It’s that time of year when churches have their fall festivals to try to get visitors to their church. This year will be the first time in a while I’ll miss ours. A fun time is usually had by all, including the helpers.
However, every time our festival nears, I recall my then fifteen year old listening to a radio announcer upset that a large chain store was not going to use the words “Merry Christmas”, instead replacing it with Happy Holidays. The announcer said we celebrate December 25 because of Jesus Christ, thus it should be called “Christmas”. My daughter blurted out “We celebrate Halloween, yet we call it a fall festival.”
I was stunned into silence. I hadn’t thought of that before. Worse, she was right. Are we as Christians being hypocritical by calling our Halloween celebration a fall festival?
Bible verse 1 Corinthians 9:22 reads, To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. Does this verse mean that as Christians we should celebrate something we don’t feel is Christian to try to win people over to God?
I find it to be an interesting question. One I’m not sure I have the answer for. If we are to be in this world to bring people to Him, shouldn’t we call it a Halloween party? I know some Christians will be upset by the term, but do those people really go to the festival in the first place?
If Christians don’t want to use the term “Halloween” for their fall festivals, do we have a right to complain when people use the term Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas? I would love to hear your input on this. And whichever way you fall on this subject, I hope you have a good fall day, including Halloween, and that you have happy holidays, including a Merry Christmas.
