Christians and Halloween

Blik · Oct 26, 2020

At the time Christ lived, many of the Romans had been attracted to the God of the Jews, many joined them. They were called God-fearers. Some actually became Jews, but some couldn't give up the pagan celebrations, they were too much fun. They often took the friends they had made in the synagogue with them. The Jewish fathers then made it harder to join the Jews, so these people who weren't sincere were kept out.

When Constantine made Christianity OK to practice, all pagans were asked to change their religion. Again, it was hard for people, their parties and celebrations were fun. They Christianized the celebrations. The Spring festival was changed to a copy of Passover. The fall festival was changed to a celebration of Christ's birth. We still follow these, and to us, they are truly Christianized.

Blik · Oct 26, 2020

Going_Nowhere said:

When Paul spoke to us about accepting different ways of people in the church, Paul said they were al done in the name of Christ and we should accept them. Are you watching these movies in the name of Christ?

Blain · Oct 26, 2020

Truth7t7 said:

Yep exactly oddly enough I once had a book that showed your constelation mine was Sagetarius it gave a detailed description of your personality admittedly it was oddly accurately but I really don't pay much attention to that kind of stuff no idea what my zodiac sign is.

RemnantRD · Oct 26, 2020

Blik said:

Interestingly enough, God specifically asked His people not to learn these ways to worship Him. It represents to God something that He absolutely detests. He didn't ask us to "reclaim" or "Christianize" these pagan celebrations. This is why king Saul was rejected from being king after he allowed or personally participated in taking the best of the sheep, oxen, riches, sparing king Agag of Amalek, etc and trying to use them to worship God. As we see time and time again, the Hebrew people participated in these false god practices over and over again throughout the OT causing a lot of hardship...even to the point of receiving a decree of divorce from God.
God didn't want His people to do these things, and when they entered a land of a people they were to take over, He wanted them to utterly destroy it so His people would not pick up on the ways that the pagans worshipped their false gods.

Similarly, the exhortation to Christians today is to seek that which is pleasing to God. Study the scriptures to see if what we are doing is pleasing to the Lord, and if it isn't spiritually, we throw it out.

tourist · Oct 26, 2020

Subhumanoidal said:

Tricks for them, no treats.

tourist · Oct 26, 2020

stepbystep said:

We go through this every year with the pagan holiday threads. Halloween kicks things off. I find that these types of threads to be a high entertainment venue.

RemnantRD · Oct 26, 2020

Subhumanoidal said:

This subject again yes, mostly because of the times. It's not about following the Law when we look toward worshipping God in spirit and in truth. It's not legalism to seek what is pleasing to the Lord and throwing out what we find out is displeasing. A return to the mosaic law by the letter and ritual is what we do not want to revert to. As to picking and choosing? It's good to stay consistent which many people do.

tourist said:

High entertainment perhaps, but at the same time it's something good to examine each year. It's a great way to stand for God's truth amid the worldly celebrations.

GraceAndTruth · Oct 26, 2020

Don't care much for Halloween........but I LOVE Christmas.
Pagan stuff at Christmas coming soon to a thread near you

Deuteronomy · Oct 26, 2020

Truth7t7 said:

Hello Truth7t7, you believe that pagans "own" a date on our Calendar

While that is clearly not true, of course, I can imagine that it might be true in the minds of certain individuals. And if that's actually the case (and it may well be), then the very last thing we would want to do is to intentionally/openly avoid doing something of a special nature on those days as Christians, because doing so would lend a certain credence to their thinking, that it might actually be true (and could, thereby, be instrumental in leading them both deeper into their deceptions and further away from the truth).

So, taking back ownership of October 31st (from those who associate it in their minds with a pagan holiday) by celebrating that day (the day that Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg) as the beginning of the Reformation of the church instead, seems not only a good thing, but the right thing to do

(especially for the sake of those who hold it to be a "pagan" holiday).

As for Christmas being celebrated as a means of replacing the Winter Solstice, Christmas is always on December 25th, the Winter Solstice never is/never will be on December 25th (it happens on December 20-23) so that doesn't seem like it should be a problem .. unless we are going to start eliminating more of our calendar days because they fall ~close~ to pagan holidays

I see no reason to do that, of course (and remember, close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades

).

That said, I ~LOVE~ the fact the Christmas is a worldwide, annual celebration of the Lord's birth (even if it is barely recognized as such by some, it is still a fact that is known to all who celebrate it). It is certainly a day that avails itself like no other for proclaiming the truth about our Savior's coming to a world that so desperately needs to hear the truth about Him

Finally, while many things are spelled out for us in the Bible as sinful (both directly and indirectly), I do not believe that our choice to celebrate the Lord's birth, or His death and Resurrection, and/or things like the Reformation of the church, are numbered among them!

