When Halloween comes around, horror stories come to mind, conceived by the human mind, based on nightmares and fears.
But the greatest horror story was not conceived by the human mind, but by God Himself. It is a story of utter betrayal, complete isolation, relentless torture, bloody gore, agonizing death, complete darkness, merciless violence and the dead coming back to life.
God the Father sent His only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, into the world He Himself created, and united His divinity with our humanity, in order to deliver humanity from their enslavement to the devil and the consequences of death by His voluntary suffering and sacrifice. The Creator of all things was therefore tortured, mocked, spit on, crowned with thorns, scourged and put to death through a humiliating and cruel crucifixion by His very creation He fashioned, offering His blood once for all time to atone for the sins of humanity.
As Jesus was hanging by the nails pinning Him to the Cross between two thieves crucified with Him, darkness came upon all the land from around 12 noon for a period of three hours till He died at around 3:00pm. When He gave up His spirit, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, the earth quaked, the rocks split in two, and the graves of the righteous who had died in the past opened.
But why did the graves open? When Jesus gave up His spirit on the Cross, He immediately descended into the realm of the dead, in Hades, and there He trampled on its gates and released the righteous who had died in ages past. And when Jesus rose from the dead, the righteous whose graves were opened after Jesus died on the Cross were also raised from the dead themselves, and many of the dead were seen by people in Jerusalem.
And thus the greatest horror story also became the greatest redemption story of all time. Christians commemorate this redemptive horror story of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ by doing such things as wearing a crucifix around their neck, and they become benefactors of His salvific blood sacrifice by consuming His Body and Blood in the form of bread and wine.
God chose to go through the horrors of death and the victorious joy of rising from the dead because death and resurrection permeates all creation and is thus familiar to us. The annual cycle of our created world from autumn to winter to spring to summer reflect the process of death and resurrection. It gets colder in autumn and winter primarily because of the Earth's tilt on its axis, which means that during these seasons, the Northern Hemisphere receives less direct sunlight, resulting in less solar energy reaching the surface and therefore more darkness and cooler temperatures; essentially, the sun's rays hit the Earth at a more slanted angle, distributing the heat less effectively across a larger area. Then it gets warmer in spring and summer primarily because the Northern Hemisphere leans more directly towards the sun during these seasons, resulting in longer daylight hours and more concentrated sunlight hitting the Earth's surface, leading to warmer temperatures. We see death reflected everywhere in nature during the autumn and winter, and the increased darkness fills living creatures with increased fear and a sense of the mysterious unknown, while spring and summer fill nature with life and light and warmth and renewal.
As the summer comes to a close and the signs of autumn appear in nature, various cultures in one way or another have found a means to deal with the approaching death and darkness and mystery of the season. In towns and villages, the sense of community was increasingly important for survival during this time, since warm shelter and food storage were in constant danger from fires and creatures of the night and heavy snow. And if you lived near a forest, for example, parents would tell their children stories of monsters lurking the forest at night, since the longer nights and greater cold increased the danger of them being lost in the forest and surviving. Community activities and rituals helped people deal with their dismal surroundings and the increased time of night gave people more time to stay indoors and tell stories that reflected and helped them deal with the unknown and horror and mystery that surrounded them.
The industrial revolution and increased development of technology have made autumn and winter more tolerable and easier to deal with, but human nature is still in tune with its natural environment. When early cultural traditions of Halloween came from Ireland and Scotland and England to the New World that corresponded with the Catholic commemoration of all their departed loved ones and the saints, primarily in the Northeastern part of the United States, it mainly came in the form of party games which could mainly be done indoors due to the colder weather, such as carving lanterns from vegetables and bobbing for apples. With the rise of spiritualism after the Civil War, when Americans sought comfort in the aftermath of the terrible loss in the war by trying to communicate with their dead loved ones, part of these indoor games also began to involve things like seances. And since most cultures have fortune telling games in the autumn and winter, Halloween was no exception.
But the greatest horror story was not conceived by the human mind, but by God Himself. It is a story of utter betrayal, complete isolation, relentless torture, bloody gore, agonizing death, complete darkness, merciless violence and the dead coming back to life.
God the Father sent His only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, into the world He Himself created, and united His divinity with our humanity, in order to deliver humanity from their enslavement to the devil and the consequences of death by His voluntary suffering and sacrifice. The Creator of all things was therefore tortured, mocked, spit on, crowned with thorns, scourged and put to death through a humiliating and cruel crucifixion by His very creation He fashioned, offering His blood once for all time to atone for the sins of humanity.
