Halloween: A CHRISTIAN Holiday?

Want to discuss a controversial subject? How about Halloween! How should Christians approach a pagan holiday? Should we view it as neutral...as something to avoid...something harmless...something to stand up against? Modern Christians have taken each and everyone of these positions...but which one is right? Is there a "right" view on Halloween? Before I dig into the subject, let me give you my personal experience...

I grew up going "trick or treating". I loved it! The candy...the ghosts and goblins...getting scared...and so on. The more I got educated in a typical 1980s fundamentalist faith, I was exposed to the satanic cultish underpinnings of the holiday. I was, frankly, confused. My gut told me it was wrong, but my childhood memories were so positive. This became especially important when our children were born and Lauren and I tried to determine their participation. Fall festivals were options. Does "trick or treating" mean you have gone to the dark side?? We weren't sure.

One unexpected bonus to fleshing out the proper view on Halloween came in seminary. As the leaves turned in St. Louis in the fall of 2001, I sat back and waited to see what the seminary offered in place of the devil's night. Much to my surprise, the seminary encouraged on-campus trick or treating for the children!! In fact, our president's children participated! That was actually the last thing I thought would happen...and it caused me to ask a few questions. I was led to some interesting answers. I will never try to push a view on this controversy on anyone. What you decide for your children is your call. So, what I want to do is give you the background to make a good decision...and open the lines of discussion!

So...how did this holiday start? There are multiple streams of traditions that emerged over the centuries. There are hints of a Roman festival centuries ago. Probably the most prominent is a Celtic festival marking the transition of daylight and night (transition of summer to winter in terms of the sun's rotation). They believed that time allowed spirits to also emerge as the "darker half" of the year started. This Celtic festival started the tradition of carving turnips into funny or scary faces to scare off the spirits...yes, turnips! It was in America in the 1900s that pumpkins were used. They were easier to carve, obviously...but also a symbol of a good harvest.

The most prominent festival and celebration, though, is CHRISTIAN. The idea of trick or treating goes back to the 1500s practice of "souling" in Ireland and England (although there is evidence around that time in other areas of Europe), where the poor would door to door in advance of the CHRISTIAN holiday "All Saints Day." Dressing up in costumes were to impress or amuse the people they met going door to door...and to mock or fight off any evil spirits. This tradition came over to America and evolved into children becoming the focus only in the early to mid 1900s. Trick or treating, as we know it, is less than 100 years old!

The word "Halloween" is not an evil word. In fact, it is simply a contraction for "All Hallow's Eve". The word "hallow" means saint or holy. "All Saints Day" is still celebrated today every November 1. It is the celebration of the victory of the saints by their union with Christ! All Saints Day is a holiday that goes back over 1,000 years! It celebrates Scriptures like Ephesians 6 and Romans 16:20, where we are assured of our victory over Satan and evil spirits...as well as our own sin, by our union in Christ. All Saints Day works off the premise that although Jesus has finished HIS work, we are involved in the mop-up operations...battles are still ongoing.

Just as we truly begin celebrating Christmas on Christmas Eve, the celebration for All Saints Day began on October 31 - All Hallow's Eve. Here was the concept - on October 31, the evil forces try one last time to achieve victory, but is defeated by the people of God. How do we win that victory? MOCKERY!! Satan's (and ours) greatest sin is pride. So, their method of attack was to ridicule him! Satan was portrayed as dressed up in a red suit with horns and a tail to MOCK HIM! They made evil look ridiculous. This is the ancient way of taunting. We have Jesus, yes we do, we have Jesus...how about you?

Ever wonder why Martin Luther picked October 31 to post his 95 theses to start the Reformation? It wasn't a coincidence! Halloween IS all about evil and demons...it is all about their DEFEAT! Centuries ago, children would dress up like ghosts and goblins and vampires to MOCK the spirits that might think they can defeat the forces of Christ. Halloween is about having NO FEAR of things that are scary. Psalm 2 says that the One enthroned in heaven laughs (at His enemies)...He mocks them.

We as believers often lament how Christmas and Easter have been taken from us and commercialized. We fight to redeem those holidays...but no one fights for Halloween! No holiday has been ripped from our calendar like Halloween. We as Christians avoid it. We call October 31 "Reformation Day" to honor Luther. What would Martin Luther think about that??I think he might start another Reformation! His note might say "what happened to Halloween?"

Problems with Scripture

Ever forced into doing something? Ever say, "I'll do it, but I don't like it!" Ever have a problem with the truth? Well, if you ever wanted to know which chapter of the Bible might make you feel this way, then look no further than 1 Samuel 15. This is a long chapter. It is a critical chapter in terms of the narrative leading to Saul's ultimate demise and David's ultimate rise. But, quite possibly, the thing that makes this chapter most significant is the controversial moral and theological texts that show up throughout the chapter.

In this blog, I will attempt to help with one of these. In our sermon on Sunday, I will attempt to deal with some of the others. The issue I want to tackle in this chapter is one I might regret by the time I finish. The first 10 verses detail another situation where Saul does not fully obey God's commandment. And, in verse 11, God says to Samuel that He regrets making Saul king...it could be translated another way...God is sorry...or another...God is repenting. This statement is one that pastors often like skirting past. Can God make a mistake? Can God really regret a decision He made? Tough questions to think about.

