I have decided that I hope Pat Robertson never dies. He is such a fountain of insane misinformation. He is so good for material. Take for instance his recent comments on Halloween.
Let that sink in for a few seconds. Go ahead, watch it again. This time, just try to make sense out of his insane logic. Just try to wrap your head around it. I dare you. It's the same kind of logic Christian schools use, when they have a harvest festival instead of a Halloween party. Because Halloween is pagan and a harvest festival is Christian.
I'm not even sure where to start with this video. Let's start with this woman 's email. Yes, she is spoiling the fun for her kids. Her family is right. I wonder about the family dynamics. It appears she is "saved," but her family isn't. That must make for some fun at the dinner table on holidays.
But good old Patty Cakes. He is psychotic right out of the box. Halloween is a festival for demonic spirits and trick or treating started with Druids killing sheep? Goblins are real? Jack-O-Lanterns are demonic and Druid? Halloween is given over to Satanic things and should be turned into a Christian festival? It makes me wonder just what medications his doctor has him taking.
I Googled like mad trying to find some reference to Druids killing sheep and extorting money. Using those terms, I got lots of hits. For World of Warcraft, Warcraft III, Runescape, and a few other video games. Yes, I could only find references to that in video games, as far as Druids went. Now, I did find that on Saint Martin's Day, it was customary in Ireland to sacrifice a sheep if you could afford it, or a rooster if you were a peasant. Saint Martin's Day is November 11, which is close enough to Halloween that it could confuse old Pat. I'm actually astounded that he didn't try to convince his viewers that the sheep in question was a human. You know, part of Jesus's flock.
The fact is, Druids were the educated class. Some were priests, but most were doctors, lawyers, writers, etc. I can't imagine the village doctor knocking on your door and insisting you give him a treat, or he's going to kill your livestock. As far as the lawyers went, well, I will refrain from lawyer jokes. But Robertson is making the Druids out to be some sort of early Mafia.
As far as Halloween being a festival for demonic spirits, I can almost see where he got that idea. The door to the Otherworld was considered to be open on Samhain, the Celtic name for Halloween. The veil between the living and the dead is considered to be at it's thinnest. Modern pagans celebrate it as the pagan new year, based on the works of Sir John Rhys and James Frazer. But it has become a Christian holiday.
The Church actually changed the dates of All Saints Day and All Souls Day to correspond with the festivities of Samhain. Samhain became All Hallow's Eve, or as we call it, Halloween. All Saint's Day was also known as Hallowmas. So the word Halloween in itself is of Christian origin. It is an abbreviation. There is nothing Satanic about it. Except in the minds of those with evil imaginations and on the covers of heavy metal albums. And horror movies. How could I forget horror movies?
Yes, it does correspond with traditional days to honor the dead. It's not just Spanish countries that practice a Day of the Dead. A good portion of European Catholics visit graves and light candles for the dead at this time of year.
As far as trick or treating is concerned, there is a very Christian custom to go with that. Children would go from house to house on All Soul's Day and offer prayers and songs for the dead in return for soul cakes. It was believed that for every cake eaten, a soul was released from Purgatory. That custom is still around in Portugal, although they do it on All Saint's Day and they don't say, "trick or treat," when they knock on doors. They say, "Pão-por-Deus," which means, "bread for God." And yes, while they do get candy on that day, the traditional treat is an anise flavored cake. How much more Christian can you get?
Then there are costumes and masks. That is also rooted in Christianity. The idea was for costumes to be frightful, so the spirits of the dead would become confused, think you were dead and not come for you. Or something along those lines. Basically, the idea was to confuse the spirits of the dead, who were thought to be out roaming the land, looking for the living. So costumes and especially masks would shield you from the dead recognizing you. And if Pat Robertson is someone who believes all ghosts are demons, then he really should be endorsing the wearing of costumes and masks. Because then, the demons can't get you. Right? That would be logical? It would even give him an excuse to rant about slutty nun costumes and how women need to start dressing scary on Halloween. Right? Not in his demented mind. In his mind, costumes are Satanic.
So... Goblins. Really Pat? Goblins? Goblins weren't even invented until the 12th Century and had nothing at all to do with Druids. Next!
Jack-O-Lanterns are a bit harder. Their origins are lost in antiquity. The origins of the phrase doesn't even date back all that far. The use of them as decorations at Halloween doesn't even date back past the 19th century. They were originally lanterns made from turnips. Pumpkins were adopted when the Irish brought the custom to the United States, as they were far more plentiful than turnips. Irish folklorists over the years have made no mention of them as a part of a folk tradition. From what I can tell, they were popularized as Halloween props by Washington Irving, in "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." So, the use of carved, lit up gourds at Halloween does appear to be a modern custom, with nothing Satanic about it.
So, what have we learned today? Pat Robertson is way off base with Halloween being Satanic, demonic or anything of the sort. It is a holiday that is rooted deeply in Christian tradition. So, let your kids go get candy from the neighbors and don't worry that they're going to start worshiping Satan. If you must, remind them that if they were born a few hundred years ago, they'd have to offer prayers and songs for dead people they had never met. So just saying, "trick or treat," means they're getting off light. Just remember to check their candy, because while poisoned candy is a myth, pins and needles and bricks of marijuana in Snickers wrappers aren't, even if they are incredibly rare.