As Jesus was hanging by the nails pinning Him to the Cross between two thieves crucified with Him, darkness came upon all the land from around 12 noon for a period of three hours till He died at around 3:00pm. When He gave up His spirit, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, the earth quaked, the rocks split in two, and the graves of the righteous who had died in the past opened.
But why did the graves open? When Jesus gave up His spirit on the Cross, He immediately descended into the realm of the dead, in Hades, and there He trampled on its gates and released the righteous who had died in ages past. And when Jesus rose from the dead, the righteous whose graves were opened after Jesus died on the Cross were also raised from the dead themselves, and many of the dead were seen by people in Jerusalem.
And thus the greatest horror story also became the greatest redemption story of all time. Christians commemorate this redemptive horror story of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ by doing such things as wearing a crucifix around their neck, and they become benefactors of His salvific blood sacrifice by consuming His Body and Blood in the form of bread and wine.
God chose to go through the horrors of death and the victorious joy of rising from the dead because death and resurrection permeates all creation and is thus familiar to us. The annual cycle of our created world from autumn to winter to spring to summer reflect the process of death and resurrection. It gets colder in autumn and winter primarily because of the Earth's tilt on its axis, which means that during these seasons, the Northern Hemisphere receives less direct sunlight, resulting in less solar energy reaching the surface and therefore more darkness and cooler temperatures; essentially, the sun's rays hit the Earth at a more slanted angle, distributing the heat less effectively across a larger area. Then it gets warmer in spring and summer primarily because the Northern Hemisphere leans more directly towards the sun during these seasons, resulting in longer daylight hours and more concentrated sunlight hitting the Earth's surface, leading to warmer temperatures. We see death reflected everywhere in nature during the autumn and winter, and the increased darkness fills living creatures with increased fear and a sense of the mysterious unknown, while spring and summer fill nature with life and light and warmth and renewal.
As the summer comes to a close and the signs of autumn appear in nature, various cultures in one way or another have found a means to deal with the approaching death and darkness and mystery of the season. In towns and villages, the sense of community was increasingly important for survival during this time, since warm shelter and food storage were in constant danger from fires and creatures of the night and heavy snow. And if you lived near a forest, for example, parents would tell their children stories of monsters lurking the forest at night, since the longer nights and greater cold increased the danger of them being lost in the forest and surviving. Community activities and rituals helped people deal with their dismal surroundings and the increased time of night gave people more time to stay indoors and tell stories that reflected and helped them deal with the unknown and horror and mystery that surrounded them.
The industrial revolution and increased development of technology have made autumn and winter more tolerable and easier to deal with, but human nature is still in tune with its natural environment. When early cultural traditions of Halloween came from Ireland and Scotland and England to the New World that corresponded with the Catholic commemoration of all their departed loved ones and the saints, primarily in the Northeastern part of the United States, it mainly came in the form of party games which could mainly be done indoors due to the colder weather, such as carving lanterns from vegetables and bobbing for apples. With the rise of spiritualism after the Civil War, when Americans sought comfort in the aftermath of the terrible loss in the war by trying to communicate with their dead loved ones, part of these indoor games also began to involve things like seances. And since most cultures have fortune telling games in the autumn and winter, Halloween was no exception.
With the influx of immigration in the late 19th and early 20th century, there was also an increased poverty which also gave rise to vandalism among the youth. Halloween soon became associated with a day of vandalism, which became a major issue. One way this was countered was by certain towns holding Halloween parades where children would wear costumes, or they would hold a Halloween party in a central hall. Also at this time, at first around the time of Thanksgiving and Christmas, the youth brought from Europe the custom of going door to door to collect food and money in exchange for a song. In the 1930's it was decided to move this custom to Halloween in order to give the youth an activity to do besides vandalize, and trick or treating with costumes was born, with the idea that if you give a child a treat then the child will not vandalize your home. Halloween themed "haunted houses" also began appearing around the same time as "trick or treat", during the Great Depression, as a way to distract young people whose Halloween pranks had escalated to vandalism. These had also gained in popularity at amusement parks as well as a cheap and easy alternative to roller coasters.
Thus Halloween was born as an American secular holiday apart from its association with the Catholic Church. There is nothing satanic about Halloween, nothing pagan, nothing evil. People can make it satanic if they want, or pagan, or evil, just like any holiday, but it is not necessary for it to be so. Instead, it can be very Christian if Christians maintain a healthy attitude towards Halloween. For example, extending hospitality to the children of your neighbors and receiving hospitality from your neighbors isn't demonic in any way. Extending hospitality to strangers is one of the great Christian virtues. It's a shame that one of the darkest aspects of Halloween is when Christians choose to shut off their lights on Halloween night and refuse hospitality to children, especially if they view it as something demonic or fearful.
