Trick or Treat?

When it comes to Halloween, Christians have a wide range of views about whether it’s helpful, harmful, or something in between.

It all started with a pagan festival to mark the start of the darkness of winter, called the winter ‘solstice.’

Then in the fourth century, Christians adopted that festival as their own, calling it ‘All Saints Day’ to remember those who were killed by the Romans for following Jesus.

The night before ‘All Saints Day’ (or all ‘Hallows’ Day) became known as ‘Hallows Eve,’ or ‘Halloween.’

People started to get very superstitious about Halloween, and so they made lanterns to try and scare away evil spirits, with their tricks and treats.

For this reason, many Christians avoid this event because of how it distorts and glorifies the dark, spiritual world.

Yet, most people around us just see it as a fun opportunity to dress up in spooky outfits and walk around extorting strangers to give them lollies.

So, perhaps it might be a really good opportunity for us to talk about how Jesus defeated Satan on the cross?

We could share this verse about Jesus:

For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.

Colossians 1:13-14

What’s more, we can tell people that when you trust in Jesus, we can stand against the powers of the devil:

Put on all of God’s armour so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

Ephesians 6:11-12

Maybe Halloween is another time of the year when people might be more open to talk about Jesus and how he alone can give us certainty for eternity though his victory over evil?

JODIE McNEILL

(photo credit: Maddy Baker from freelyphotos.com)