Download: pdf | pdf Clickbook | Menu
Roman Catholicism is a religion that communicates its belief structure mainly through parents teaching their children through semi-religious ceremonies and activities that are none-the-less heavy laden with religious content.
One of the primary basic assumptions of Roman Catholicism is that it encompasses all true Christianity (“Catholic” means universal, as in they claim to be the universal true church of Christ), and everybody else must look to Rome (the Vatican) for truth and true Christianity. But the Catholic church is a mixture of many false and pagan religions, mixing and copying whatever the pagans did with Christian symbols, names, and phrases. (See 1 Kings 12:27-33 where Jeroboam did the same thing to contaminate Israel.)
Catholicism makes a distinction between a normal “Christian” (their definition for Christian is a good Catholic) and a “saint” (their definition for saint is a special Christian of most holy character that is on another level of spirituality than any other “normal” Christian). The Bible recognizes all the redeemed as saints or “holy ones”. The idea of a “saint” which is deserving of honor to the point of worship and reverence is not biblical.
Catholics have many special days throughout the year celebrating different specific saints. In fact every day of the year is designated by at least one “saint”. Within Catholic circles, you may hear somebody ask you “what is your saint?” By that, they mean what is your birthday, because if you were born on the day that belongs to some particular saint (his saint’s “day”) then you have that saint’s name in addition to your own.
The catch all day of celebrating all the saints is on November 1st. That is officially “All Saints Day”. The “evening” or “Eve” of this “Hallowed” day is “Hallowed Day Eve” or “Halloween” for short. Other names are “Hallowmas” or “Allhallows”
But to understand the Catholic adaptation of this celebration, we need to look into the pagan source that the Catholics used to incorporate Halloween into “Christianity”. In this case it is the Druid religion, an ancient religion in England. October 31 was celebrated as Samhain or Sowein. The god of spring and summer, Baal, ended his reign, and Samana (or Samhain), the lord of death (everything is decaying and dying in nature) began his reign. The colors of this time are orange and black, coming from autumn and death, and red from the color of blood. Samhain would gather the souls of those who died over the past year that had been imprisoned in animals to atone for their sins, and he would release them on this date.
Typically human sacrifices and drinking the blood of one’s enemies was common. The Druid practice was to gather criminals and enemies for this time, and put them into wicker cages (often in the form of a giant man, the god Samhain or animals), and then set them ablaze. This practice probably came from the fact that this is the time when the herds were culled or purged (by slaughter) of undesirable animals that might not make it through the winter, but would consume precious resources.
This was also the beginning of the Druid new year and is also the origin of Bon-fires (or bone-fires) on Halloween night. Druids would burn victims at the stake, and predict the upcoming year from their victims’ death agonies. Later each villager would take part of the bone-fire back to their home to protect them against evil spirits. The townspeople would take home an ember from the bone-fire to their homes in a specially made carrier, a turnip with holes in it to keep the ember from going out. Later the American Irish made use of a pumpkin.
The Roman government outlawed this practice in 61 A.D., but the Druid priests continued the custom with black cats. As late as 1400 A.D. in Britain, horses and cats were still sacrificed on that night. During this transition, the barrier between the dead and the living lapsed, and the dead could enter the world of the living again, and affect (usually for ill) the world of the living. The dead would return to play tricks on mankind causing panic and destruction, so the living had to appease the dead with gifts.
Thus we see many “zombie” or living-dead themes in Halloween. This is a mockery of God’s teaching of the true resurrection of the saints, a blessed promise for every Christian. By means of sacrifices and gifts, the Druids believed their sins could be expiated (paid for) and their souls freed to enter “the land of eternal youth and happiness”. Their god, Samhain the lord of the dead, judged these souls and decided the type or form of existence that the soul would continue to have, as an animal or a human. (We also see many combinations of human and animal, such as were wolf-men or vampire bat-men in Halloween.)
It is amazing that other cultures have paralleled this same thinking and practice. The Hindus make the same human-animal transformations in their religion. In Mexico food is set out on the tombstones for those spirits walking the earth that night. In Cambodia they chant “Oh, all you our ancestors who are departed deign to come and eat what we have prepared for you, and bless your posterity to make it happy.” Even ancient Rome had their worship for their dead in the Pantheon (goddess Cybele). The Romans celebrated the festival of Feralia in October which honored the dead, and Pomona, goddess of fruit and trees (making apples and bobbing for apples associated with this goddess).