Thus Halloween was born as an American secular holiday apart from its association with the Catholic Church. There is nothing satanic about Halloween, nothing pagan, nothing evil. People can make it satanic if they want, or pagan, or evil, just like any holiday, but it is not necessary for it to be so. Instead, it can be very Christian if Christians maintain a healthy attitude towards Halloween. For example, extending hospitality to the children of your neighbors and receiving hospitality from your neighbors isn't demonic in any way. Extending hospitality to strangers is one of the great Christian virtues. It's a shame that one of the darkest aspects of Halloween is when Christians choose to shut off their lights on Halloween night and refuse hospitality to children, especially if they view it as something demonic or fearful.
Confronting and exploring irrational fear and mystery is not the same as worshiping a demon, though obvious things like seances and fortune telling should be avoided by Christians primarily because such things show a lack of faith in God's Providence and Will, and just because some people may participate in them doesn't mean they are essential to your own Halloween. Unfortunately, with Christians taking a position of fear in participating in anything to do with Halloween, they have handed it over to being exploited more and more as satanic or pagan or evil, when it really isn't, and thus Christians have become a mockery for being cowards. If eating some candy, watching a horror movie or going to a haunted house brings something evil out in you, then of course avoid it, but for most people they don't and they won't. When evil is usually depicted, even around Halloween time, then it is still distinguished as evil and repulsive, but since there are reactions from extremist Christians, then sometimes the monster takes on the qualities of the Christian, and thus we have good witches and good vampires versus evil religious people, and even the power of the cross loses its power before the forces of evil. That is why I personally like witches and vampires and other monsters to be evil and personifications of vice who have no power over God and inspire us to root for good. Monsters are supposed to be the bad guys, not us. The early Fathers of the Church would argue that Christianity came to dispel superstition and fear that gripped the ancient pagans, yet today it is Christians who are often viewed as gripped by superstition and fear while non-Christians laugh at and mock us.
Hundreds of years ago, Saint John Climacus was a hermit who lived alone in a cave in the dark and eerie desert of Sinai. There he wrote The Ladder, which was a guide for monks to overcoming obstacles that prevent them from ascending to heavenly glory. The 21st step on this 30 rung ladder is on "Unmanly Cowardice", because often hermits, ascetics and monks lived alone, and while they lived alone they would hear sounds at night or see shadows that frightened them and made their imaginations work overtime, and they sometimes even had actual demonic encounters. Saint John Climacus mocked these people as cowards for not being able to face their harmless fears, and did not spare them any insult, calling them "childish", "ridiculous", "vainglorious", "barren of soul", and he called fear an "infirmity" and "disease" that needs to be treated. He even told them to face their fears and go to places they feared most late at night to conquer their fear through prayer. So let us conclude with what Saint John Climacus says in Step 21 of his Ladder:
Hundreds of years ago, Saint John Climacus was a hermit who lived alone in a cave in the dark and eerie desert of Sinai. There he wrote The Ladder, which was a guide for monks to overcoming obstacles that prevent them from ascending to heavenly glory. The 21st step on this 30 rung ladder is on "Unmanly Cowardice", because often hermits, ascetics and monks lived alone, and while they lived alone they would hear sounds at night or see shadows that frightened them and made their imaginations work overtime, and they sometimes even had actual demonic encounters. Saint John Climacus mocked these people as cowards for not being able to face their harmless fears, and did not spare them any insult, calling them "childish", "ridiculous", "vainglorious", "barren of soul", and he called fear an "infirmity" and "disease" that needs to be treated. He even told them to face their fears and go to places they feared most late at night to conquer their fear through prayer. So let us conclude with what Saint John Climacus says in Step 21 of his Ladder:
Step 21
On Unmanly Cowardice
On Unmanly Cowardice
1. If you pursue virtue in a monastery or community, you are not likely to be attacked much by fear. But the man who spends his time in more solitary places should make every effort to avoid being overcome by that offspring of vainglory, that daughter of unbelief, cowardice.
2. Cowardice is a childish disposition in an old, vainglorious soul. Cowardice is a falling away from faith that comes of expecting the unexpected.
