Happy Halloween!
Then He said, “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Don’t follow them…” - Luke 21:8
Halloween is here, and while there may not be as many ghouls and goblins running round your neighborhood as in years past, I can’t think of a time when deception is more common (I refuse to talk about politics).
There are some who live for this holiday, where the entire point is to personify something other than oneself. Halloween is a time for frivolity, masks, and deception; for candy and the excitement of being scared. My kids love the candy more than any of the rest of it, but they also like to personify their heroes, characters, and even animals of choice.
I find it interesting to think about the festivals of Halloween from a Christian perspective. Of course, even Halloween has a basis in the Christian faith once being called “All Hollow’s Eve” or the night of remembrance. It was once believed to be a night when the veil between this life and the next was extraordinarily thin, to remember loved ones past, to pray for their souls in hopes that they would be counted among the saints the very next day; “All Saints Day.”
Now, almost all of the festivals we celebrate are highly secularized and don’t hold much if not any of the original meanings. Now, we pursue the opportunity to dress and be someone else, and let’s not forget the joy of eating all that candy the kids collect (parent tax) and the start of our “winter weight gain.”
We must be reminded that this is all in fun, and none of it should be taken seriously. After all, the purpose of the season’s end is to bring about a new season and a day when we celebrate the saints in the church that have gone to glory ahead of us. They were not deceivers of the word, but doers of the word of God. They were not deceived by the ways of this world, nor did they follow falsely, but they went on in life, paying attention to the Scriptures and living according to the grace and peace of our Lord, Jesus Christ. It is for them that we should look and rejoice; knowing that if we follow in their shining example, as they followed in the example of Christ, we, too, will be made perfect, saints in heaven. So as you celebrate this weekend, forget not those persons in your life who lived according to God’s will, follow them and find yourself resting in God’s awesome presence. And enjoy the candy if you can.
Grace & Peace,
Sam