Many modern witches believe October 31st is a time to give thanks for the abundance of harvest. Also they believe that this is the time of the year when the separation between the living and the dead is at its thinnest, and one can communicate easily with the dead. (Harry Houdini’s followers had séances on Halloween for this reason to try to reach him after his death because of this same thinking.) Modern witches also invoke the power of evil spirits on this day to give them power in the new year. It should also be realized that modern witches and Satanism uses October 31st as their high day, and many have special ceremonies on that night (when most parents let their children free to wander the streets interacting with strangers)! Satanist Anton LeVey has said, he was “glad that Christian parents let their children worship the devil at least one night out of the year”.
In the eighth century, Pope Gregory III established November 1st in the Catholic Church as a festive day to honor the dead. In the ninth century Pope Gregory IV commanded that this festival was obligatory for all Catholics. In that day, the Catholic Church had great power in politics, and the custom became established in many lands. During the middle ages, the night before All Saints Day became the day best loved by witches, warlocks, and Satanists.
It should be noted that not all witches and warlocks are Satanists. Some believe that Satan is a fabrication of the Christian faith. Modern witches (Wiccans) follow the path of the Druids, even though the word “witch” comes from “Wicca”, but there are differences between a Wiccan and a witch. The wiccan witches believe and worship nature instead of Satan (they discount Satan as a myth). They believe that nobody can understand or comprehend God, so only the visible things (the world and nature) is what really make up god in their mind. This is all the world, and they even have a greeting to reflect this, “You are god.” There are modern day groups which worship nature that form environmental protection groups, actually based on their religious believes, even though they would not admit it.
The witches that follow the belief in Satan (Satanism) are different because they invoke and use the very power of Satan. They take Satan as their god. For all Satanists, October 31 is very special and sacred, more than any other day of the year. Therefore Christians should not celebrate in any way Halloween because of its origin, being that of evil. Interestingly, the Puritans banded the celebration of Halloween because of this.
Ephesians 5:8 For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: 9 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) 10 Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. 11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. 12 For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise.
1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 Prove all things: hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil.
There is an attitude that “those precious children” don’t understand all of this, and for them, Halloween is simply a sweet distraction and a pleasant time of eating a lot of candy and walking through the streets in costumes. Unfortunately, this is exactly the problem, that they don’t understand what they are doing, but they are setting precedents and habits in their lives because their parents allow it, endorse it, and even spend a lot of money and energy on it. These precious children are trusting in their parents to keep them from evil and dangerous things.
1 Corinthians 10:31 Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
The question needs to be asked, “Is this celebration of Halloween really to the honor and glory of God?” How then does God receive the glory for this? Somehow we have gotten to the place where anything that entertains us and makes us happy is in our twisted thinking “to the glory of God”. But it is not.
Celebrating Halloween is like if we make a banquet to our very enemies that have threatened to kill our earthly parents. No sane person would participate in such a celebration, much less would they organize and propagate it as a yearly event, teaching it to their children as a happy and blessed time of year. To participate with a celebration that has its roots in Satan, witchcraft, evil spirits, and a host of other evils, is to entertain and invite to a banquet the enemies of our God and Lord. The Druid thinking was that by dressing up in a disguise of wickedness, the Devil would leave the person alone thinking he was one of his army. Is that really the identification you want the unsaved to carry away? Anton LaVey, the leader of the world’s Satanists, is quoted as saying, “I am indebted to the stupid fools for allowing their children to join in the festive occasion of this unholy day of worship to our god.”
Joshua 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.
When we celebrate Halloween, we have to ignore the danger and reality of spiritual evil, making light of it, and we taint our testimony, and possibly set a deep root of enjoying evil in our children’s lives.
Some defend Halloween saying that this may be what it meant many years ago, but today it doesn’t mean all that, and it is just a simple party like a birthday party. But if this is true, then how come the witches and Celtics continue using this day as a high and hallowed day in their religion? Religion is the adoration, obedience (compliance with a religions belief and practices), and service rendered to the object of one’s worship. It would be best that we do not celebrate the “special days” of false religions as though we believed in their faith because of the association and appearance of evil.
