as
heartily as possible.
Summary:
First, let’s remember that as Christians we are
called to love one another as Jesus has loved each one of us. Sacrificially. Grace-FULL-y.
And with a great deal of understanding and patience. Let’s realized that our brothers and sisters
who chose to let their kids dress up, even in the most misguided costumes, aren’t
necessarily dragging their children to the altar of evil. And let’s remember that our brothers and
sisters who chose not to participate in Halloween are not necessarily legalists
or separatists. Let’s focus on living
entire lives filled with the grace and love and life of Jesus Christ, not
merely on abstaining from one night a year.
Let’s use our intellect to reason with our unbelieving friends, our
hands to serve our hurting or wanting fellow human beings, and our words to
speak the peace and love and grace of Jesus into a world that so desperately
needs it, instead of tearing one another down.
Second, thoughtfully examine your reasons for
participating in Halloween. And your
manner. And how this participation
affects those around you, from your kids to your watching neighbors. Because, really, it’s hard to maintain that
your kids can’t watch R-rated movies when they’re dressed like prostitute
princesses or something from Tim Burton’s nightmares.
Third, if you find no prayerful or scriptural reason
not to abstain, then reclaim the night.
Host your own Halloween festivities.
Opening your home means you can set the parameters (no slutty, scary,
violent costumes or decorations). And
you can show folks who don’t already know Jesus that when He came, He met
people exactly where they were. Jesus
didn’t care if a woman had just been ripped from the bed of her lover, or if a
man was so violent that he had to live alone in the cemetery. Jesus didn’t require they first give up their vices or influences. He saved them from their darkness, and then
instructed them in the way they should go.
Let’s
remember that Jesus cares little for the mask you wear. He is concerned with the heart beneath.
[1] Not Halloween. And Not Christmas.
[3] Sukkah: a hut of
temporary dwelling with a roof covering of branches to mark the temporary
wilderness wanderings for 40 years, and God’s faithfulness throughout.
[5] These can either be
gifts of Thankfulness (to symbolize
something for which you’re thankful for the other person), Joy (to infuse their coming season with joy), or Light (to bring light into the coming
season and remind them that they are loved).
[6] Give each guest a
baggie full of different colored glitter.
Set a timer. Turn the guests
loose, with object to return at the buzzer with an empty baggy and wearing the
least amount of glitter. Give prizes for
achieving this goal, and for the person who ends up covered in the most
glitter.
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