Harmless Evil

My new friend Cate at soccer mom: unplugged has a great theory. Rules are good for soccer games, and apparently Halloween. Allow me to append.

Meet Southern Baptist Grandmother. She was the backbone of my childhood. She donned a bed sheet (don't go there) every Halloween in Sleepy Southern Hometown and handed out home made popcorn balls to all the neighbor children. Halloween was innocent. Children were innocent. America was innocent. No more.

As a backslid Baptist with an extensive Hymnal collection, I can honestly say that I am conflicted about the motives of the Halloween we celebrate today. The proliferation of the newest American rationalization, "harmless evil", has made the most simple of childhood traditions into a moral dilemma for thoughtful parents.

Harry Potter is hardly the Anti-Christ. But the author of the series, J.K Rowling, is more than happy to divulge to sympathetic audiences in Great Britain that she is hopeful that Harry can make Wicca and other "spiritual options" more mainstream. America spoons the "brilliant" fiction up to its spiritually starved children and is thrilled that Johnny can read, but despairs that he has no respect for authority.

Hurry ladies--go buy the husband a Penthouse Forum because "At least he's reading!".

Comments

[elmers brother]

I understand Christians who don't celebrate Halloween. I am one of them. I just think that becoming a Halloween "nazi" is not going to win others to the Lord and if our children are Christians what's there to fear from dressing up. Are churches that have "harvest festivals" compromising by putting on a pseudo-halloween celebration so kids can still get candy?

[jane]

Honestly, I do not know. I have wrestled with this for a long time. Really. We tried handing out tracts one year.Our church/school has a REFORMATION party every Halloween weekend where the kids dress in period costumes and have a big time. I am not being judgemental on THIS issue, though I'm no stanger to it. I don't fear the dressing up or imagination (hardly!), but I am wary of the way evil SLOWLY creeps into things and twists them on their axis.
Witness where you can, but confront evil when you see it.

[Cate]

I think all Christians wrestle with defining the parameters of their practices. Here's what I've come to with respect to the 'little things' that aren't in direct contrast to revelaed commandments.

In the culminating novel of C.S. Lewis’ Narnia series, he describes the encounter between a young Tarkaan named Emeth who faithfully worshipped the ‘god’ Tash all his days and the true God Aslan. Emeth recounts:

…The Glorious One bent down his golden head …and said Son, thou art welcome. But I said, Alas, Lord, I am no son of thine but the servant of Tash. He answered, Child, all the service thou hast done to Tash, I account as service done to me… I overcame my fear and asked … Lord, is it true, as the Ape has said that thou and Tash are one? The Lion growled so that the earth shook and said, It is false. Not because he and I are one but because we are opposites, I take to me the services which thou hast done unto him. For I and he are of such different kinds that no service which is vile can be done to me, and none which is not vile can be done to him. Therefore, if any man swear by Tash and keep the oath for the oath’s sake, it is by me that he has truly sworn, though he know it not, and it is I who reward him.

I know Lewis is a theologian not a prophet, but I believe the concept here magnifies the glorious nature of God. Both His justice and His mercy. If we refused to perform any act that someone else had used for evil, we would never procreate. We would never use a camera, we would not drive, we would not own or fire a gun…

My point is that God, as Samuel said, looketh upon the heart. He knows our intentions, and frankly, the historical halloween is virtually dead.

Did you know that lipstick was worn originally by prostitutes to advertise that they performed certain oral activities? Wouldn't the good Christian ladies with bright red lips every Sunday be horrified to know...