In fact, the Bible has this to say about a very important day in the lives of the saints,

Psalm 118
24 This is the day which the LORD has made;
Let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Granted, few, if any other days could be considered as important as the "day" that this verse, Psalm 118:24, ultimately points to, which is the day that our salvation was made a reality by the Lord on the Cross, and then by His Resurrection three days later.

So the celebration of such days seem quite Biblical (remember too the celebrations that happened on the day of the Lord's birth, and on the days following it as well, by the angels, the shepherds and others like the wise men from the east).

God bless you!

~Deut

Luke 2
8 There were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
........14 Glory to God in the highest,
........And on earth peace,
.......Good will toward men.
15 And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Beth-lehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.
16 And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.
17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.
18 And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.
19 But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.
20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.

Truth7t7 · Oct 26, 2020

Deuteronomy said:

Its not a matter of salvation but of truth.

Reformation day on October 31st is primarily celebrated and associated with the (Lutheran) church, outside this denomination its silent.

I been around for a few decades, I live in California, the Halloween tradition has crept into many churches in the 80's under the guise of (Harvest Festivals), costumes and the works.

December 25th surrounds the festival's of the Roman Saturnalia, and the worship of Bacchus, wine, women, and song

Fact: Jesus Christ wasn't born on Dec 25th, he was born when the shepherds were in the fiields tending their sheep, on Dec 25th there aren't sheep in the fields.

WHAT IS SATURNALIA?
Saturnalia, the most popular holiday on the ancient Roman calendar, derived from older farming-related rituals of midwinter and the winter solstice, especially the practice of offering gifts or sacrifices to the gods during the winter sowing season.

The pagan celebration of Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture and time, began as a single day, but by the late Republic (133-31 B.C.) it had expanded to a weeklong festival beginning December 17. (On the Julian calendar, which the Romans used at the time, the winter solstice fell on December 25.)

During Saturnalia, work and business came to a halt. Schools and courts of law closed, and the normal social patterns were suspended.

People decorated their homes with wreaths and other greenery, and shed their traditional togas in favor of colorful clothes known as synthesis. Even slaves did not have to work during Saturnalia, but were allowed to participate in the festivities; in some cases, they sat at the head of the table while their masters served them.
Instead of working, Romans spent Saturnalia gambling, singing, playing music, feasting, socializing and giving each other gifts. Wax taper candles called cerei were common gifts during Saturnalia, to signify light returning after the solstice.

Christmas trees, ornaments, are from pagan origins that predate Christ, in worship of the solar system.

Jeremiah 10:1-5KJV
Hear ye the word which the Lord speaketh unto you, O house of Israel:
2 Thus saith the Lord, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them.
3 For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe.
4 They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not.
5 They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good.

Blade · Oct 27, 2020

You know believing in Jesus comes down to a matter of choice right?

When the world says "Halloween is the deadliest day of the year for child pedestrians". ...says it all.

mustaphadrink · Oct 27, 2020

You know, it is not that difficult to sort out things like Halloween, Christmas, and Easter. Like any study of this kind the place to start is the bible. So, can anyone tell me where it says in the bible that the New Testament Church celebrated Christmas, easter, or Halloween?

The facts are that they didn't. So why didn't they? Could it be that they were pagan celebrations? If that is the case and it is, then why do we need to justify celebrating these pagan celebrations when it is obvious that we can't.

We have never celebrated Halloween because it is obviously pagan and we gave up Christmas and easter a long time ago. We would rather celebrate Jesus at every available opportunity. As we do it so often, who needs Easter and Christmas?

Subhumanoidal · Oct 27, 2020

Truth7t7 said:

Nothing at all to do with my point, but ok.

Blik · Oct 27, 2020

RemnantRD said:

It was the Lord, who is perfect, who asked the Israelites to sacrifice animals as they repented of their sins, and at the same time we are told in Isaiah God hated the blood of animals. Isaiah 1:11.

It is true that pagans fed their stone idols blood in order to gain their help. God hated that idea. But it is only through the blood of Christ that anyone ever had salvation. The blood of animals symbolized that blood, and God explained to them it was blood God gave on the altar, that there was no atonement, as their salvation was called, without blood. Lev. 17:11. God is eternal, and what God tells us is eternal. God tells us there is no salvation without Christ. That was true from Genesis to Rev. It was the blood of Christ that saved such as Moses and David.

From these scriptures, I think we are mistaken when we think the it was the blood of animals God asked the OT people for, it was a way of showing them Christ, it was a mystery for them that Christ revealed. There is no mention of heaven in the OT, only sleep. The saints, we are told, woke from their sleep when the curtain split at the crucifixion and walked the streets of Jerusalem. Christ fulfilled the sacrificial system. Matthew 27:52-53.

Blik · Oct 27, 2020

mustaphadrink said:

Would you please consider thinking about how the world would be different if our holidays were all God inspired instead of man inspired?

Our celebrations would all be celebrating the Lord's offering of salvation, for the feasts God asks for are all celebrating the ways God offers us salvation, from Christ to the new heaven and earth we will have.

