Fundie theocratic wingnut Pat Robertson is known for spouting all sorts of inane idiocy--as has been well-documented for years--but the latest lunacy from his Christian Broadcasting Network neck of the Bible backwoods is from the pen of Kimberly Daniels: "The Danger of Celebrating Halloween."
If this holiday is hallowed, whose service is it set apart for? The answer to that question is very easy--Lucifer's! [...] I do not buy candy during the Halloween season. Curses are sent through the tricks and treats of the innocent whether they get it by going door to door or by purchasing it from the local grocery store. The demons cannot tell the difference.
Hang on, it gets worse when she complains about bonfires:
Halloween is much more than a holiday filled with fun and tricks or treats. It is a time for the gathering of evil that masquerades behind the fictitious characters of Dracula, werewolves, mummies and witches on brooms. The truth is that these demons that have been presented as scary cartoons actually exist. I have prayed for witches who are addicted to drinking blood and howling at the moon.While the lukewarm and ignorant think of these customs as "just harmless fun," the vortexes of hell are releasing new assignments against souls. [...]
If you or your family members have opened the door to any curses that are released during the demonic fall festivals, renounce them and repent. I already have. Then declare with me: "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!"
Thanks to Les at Stupid Evil Bastard for noting that, while the article has disappeared from Pat Robertson's CBN website, it's still online here. Sometimes it's best to see full, unadulterated craziness in its natural habitat, and SEB gives a delightful tour of fundie wingnuttery:
Mrs. Daniels is engaging in the age old Christian tradition of painting the Pagans as being Satanists, which just isn't true in the slightest. I'm sure Mrs. Daniels would be more than offended if a pagan were to portray her religion as a sick zombie worshiping death-cult (which, depending on how you look at it, is a fair description) yet she has no problems portraying the pagans as evil people intent on unleashing demonic forces on unwitting Christians. Hypocrisy is not a value I remember Jesus endorsing.
He also takes aim at Daniels "cranking the crazy knob all the way up to 11" by making claims of blood-drinking witches, human/animal orgies, sacrificing babies, and having sex with demons:
It should come as no surprise that Mrs. Daniels offers absolutely nothing in the way of evidence to back up any of those claims. It's just more bullshit she made up to paint the holiday and pagans in a bad light. I'd love for her or one of her followers to show me anything that remotely supports the claims she's making here. They can't because it doesn't happen.[...]
The real evil here is being committed by Mrs. Daniels who sees nothing wrong with spreading lies and demonizing another religion's beliefs to score points with her fellow believers. If she really believes the nonsense she's spewing then she's arguably crazy. If she doesn't then she's classically wicked. Sadly, she's hardly alone in her approach.
Celebrate Samhain, or Halloween, or whatever other holiday you prefer--but you might want to steer clear of any cretins ranting about Lucifer's lollipops and Satan's sweets.