Halloween Warning

I am Catholic. But some of the churches policies are baffling to me. The newest pope, Pope Benedict is the most conservative pope we have had in more than 50 years. It almost appears that he believes the church is still the powerful Medieval force it once was, and that the worshippers still believe in Medieval ideology.

The latest crazy Catholic Church pronouncement came the day before Halloween. In it the Vatican warned parents not to let their kids dress up as ghosts and goblins for Halloween, calling it a pagan celebration of "terror, fear and death". The Vatican issued its warning through its official newspaper, L' Osservatore Tomanao, in an article headlined "Halloween's Dangerous Messages."How out of touch is that! Halloween dangerous? Maybe they think the candy given to kids is the apple from the Garden of Eden. Does the church really think we celebrate Halloween in its original/historical form..as a pagan worship? Doesn't the church realize it is a non religious fun day for kids and adults, and that there is no sacrilege involved? Strangely too, the Pope's warning about "evil" Halloween targeted small children who have no concept of Halloween other than trick or treat, Halloween parties and foods and making or carving pumpkins and other innocent Halloween activities....Parents should "be aware of this and try to direct the meaning of the feast towards wholesomeness and beauty rather than terror, fear and death," it said.

The church should not take itself so seriously. I doubt that anyone puts any religious connotation into Halloween anymore. Except the Vatican. But then the Catholic Church still pretends to live in those Medieval days when worshippers who dared defy the church were tortured or condemned to hell. Curious how out of touch the Vatican is even with it's own churches and organizations. When I was a child, the local Catholic school celebrated Halloween. I bet they did on Halloween too. At least that's what I observe here in the New Orleans area. Many Catholic schools and organizations even have Halloween dances and parties for kids or adults.

Perhaps the church should concentrate on some of the evil within itself- the financial and sexual scandals in the church , for instance. Or perhaps deal with the spiritual lives of its followers, followers who are confused about what the Catholic Church is and want a clear definition from the vatican of it. Why doesn't the Roman Catholic Church take a good look at itself? It scares me a lot more than kids knocking on my door with goblin suits on.