Is it wrong to preach on All Saints Day?
Question:
Hello brother,
I have always been reading many articles on your sites, and it has really helped me as a preacher.
My question is this: Is it prohibited in the Scriptures for one to preach during All Saints Day (November 1)? There is a tradition of the unbelievers here in the Philippines that during November 1, the living go to the cemetery to light candles, offer food to the dead, and perform other practices to remember their departed loved ones. Since I am a preacher, I also came with my family, not to uphold their traditions, but to preach the truth about the uncertainty of life and its brevity. Now the problem is this: my fellow leaders in the church accused me of participating with the unbelievers and wanted me to confess in the congregation and ask for an apology for the misconduct. I don't believe that I violated any in the Word of God by preaching the truth to win my non-Christian family. I don't want to succumb to their childish belief.
Please enlighten me. Thank you.
Answer:
The first problem is that members of other congregations do not control you or the congregation you attend. They might choose to teach lessons about the topic. They might declare that they believe what you did is wrong. However, that is the limit of what they can do.
The second problem is that what you chose to do does not support the belief that spirits of the dead interact with the living. There is nothing wrong with remembering those who have left this world. However, we understand that they are gone. "So man lies down and does not rise. Until the heavens are no longer, he will not awake nor be aroused out of his sleep" (Job 14:12).
There is nothing wrong with keeping traditions that do not conflict with the teachings of the Lord. Paul taught that the Law of Moses had ended and that circumcision was no longer a requirement (Galatians 5:2). However, he had Timothy circumcised so that he could work among the Jews and be accepted (Acts 16:3). This was not a contradiction because it was a personal choice and not a requirement on others.
What you are dealing with are those who declare guilt because of association. See "Faulty Comparisons."
