Do we praise other gods by celebrating a tradition?

We are in the month of October where the tradition of Halloween is celebrated by many. Just as there are many different religious denominations, there are also different opinions about the fact, because each denomination has its own view, according to its belief.

Before it became Halloween — (All hallows eve) or the night before Christianity celebrated Hallowmas or All Saints day on Nov. first and All Souls on the second, which were ancient Christian holydays to pray for the souls of the dead who were believed to be roaming around on that day before they left for purgatory, which is the reason for the disguising so the “ghost” would not recognize the people, the feast used to be a pagan one. There are also many different opinions as to where it originated. The Christian custom of praying for the souls of their dead goes as far back as the 15^th century, but the pagan originated earlier. Some say its roots are from Celtic speaking countries, from Northern Ireland and Scotland; others say it was from Roman feasts of gods of the seeds or of the dead. The name is an English contraction so it is most provably Gaelic. There were offerings of food and drinks, for the dead who came to visit their home. Some people even set places for them at their dinner table. And there were festivals and rituals of divination games and bonfire to scare the witches of their punishment in hell. (Go to Wikipedia.com to learn more)

I remember knowing this tradition throughout my entire life. I was born a Presbyterian, went to a Methodist school with American roots, used to go to Baptist schooling when attending Summer Camps, and I had always seen that tradition as a fun one in all those denominations. When I came to this country I attended a Christian high school (Presbyterian Pan-American School at Kingsville, Texas where I met my first dear friends in the US) There we celebrated it as any party where we dressed up, to have plain fun and with no other bad intention. When I became a mother, I dressed my babies as bunnies, chicks, little angels, Chinese vendors, and many pretty customs. The adults dressed up as “red riding hood” or pirates, French maids, and things as awkward as a TV set or a refrigerator, and participated in originality contests. And at Church we had a blast where we had simply a lot of FUN. When did the Church decide we could not have fun because it was diabolic? When do we scare our children into not dressing up or go “trick or treating” having done it ourselves? When does it all deteriorate and becomes a sin to celebrate “Halloween”? Are we praising the devil? Is God going to punish us for it? Are we praising other gods by having fun?

First of all we should know what the Holy Scriptures say about our Creator.  Precisely, the first of the ten Commandments, which He Himself spoke to Moses: “You shall have NO OTHER gods before Me. You shall not make yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above, or on the earth, beneath, or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children on the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing loving kindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments. (Exodus 20.3-6). . . For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God. (Deuteronomy 4.24)  So, anything that does not praise God is praising and honoring “other gods” and many times people fall in the trap of fun making the devil is tending us to make us sin, so Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partaker with them. (Ephesians 5.6-7) It would be worse if our children do not have the chance to participate in life eternal because of our stubbornness.

All throughout the Word of God (our Creator, the Almighty One) we are going to find wisdom and if the new church found it, it will teach us so we would not fall in the deceit of not knowing. So we should thank God for the truth so we do not perish on account of ignorance.  

Churches have created fun and candy festivals during these times and give them other names so their children do not feel left out on a fun celebration, but one is responsible to explain the truth to them on their understanding level so they know what to defend in the future. Of course, many people might say there’s nothing wrong with the tradition and we might fall in, so let’s read about it and do not be ignorant. Read the Scriptures to obtain wisdom, go to a church and teach your children so they become wise adults who are a blessing and not a shame to society. Many parents whose kids are behind bars or dead would probably wish it had occurred to the before it was too late.

How much better is to get wisdom than gold! And to get understanding is to be chosen above silver. The highway of the upright is to depart from evil; he who watches his way preserves his life. He who gives attention to The Word will find good.  And blessed is he who trusts in the Lord. (Proverbs 16. 16,17, 20)