Halloween Pt. 2

Another post about Halloween. Because I think it is needed. Like I said in the previous post, Halloween has definitely lost it's original meaning. But perhaps it has really evolved into something worse. As harmless as is when the majority of our society is naive about the whole thing, thing about what we are celebrating. Think about what we are practicing. What we are seeking. The following is based upon my beliefs and is not meant to offend anyone. I am not condemning anyone by any means.

The original holiday was meant to keep spirits away. Now it seems like we are welcoming them. People dress up as ghosts, witches, and demons, put them in their yards, and celebrate death. But not the kind of death where you go to heaven. A scary death with ghosts and demons. Violence is uplifted. Scary movies, death scenes, haunted houses, and yard decorations. The chainsaws, knives, saws, and other brutal weapons seen as decorations. This...is my real problem with Halloween.

Robert Englund, the actor who played Freddy Krueger, got his inspiration for the movie from Ted Bundy. A real mass murderer. We watch these films with such desensitized eyes that we don't even realize the horrors that are going on. Yes, it is just a movie. But some of them are inspired from real events. And we enjoy them? We like to watch people die. I have not found a clever way to rephrase that. Or take it out of context. When it comes down to it, we enjoy watching people be brutally murdered. The more blood and gore in a movie, the better...right? What attracts people to horror movies? It sure isn't the plot. Because most of them are terrible. It's the same as people that say they listen to rap for the music. The music is all the same now. But I bet they can tell you every lyric in the song.

Now for the religious part. And although seemingly contradicting, the reason I like Halloween. The ghosts and spirits are not worshiped. Nobody dresses up as a ghost to celebrate Satan. When it all comes down to it, we are mocking him. Martin Luther said, "The best way to drive out the devil, if he will not yield to texts of Scripture, is to jeer and flout him, for he cannot bear scorn." I think that is exactly what we do on Halloween. Although this is just as unconscious as watching a horror film, the way we go about evil spirits is a mockery. People see ghosts and laugh. Evil spirits have been made into friendly ghosts. However, there is one spirit that we don't mock. In fact, we thrive off of it. Fear. The bible tells us to fear nothing but God. Yet we choose to go to these haunted houses and watch scary movies in order to fear things of this world. Why are people choosing to put fear into their hearts? Some people can't sleep at night. Some do, but have nightmares. Why is this a good thing? Why do people enjoy this? I have never understood that. I have always hated horror films. I have always hated haunted houses. I don't like forcing fear on myself. I can not go to the haunted house and be ok. Or I can go to the haunted house and get the crap scared out of me. That's just me. But I think it's stupid regardless of religious belief.

So when it all comes down to it, I truly don't hate Halloween. It's all in the way each individual perceives it. The kids dressing up and using their imaginations, trick or treating, and having fun. I'm ok with that. I did it when I was younger and thoroughly enjoyed it. The death and murder stuff...dislike. That is something that is quickly desensitizing our society whether it is all fun and games or not. I think it all comes down to the way we celebrate it. Are we mocking the evil spirits? The witchcraft, the demons and the ghosts. Or are we celebrating them? Welcoming them. Do you go into a haunted house to laugh at the fear that Satan puts into the world? Or do you go in there expecting to be afraid? The bottom line is that fear is an evil spirit. 2 Timothy 1:7 says, "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and of a sound mind." Any sort of fear of this world is an evil spirit. God did not give us this. If you think it's all fun and games, it is not. When you can't sleep with the light off after a scary movie, that is the spirit of fear. When you are paranoid about every noise that you hear, that is the spirit of fear. It is not something that God meant for us to have. And I believe that it interrupts our relationship with him. Because when we are filled with the spirit of fear, we forget that God has power over all of Satan's army. We forget that God triumphs over all. We forget that God is on our side and we lose our connection. That being said, an underpaid high school kid with face paint and a fake chain saw is fear that will later be laughed at. But the temptation is still there. The door is opened. We are just letting them in.

My main point is...if God did not give us this spirit, warns us about it, and tells us to say away...why are we looking for it? Why are we not only searching for it, but welcoming it?