Cults- Halloween

I know that Halloween is a not necessarily a religion but I felt it would be good to go over this subject this time of year.

I am absolutely amazed at the money that gets poured into this wicked celebration. It seems that there is no such thing as Thanksgiving during the Fall. Once the pumpkins and skeletons are hung up you can bank on it that Frosty and Santa are also coming out soon.

As a Christian should we celebrate this "holiday?" I think it helps to study what it is and the purpose of it to come to an answer. Otherwise, it is just a matter of opinion as to whether to celebrate it or not.

The word Halloween is derived from the term "All Hallows Eve" which occurred on Oct. 31, the end of summer in Northwestern Europe. "All Saints Day," or "All Hallows Day" was the next Day, Nov. 1st. Therefore, Halloween is the eve of All Saints Day.

Michael Judge, writing for the New Age periodical Common Boundary explains Halloween probably began between 1000 and 100 B.C. among the Celtic people. The actual holiday was a commemoration of the new year (Sep./Oct. 1993, p. 29). It was at this time of the year that Baal, the Celtic god of Spring and Summer, ended his reign. It was also when the Lord of the Dead, Samhain, began his reign (Ibid.).

Proinsias MacCana writes, "During this interval the normal order of the universe is suspended, the barriers between the natural and the supernatural are temporarily removed, the sidh lies open and all divine beings and the spirits of the dead move freely among men and interfere, sometimes violently, in their affairs" (Celtic Mythology, p. 127).

As a part of the Druid festival, men and women had to fear not only the departed spirits, who were to return during the evening hours, they must also fear the Druid priests themselves. It was a time of mass human sacrifice. "Men and women, young and old, criminals and innocents, were forced into huge wooden and thatch cages. Often these cages were fashioned in the shape of giants - `wicker men' - perhaps representations of Samhain himself. At a signal from the presiding Druids, these immense structures were torched, everything in them burned to cinders." After the sacrifices, the Druids held thanksgiving meals around "roaring bonfires" (Common Boundary, Sep./Oct. 1993, p. 30).

It was believed by the Druids that during Samhain, the dead would play "tricks on mankind and caused panic and destruction. They had then to be appeased" (Ibid., Vol. 4, p. 440). Part of this appeasement process involved the giving of food to the spirits as they visited the homes. This formed the foundation of the modern practice of "trick or treat."

Another common belief of the Celts was the idea that those who had died the previous year "had been transformed into animals." Thus, to welcome the dead on this sacred night, the Celts "dressed as animals." Then, "As the dawn broke, they made a great parade to the edge of the settlement, in hopes of leading the ghosts into paradise" (Common Boundary, Sep./Oct. 1993, p. 30).

What does the Bible say about Halloween? Nothing. But it does speak concerning witches, the occult, and paganism.
Exodus 22:18, You shall not let a witch live.

Deut. 18:10-12, "Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, 11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. 12 Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD…"

The Bible definitely speaks negatively about occultic practices, spirits, and witches and condemns not only the practice but also the people who are involved in it. As Christians, we are to have nothing to do with the occult. Tarot Cards, contacting the dead, séances, lucky charms, etc., are all unbiblical and can harm a Christian's fellowship with God and open the Christian to demonic oppression. Most Christians know this and avoid these activities.

Just as the Celtic religion of Druidism had incorporated costumes from its Roman conquerors (Pomona worship, with her horn of plenty and sacred apples), so the Celtic religion adapted to its new environment. Things in America were different than they had been in Ireland. America possessed a bountiful harvest of a new product - the pumpkin.The Irish also did something that has become the indelible symbol of Halloween in America - they made jack-o-lanterns. The original jack-o-lanterns were potatoes or turnips carved and illuminated by Irish children and used to light Halloween gatherings. They commemorated Jack, a shifty Irish villain so wicked that neither heaven nor the Devil wanted him. Rejected by both the sacred and profane, he wandered the world endlessly looking for a place to rest, his only warmth a glittering candle in a rotten potato" (Common Boundary, Sep./Oct. 1993, p. 31). Hence, the jack-o-lantern finds its historical place in the history and religion of the Celtic people.

