The Day of the Reformation

There is an old holiday in the church, which is no longer celebrated; that is the Day of the Reform. This is the anniversary of the day in which Martin Luther, a Roman Catholic priest, nailed his 95 thesis to the door of the All Saints’ Church in Wittenberg, Germany, in 1517, beginning the Protestant Reformation.

All of us who claim Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior owe much to Martin Luther. Although he wasn’t the only one to take a stand for salvation by faith and that alone, he was the one who made the strongest and most effective stand. It is through his writing and teaching that the concept of freedom of religion first gained a foothold in the world. It was also through is work that the Roman Catholic Church began to lose its political stranglehold on Europe.

Sadly, few Christians today know any more about Martin Luther than his name, and that he started the Protestant Reformation. Even more sadly, the Day of the Reform, which was October 31^st, has been lost as a celebration; covered up by the celebration of Halloween.

Personally, I don’t agree with the celebration of Halloween. Although most people see it as nothing more than a fun time for kids, the roots of this day are buried in the Druids of Western Europe. Many of the customs of Halloween, specifically the jack-o-lantern and giving of food (candy) to people who knock on the door in costumes, came from their desire to ward off attacks by demons.

It is significant to note that both Satanists and witches consider this night their highest holy day. Why would the average person want to celebrate a day that is a celebration of witches and Satanists? I cannot guess.

However, because of this “worldly” celebration of Halloween, the church has been suckered in. Many churches have “Halleluiah Night” parties for the children, in order to keep them away from Halloween celebrations. In these parties, the children dress up in costumes, play games, and get candy, much like what everyone else is doing, just under a different name. I don’t know about you, but to me, if it looks like a duck, and smells like it duck, and quacks like a duck, it must be a duck.

It is time for a new reformation in the church; one in which we quit following worldly traditions; quit trying to make our messages “seeker friendly” (the Bible calls that “tickling the ears”); and quit trying to use God to get what we want. This reformation would have to be a reformation of personal holiness.

One of the things that Martin Luther said was that we needed to get back to the Bible. I think those words are as applicable today as they were almost 500 years ago. Let us, the church of today, get back to the Bible, and see what God has to say to us.