A Wiccan Who Gave Up Halloween

I came across a blog today whose writer had some Q&A's for two women who have a clearer perspective on Halloween than most of us--they had been either Wiccans or self-proclaimed witches. They are now Believers in Jesus Christ and explain why they no longer celebrate or participate in Halloween. I'd like to share what one of them had to say in response to one of the questions. If you'd like to read the entire Q&A session, you can find it at Lisa's blog. The boldfaced type is her emphasis.

UPDATE: Lisa's blog is no longer available, but I leave this Q&A for your consideration.

Q. Are there specific experiences that you had as a Wiccan who celebrated Halloween that led to your decisions as why you don't celebrate it any longer?

A. I can’t say that there is any specific experience I can point to, but rather the general understanding of Christianity and the holidays Christians celebrate that I held as a pagan.

Brothers and sisters, know that there are pagans watching you and laughing. That may seem harsh, but it is true – the adoption of pagan holidays into the life of a Christian has in no way strengthened the faith or made it more palatable in the eyes of unbelievers, it has only weakened it, and made it seem derivative. I can so clearly remember explaining to others that Jesus is just another manifestation of the sacrificial Summer-King who dies to ensure the well-being of his people – that this is evident through his portrayal in being born at Winter Solstice (as the sun-god is), dying and rising again at Easter (Eostre) as the green-god, the consort of the goddess does in the Spring as he is planted into the ground and dies only to be born again as the grain crop.

I always knew that the gods I worshipped were the creations of man, false gods, and now that I belong to Him I know the deep, everlasting reality of His life, His truth, His love. It breaks my heart to know that pagans misunderstand Jesus because of tacking him onto pagan celebrations – but that is a post for another day! Even holidays that are still primarily pagan are in no ways appropriate for Christians to celebrate, as it mars their witness to partake in a pagan celebration.

I have to make something clear – I don’t believe there’s anything wrong with candy, or wearing princess dress-up clothes, we do both of those things in our home. However, when we do these things within the context of a pagan celebration, we are in essence behaving like the un-Godly culture that surrounds us. Both in the Old and New Testaments God carefully shepherds His people, asking them to abstain from pagan expressions of faith and celebration. Unfortunately, Christians who partake in Halloween are partaking in a pagan celebration.

I realize that there are many sincere brothers and sisters in the faith that celebrate Halloween out of a sense of family tradition, or culturally normative – I’d like to encourage you to examine the scriptures in light of this celebration, to seek God’s face, and to pray His will be done in your life. I hope you’ll read these words in the spirit they are intended – I have no desire to condemn you and yours as you continue to grow in your walk with the Lord.

Do our actions really matter in relation to Halloween or is it just innocent fun? Yes, unreservedly, yes. As parents we are responsible for planting seeds in the lives of our children. Halloween and its emphasis upon the dark spiritual world may unknowingly plant a seed that later blooms into a fascination with the occult.

As previously mentioned, our Christian witness before pagans is marred due to our involvement with their ‘holy days’.  Most importantly, as the above scriptures make clear, God wants us to walk in the light. As His children we should not seek to partake of the works of darkness or to commune with them. All children seek to emulate their father – having been adopted into God’s family, we are no longer children of Satan, and we should no longer walk as such.

Image ~ Created by Kjpargeter - Freepik.com

For The Children's Sake

Tim Hill, pixabay

Autumn is my favorite time of the year. It's so homey and cozy. But the season is being rushed, rushed, rushed. I've been seeing Christmas decor in the stores for a few weeks now! And Halloween has been here for quite awhile. I read that Halloween is now the second most celebrated holiday.

Halloween has overshadowed Thanksgiving in the thoughts of most Americans. Halloween is more marketable, I suppose, which seems to be the bottom line of holidays these days. And Americans aren't so much given to being thankful, anyway. We live in a me-focus culture.

Are we connecting the dots here? Halloween has overshadowed giving thanks to God for his bountiful provisions and abundant blessings. Santa Claus has overshadowed rejoicing in the birth of our Savior. The Easter Bunny has overshadowed rejoicing in Christ's Resurrection. Could it all be part of The Enemy's subversive plan?

Halloween disturbs my spirit. It's a marriage of pagan and Christian beliefs. Can light and darkness co-exist? What partnership has righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? (2 Cor. 6:14) It troubles me even more when churches participate, having a Harvest Party, calling it a Halloween alternative. It's still Halloween.

I understand that it's an opportunity to get children to come to the church, an opportunity to reach them with the gospel message. But don't we see that this sends a confusing and double-minded message to the children? They may be told that it's the eve of All Saints Day and encouraged to dress like a Bible character, but if a survey were to be taken during a Harvest Party, no doubt the children would think the church is celebrating Halloween. Maybe some churches do, but how do they explain to the children that blood and guts and gore and ghosts and animal sacrifices and witchcraft and demons and all the underworld goings on are not what their church celebrates? If it's All Hallows Eve, what's holy about it? And do we understand that All Saints Day was a day for praying for dead people?

So let's go back to the underlying purpose of a Harvest Party--to use it as an outreach opportunity for children. Divorce it from Halloween. Delay it a week and have it in early November, certainly an appropriate time as we're looking toward Thanksgiving and having a thankful spirit. Children will still come to the party, and they'll understand the purpose--to celebrate God's goodness in giving a bountiful harvest. A true Harvest Party, and no confusion as to what the church believes and celebrates.

For the children's sake, lead them in clarity of the gospel message.

Image ~ via Pixabay
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