A few hours from now, Filipinos of all ages will come celebrate Halloween in freaky and funky costumes. A number of kids in superhero costumes and princess outfits with plastic pumpkins will go trick or treating, while the older ones would binge-watch the best horror flicks of all time.
Indeed, Halloween celebration has become part of the Filipino culture for the past several years. Apparently, this harmless tradition was brought to us by the Americans and has been passed on from generations to generations.
However, many of us remain clueless about the origin of Halloween. What is it really all about? Is it alright for Christians to celebrate it?
Unknown to many, Halloween has a dark history that may send chills down your spine.
According to Pastor Ramil Corpuz of Sola Scriptura Christian Church, Halloween was originally a pagan practice called Samhain by the Celts in Europe and Asia Minor wherein people believed that the departed souls could visit the living.
The tradition involved lighting of candles outside houses and dressing up as ghosts to be one with the roaming spirits.
Although the Philippines is a predominantly Christian country, many Filipinos including Christians embraced this pagan practice, which soon evolved into a fun and harmless celebration.
Halloween, for Pastor Corpuz can’t simply be eliminated from our culture but stressed that it is the work of the evil spirits based on the Bible. He added that Halloween activities nowadays teach “wrong doctrines” and often involve the “exaltation” of dark characters such as zombies and Dracula.
But Corpuz also emphasized that it is alright to celebrate Halloween as long as you don’t dwell on its dark aspects.
“Anything goes as long as you know that your conviction and your reason for joining this activity with non-believers and God knows who you are, God knows your heart, no one can judge you that what you're doing is wrong," he explained.
Meanwhile, CBCP Bishop Oscar Cruz explained that although Halloween celebration is against what the Catholic Church stands for, he believes some people who join the celebration mean no harm.
"Siguro naman ang mga nagse-celebrate ng Halloween, hindi naman masama ang kanilang intensyon. Parang naging entertainment, tradisyon so to speak. So ayoko naman isipin na masama ang kanilang hangarin kaya meron silang Halloween day," Cruz said.
According to Cruz, Christians should focus on praying for their deceased loved ones.
--Mini, The Summit Express
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| TRICK OR TREAT: Pinoy students parade in their scary Halloween outfits. PHOTO CREDIT: Reuters |
However, many of us remain clueless about the origin of Halloween. What is it really all about? Is it alright for Christians to celebrate it?
Unknown to many, Halloween has a dark history that may send chills down your spine.
According to Pastor Ramil Corpuz of Sola Scriptura Christian Church, Halloween was originally a pagan practice called Samhain by the Celts in Europe and Asia Minor wherein people believed that the departed souls could visit the living.
The tradition involved lighting of candles outside houses and dressing up as ghosts to be one with the roaming spirits.
Although the Philippines is a predominantly Christian country, many Filipinos including Christians embraced this pagan practice, which soon evolved into a fun and harmless celebration.
Halloween, for Pastor Corpuz can’t simply be eliminated from our culture but stressed that it is the work of the evil spirits based on the Bible. He added that Halloween activities nowadays teach “wrong doctrines” and often involve the “exaltation” of dark characters such as zombies and Dracula.
But Corpuz also emphasized that it is alright to celebrate Halloween as long as you don’t dwell on its dark aspects.
“Anything goes as long as you know that your conviction and your reason for joining this activity with non-believers and God knows who you are, God knows your heart, no one can judge you that what you're doing is wrong," he explained.
Meanwhile, CBCP Bishop Oscar Cruz explained that although Halloween celebration is against what the Catholic Church stands for, he believes some people who join the celebration mean no harm.
"Siguro naman ang mga nagse-celebrate ng Halloween, hindi naman masama ang kanilang intensyon. Parang naging entertainment, tradisyon so to speak. So ayoko naman isipin na masama ang kanilang hangarin kaya meron silang Halloween day," Cruz said.
According to Cruz, Christians should focus on praying for their deceased loved ones.
--Mini, The Summit Express