Samuel doesn't accept God's thoughts. The Scripture says that he was angry and cried out to God all night long. As the story goes along, we run into another nugget in verse 29. It says that "the Glory of Israel will not lie or repent; for He is not a man, that He should repent. Ok...so God repented, regretted, was sorry...and now He can't be any of those things. I am pretty sure that I regret tackling this subject, but what about God? Just to make things more complicated, when the story is over, at the end of the chapter, we see AGAIN that God regrets making Saul king. Maybe the narrator of the story is regretting that he mentioned God WASN'T sorry and repented on his earlier statement? Not likely.

This chapter is really tough for Presbyterians! We believe in a sovereign God who has predestined everything that happens. This kind of hurts our assertions. The Hebrew word is naham. It actually occurs nearly 30 times in the Old Testament. Dale Ralph Davis, a great OT theologian, points out that when used, naham never loses its emotional element. You can see it in its first use:

"The LORD was grieved (naham) that He had made man on the earth, and His heart was filled with pain." - Genesis 6:6.

Davis also makes a very interesting point. Often times we try to dismiss these kind of verses by either minimizing its impact (skimming past it with nary a mention) or just claim it as an anthropomorphic reference. That is when the Bible describes God using human characteristics (i.e. the "hand" of God or God "saw" something). Obviously, God is a Spirit and has no body, but Biblical writers will reference God's hand or back or whatever to describe what was going on. Man regrets...God regrets...unfortunately, that explanation just doesn't happen here.

So, how should we approach this issue? The Genesis 6 verse actually sheds some light. Let's, for a moment, focus on the reason for the regret rather than the regret. Why does God regret/feel sorry? The previous verse (Genesis 6:5) says that man intention was on evil continually. Man's sin causes God's regret and pain. Here, in 1 Samuel, the full verse says: "I am sorry that I made Saul king, because he has turned back from following Me." Interesting...before, it was all of man's sin. Here, it is one man's sin. But, in both cases, sin is the catalyst. The Westminster Confession states (2.1) that God is without passions. Davis, who supports the Confession, says that might be true, but it doesn't mean God is devoid of feelings. In other words, God is surprised by the sin of many or the failure of one...but it doesn't mean that our sin has no impact on Him. The story tells us that Samuel mourned and God repented. It is possible that the best explanation of God's repenting is the expression of God's attitude towards sin against Him.

When Samuel tells Saul that God DOESN'T repent, this apparent contradiction isn't really one at all. What Samuel is saying is that God made a decision to take the kingdom away from Saul, and on that, He will NOT change His mind. So, at this point, God regrets making Saul king, and He won't repent from the decision to remove him. This isn't a threat. It is real. So, we are left with a plausible, but maybe not satisfying explanation. But we can rest in this. Our God has serious reactions to our sin. It pains Him. He is not indifferent to our rebellion. Davis says: He has both feelings and firmness. In the end, this chapter reveals God's consistency towards Saul...and therefore, towards us. The sermon will try to tackle some of the other issues of this amazing chapter.

Repeat after me...

Something jumps out at you when you read from our sermon passage last week (1 Samuel 10) to our sermon passage for this week (1 Samuel 13)...and even into our passage for next week (1 Samuel 15). Reminders! Yes, we pointed out several reminders in our sermon last Sunday. God reminding His people of what He has done for them. God reminding His people how they have treated Him. And, God warning His people what will happen when they repeat their past sins again.

Part of this reminder process is actually a result of the Hebrew language. It was quite repetitive. You might notice this when you read through most any Old Testament narrative. You will see texts like this:

So, the Lord spoke through His servant Moses to the people: "Thus says the Lord..."

The writer says the Lord is speaking...and then Moses says the Lord is speaking. Twice, you are REMINDED that the Lord is speaking! In other places, you will see someone says something is going to happen (like Samuel in 1 Samuel 10)...then you will get the story on what actually happened. You could have 2 chapters cover something that, if you were trying to be brief, might only take 10-15 verses. This is just how the Hebrews spoke and wrote. Remember that most couldn't read, so stories were memorized and shared. Repeating things were good memory tools.

So, what does this have to do with our series on David? Well, we should expect things to be repeated just by the nature of the language we are translating from. But, when things get repeated over and over and over again...then maybe the writer, and the inspirer behind the writing (GOD!), is trying to get a message into our thick skulls.

These repeat messages show up a lot in the context of our passage this Sunday (1 Samuel 13). If you start back at 1 Samuel 8 and go up through chapter 14. This Sunday we are going to attempt to summarize what goes on in these 5-6 chapters. In order to give you a window into what I am talking about, I want to take one chapter and see the reminders. Let's look at 1 Samuel 12:

This chapter is basically a farewell speech or address from Samuel to Israel. Saul has been identified and accepted as King and Samuel, it appears, is attempting to retire from public life. Remember last Sunday I mentioned how God had spoken several times about He had redeemed Israel from Egypt and protected them and given them the Promised Land? Samuel, after a few opening remarks, says that AGAIN in verses 7-9. He then recounts the many rejections of Israel of God and many redemptions of God for Israel, again...things God has already said before. In verse 12-13, God reminds (again!!) the people about how their decision to ask for a king was a rejection of God as their king.