3. Fear is a rehearsing of danger beforehand; or again, fear is a trembling sensation of the heart, alarmed and troubled by unknown misfortunes. Fear is a loss of conviction.
4. A proud soul is a slave of cowardice; it vainly trusts in itself, and is afraid of any sound or shadow of creatures.
5. Those who mourn over their sins but are insensible to every other sorrow do not feel cowardice, but the cowardly often have mental breakdowns. And this is natural. For the Lord rightly forsakes the proud that the rest of us may learn not to be puffed up.
6. Although all cowardly people are vainglorious, yet not all who are unafraid are humble, since even robbers and grave-plunderers may be without fear.
7. Do not hesitate to go late at night to those places where you usually feel afraid. But if you yield only a little to such weakness, then this childish and ridiculous infirmity will grow old with you. As you go on your way, arm yourself with prayer. When you reach the place, stretch out your hands. Flog your enemies with the name of Jesus, for there is no stronger weapon in heaven or earth. When you get rid of the disease (of fear), praise Him who has delivered you. If you continue to be thankful, He will protect you for ever.
8. Just as it is impossible to satisfy the stomach in one bout, so also it is impossible to overcome fear instantly. It will yield more quickly in proportion as you mourn; but to the extent that our mourning fails, we continue to be cowards.
9. My hair and my flesh shuddered said Eliphaz, when describing the malice of the demon. Sometimes the soul, and sometimes the flesh, turns coward first, and the one passes its infirmity on to the other. If this untimely fear does not pass into the soul when the flesh flinches, then deliverance from the disease is at hand. But the actual freedom from cowardice comes when we eagerly accept all unexpected events with a contrite heart.
10. It is not darkness and loneliness of place that gives the demons power against us, but barrenness of soul. And through God’s providence this sometimes happens in order that we may learn by it.
11. He who has become the servant of the Lord will fear his Master alone, but he who does not yet fear Him is often afraid of his own shadow.
12. In the presence of an invisible spirit the body becomes afraid; but in the presence of an angel the soul of the humble is filled with joy. Therefore, when we recognize the presence from the effect, let us quickly hasten to prayer, for our good guardian has come to pray with us.
2. Cowardice is a childish disposition in an old, vainglorious soul. Cowardice is a falling away from faith that comes of expecting the unexpected.
3. Fear is a rehearsing of danger beforehand; or again, fear is a trembling sensation of the heart, alarmed and troubled by unknown misfortunes. Fear is a loss of conviction.
4. A proud soul is a slave of cowardice; it vainly trusts in itself, and is afraid of any sound or shadow of creatures.
5. Those who mourn over their sins but are insensible to every other sorrow do not feel cowardice, but the cowardly often have mental breakdowns. And this is natural. For the Lord rightly forsakes the proud that the rest of us may learn not to be puffed up.
6. Although all cowardly people are vainglorious, yet not all who are unafraid are humble, since even robbers and grave-plunderers may be without fear.
7. Do not hesitate to go late at night to those places where you usually feel afraid. But if you yield only a little to such weakness, then this childish and ridiculous infirmity will grow old with you. As you go on your way, arm yourself with prayer. When you reach the place, stretch out your hands. Flog your enemies with the name of Jesus, for there is no stronger weapon in heaven or earth. When you get rid of the disease (of fear), praise Him who has delivered you. If you continue to be thankful, He will protect you for ever.
8. Just as it is impossible to satisfy the stomach in one bout, so also it is impossible to overcome fear instantly. It will yield more quickly in proportion as you mourn; but to the extent that our mourning fails, we continue to be cowards.
9. My hair and my flesh shuddered said Eliphaz, when describing the malice of the demon. Sometimes the soul, and sometimes the flesh, turns coward first, and the one passes its infirmity on to the other. If this untimely fear does not pass into the soul when the flesh flinches, then deliverance from the disease is at hand. But the actual freedom from cowardice comes when we eagerly accept all unexpected events with a contrite heart.
10. It is not darkness and loneliness of place that gives the demons power against us, but barrenness of soul. And through God’s providence this sometimes happens in order that we may learn by it.
11. He who has become the servant of the Lord will fear his Master alone, but he who does not yet fear Him is often afraid of his own shadow.
12. In the presence of an invisible spirit the body becomes afraid; but in the presence of an angel the soul of the humble is filled with joy. Therefore, when we recognize the presence from the effect, let us quickly hasten to prayer, for our good guardian has come to pray with us.
He who has conquered cowardice has clearly dedicated his life and soul to God.
For more information, read my Halloween Resource Page.
