Culture wars have been around for over 150 years. When there is a cultural clash between social groups, it can become a culture war. When differing social groups find themselves in a tussle over their beliefs, folkways, or mores it tends to escalate; when that tussle becomes one group trying to impose its own “culture” over another, it develops into a culture war. There has been something of a Culture War for years over Halloween for too long. It could be as amusing as arguing over whether a tomato is a fruit or a vegetable. It isn’t.
Today’s tome posits that this week finds us between two significant celebrations (less a culture war than name confusion)—Halloween and All Saints Day; actually Halloween was frst known as All Hallows E’n —the night before All Saints Day—over time as the observance became more popularized the name migrated into “Halloween.” You get the point. To be clear, All Saints Day comes on November 1. When November 1 falls on any day other day of the week, Christian churches observe All Saints Day on the nearest Sunday. It is the Christian observance of all who have died. It complicated.
But I digress. Some people object to Halloween celebration, saying it is evil. Hailey Bieber, Justin Bieber’s wife put something on Social Media about her celebrating Halloween; apparently some folks got their panties in a wad over that: says she; “I’m not afraid of the world. I’m not afraid of any devil or demon or incantation. They are terrified of me. Halloween is now MY HOLIDAY and I am claiming all candy for the glory of God and the celebration of the Saints.
Halloween is not the first, nor the only Christian observance to be taken hostage by some secular celebration. Such festivals have oscillated with each other over time. Halloween is a case in point; All Hallows’ E’n was first, a pagan festival; Samhain, first observed by Celtic Pagans. Christians found it compatible with All Saints celebration and converted it into a Christian celebration. And. Christians also overtook (Umm converted) a pagan ritual in to Christmas celebration; Christians; 2 — Pagans; 2.
However, in an odd sort of way, at the end of October and the first of November costumes could lead one to think Good and Evil collide. It is pagentry, not a moral battlefield. It seems to me, there is opportunity for the Christian faith to be transformative. Christian Scholar C. C. Lewis offers, asserting something as “good” naturally means that it comports with some supreme standard of right, and something “evil” does not. Thus, we judge evil according to the standard of good. This, for Lewis, proves good more powerful than evil.
Harking back to the Culture Wars, The Halloween dustup burns valuable daylight over childish bickering—and has done so for too long. In writing to the Church at Rome, the Apostle Paul tries to help his friends cope with difficulties of living in a world threatened by evil. He guided them to conquer evil; he concluded saying, “Do not let evil defeat you; instead, conquer evil with good.“. That is transformative.
©Copyright Willis H. Moore 2023