Paradigm Shift Ministries

Trick: Approximately 80% of adults in the U.S. pass out candy each year, while over 90% of American kids go “trick or treating.”

Treat: The practice of “trick or treating” exploded in the U.S. during the post WWII years, but its origins are rooted in Medieval and even ancient traditions.

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Trick: The name “Halloween” comes from “All Hallows’ Eve” which signified the night before the Catholic holiday of All Saints’ Day.

Treat: All Saints’ Day was moved to November 1st in 835 AD. Its original spring-time date is still celebrated in the Eastern Orthodox Church.

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Trick: Halloween dates back to 5 BC with the pagan Celtic harvest celebration called Samhain.

Treat: Samhain also served as a festival to the dead, which can be seen today in many different cultural contexts: Halloween (USA, Canada, Europe), All Saints’ Day (Roman Catholic, Anglican, Methodist), El Dia de los Muertos (Mexico, Latin America), etc.

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Trick: The most popular Halloween costume in 2009 was Michael Jackson.

Treat: The tradition of wearing costumes originated with the ancient Celtics, who were afraid of ghosts and spirits, hence the tradition of hiding their humanity.

Every year, people throughout the Americas celebrate the time when the Old World met the New World, and Christopher Columbus has the historical embodiment of this time period despite the ongoing controversy that surrounds his legacy.  Columbus was instrumental in opening up the Americas to European influence despite thinking that he has landed in Asia.  Terms like “American Indian” and the “West Indies” are modern reminders of his misbelief.

However, Columbus’ legacy is stained because of how he treated the indigenous peoples that he encountered; his heart was set on making money, and the native people were viewed as tools that he could use to achieve his dreams of wealth and power.  This has led to many Hispanic communities adopting Dia de la Raza (“Day of the Race”) as an alternate celebration in order to commemorate the plurality and unique culture that developed as an outgrowth of the Age of Discovery.

The spirit of the holiday is not meant to be divisive but to be celebratory of  the history of how the New World was opened up to become the world’s melting pot.  We are all free and united today because of the courage of the many explorers that set out to settle in the Americas.  This is not about one man or one race; this is about how we, the free people of the Americas, were given the opportunity to build up our own societies.  Let us, at least for one day a year, come together as one people in remembrance of how we got where we are today.

Labor Day began as a day of celebration of labor organizations and of protest against unfair work conditions; however, today it is not much more than the unofficial end of summer.  Many countries have some sort of labor/workers celebration, but they are generally grounded in radical left-wing political agendas and often become violent.  The American holiday has become summer’s last stand, one last weekend to relax and enjoy before school or business begin to gear up.

I love the laid-back and celebratory feel that Labor Day now has, but I do want to challenge you to not forget why this holiday came to be.  Many people throughout history, and even today, work very hard to ensure that we can live life the way that we do – this day is for them, the hard-working people that quietly go about their business behind the scenes so that others can be free to live their American dream.

Everyone has gifts and talents; everyone has a place that God has prepared for them so that we can all be able to live up to our potential.  So celebrate the little things like waste management and electrical service.  Don’t take these things for granted, for we have been blessed to be able to have them.  And don’t forget the hard-working people who make our these things run; this day is for them.

So I was sitting in the “Holy Week Chapel” service here at school a couple days ago and found myself wondering why are the services around Easter so dry and formalized.  The concert band and the choir were up there performing, there were lengthy Scripture readings, and many of the students in the room were asleep.  Now I go to a Christian school, but not everybody on campus is a Christian.  Easter is about the resurrection of Christ and how He defeated sin and death to save us!  This is the whole point of the Gospel; if we can’t get this message across to unbelievers, then what hope do we have?  If there was one church service a year that didn’t put people to sleep it should be Easter Sunday!  Easter is to be the day that the Church comes together to celebrate what Jesus did for us through His death and resurrection, but instead it is all about candy and bonnets.

This blog is not merely a commentary, it is meant to challenge people, and this is your challenge for Easter –> CELEBRATE!!!  Be joyful, be happy, show the love of Christ!  Liturgical calendars list the seven weeks after “Easter Sunday” as “Easter Season,” which is supposed to be a time of celebration.   Enjoy Easter Sunday with family and friends, but do not lose that joy and excitement when you return to work or to school on Monday morning.  Remember the cross, and remember the resurrection!

“Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”

- 1 Peter 1:8-9