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.

*

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.

*

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.

*

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.

Who can forget 9/11, our generation’s Pearl Harbor?  The world watched in horror as terrorists flew hijacked planes into the World Trade Center Towers, the Pentagon, and southwest Pennsylvania.  Thousands of innocent people died that day as time stood still.  There was an outpouring of unity and support that followed the attacks, even people from other countries stood by the shell-shocked United States.  Churches were also packed that following Sunday as people sought to find out why it all happened.  It is unfortunate that it takes such disasters to bring people together.  Soon afterward, the War on Terror would be declared, a war that we still fight today, a war who’s enemy hides among the everyday people.  The War on Terror is a war against a concept, not a country.  Only God knows what our grandchildren will read in their history textbooks.

Patriot Day is the day of prayer and remembrance for the lives that were lost during the 9/11 terrorist attacks.  This hits home for me; my uncle was supposed to be in New York City that morning, but had a sudden medical issue that kept him from entering the city.  His meeting was to be in a building that was only a block away from Ground Zero.  Patriot Day was almost the day of prayer and remembrance for my uncle, but instead it is a day of prayer and thankfulness.  Unfortunately, thousands of other families were not as lucky, so please stop and pray for them today, and be thankful that no matter how bleak life seems, God is ultimately in control.

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.