Reflection for 10/31/17

Today much of the world is celebrating All Hallow’s Eve, or Halloween.  Halloween, in it’s Christian origins, is simply the eve before All Soul’s Day; however, as a society, we have turned it into some sort of celebration of the dead.  Now, some people would argue that Halloween is unChristian and therefore a bad thing.  But I would argue that Halloween, in it’s true form, is simply a natural outgrowth of the Gospels.

 

St. Paul tells us in today’s first reading, “We know that all creation is groaning in labor pains even until now; and not only that, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, we also groan within ourselves as we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.”  All of Creation, that is the very ground we walk on, the plants we smell, the birds that chirp, the dogs that bark, everything in God’s creation yearns for that day when it will be re-created in the love of God.  But in order for this day to come, heaven and earth must pass away, or another way to look at it is, we all must pass from this life to the next.  Halloween, in it’s truest form, is the celebration of that day when we are born into eternity.  We do not fear death, we embrace death as Christian because death is the prerequisite for eternity.

 

It is a common principle of the saints that we are to “keep death always before our eyes.”  Imagine if we lived every moment of every day constantly concerned with our immortal souls and the path on which we are headed?  Would not this world be a better place?  Halloween is a holiday on which society recognizes that we will die one day, but let us not stop there, as Christians we should take this recognition a step further as reflect on the question, “Where will I end up?”  “Where am I headed?”

 

Things like ghosts and goblins and demons are a perversion of the Christian origins of Halloween, so let us reclaim our heritage.  Let us reflect on the fleeting nature of this world, and let us long for that day when we will gain a heavenly birthday like all the saints who have gone before us.  “Keep death always before your eyes,” so that you might never grow weary of doing what is necessary for eternal salvation.