The custom of disguising oneself and walking around house to house begging for candy, nuts, fruit and money came from the celebration of the pagan New Year. The Druid tradition was that the spirits liked to come close to the houses of the living sometimes their relatives, former friends, or neighbors, so people would leave these fruits and things outside to satisfy them. At the end of the feast, all the town would go outside in their disguises representing the dead, and would make a parade through the town where each of the disguised townspeople would join the parade which would eventually lead outside of the town. Supposedly, the dead hanging around the houses of the living would also join in the parade, and the townspeople, if successful, would be free from these dead spirits and their malicious deeds for another year.
Although this custom varied from place to place, the common element was that they always left some “goodies” outside for these people (and to appease the spirits of the dead). When your child walks the streets from house to house on Halloween, you child is repeating this ancient pagan custom no matter what costume he wears.
The Jack-o-Lantern is made of a pumpkin carved out with a light inside of it. Originally the face was cut into a potato or turnip. The Irish in America were the first to use pumpkins. This custom came from the belief that there was an especially wicked town villain called Jack. The devil came for his soul and he invited him to a drink first. When it came time to pay the bill, he told the devil to change himself into a gold coin to pay the bill, and then turn back into himself so they would not have to pay the bill. When the devil did so, Jack trapped the devil by putting the coin in his pocket with a silver cross. The Devil promised to leave him alone for a year if he would release him. In a year, he came again, and Jack tricked him into climbing up an apple tree for an apple. Quickly he carved a cross in the trunk, and the devil couldn’t get down. So the Devil promised to never return for his soul if he would let him down, and he did. Eventually Jack’s body wore out, and he went to the gates of heaven and was refused entrance. So he went to the gates of hell and was likewise refused entrance. So Jack was condemned to wander the earth looking for rest but the devil tossed him a burning ember from hell, this being the light in the jack-o-lantern.
The Fins believed that it was the dead soul inhabiting a forest. Supposedly a specially evil spirit walks near the swamps and marshes trying to entice victims to follow him deeper into the woods. If a person follows that light to investigate what it is, then he will get lost in the swamp, and drown in the water. Also these evil spirits confused their victims with screams and laughing, even jeering cries. The sarcastic face in the pumpkin is symbolic of somebody mocking, or making fun of somebody. These fires or lights near the swamps appear to be swamp gas from there, and are at times luminous.
So the putting out of a jack-o-lantern was a belief that by doing so you could ward off evil spirits, especially on the witching night of Halloween. Satanism teaches this as a mockery of the Passover when the angel of death passed over the houses marked with the blood of the lamb.
The black cat is the chief idol of the goddess of Wicca, Diana. In legend, she turns into a black cat to commit incest with her brother, Lucifer. “The broomstick is a symbol of the male organ, on which the witch mounts and leaps high around the fields to ‘teach’ the crops how high to grow” (ABC’s of Witchcraft pp 48-49). This notion came from the fact that witches believed they could fly great distances by smearing their bodies with ointments containing drugs which gave them psychedelic “trips” making them think they could actually fly (ABC’s of Witchcraft pp 142-146).
“Skulls play an important role as sacred relics and as objects of worship among the primitives. Among Polynesians and Melanesians, skulls of ancestors are worshipped in order to establish connections with the spirits of the dead.” Dictionary of Satanism by Wade Baskin.
Christians need to understand the whole framework of magic, witchcraft, and similar things. A witch “perfects” the achieving of power and influence in this life by drawing on the power of the dead, demons, Satan (the power of darkness), or “mother nature” or other similar “powers” that may be out there.
It must be understood that these false religions seek control over human life by means of other sources that are not God Himself. Therefore “white magic” (good magic like love potions, or getting a job raise) and “black magic” (like causing somebody to die) are the same. They seek to manipulate this life outside of God’s help and power. Moreover, they replace the absolute guide of the Christian’s life (God’s supreme will) with whatever the individual deems desirable. Pyramid power, crystals, etc fall into the same category as witchcraft. Hollywood makes witchcraft exciting and “clean” and “pretty” by using attractive actors that are little old granny types, or young pretty women.
