Halloween, part 2.

2:11 PM

   Our old farm house is extra-spooky in the fog.

  Wow. I was so interested in all that you had to say in response to my post about Halloween. Thank you, one and all for contributing!  If you happened to miss the post, check it out here, and if you missed the comments on my blog's Facebook page, you're going to want to check those out as well, over here.  And while you're at it, click "like" to follow Frame of Mind on Facebook, because I have been posting the links there, rather than on my personal profile.  It is an easy way to follow all of the blog info in one place.

Anyways.....

  I must say, the comments were so fascinating to read.  Most were defending reasons NOT to partake in any Halloween festivities, which was no surprise considering that most of the circles I am in would hold to that belief. I really appreciated all that you shared, and that you took the time to share it!  Randy and I choose not to celebrate it as well, and I agreed with much of what you all had to say.  Thanks for sharing!

   There was, however, one comment taking the other side, and it actually voiced the very thoughts I'd been having on this issue recently.....redemption.  I had even written up a paragraph or two on those very lines in the original post, but then deleted it wanting to solicit the reader's view first, before imposing my ideas. It is so interesting to me that the redeeming of certain activities that may not be wholly sanctified applies to other areas in our lives, but not ever Halloween. 

   For example....we apply it to football.  Quite a few comments mentioned the immodesty/immorality/seductive costume aspect of Halloween....sound anything like those cheerleaders on the sidelines?  Now folks, one thing you need to realize is that I am not condemning football.  I am actually a bona-fide, college football fan these days, thanks to my dear husband.  There are many things I love about a good competition, a good game, a good rivalry.  I believe in good sportsmanship, and one of the ways to "redeem" the activity of football is to partake in the game without partaking in the drunkenness, lust and cursing that seems to abound in a stadium.  I think being polite, civil, sober, clean-mouthed is a great way to "shine your light" in the darkness. 

   All I am saying is that it is interesting how we tend to redeem certain aspects of our culture, but not this one in particular.  I'm still not sure where I come out on the whole redemption-aspect, as our culture has taken Halloween to a whole new level...can it be redeemed?  With God all things are possible, but some say that within the parameters of the holiday's meaning, intents and original purpose, it cannot be.   And if you choose NOT to redeem Halloween, and therefore take no part in it, well than that is fine and dandy.  But just be careful that if you list your reasons for choosing to do so as "there are certain activities that Christians should have no part of"  you might run into some other areas in life, in which that may also apply.
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    And this is where you come in again.  Thoughts/opinions all welcome! I truly love a good debate, and it's all in good fun.:)  I have no soapbox really, as I am just trying to flesh out all of my beliefs on this issue,  and enjoy hearing from others who have been taking that journey as well.  Bless you all for taking the time for my little mental musings on this blog. 

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5 comments

  1. honestly.. I am not sure where I am at with all of this. I totally was on the side of most of the folks that left comments on the 1st post and then I read Melissa's post and felt really convicted. Because that would totally be me to turn off my lights and hide because there is so much evil involved in the day. You have given me something to think and pray about.

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  2. ...Did the pagan origins of the Greek language taint the meaning of the words too much for them to have any real value as God's words in the New Testament? A person could go on and on like this. Also, would it have been better of God *didn't* redeem the originally-pagan practice of crucifixion? Maybe redemption can be the very best of things, period-- not just a second-best solution that's good only because of how well it addresses evil. Or maybe it is second-best: total untainted perfection is the best. Or is it? There's the question of whether people could truly love and choose God if they were already perfect; how God gave us free will--which lets in evil--instead of 'programming' us to only do good. Is redemption even better than perfection, at least on Earth?

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  3. First of all, I want to say thanks for allowing your blog to be a safe place for discussion on this somewhat touchy subject. I really appreciate your friendly tone toward readers on both sides of the table, especially because I grew up celebrating and continue to celebrate Halloween.

    When I look back, I have completely happy, innocent memories of Halloween. From the time I was just a few months old, my mom dressed me up in silly costumes ranging from a sheep to a Nebraska Husker cheerleader to a "candy investigator." The hunt for the perfect costume was always one of my favorite parts of the holiday. My parents are very thrifty, so we usually hunted thrift stores, Goodwill, hand-me-down bags, and my parents' closets for accessories. My parents wouldn't let my siblings and I dress as anything scary, such as witches or zombies, but we didn't really mind. Then, we went to Halloween class parties at school. I LOVED those parties! It was so much fun to show my friends my costume, play games, and eat the treats the parents brought. Because my teachers didn't want to offend kids of various religious beliefs or scare kids, we didn't have any frightening activities. It was all light-hearted fun. Then, my siblings and I would trick-or-treat together at night. I loved visiting entire blocks of the small town where we drove to trick-or-treat at (I lived in the country), but the highlight of the night was always visiting the older people from my church. They would spoil us by giving us HANDFULS of candy rather than just one piece. In return, we would share all about our school year, our costumes, etc. It was such a fun way to build relationships with some of the elderly people in our church. To this day, my strongest memories of some of those people, were formed on the nights when we trick-or-treated at their houses

    As for the redemption of Halloween, I think that it is totally possible. When one thinks about the world, literally every single thing is negatively affected by or created as a result of the Fall. For example, there is a pen on my coffee table. That pen is a writing utensil. It was created, because people are unable to remember everything. We are not perfect. We are not completely whole. The pen is a reminder of that. It can be used to record things, so that humans do not forget. It can be used to write nice things and bad things. Like that pen, holidays such as Halloween and, yes, even Easter serve as reminders of the Fall, human weakness, and our need for God. I believe that if we, as my parents did when I was a child, pray that God can use us during holidays like Halloween to witness and to encourage, God can and will redeem the holiday. To sum up my thoughts, I'd like to add that I think it's very important for Christians to consider whether or not they have balance in their perspective in Halloween. A few questions that might help jumpstart this thought process are: What do I dislike about Halloween? Is this thing(s) that I dislike about Halloween enough to hold me back from celebrating the holiday completely? If not, how might I might remove this thing from my celebration? How might I witness to others on Halloween? How might I encourage others on Halloween? By choosing to celebrate or not to celebrate Halloween, how am I changing the relationship between myself and my non-Christian friends? Is this a good or a bad change?

    I don't know if there is a right or a wrong answer to this conversation, but I'm really excited to read what everyone writes. =) Thanks again, Shelley, for hosting this conversation!

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  4. I enjoyed your discussion here too. I'll admit I'm not a big "Halloween" fan either. Not that I have anything against fun costume parties, pumpkins, etc, but when it starts crossing over to the dark side, i get a little cold feet. I have a hard enough time fighting them off already. ;) But with that said, I know that there are a lot of people who trick or treat with their kids and it's simply a fun tradition that they were probably raised with, and in no way are they trying to pay tribute to the devil. I had to think of the scripture about eating meat offered to idols. Don't know if that applies here or not, but if it's offensive, than by all means don't participate. I guess I just hate seeing it become a point of contention. Blessings, Teresa

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