Full Bloom Blog

First, I would like to let it be known that all of these thoughts and ideas are coming from a Christian world view. It is the guiding force in our parenting and is the major decision maker in our approach to Halloween. Not everyone will share this perspective, but none the less, it is where we’re coming from.

I grew up in a Christian home and was highly active in my youth group so I have always been aware of people who did not participate in the fall holiday. My family however, always participated in Halloween and trick-or-treating. With a seamstress mother, I would spend months plotting and planning every detail of my often times overly-elaborate costumes but we were never allowed to choose anything scary or evil. The decorations at our home were mostly pumpkins and what ghosts we did have were happy looking. Ha, you can read more about that later….

I know many Christian families that do not participate in Halloween in large part due to pagan origins. I am less inclined to lead with these reasons. Not that I am 100% in disagreement with them, but I look at holidays like Christmas which started out as winter solstice and Easter which uses the Easter bunny (a reference to a god of fertility) so I know that it’s not just about where a holiday begins its about what it is current themes are and what you can make it. Many of our holidays and traditions have pagan ties/origins but I believe that we can hand things over to Christ and he can redeem them for His purpose at times. But not always. If I thought that was the case with Halloween, I’d be here for it, but I do not see that.

So before I get into the heavier content, just know that I have no problems with [most] costumes and if you know me, you know if love me some sugar so I definitely do not oppose candy! I think there are a lot of cute and fun elements to Halloween, but just like you wouldn’t eat a brownie with just a little dog poop baked in, I will not allow my children to participate in a mostly cute holiday with some deeply evil and anti-Christian principals.

If I could really boil it down to a few bullet points, the main reasons our family does not do Halloween is the glorification of FEAR, EVIL, and WITCH CRAFT. Before you object to these ideas, just think about what the seasonal section during Halloween at your favorite store. Or the decorations around your neighborhood. Many are filled with frightening images, evil faces, ghosts and gobblins galore, and witches every where. In our neighborhood there are skeletons emerging from the ground, gravestones, and LOTS of hanging creepy ghosts. Whether or not your family focuses on these aspects of Halloween, it is certainly a central concept! Even if you want to argue that you only have “happy ghosts” or “happy witches” – talk about sending mixed messages to your kids! The Bible says to “discern and test the spirits” 1 JOHN 4:1-6 (meaning there are bad ones) and to have nothing to do with witch craft and sorcery – but the Bible doesn’t mean it if they’re smiling…? Sticky stuff friends.

I am not saying that everyone that participates in the fall holiday are consciously advocating such things. But keep an eye out for how many of your decorations contain these evil elements. Or pay attention to the things your walking your kids through while trick or treating. I actually had a friend of mine a couple years back say to me, “My kids really love Halloween, but it’s tough because they have nightmares and trouble sleeping for about a month afterwards.” Ummm…. If that doesn’t send up some red flags…?! Once you look at the holiday through different perspective, you will see the evil intertwined in it all.

Here are some scriputres to show where I’m coming from…

Scriptures about Fear

“For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” 2 Timothy 1:7 (ESV).

Scripture about Witches and Sorcery

Do not turn to mediums or necromancers; do not seek them out, and so make yourselves unclean by them. I am the Lord your God. -Leviticus 19:31

Now works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strive, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. -Galatians 5:19-21

Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. -Revelation 22:15

When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominable practices of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering, anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer or a charmer or a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead, for whoever does these things in an abomination to the Lord. -Deuteronomy 18:9-12

Scriptures about Evil

Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. -Isaiah 5:20

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. -Ephesians 6:12

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I cam that they may have life and have it abundantly -John10:10

Goodness, I feel a little long winded. Here’s my sentiments in a nutshell, we don’t do Halloween because even now it has dark and evil implications and these things are not battles of this earth. The enemy comes to destroy and I will not allow him to steal the peace and joy we have in the Lord because we dabbled with and watered down evil. That being said, I make a point to explain to my kids that we don’t judge others that celebrate Halloween because that decision is between them and God. Drop me a comment below and let me know how y’alls family deals with the fall holiday!

PS, I do love pumpkins though! Pumpkins on my porch and pumpkins in my oven (okay, cookies, bread, pie and much more).