Then, after all the reminders of things God has already reminded them of...we move on to something different. This is verse 14:

"If you will fear the Lord and serve Him and obey His voice and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, and if both you and the king who reigns over you will FOLLOW the Lord your God, it will be well."

Israel kind of gets a clean slate! After all the reminders, they have received a slap of grace right across the face. In the next verse, God issues a warning that if they DON'T serve/obey/follow, then the Lord's hand will be against them. So, new king, new season, new opportunity. Of course, I like the concept of FOLLOWING!

Then something interesting happens. First, God gets their attention over their sin with a thunder and lightning show. Next, the people REPENT! Grace first, then the people respond. Finally, after all that...the really interesting part: REMINDERS!!! It is really crazy, but God, does it again! Verse 20: "Yet do not turn aside from FOLLOWING THE LORD, but serve the Lord with all your HEART." He then reminds us of God's great love for His people. Then...AGAIN...another REMINDER!! Verse 24: "Only fear the Lord and serve Him faithfully with all your heart...consider what great things He has done for you...but if you do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your king."

So, what do we do with this? There are many applications here. One obvious one is that if God says it once, then pay attention...if He says it 5 times, REALLY PAY ATTENTION! We can do better than that, though, can't we? Here is what I want you to get from this:

The life of a believer is simple (not saying its easy, just simple). Love God. Serve Him. Follow Him. We see so much pain and suffering in the Scriptures...and God always brings it back to the simple truth: you chased after other gods and other things and rejected Me. Just love the Lord Your God with all your heart, soul, mind, etc. That is the summary of the 10 commandments, right? Love God and love others. That is the message of Christ, right? Love God, love others, follow Me. It shows up everywhere in the Scriptures...several times right here hidden in the middle of Samuel: fear God, serve Him, obey...follow Him.

When your life is packed with clutter (we all have it!)...simplify. Our lives as believers is simply about following Jesus. Focusing on that one thing will enlighten us to handle the 1,000 other things thrown our way. Think about it: Israel had a new king, many enemies, a valuable piece of land, a weapon shortage, hundreds of thousands of people, and a history of sin and suffering. Lots on their plate. God's advice? Samuel's advice? Just love God, obey, and follow. Simple.

When Saul meets Samuel

Last time we were in 1 Samuel in church, the people of Israel demanded a king. Samuel was too old and his sons were too dishonest. God wasn't happy with their desire to be "like the nations" but He commanded Samuel to grant their wish. In 1 Samuel 8, Samuel warns Israel what life will be like having a king. But, as the chapter ends, they demand a king...and they will get one. But who? The next story introduces us to a man named Saul, the son of Kish...a Benjamite.

Chapter 9 has Saul embark on what appears to be an uneventful journey. Kish has lost his donkeys and sends Saul out to find them. They look everywhere! They looked in the hill country, the land of Shalishah and Shaalim and Benjamin and Zuph. Eventually, Saul wonders if they should return before Kish starts worrying about them being lost even more than the donkeys. But Saul's servant encourages him to go see the prophet in Zuph...who just so happens to be Samuel.

Before Saul arrives, the Scripture tells us that God told Samuel to look for a man from Benjamin and to anoint him as king over Israel. Lost donkeys leads to a found prince! Samuel tells Saul to stay with him overnight, and eases his mind, saying, "as for your donkeys...do not set your mind on them, for they have been found."

Now, we must backtrack to the very beginning of chapter 9...Saul was an impressive figure. He was more handsome than any man in Israel...and he was a head taller than anyone. But here, as Samuel heaps praise on Saul and treats him like royalty, we see Saul's internal view of himself. To Saul, he isn't handsome (probably doesn't have a mirror!)...To Saul, he isn't a giant. He says to Samuel, "aren't I from the smallest/weakest tribe of Israel? And my clan of Benjamin, aren't we the weakest clan from the weakest tribe?"

After a meal and special treatment after special treatment...Samuel gets some "alone time" with Saul. He anoints him as king, and gives him a sign that this is true and from God. He tells Saul all that will happen next. And everything that Samuel tells him comes to pass. Saul eventually meets up with his uncle and his uncle asks him what Samuel told him. Saul says that Samuel said the donkeys were found, but doesn't say anything about being king.

At one point, the Scriptures tells us that when Saul left Samuel, God gave him another heart...Samuel also told Saul that "the Spirit of the Lord will rush upon you" - and that takes us straight to the theme of our series: "After the heart of God" - the BIG QUESTION we need to think about is the heart of Saul. What does the heart of Saul look like? Is it a heart after the heart of God? This Sunday, we will pick up the story in 1 Samuel 10. At this point, Saul's heart has been changed, but the kingdom is not his yet. The story gets quite complicated from this point on...