A Strange Juxtaposition

Some of the families in my neighborhood just can't wait to put up lights and ornamentation for Christmas, so they've begun to precede that season with Halloween décor. I was surprised this morning when I drove by a yard with little white skulls outlining the porch and sidewalk—and a cross, probably four feet high, with lights! "What in the world is this?" I wondered.

A make-believe cemetery? But the little skulls were not in rows as you might expect.

A nod to faith? "We don't really believe in all this spooky stuff."

A safe place to trick-or-treat? "You can trust us; we wouldn't hurt you here."

A lesson in contrasts? Big cross, little skulls and big life, little death.

It's not like I can ask, so I'll never know unless they put up some additional signage. But it started me thinking about the role of this celebration in American life. Thankfully, we have moved for the most part past "tricks" to simple "treating," since in my own childhood I heard tales about outhouse tipping, soaping windows, and re-assembling a vehicle on top of some hapless farmer's barn. These pranks had no connection, as far as I know, with treats; they just stemmed from general orneriness.

You may ascribe negative significance to Halloween, observe the Christian traditions of All Saints' Day or Reformation Day, join in the fun of a fall celebration, or just ignore the whole thing. As for me, when I drive by my neighbor's yard with its skulls and the cross, I'm going to think of something like this—"What we believe is this: If we get included in Christ's sin-conquering death, we also get included in his life-saving resurrection. We know that when Jesus was raised from the dead it was a signal of the end of death-as-the-end. Never again will death have the last word." (Romans 6:5, 6)

MaryMartha

Scripture taken from The Message. Copyright © 2003 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.