Halloween is meant to be a holy occasion. The mere presence of the word hallow (as in “hallowed be Thy Name” in the Lord's Prayer) signifies holiness. But despite of this, people of this generation twisted Halloween and made it a gory and unholy event.
The Devil, he who hates anything holy, is behind all of this twisting of the traditionally holy feasts. He, through commercialism, destroyed Christmas and Valentines Day. The former became a full blown event of relentless buying and feasting and the removal of the Child born in Bethlehem as the reason for the season. The latter became an opportunity to trivialize sex by turning it into source of pleasure.
The Devil is crafty. He didn't attacked All Saint's Day directly. He used the greed of men and the lack of faith of many to create a twisted version of Halloween or All Hallows Eve. The result are Halloween parties where monsters and evil spirits are celebrated. God and all of His angels and His saints were ignored in their feast. It is as if a gatecrasher entered the party and then drove away the host.
The tide of the time is upon us and it will take a long time before it subsides. While we are in this age of twisted values, I guess it is well that we pray to the saints and ask for their intercession. Call upon them everyday and they will bring your worries to God.
As for me, here are the saints who I regularly ask for intercession:
Oh holy servants of God please pray for me; for my Beloved, for our families; for all of our love ones; for our friends; for our neighbors; for our country; for our Pope; for all the bishops, priests, and deacons; for all the religious and consecrated; for all Christians being persecuted; for the whole Church; and for those who oppose the Lord and those who do not know Him.
Through their intercession, may the Good Lord hear and answer our humble prayers...
ReplyDeleteAMEN!
DeleteAnd the celebration of Halloween had been more commercialized and had been an awaited day by children but a sad reality of how it was twisted.
ReplyDeleteTama ka. Parang lahat na lang ngayon ay pera pera na lang. Pati yung mga sacred things at events ay ginagawaan ng paraan para maging negosyo. :-(
DeleteMay advertisement ang Thailand for visitors not to buy Religious artifacts as souvenirs or decors for they are used in religion. Hindi ko lang alam kung effective yung campaign since marami pa ring artworks na may Buddha design.
ReplyDeleteNakapanood ako ng advertisement ng isang grupo or society ng mga Buddhists na tutol sa pagbebenta ng mga relics at religious items na importante sa Buddhism. Sa bus ko nakita yun and Iagree with them.
DeleteKaso maraming tourist na ang habol ay makabili ng mga bawal na itams kasi nga yun ang kanilang souvenirs. Marami namang Thai ang eager na magbenta.