Romans honored the dead with a festival called Feralia in late October. It honored Pomona, their goddess of fruit trees who was often pictured wearing a crown of apples. During this festival, they ran races and played games to honor the "Apple Queen" and used omens such as apple parings thrown over the shoulder or nuts burned in the fire in order to predict the future concerning their marital prospects. When the Romans conquered the Celts, they combined local Samhain customs with their own pagan harvest festival. Bobbing for apples was derived from this blended pagan celebration.

I want to offer my thanks to Matt Slick, Rick Branch, and James Walker for much of the information provided here.

In the end, who in Christianity would want to be associated with such wickedness?

It does not matter how much fun you had growing up and dressing up or if you were only participating to have a little fun and candy. I say go buy a bag of candy and spend some time with your family.

Colossians 3.1-2
1Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
2Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.

Cults- Islam

I apologize for the long periods between my posts. I will work on being more consistent.

I also would like to say that most of us write different than we speak. I am no different. At the same time, I do not think that is a good nor honest way of communicating with others. So, from this point on I will try to write exactly how I would speak of it at home.

I would like to say that since I've been a Christian I have always believed that the Islamic religion/belief system is a cult. Their religion is the very definition of a cult. So, I have not just determined this since 9/11, the World Trade Center bombing in the early 90's, Kobal Towers, or the Cole attack. My comments are in bold.

I will start with the five pillars (beliefs or tenets) of Islam:

1. Shahada- The Islamic proclamation that "There is no true God except Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah."
I suppose that we could stop there and proclaim that this is cultic in its very foundation.

2. Salat- Prayer- Prayer involves confession of sins which begins with the purification of the body and ends with the purification of the soul. Prayer is performed five times a day. The first prayer is at dawn and the last at sunset. The names of the prayers are Fajr, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib, Isha. The Maghrib prayer is the sunset prayer. Isha is the prayer that is said after sunset. There is also a prayer that is said right after Fajr known as Shurooq.
To whom are they praying?

3. Saum- Fasting The month of Ramadan is the month of fasting in Islam. It is an act of worship where the faithful follower denies his own needs and seeks Allah. Usually, this fasting entails no drinking, eating during, or sexual relations during the daylight hours for the entire month of Ramadan.

4. Zakat- Almsgiving or Charity Charity given to the poor. It benefits the poor and it helps the giver by moving him towards more holiness and submission to Allah. Alms-giving is considered a form of worship to God.

5. Hajj- Pilgrimage This is the pilgrimage to Mecca. All Muslims, if they are able, are to make a pilgrimage to Mecca. It involves financial sacrifice and is an act of worship. Muslims must make the pilgrimage the first half of the last month of the lunar year.

Muslims claim that only the Quran is trustworthy and that the other scriptures have been compromised because we do not posses their original manuscripts. The Koran (Qur'an) is the inspired word of Allah given to people through the Prophet Muhammad and it supercedes all other scriptures before it including. It alone is inerrant and trustworthy as a revelation for today. It is unchanged from the beginning.

In reference to Jesus Muslims believe He was a very great prophet, second only to Muhammad. Jesus is not the son of God (9:30) and certainly is not divine (5:17, 75)) and he was not crucified (4:157). These references are in the Qur'an.

Salvation-If your good deeds exceed your bad deeds, and you believe in Allah, and sincerely repent of sins, you may go to heaven (3:135; 7:8-9; 21:47; 49:14; 66:8-9). There is an eternal hell for those who are not Muslims, not practicing and of the truth faith (3:77). These references are in the Qur'an.

About God in general... There is only one God (5:73; 112:1-4). God is called Allah by Muslims (5:73) Allah sees all things (40:20), is present everywhere (2:115; 7:7). Allah is the sole creator and sustainer of the universe (3:191). Allah is not a Trinity, but is one (5:73). Allah is all-knowing (2:268; 10:61) and all powerful (6:61-62). Allah created the heaven and earth (2:29; 6:1, 73; 25:61-62; 36:81; 46:33).
These references are in the Qur'an.

I feel that this is an open-shut case. To give more info would be wasting my time and yours. This belief system and the others previously mentioned are from Hell. This is not an unloving comment but the truth.