The Harry Potter series also uses innocent children as the aspirants of supernatural powers (witchcraft). Note that Satan and demons will loan their supernatural powers to humans as these humans fall under their demonic control or influence (which in essence is worship if you seek and use that power), so we as Christians do not deny the supernatural element in much of this, but we deny the source of the power, that it is not from God, not legitimate, and prohibited to us. Pharaoh’s magicians performed all the supernatural “magic” that Moses did, so the Bible presents them as being able to use the supernatural.
Consider God’s attitude towards this total abandonment of God’s will, power, and the framework of things that God has set for us as his creatures.
Exodus 22:18 Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.
Deuteronomy 12:29 When the LORD thy God shall cut off the nations from before thee, whither thou goest to possess them, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their land; 30 Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise. 31 Thou shalt not do so unto the LORD thy God: for every abomination to the LORD, which he hateth, have they done unto their gods;
Deuteronomy 18:9 When thou art come into the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. 10 There shall not be found among you any one that … useth divination (use witchcraft), or an observer of times (to cloud over or cover, to act covertly), or an enchanter (whisper a spell), or a witch (practice magic), 11 Or a charmer (some who fascinated and bound things upon others), or a consulter with familiar spirits (consult high powers for advanced knowledge), or a wizard (a wise one, a male witch), or a necromancer (to consult the dead for revealing the secrets of the world of the dead). 12 For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.
Leviticus 20:6 And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people.
Isaiah 8:19 And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead? 20 To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.
God says that He will put His face against such a person, and we should likewise set ourselves against such a person and such things. We should not imitate in a cute way what they are doing, and decorate our house, yard, and school with their symbols and images.
1 Samuel 15:22 And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. 23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.
Saul learned that God has his ways of doing things, and it is best to stay squarely in the manner of doing things that God has laid out. Rebellion against God’s will, methods, and doctrine is at the heart of witchcraft and idolatry. You may even “try to do good” (white magic) like Saul did but in such a way as to invoke the most stern rebuke and condemnation from God. God removed Saul and all his seed from ever being over the throne of Israel because of this incident. He simply sought to offer sacrifice to God outside of God’s instructions (only the official Levitical priests and priesthood).
Satan and the demons will supply supernatural powers to prove and seal the deception and make a great impact, but the presence of the supernatural does not assure one that it is good, it is of God, or is acceptable to us as a Christian. As people allow more and more imagery and influence in the form of ideas, pictures, customs, and other elements of Satan into their lives, the more they are liable to go further. It is certain that God wants us to stand against any elements of darkness.
2 Peter 2:7 And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: 8 (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds)
Notice what happened to Lot. By constant exposure to wickedness, Lot eventually vexed his own soul. We desensitize ourselves and our children to magic, witches, Satanism, and other things that are clearly in the realm of the devil’s affairs, then we become accustomed to them, and do not properly react against them.
Like Israel of old, we today have a hard time freeing our lives and keeping our lives free of the world. The one perpetual failing of ancient Israel was their inability to keep their worship pure. They constantly introduced elements tied to the false gods and religions of the world in their worship and daily life.
God, on the other hand, instituted such things as he Passover with its eating of bitter herbs and unleavened bread. Leviticus 12:26 “when your children shall say unto you, What mean ye by this service?” and they would explain the religious significance for a believer of their celebration. Or the feast of tabernacles, where every family would build a palm covering on the roof of their flat roofed houses, where they would “camp out” for a short period of time. God well knows that these simple family activities are teaching times extremely important to God for the imparting of spiritual truth and teaching religious history, and distinguishing the believer’s life from the world’s life.
Note that God instructed the Israelites to do these things even when the children were small and did not understand them. Later when they questioned, they were to reveal the spiritual content in the activities they had done for years.
But the burning question is, What spiritual thing do you sublimely teach your children by celebrating Satan’s night, decorating home, school, and even church with his colors (red, black, and orange), his images, and acting out Satanic and demonic acts which represent practices of Satan worshippers?
2 Corinthians 6:14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?