I'm going to do something very rare here at TBNN. Today there will be no new satire. It appears that the recent post made by Brother Slawson entitled "Confessions of a Former Druid" has ruffled feathers ever since it was posted last Saturday. Since it was posted the comments and email have been pouring in from all sides, and I, Tom, have remained rather silent. So it's time to speak.
First of all, let me remind everyone about the nature of the Team Tominthebox News Network. This is a site that takes serious points in the religious world out there and attempts to treat them in a satirical way. There are three main authors here at this site. First there is Tom, that's me, the original founder of the site. The second person to join was my brother, Carlos Slawson, better known as Brother Slawson, who happens to be my real live brother, not merely my alter ego. And finally Eric Carpenter, better known as Elder Eric, joined the crew, posting on Tuesdays and Thursdays. All three of us consider ourselves to be conservative, Reformed Christians. Thus, very often our writings are directed at those outside of that particular circle. But to be fair, occasionally we must hold the mirror up to our own faces and take a look, and to be honest friends, even we in the world of Reformed Christians have a lot of hairs out of place and a lot of spots on our faces that need to be washed.
While each of us here at TBNN shares a common belief in the Reformed Faith, there are definitely differences of opinions among us, and we try to hold them with a sense of respect. I'm sure I've posted things before that either Brother Slawson or Elder Eric have not completely agreed with.
So you're asking (ala Mr. T) "Cut the jibber-jabber, where do you stand Tom?" Let me respond here in two main points.
First, I'll admit, don't completely see eye-to-eye with my brother on the issue of Halloween. But I believe we disagree respectfully. I grew up trick-or-treating too, and do not begrudge my parents or my family one bit. I also agree with my brother that when we were children it was indeed for us childlike and innocent. Our main objective was to get candy and to play. But my views towards the holiday changed as I got older and moved away from home. Quite honestly, there was a time when I reexamined every so-called holiday, as to whether or not I should celebrate any of them. In the end, Halloween didn't make the cut.
Before my wife and I married we decided that we would not celebrate Halloween in our family nor Mardi Gras, and that we would try to be very explicit and purposeful in our celebration of any "holiday". We made this decision about Halloween for ourselves because, knowing what we knew about the holiday our consciences would always be affected. We felt like the Holiday had never really shaken its pagan roots off. To me, it simply seemed like they were "innocentized" (I know that's not a real word but permit me) over the years. The too much lingered of the old meaning. What about dressing up? Well I have no problem with that in theory, but dress up like what? A ghost, a monster, etc? Well, I thought to myself "Would I let my kid dress up like Hitler or Stalin even if it was just for fun? Of course, my son isn't going to turn into a Nazi if I let him. But if I won't let him playfully dress up like those guys why then would I let them dress up like figures from the occult or participate in a practice in which other people do, no matter how innocent?" Now mind you, these are my convictions and the convictions of my wife. As far as I can remember, the issue has never come up around the Thanksgiving table. We respect the consciences and decisions of our extended family, and they respect ours. But, we as a family turned our attention not to some "alternate holiday" or "harvest festival" but a real event that really happened on October 31st, worthy of celebration, that is, the start of the Protestant Reformation.
When it comes to Christianity and celebrating a holiday, any holiday, much wisdom must be sought. The only "holiday" we are commanded to celebrate in Scripture is the resurrection of our Lord and in reality we are supposed to celebrate it every Sunday, not just once a year. Now, do I necessarily think there's anything wrong with taking a special time to celebrate Christ's birth and resurrection? No, I believe I have the freedom to do that. Do I think that there's anything wrong with staying up till midnight in a good and wholesome way on December 31st to ring in the new year? No. I could go on and on. What about Valentines day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, etc? Wisdom must be used. Growing up in Southeast Louisiana we dealt with the issue of Mardi Gras. Can a Christian celebrate that holiday? Some could argue that there are good, family oriented parades that one can attend for pure enjoyment. Other's would say no, absolutely not, there's too much negative connotation.
That all being said, now for my second point. I think many people who commented misunderstood the point of the article that was being made. As I said earlier, it is important for us to even examine ourselves sometimes. I do not believe the point of the story was "Don't be such a prude. Go ahead and celebrate Halloween and ease up a little." As we hold the mirror up to our own faces in the world of Reformed Christianity I think one thing we do too often is get a particular issue under our skin and rave about it as if nothing else matters for a season. It becomes the soapbox issue during this or that particular time of year and sometimes becomes a litmus test for Orthodoxy by which the rest of a person's spirituality is judged. Thus Halloween rolls around and a person who has otherwise been silent year-round about it decides that it's time to make a point that "Ahem...we don't do such a thing in our home, we're Christians!"
I think the main point of the article was that we as believers must take care in how we approach these issues with both believers and unbelievers. It is absolutely true that the majority of America sees Halloween as simply an fun time for kids to get free candy. So, if one is going to object to it he needs to do it in a way that makes clear his reasons why. Simply turning off your porch light and not answering the door when your neighbors knock is probably not going to make sense to them. If you decide to spout off to your neighbor that "Halloween is nothing more than a pagan idolatrous day of wickedness and satanic demon worship." be prepared from some strange looks.
I will end with thoughts for the pro-Halloween and the anti-Halloween Christian.
Pro-Halloween - If you feel it is fine to celebrate this holiday with your family, then that is between you and the Lord. Make sure your conscience is clean before Him. We are told to do all things to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31). Make sure you can say with a clear conscience "We are doing this to the glory of God." Don't be pragmatic.
Anti-Halloween - Be gentle in your approach. If you feel the need to engage in conversation about your reasons for being against the holiday, then be prepared to speak from Scripture, not emotion. Don't judge a man's heart by a pumpkin on his front porch. Also be prepared to explain your own celebrations. Do you put up a Christmas tree? Have you ever said "bless you" after someone sneezed? Remember, remove logs before you take on specks.
Okay, I've said enough. I can't do this serious business very often. The issue of Halloween is now closed for this website. For those of you who still need your satire fix for today, might I suggest a past favorite of mine.
Fundamentalists Hope New "ePhod" Will Be A Hit
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