Halloween. Sacrificing Christianity for Treats and Acceptance.

Oct 29, 2010 by The Faith

Every year, I marvel at the increased commercialism of Halloween.  Growing up, it was a special day mostly to kids and discount stores, as families would purchase relatively inexpensive outfits of little more than a mask and flimsy getup and generic candy to pass out over the course of the evening.  Today, it has become a huge selling event for retailers, replete with Hallmark cards, flower arrangements and extravagances that are in some cases second only to Christmas.

But against this backdrop I’ve become more disheartened by the willingness of most Christians to overlook the undoubtedly pagan origins of this day, merely for the sake of not disappointing their children’s appetite for treats and their own reluctance to be separate themselves.  Why is that?  What is so compelling about a ritual that has its roots in a tradition meant to ward off spirits by wearing costumes and masks as disguises.  And, unlike every other holiday, has never been truly “Christianized” for the sake of Church acceptance.  Rather, the same people who would raise their hands and praise God on Sundays will dress themselves and their children up and parade down street dressed as all manor of evil.

Myself, I grew up in a family that stopped recognizing Halloween while I was 11 or 12 years old.  While the first few years were difficult in explaining to friends and relatives, it was no more so than our choices regarding music or movies, book choices or anything else.  It was a price we were willing to pay in order to make a distinction between what was of reasonable fun and what was clearly pandering to the secular for the sake of acceptance.

When I see Churches having “Fall Festivals” or “Holy-ween” activities, where dressing up is ok, but the emphasis is on biblical figures, I laugh.  Seriously?  Who do you think you’re fooling?  It’s like going to a bar with your secular friends and drinking non-alcoholic beer.  Your message is getting lost by your actions.

I’ll not bore my readers with a dissertation on Halloween’s origins, but do encourage you to read what has been contributed to Wikipedia on the subject.  It’s time Christians because a little more thoughtful as to the message it sends when participating in Halloween traditions.