MODERN-DAY "HOLIDAYS" - Halloween

PART 1: Does the Lord approve of the modern "holidays" ?

No. The reason being that these days began as pagan, or heathen, celebrations and festivals. (There are also other days throughout the year that had pagan origins as well.) In the Bible we are warned about having anything to do with pagan rituals, namely idol-worship, and the consequences if we do. Because the origins of the modern "holidays" days are rooted deeply in idol-worship (the sun god, Baal, god of wine, god of war, etc.) we are to have nothing to do with them. Substituting Christian names and practices for pagan customs, worse still, substituting anything for what God has commanded, regardless of how well our intentions might be, is idolatry and abomination in the eyes of the Lord.

From God the Father, given to Timothy:
Any pure water mixed with poison becomes poison. Be then separate.
Do not whitewash any wall of abomination...tear it down and turn wholly to the Lord in all truth and supplication! Shall you wash the outside of the cups of blasphemy and leave the inside rank? Drink not from these cups, lest you become ill and your faith die in dissolution.

Pagan rituals consistently went against several of the commandments, and in the most heinous ways.

You shall have no other gods before Me.
You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the
earth or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I,
the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of their fathers
to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand
generations of those who love Me and keep My commandments. ~ Exodus 20:3-6 NIV

From God the Father, given to Timothy:
In these commands of the Father, know My punishment and understand, greater is My mercy and reward for those who keep them both now and to come.

The following verses in the Bible give reference to God's anger regarding those who would worship idols and even His people who would adopt the pagan rituals of the lands they went into.

But when you have driven them out and settled in their land, and after they have been destroyed before you, be careful not to be ensnared by inquiring about their gods, saying "How do these nations serves their gods?" We will do the same. You must not worship the Lord your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the Lord hates. They even burn their sons and daughters in the fire as sacrifices to their gods. See that you do all I command you; do not add to it or take away from it. ~ Deuteronomy 12:30-32 NIV

Do not learn the ways of the Gentiles... ~ Jeremiah 10:2 NIV (Gentiles were pagan)

...because they forsook Him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. In His anger against Israel the Lord handed them over to raiders who plundered them. He sold them to their enemies all around, who they were no longer able to resist. ~ Judges 2:13-14 NIV

He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done. On a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable god of Moab, and for Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites. He did the same for his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods. The Lord became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. Although He had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the Lord's command. So the Lord said to Solomon, "Since this is your attitude and you have not kept My covenant and My decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates. ~ 1 Kings 11:5-11 NIV

Then he brought me to the entrance of the north gate of the house of the Lord, and I saw women sitting there mourning Tammuz. He said to me, "Do you see this, son of man? You will see things that are even more detestable than this." He then brought me into the inner court of the house of the Lord, and there at the entrance to the temple, between the portico and the altar, were about twenty-five men. With their backs toward the temple of the Lord and their faces toward the east, they were bowing down to the sun in the east. He said to me, "Have you seen this, son of man? Is it a trivial matter for the house of Judah to do the detestable things they are doing here? Must they also fill the land with violence and continually provoke Me to anger? Look at them putting the branch to their nose! Therefore, I will deal with them in anger... ~ Ezekiel 8:14-18 NIV

MODERN-DAY "HOLIDAYS"

PART 2: HALLOWEEN

Halloween is definitely pagan in its origin. Also, because of what was done at those pagan rituals, we should not have anything to do with this day, nor let our children imitate or have anything to do with this day.

Halloween's Pagan Origin:
This day was the first day of the Celtic New Year. The people in the Celtic culture who led the holiday celebration were know as Druids. The Druids were priests and priestesses and magicians. The Druid lord of death and evil spirits, was called by variations of the name Saman, such as Samana, Shamhain, or Samhain. The "holiday" was originally called "The Vigil of Samhain". Samhain was shown as a ghostly skeleton holding a sickle in his hand. We know him today as the "Grim Reaper". November 1st was considered the day of death for the Celts because the leaves had fallen, it was getting darker sooner and temperatures were dropping. They believed that Muck Olla, their sun god, was losing strength because Samhain, their lord of death, was overpowering him. They also believed that on October 31st, Samhain assembled all the spirits of all who died the previous year. They believed that the spirits of the dead were confined to inhabit animals' bodies as punishment for their evil deeds. On October 31st, they were allowed to return to their former homes to visit the living (modern-day "haunted house"). To appease Samhain and stop the evil spirits from harming them, the Celts gathered up animals and people and put them in wicker cages and burned them to death. The word "Halloween" is derived from the term "All Hallow's Eve" which occurred on October 31st, the end of summer in Northwestern Europe. "All Saints Day" or "All Hallows Day" was Nov. 1st. Therefore, Halloween is the eve of All Saints Day. Around the 5th century, as the Catholic church developed and moved into this area, instead of adding a new day to celebrate, it took over the Samhain celebration. Nov. 1st became "All Hallows Eve" when all the saints of the Catholic church were honored.
The seemingly innocent customs of today such as trick-or-treating, and even the jack-o'-lantern, etc. began with these early pagan customs.


Should we celebrate this day? NO! Not only because of its pagan roots but also because of what the pagans did during this celebration. Human sacrifices and evil spirit worship goes against God in the worst possible way. God is life, not anti-life. God is holy, not evil. To honor this day is to dishonor God.

The Bible gives specific instructions on what was to be done regarding those who did these detestable pagan rituals:

"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, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritists or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord..." ~ Deuteronomy 18:10-12 NIV

Abstain from every form of evil. ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:22 NIV

Also read: Deuteronomy 18:9-12, Ephesians 5:11-12, Leviticus 19:31, Deuteronomy 18:10-12
Leviticus 20:27, 1 Chronicles 10:13

LETTERS FROM GOD AND HIS CHRIST • Volume 1
Honor Not the Day of the Dead...Honor God

Question asked: Is celebrating Halloween OK?

Thus says the Lord:
In regards to the day in which your land celebrates the Day of the Dead, those who hear not, speak not, think not, nor even pray, for all of their thoughts have perished: To honor them is to honor nothing and is contemptible. For honoring the dead is to honor the dark. I am the Light and the Life. Honor Me. So I say to you, do not do it! Rather, honor the season of autumn and give thanks. In no way make images to the dead, nor adorn yourself or your children with the symbols of death. Rather, celebrate autumn and its splendor, for I created autumn so all may partake with their eyes My brush strokes, and know I am God and give Me glory, for I have shown My splendor in all the trees, grasses and creatures of flight.

MORE:
God's Holy Days Vs. Man's Holidays: Click here--> http://trumpetcallofgod.com/pdfs/holy_day_study.pdf for free PDF download

 *Transgression - Thus Says The Lord AGAINST Man's Holidays!