October 31

What is tomorrow?  Halloween!

I asked this question often today and always got the same answer!  Ugh!

Yes, Halloween is a valid answer but it is such a poor answer.

Why poor?  Because it fails to note things far more important than candy, costumes and fun.

More important?  First, it is the eve before Halos Day.  It is Halo’s Eve!

[a Halo – a disk or circle of light shown surrounding or above the head of a saint or holy person to represent their holiness, dictionary).

It is halo’s eve (Halloween), which means it is the day before a day declared special by the Catholic Church to ponder on and give recognition to people they have declared as saints.

A Catholic saint is: “people who have given everything for the love of God and neighbor, have been tried in the fires of persecution and have made choices throughout their lives that were in union with the holy will of God. These holy men and women are the canonized Catholic saints of the Roman Catholic Church.” myCatholic.life

“… In Roman Catholic theology… there are some people who have lived such exemplary lives that the Church is confident of their eternal destiny and so “canonizes” them—officially recognizes them as saints. According to Catholic doctrine, these saints not only have enough righteousness for themselves, but they have excess righteousness that can be used to make up some of the deficiencies of their fellow human beings.”  gotquestions.com

How we define a saint:  “…scripturally speaking, the “saints” are the body of Christ, Christians, the church. All Christians are considered saints.”  gotquestions.com

So, we don’t note those the Catholic church say are saints or believe they have special powers, but there have certainly been men and women over the centuries who have blazed trails and are worthy of honor.  We should pause to learn of men like Polycarp or Anselm or Hus or Zwingli to learn what they did that should bless us still today.  So, make November 1st a day to study someone greatly used of God to touch people with the eternal gospel of Jesus.

An event of huge significance happened on Oct. 31, 1517 that changed the world!  Martin Luther posted his 95 issues, concerns and/or challenges to the Catholic Church on the Wittenberg church door.  That marked him as a heretic for which he was called to trial and given the opportunity to recant his teachings, which he did not (Worms in 1521).  The king had Luther captured and held in his castle for a year during which time Luther translated the New Testament into the German language.  Now the common man had status, empowerment and hope.  With such enlightenment, the revolution from darkness to light, from oppression to privilege, and from poverty to well-being was on.

If you are a secularist, the greatest man of the past millennium (last 1,000 years) is most likely Johannes Gutenberg who in 1455 invented the moveable type printing press and the world of communication between nations and ages was on.  The second most important person is, or should be, Martin Luther for he more than any other flipped the switch that began the modern age.  If you are a Christian, Martin Luther should be your #1 person of the last millennium.

It was Luther’s grasping of Habakkuk 2:4 – the just shall live by faith – that ignited his mind, captured his heart, and moved his will for that which lit the fuse of the Reformation.

Tomorrow is October 31st.  It is the birthday of the Reformation.  It is the “shot heard around the world.”  Are you hearing it?  Do you realize how big that event was?  Is?  Are you thankful?  Are you talking about Luther?  Reformation?  Saints?

I sure hope you are not talking up Halloween – that event that does not promote faith in God, light, Godly people of the past or taking Godly stands.  October 31st is HUGE in history – in life!