Its that time of year, and yet again, I am burdened with sharing the knowledge that I have collected over the past 10 or so years about the upcoming holiday, Halloween. In writing this blog, it is my hope that this will serve as a forum for information, rather than an opportunity for you to get my opinion of the holiday….in reality, who really cares what I think….more so I pray you are challenged with asking yourself, “What does Jesus think about the holiday”?
I can remember a particular Halloween when I was around 5 years old. After an exhausting night of gathering candy from every house in the neighborhood, my mom made me spread it all out on the table and she and my dad examined each piece. The pieces without the proper packaging went straight to the trash can, no questions asked. I’m sure the same thing went down at your house when you were a kid, but should it have to? Shouldn’t that in itself be a clue to the fact that something might not be “good” about this holiday? Let me give you some facts about the origins of the holiday we have watered down and made to seem acceptable in our culture….
The Druids – Halloween has its roots in the ancient Irish festival that took place on October 31. It is called the Festival of Death, named for the god of death, SO-WEN, a time when people believed that the spirits of the dead roamed the earth and on this day the old year dies away and the new year begins. November 1 was called the day of the dead, and all this activity was leading up to it. The time period was approximately 300 years before the birth of Jesus. Most people were pagan and believed in many gods, but the most feared society were called the Druids and they ruled by terror and sorcery. Even the kings feared the Druids, and when the king got too old to lead in battle or father children, they would sacrifice him to their gods. On this night the towns people would hurry up with their chores, getting everything done before nightfall, hoping to get in and lock their door before the Druids came out. When night fell, the Druids would come out into the village….the following are real accounts of the activities of the Druids. See if you can see any similarities of the activities we do today….
Jack -o-lantern – This is an Irish tale that says a guy named Jack was having a conversation with the devil. He asked the devil to climb the top of an apple tree. The devil did it and then Jack put crosses all around the bottom of the tree, preventing the devil from coming down. Since the devil couldn’t come down, he put a curse on Jack, saying that he was cursed to stay in the world forever, having neither access to heaven or hell. When Jack died, he was condemned to walk the earth forever. While here, he carved out a turnip and dropped in a lump of coal so he could find his way around in the dark. Thus naming the lantern, Jack-o-Lantern. Today, we carry out that tradition by using pumpkins because they are larger and more festive than turnips.
Why the scary faces on the JOL? As the Druids came into villages, they would have turnips with faces on them. They carved the faces of the spirits that dwelled inside of them on the sides of the turnips. This spirit was the Druids spirit guide, the one that guides, empowers, and directs the Druid all year long…his own little spirit god. Thus, the scary faces on the pumpkins.
Trick or Treating – As the Druids came into the villages, they would stop at certain homes and bang on the door. They would demand certain types of foods and sweets. If the people would comply, they would go about their business. If they didn’t give them anything, they were cursed with trouble, sickness and sometimes even death.
Costumes – They would put animal skins on themselves and dance around fires in order to scare off spirits. The believed that the god of death would gather together all the souls of people who had died the previous year, and the souls would attack those who had been bad…the only way to escape was to put on disguises so the spirits wouldn’t notice them.
Bobbing for apples – People would kneel around a tub of water filled with apples and the first one to get one without using their hands would have good luck and fortune all year. Then they would try to peel the apple with their teeth and if they succeeded and it remained all in one piece, they then threw it over their left shoulder. They believed if they whirled around quick enough, they would catch a glimpse of their spouse for the coming year.
Black cats – The Druids believed that the spirits of ancestors were manifested in black cats.
Bonfires – When nightfall came, the Druids build large fires that could be seen from far distances. Many villagers saw these fires and took it as a sign that it was time to get into their homes. At midnight the madness increased and they performed human sacrifices, tearing bodies open and throwing the remains into the fire. All this is done in hopes to make the god of death smile. The villagers called these fires “bone fires” and today we have shortened it to bonfires.
Most of the research you have just read has been compiled from books and articles I have collected beginning in 1996. The fact that we spend over 14 million dollars per year on a holiday known for evil and basically everything God is against totally intrigued me, and thus the research began. There are many more facts, but my hand is getting tired….if you’re interested, I can recommend some books and other materials. Again, please realize, not celebrating this pagan holiday is a personal decision I made many years ago….but I do think God wants more of His children to take a stand. Are you one of them?
Blessed, tdm
