Posted on 10/31/2011 8:46:41 AM PDT by DogwoodSouth
In case you didnt realize it, today is Halloween. For those of you who have been taught to find nothing redeemable in this night of masks, merriment and candy-begging: calm down!
Here in the Deep South, Evangelicalism has a strong sway. Because of this, there are mixed emotions about Halloween even among some Catholics. Yes, its a night set apart for children to dress up in costumes and innocently go door-to-door asking for candy no harm in that, right? But then there are the persistent (and often convincing) tales, often perpetuated by well-meaning Christians, which link any celebration (or even recognition) of Halloween to an alignment with evil and even satanic activity.
This has gone so far, that in the past decades, many evangelical churches have employed all sorts of replacement tactics to combat the draw of evil Halloween. Theyve done this by sponsoring (and pressuring others like schools to sponsor) religiously safe alternatives to Halloween
In the past 20 years or so, Fall Festivals for example have replaced Halloween Carnivals. In some evangelical churches around this time of year, the evils of Halloween are often preached from the pulpits and families are provided with church-sponsored activities to discourage them (and their children) from celebrating Halloween.
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Well, fear not! It turns out that, despite the sermon your aunt has forwarded you 10 times, Halloween is not evil and its roots are neither pagan nor satanic. In fact, the origins of this holiday are not pagan or devilish; theyre downright holy.
Yes. Seriously.
(Excerpt) Read more at southernfriedcatholicism.com ...
Sorry to be a party pooper, but the date of “halloween” and of “All Saints’ Day” were chosen by the Latin Church to counteract an older, pagan holiday among the Celtic peoples. The Eastern churches have never celebrated “All Saints’” on 11/1.
Goody!
Now I can don my Cynthia "Buckwheat" McKinney fright wig and go out trick 'n treating!
Leni
Applie pie and cherry pie. Tom didn’t want pumpkin pie badly enough to make it.
“Applie pie and cherry pie..”
Applie? Uh, APPLIE... started on the birthday wine already, huh?!! (You know I’m just teasing you!!!)
Just up from nap, and all the synapses aren’t firing yet.
I figure that Halloween is the flip side of Christmas. I mean, if we Christians are going to bemoan the cultural replacement of Christ with Santa, thereby rendering the Christmas into something secular, then we should be consistent and see Halloween as de-fanging the devil by thumbing our noses at him. I like that idea better than being fearful of something that the participants don’t even give any thought to.
The pagans can and will have their All Hallows Eve, just as they do their Winter Solstice thing. Kids dressing up as Disney princesses and Iron Man, going on scary hayrides and collecting candy aren’t thinking about paganism or worshiping Satan, and general Halloween activities aren’t designed to take them there, any more than jumping out from behind a corner and yelling “Boo” to someone is an evangelizing tool for Wiccans.
I never thought of Halloween like that before... “de-fanging satan”. I like it!
I never thought of Halloween like that before... de-fanging satan. I like it!
I like it because everyone one dressing up as an “old hag witch” mocks the silly cult of wiccan-ism.
And liberals hate that!
So I like THAT even more!
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