SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 13:24
Written by: Dr Conrade Yap
Date: October 31st, 2014
"Greet all your leaders and all the saints. Those who come from Italy send you greetings." (Heb 13:24, ESV)
MAIN POINT: The best way we can remember October 31st, 2014 is not to buy into the fun of Halloween, which really means nothing much, besides the candies in our mouths and cavities in our teeth. As Christians, we can honour Christ by remembering, and learning from the great Reformation in the 16th Century and to be constantly reforming ourselves. Who knows, we may very well be planting the seeds of reformation for the generations to come.
It's that time of the year again, of Trick-n-Treating. For the past two years, I have been buying boxes of chocolates and candies, of different colours, shapes, and sizes. From as early as 4 in the afternoon till as late as 10pm, October 31st is also the day where family members keep running back and forth to answer the doorbell. Usually there are young school kids at the door in groups. Those who come with parents are the cutest, in their bumblebee costumes, disney characters, or simply some colourful makeup on the faces. Not scary but highly amusing. Once there was this little toddler that was so cute that I struggled to control my squeal of delight inside. God certainly makes children adorable. (There goes another box of candies.)
The older ones tend to be a little more adventurous, donning more sinister costumes. Anyway, in good fun, I distribute the goodies liberally, to be rewarded with a musical "Thank You" as payment. Halloween celebrations are big events in the annual calendar. Students dress up for the occasion in the morning, and had special celebrations in school. At dusk, they venture out to the neighbourhoods to fill up their goody bags.
All in the name of fun! Period.
However, Church history offers a different view of October 31st. There are at least two other significant events: 1) Eve of All Saints Day; 2) Reformation Day.
