Holidays: Chrstmas, Easter and Halloween?

Christmas, Easter and Halloween are three of the four biggest holidays celebrated in the United States. The question has come to my mind, what should Christians do with them? These holidays have a lot in common. They're all on the same day as historical pagan holidays, they all still use some historic pagan symbolism and traditions, and they're huge commercial money makers.  They also have some differences, so lets play a game.  Lets play one of these things is not like the others

Let's take a look at the three individually starting with Christmas. Christmas is one of the biggest holidays in the world really. It's celebrated on December 25th which was originally the date of the Roman holiday of Saturnalia it also coincides with the Norse and Germanic Yule festivals and in fact many of the traditions and decorations we use for Christmas are hold over from these pagan celebrations, decorating trees, holly, giving presents, Santa Claus, all these things are hold overs from  paganism

However we have added some things. While the original meaning of these holidays varied we have added what has become a near universal meaning. We celebrate on Dec 25th the birth of Jesus Christ. We have redeemed this day. Many ask why this particular day? Why do we celebrate the birth of Jesus on a day so full of pagan symbolism? The short answer is (and this goes for Easter too) The Roman Catholic church were fantastic at marketing. The Catholic church absorbed pagan holidays and worship site in an attempt to create converts, and it worked, of course in the end I'm sure if the pagans or the Catholics were the ones who were actually converted but that's for a different blog.

Easter is one of the holiest days on the Christian calender yet in the west it has the same problem as Christmas,  it's over flowing with pagan symbolism. The Easter bunny, coloring and hunting eggs, etc.... Again this is a hold over from the eastern European Norse and Germanic traditions and yet again we've attached the holiest of meanings to this day. The resurrection of Jesus Christ after his crucifixion. Indeed Christmas and Easter are two of the highest attendance times of the year for churches, both Catholic and Protestant.

And now Halloween, celebrated on October 31st. It was the end of the Celtic calender. It was many things. It was a celebration of dead ancestors. It was a day when the veil between worlds was said to be at it's thinnest and demons and ghosts would roam amongst the living. People would dress up as animals and demons hoping to confuse the wondering spirits. I've heard several different origins for "trick or treating" and Jack o lanterns. This was a time of divining the dead and worshiping the gods of the death and the underworld. However today we in the western Christian world have...done nothing with this day.

The traditions of Halloween have no other meaning than these. I would say most Christians in the United States celebrate Halloween in some fashion, but why? Why do Christians celebrate Halloween? It's not ours. Practicing Jews don't celebrate Christmas. We as Christians don't celebrate Yom Kippo or Ramadon. So why do we celebrate Halloween. It has nothing we can link back to Christ. To This day it's purely a pagan holiday...so Why?

Rambling

Now what oh what shall I talk about today? So much passing through my brain today. I sit and look around at our world, watch/read the news listen to people talk and I can't help thinking "our world is in trouble and I mean trouble".

It seems like everything is getting ready to crumble. The US economy,whether people will admit it or not, is in some serious long term trouble as well as half a dozen other big economies. There is a war raging on our southern boarder and in countless other countries. Our politicians seem to get more and more corrupt every year. Natural disasters seem to be at an all time high. Even our society seems to simply falling in to decay, nothing is sacred accept the very things that will destroy us.

When you try to take it all in it really is very depressing, to watch the world on its steady swirl down. ..or is it? Should we despair as watching the world implode. I think that depends.

If you are an atheist or a pagan or someone who's whole mindset depends on this world. If your whole focus is the things of this word then yes, you should probably despair because the whole thing is coming down! The matrix is collapsing be afraid, be very afraid because it's not going to get any better any time soon, if ever. Our economy is showing no sign of recovering anytime soon. The world economy is in turmoil. The world at a whole is in turmoil. Yet anybody even half awake should know this.

So...what about those who believe in Christ. Should we be depressed and mopy about the state of the world? Should we be angry shaking our fist fighting the world? Should we cut our selves off from the world, hide in the woods polishing our guns and boiling our water? I'm reminded of something Pastor Billy Crone likes to say "This is not a time to get fearful, this is a time to get faithful."

So...what do I think...this is a time to fight. This is a time to put on the Armor of god and fight. In this "free country" Christianity is more attack now than at any other time in this countries history, not only in this country but as Islam ramps up and tyrannical regimes crack down Christianity is becoming more and more persecuted, every day more and more Christians are killed or imprisoned for nothing more than believing that Jesus Christ is the son of God, died on the cross and rose three days later. And the enemies are not just from without they are from within as well.

False, lukewarm, and even blended doctrines are becoming more and more prevalent within the American church. Basic doctrines such as hell and salvation through Jesus only are being replaced with fuzzy wuzzy pluralism. The feelgood doctrines and the health and wealth doctrines have become a sweet poison within the church.

So what should we as Christians do? Stick together...actually read the Bible and find men and women who will actually teach whats in it. Political action, while we still can, find men and women who honor god and do our best to put them in office. Not be afraid to speak up and disagree with those spewing false teachings. Look at our own lives and see if what we're doing shows the world that we're following it or if we're following God.

There is no such thing as atheism

Their is no such thing as atheism. I know it sounds odd since their are lots of people running around calling themselves atheists.

I have come to agree with Pastor Mark Driscoll..everybody worships something, and its my contention that a good many of the people running around calling themselves atheists either are worshiping themselves or science. These two have become the most popular idols of the western world.

So... this begs the question of why all the hate towards Christianity from atheists? I've actually put a lot of thought in to. As it confused me for a while. Why does it matter if we believe something and they don't? Well like I said before, whether they acknowledge it or not they do worship something. The worship of the self is at odds with the worship of God. It's the original deception. Man trying to elevate himself to godhood and replace the true God. The result of this is anger towards anything even alluding to God.

Many people have said it and I'll say it again. It is a spiritual war, and it is heating up.