Lanolin · Oct 27, 2020

meh
I dont celebrate it, but its increasingly become imposed on people in the shops, and with tv when they got nothing better to do than eat stuff that rots their teeth.

All christians need to be aware on some basic aspects of spiritual warfare is to resist the devil and he will flee from you. So you dont need to give into treating demons. You just tell them to get lost..and they cant trick you as they got no legal right to go on your property.

Lanolin · Oct 27, 2020

the same goes for telemarketers and other door knockers.

Deuteronomy · Oct 28, 2020

Truth7t7 said:

Hello Truth7t7, it's true that it is a big Lutheran holiday, particularly in western Europe, but it was a regular cause of celebration and thanksgiving when I was a Presbyterian here is the States too, and the same has been true since I became associated with the Evangelical Free Church of America I am happy to report (at least in my local churches anyway).

Truth7t7 said:

"Harvest Festivals" were celebrated in lieu of Halloween in my last two local, EvFree churches, but neither church made it seem like a Halloween replacement. We had pony rides, hayrides, apple dunking, and other stuff like that, along with a short message and prayer, music and food, of course. The fact that it is fun is about the only thing that is similar, except that our Harvest Festivals are FAR more fun than Halloween could ever hope to be

(and the focus is on the Lord, not on the prince of this world and/or his worshipers).

Truth7t7 said:

But those things are not true of Christmas, even for those involved in a nearly secular version of it. Restaurants and bars are all closed (except for some of our Chinese restaurants), so most people gather together with family and friends to celebrate it, and go to church on Christmas Eve, even many who do not go to church on any other day of the year (at least that has been my lifelong experience anyway).

Truth7t7 said:

I always thought the same thing, but it appears that belief is actually a ~disputed~ fact. You can read some of what has been said about it below, if you are interested (BTW, the text and the text of the video are the same, so you can watch it or listen to it and read it

).

Question: Was Jesus born on December 25?

Answer: Speculation as to the time of Jesus’ birth dates back to the 3rd century, when Hyppolytus (ca. 170-236) claimed that Jesus was born on December 25. The earliest mention of some sort of observance on that date is in the Philoclian Calendar, representing Roman practice, of the year 336. Later, John Chrysostom favored the same date of birth. Cyril of Jerusalem (348-386) had access to the original Roman birth census, which also documented that Jesus was born on the 25th of December. The date eventually became the officially recognized date for Christmas in part because it coincided with the pagan festivals celebrating Saturnalia and the winter solstice. The church thereby offered people a Christian alternative to the pagan festivities and eventually reinterpreted many of their symbols and actions in ways acceptable to Christian faith and practice.

December 25 has become more and more acceptable as the birth date of Jesus. However, some argue that the birth occurred in some other season, such as in the fall. Followers of this theory claim that the Judean winters were too cold for shepherds to be watching their flocks by night. History proves otherwise, however, and we have historical evidence that unblemished lambs for the Temple sacrifice were in fact kept in the fields near Bethlehem during the winter months. With that said, it is impossible to prove whether or not Jesus was born on December 25. And, ultimately, it does not matter.

The truth is we simply don’t know the exact date of our Savior’s birth. In fact, we don’t even know for sure the year in which He was born. Scholars believe it was somewhere between 6 B.C. and 4 B.C. One thing is clear: if God felt it was important for us to know the exact date of the Savior’s birth, He certainly would have told us in His Word. The Gospel of Luke gives very specific details about the event, even down to what the baby was wearing – “swaddling clothes”—and where he slept—“in a manger” (Luke 2:12). These details are important because they speak of His nature and character, meek and lowly. But the exact date of His birth has no significance whatsoever, which may be why God chose not to mention it.

The fact is that He was born, that He came into the world to atone for our sins, that He was resurrected to eternal life, and that He’s alive today. This is what we should celebrate, as we are told in the Old Testament in such passages as Zechariah 2:10: “’shout and be glad, O Daughter of Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you,' declares the LORD.” Further, the angel that announced the birth to the shepherds brought “good news of great joy that will be for all the people” (Luke 2:10). Surely here is the cause for celebration every day, not just once a year.

~https://www.gotquestions.org/December-25.html

~Deut

GandalfTheWhite · Oct 28, 2020

Deuteronomy said:

I am one of the "I don't celebrate Christmas and Halloween" crowd, and it is purely based on the fact that Halloween is a demonic day. If a Satanist want to get married to Satan they chose this day to do it so I want no part in that

Christmas is a more interesting argument. Like @Deuteronomy said there are many arguments for and against. I came to the conclusion long ago that Jesus was not born on 25 December and God keeps on confirming it. One interesting video about it is from Joe Amaral. He is not a "Christmas bashers" but he shared these interesting facts. Use it don't use it...

GandalfTheWhite · Oct 28, 2020

I just watched the video from Deut and if you believe that prepare to be amazed

Christians and Halloween

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