The Dead and the Living
John 1:5,9. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.
It is almost one hundred years ago that the first feature film to incorporate sound was released. The film Don Juan was released in 1926 featuring a synchronized musical score along with sound effects. It utilized the Vitaphone system but with no dialogue. On its heels followed the Jazz Singer in 1927 which then incorporated dialogue. Movies in the 1930’s covered themes of social realism and escapism. Many horror movies have been produced since the twenties, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, 1920, The Phantom of the Opera, 1925, Bend in the River, 1935, The Exorcist, 1973, and Halloween, 1978, which directly inspired the slasher subgenre of horror films. This influenced countless others that followed.1
Halloween had its origins in the festival of Samhain among the Celts of ancient Britain and Ireland. Samhain, in the ancient Celtic religion, was one of the most important and sinister calendar festivals of the year. At Samhain, held on November 1, the world of the gods was believed to be made visible to humankind. In the 7th century Pope Boniface IV established All Saints’ Day on November 1. The evening before All Saints’ Day became a holy, or hallowed, evening, from which the word "Halloween" evolved.
When the Romans conquered the Celts in the 1st century CE, they added their own festivals of Feralia, commemorating the passing of the dead, and of Pomona, the goddess of the harvest. As a secular holiday, Halloween has come to be associated with a number of activities. One is the practice of pulling, usually harmless, pranks. Celebrants wear masks and costumes for parties and for trick-or-treating, thought to have derived from the British practice of allowing the poor to beg for food, they beg for food, called “soul cakes.” Trick-or-treaters go from house to house with the threat that they will pull a trick if they do not receive a treat, usually candy. Halloween parties often include games such as bobbing for apples, perhaps derived from the Roman celebration of Pomona. The holiday has incorporated scary beings such as ghosts, witches, and vampires into the celebration. Another symbol is the jack-o’-lantern, a hollowed-out pumpkin, originally a turnip, carved into a demonic face and lit with a candle inside.
Films have long been recognized as a powerful medium for reflecting and shaping societal attitudes and cultural values. As a mirror to society, films capture the zeitgeist of their time, providing a snapshot of the prevailing social issues and concerns. Fear and anxiety are the most essential emotions underlying the horror genre. Usually, fear is defined as an instantaneous reaction to an impending threat, while anxiety is understood as the maintenance of that emotion. According to the Journal of Affective Disorders, the disease burden of the anxiety disorder will become increasing more severe. This can be attributed to amongst others, to the influence of horror movies and television.
Measuring the foundation upon which Halloween is based against the infallible truth of the Word of God, the following emerges: Unlike the unfounded and erroneous belief of Samhain, God indeed was manifested and made visible to mankind. John 1:1 reads: “ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” And verse 14 states, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory as the glory of the only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
The cognomen Halloween, which derived from the word hallowed, is a blasphemous. Jesus, when He taught His disciples to pray, He introduced the prayer with, “Our Father Who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name.” The word “hallowed” is derived from the Hebrew word kadash קרש. It is used multiple times in Leviticus when God instructed the Israelites, who was His chosen people to be holy, for He is holy. By eminence, the word speaks of the people who have been sanctified, then by the Law, and now by the blood of Jesus, by the grace of God.
That Halloween could even remotely be connected to All Saints’ Day, boggles the mind. All Saints’ Day was introduced to honour the unknown saints who passed away and gained everlasting life. All the glory and the honour belong to God the Father, not saints who passed on. God said to Isaiah. “I am the LORD; that is My name; My glory I give to no other, nor My praise to carved idols, Isaiah 42:8.
Then, calling the treats “soul cakes?” This reminds of what the Lord said to Hosea which he was instructed to convey to the children of Israel. Hosea is the prophet whom God instructed to marry a prostitute to illustrate the apostacy of Israel. Hosea 3 describes this adulterous relationship and the Lord compared His love for Israel to Hosea loving his prostitute wife. This, the Lord said, is despite the fact that they turned to other gods and loved cakes of raisin. A clear analogy can be drawn here between idolatry and the “soul cakes” of Halloween.
If this does not illustrate the idolatrous and demonic nature of Halloween, the demonic face cut into a pumpkin, and then lit by a candle, should unambiguously confirm that both in origin and practice, although disguised as All Saints Day, is demonic in nature. There is only one Person Who can light the darkness of this world, Jesus, Who manifested in the flesh, lived a sinless life, died for the sins of world, and rose from the dead on the third day. To Him belong all the glory, honour, and praise. And in contrast to instilling fear, Jesus said:
Peace I leave you; My peace I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. -
John 14:27.
1. https://aithor.com/essay-examples/the-impact-of-horror-films-on-society-and-individual-psychology.
