Three Things Jesus Would Be For Halloween This Year

Last updated on: February 17, 2019 at 9:17 am by Benjamin L. Corey

Three Things Jesus Would Be For Halloween This Year 2019-02-17T09:17:02-05:00 Benjamin L. Corey

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

It’s almost Halloween, and as we know, Christians have some mixed feelings on this. The other day I wrote that as Christians, we should welcome any opportunity to inject beauty into the world, and Halloween is one of those opportunities. In fact, I think it’s actually a huge opportunity the people of Jesus would do well to not ignore.

Of course, Halloween always begs the question, “What will you be this year?”

That’s a worthwhile question if you ask me.

My 13 year old is going as Supergirl, and I’ve been helping her with her costume. Growing up our costumes were often made from whatever you could find around the house. Want to be Superman? Great- here’s your Underoos t-shirt, and you can use the red bath towel and a safety pin to make your cape. (Please tell me I’m not the only one who can remember Underoos!)

I didn’t want my daughter to have to feel silly with a red bath towel for a cape, so we did her costume right.

Yet, as I was working on part of her costume I started to wonder: What would Jesus be for Halloween?

As an actual spiritual practice I often try to consider the Jesus we find in the New Testament, and wonder how he might engage modern culture– culture that in many ways is radically different than the culture he lived in. Pondering this question for a few days led me to three things I think Jesus would be for Halloween this year:

1. Jesus Would Be Welcoming.

I remember trick or treating as a kid and being able to safely assume that every house was welcoming and ready to have you knock on their door. Today? Not so much. One has to look to see if they left the outside light on, one must look for decorations or some other hint that it’s okay to walk up to their house and ring the doorbell; one can no longer assume that you’re automatically welcome.

Well, that’s not how Jesus would live. Jesus lived a life that was radically welcoming; in fact, he faced near-constant criticism from the religious elite because he even welcomed the people he wasn’t supposed to welcome. If Jesus were to be living in our culture, I think it’s safe to imagine that his house would be the most welcoming house on the entire block. Sure, he’d leave the porch light on, but everyone who had lived in the neighborhood more than a day or two would know that you’re always welcome to drop by Jesus’s house— even if you’re dressed as a ghost or goblin.

2. Jesus Would Be Radically Hospitable.

If Jesus lived in your neighborhood, even the people who hadn’t met him yet would have heard about him because he’d have a reputation for radical hospitality. He wouldn’t leave the candy in a bucket on the doorstep, and he wouldn’t be one of those folks who just drop a piece of candy in your bag and softly mumble “have a nice night.” Instead, Jesus would make sure that your encounter with him– however short– would have you walking away feeling cheerful and good about yourself.

Such love is in fact, what hospitality actually means. The word actually comes from the Greek word φιλό, meaning brotherly love, and ξενος, meaning strangers. Thus, Jesus would be the guy on your block ready to love strangers like they were his own brother, and he’d find a way to make them feel loved even in a 15 second encounter on the doorstep.

3. Jesus Would Be Generous.

I’ve never heard of anyone more generous than Jesus. He freely set aside his heavenly throne to enter humanity– not to be served, but to do the serving. He ultimately hung on a cross, willingly– a cross that didn’t belong to him. He sets the standard for generosity.

If Jesus lived in your neighborhood, we’d see his radical generosity play out in modern ways. At a minimum, I think it’s a safe bet that Jesus wouldn’t be buying a bag of dum dum lollipops and being the single dude who gives every kid just one; Jesus’s house is where all the kids would go because they’d know he gave out full size candy bars. Name brand ones too! We live in a world where we often don’t even know our neighbors, but Halloween is a night they all come to you. I think Jesus would capitalize on this chance to demonstrate generosity to those around him.

…

Instead of running from culture and hiding, Jesus was someone who worked within his culture to love others. If he lived in our culture during Halloween? Well, I’m convinced that Jesus would take the opportunity to be welcoming, hospitable, and generous– cause that’s just how Jesus is.

Yes, for Halloween my daughter is going to be Supergirl.

But me?

Well, this year I’m going to try to be Jesus.

What about you? What will you be?

Christian Culture

Halloween

jesus

Previous Post

October 27, 2015

Sarah Palin, Our Source For What The Bible "Really" Teaches On Violence?

Next Post

November 5, 2015 5 Reasons Why I'm A Christian Who Stopped Supporting Israel

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Abuse Adoption Asked & Answered Atheism Atonement Bible Book Calvinism Christian Culture Christian Nonviolence Christmas Church Church Killing Lies Community Creation Care Creationism End Times Evergreen Forgiveness Fundamentalism Gender Gender Equality Ghosting Grief Guns Healthcare Hell Hermeneutics Holy Land Human Trafficking Hunger Immigration Islam Israel Jesus Justice Lent Letting Go Of Hell Series LGBT Life Mark Driscoll Missiology Most Popular Posts Nationalism Old Testament Open Theism Parenting Persecution Political Poverty Prayer Pro-Life Pro-llife ethic Progressive Christianity Prosperity Gospel Put It To Bed Series Race Sincere Questions Suicide Prevention That God Show Theology To Those Christians Who Say Travel Unafraid Uncategorized War What Franklin Graham Is Wrong About Today

Select a Month October 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz