Vanilla, I hate to say this, but if I have kids and I take them trick-or-treating and someone in the neighborhood tries to hand them a tract, I’d kindly ask them to NOT prosletyze to my children, and ask them how they’d feel if I gave their kids pamphlets about other religions when they came to my door. I believe that going out of your way to change someone else’s beliefs is wrong, no matter who does it.
You get the prize for Best Costume. Early. All for that lovely pun.
Oh you may have misunderstood.
I never gave tracts to trick or treaters, my son (who wanted to do it) gave tracts (not Chick ones) to the people who gave US candy.
A different thing.
Yes, I know they were being polite.
Keep up the good work.
You should give out Catholic tracts. They’re neat-or prayer cards. Pretty paintings of Saints with prayers on the back-usually for funerals. My dad has a bunch.
When I was little, I had one with Our Lady of Lourdes.
I’m sorry to hear that you’ve been sick, CJ. Hope it’s nothing serious. As to the tracts, I don’t do that now because we don’t turn our light on for trick or treaters. But I see nothing wrong with it. It’s just a way to share the gospel, that’s all. It doesn’t have to be trick or treaters, you could give them to anyone who comes to your door to sell you something or whatever. If I was given one as a child (maybe I was given one, I just don’t remember), I don’t know how I would’ve reacted. Probably would have got me to thinking about the Lord and being right with Him. Some of the kids may already go to a church, true, but do they know Christ as their Savior? You can go to church without being saved. But it depends on the age of the child if they can understand the tract or not. If they can’t, perhaps the parents will read it and be reached or at least have something to think about. IMHO anyway. I just don’t see what’s wrong with using tracts to try to reach people with the gospel, that’s all.
Well, I’ll stop my 2 cents worth now. Hope you get to feeling better soon, CJ.
His4ever, if you do hand out Chick tracts, and if I were a parent, I’d do what I said previously in this thread. Those things are evil and UnChristian.
His4Ever, it’s not a way to share the Gospel. It is, in my opinion, a way to share cruelty, hatred, and fear.
Also, please tell me I read this wrong:
Why do you have the temerity to assume that not all those who go to church are not Christian or have not accepted Christ as their Saviour? Are you God? Can you see their inmost hearts? Then how can you make this statement?
Sorry, lass, I’m with Guinastasia on this one. I would not be happy if my child came home with a tract by Jack Chick. At best, I’d probably condemn it to the pyres of a backyard bonfire (or trash can as the case may be). At worst, I would speak with the person who handed my child the pamphlet, explain my religious views, and suggest to my child that he or she never go to that house again.
CJ
Either that, or if my child was old enough, I’d use it to illustrate what the Bible talks about when it mentions “false witnessing”, and that some people who claim to be Christian are merely wolves in sheeps’ clothing.
Actually, His4Ever, if you, your husband, or your church are determined to hand out some kind of Christian literature and/or spread the Gospel at Halloween, why not use actual scripture? I still have a small book containing the New Testament and Psalms (King James Version, no less) which was given to me at some point in my childhood, along with a book which contains only the psalms. There’s also a company which makes “Testamints”, which are a verse from Scripture wrapped around a mint. Their website says they do fundraising. This way, instead of spreading one man’s controversial interpretation of the Word, you’d be spreading the Word itself. Also, I think this approach would be a lot less likely to annoy people. End result: kids get candy, gospel gets spread, and I use yesterday’s newspaper to light the bonfire instead.
CJ
Originally posted by His4ever:
Excellent point; I agree with it, but I wonder if you really mean it. Do you mind if I give your children little comic books depicting how loving, caring atheists win out over evil, hate-filled, sadistic, wart-faced, leering Christians? (In case you’re not familiar with Jack Chick tracts, they’re at least that ridiculous in their propaganda and stereotyping, only they’re pro-Christian; that’s the level of crap children are being subjected to.)
Not only is she familiar with Chick tracts, but she regards Chick in high esteem. :smack:
My kids brought home (after trick-or-treating), a Chick tract wrapped around a Hershey Bar. I asked where they got it at, and when they told me, I almost fell over!! The woman who gave it to them sits on her porch all day, smoking her cigarettes, using foul language, talking to her boyfriend with whom she lives (unmarried) and has a child. Her daughter (8 years old) told my 11-year old daughter that she (my daughter) is going to hell, because we are not Christian!!! I didn’t seek out the little girl, but the next time I saw her I told her we may not be Christian but we pray to the same God she does. She looked shocked. Clearly this was never covered in the course of whatever misguided propaganda her loud-mouth mom is teaching her!
Chick tracts? I find them rather entertaining, to echo a common sentiment in this thread.
It’s kinda dramatized by now, much like a soap opera; we have the cast of recurring characters as follows:
-The aforementioned faceless caricature of God on the throne
-The asexual Angel of Death (he–er, she, um…They remind me of John Dye’s interpretation of the Angel of Death, moreso in the first few seasons, when they had a hairstyle in common…perhaps the casting director drew inspiration from that “ever-popular” This Was Your Life tract?)
-The ever-present Satan, who seems well groomed in contrast to his demons, despite sharing the workload…I guess Jack Chick doesn’t like facial hair…
-Add the usual cast of innocent or evil children (your choice), the “good” ones lacking any sense of humor whatsoever.
There are a host of extras and background players that are too numerous to mention; however, it is better that way in that they could fit into any of the roles listed above.
I think it’s damned devious to put a damper on kids spirits by handing out this crap. Another thing: I’m white myself, but do you ever see other nationalities portrayed other than white Anglo-Saxon? Gives me a clue about Mr.Chick.
And, here I am reading “The Little Princess” by J.T.C. when what do I see but an advertisement for his own tracts? In the 13th or 14th panel, close examination reveals a booklet with a black cover with an illustration being dropped in the trick-or-treat bag. A Chick tract design! Self-serving bastard. Were sales flagging THAT bad? Well, at least it’s one of his lesser depressing stories…We find out that the Angel of Death has muscles in their face…
I wish ol’ J.T.C. would draw St. Peter so I would know what he looked like…:rolleyes:
So people send their kids to other people’s houses to beg for candy, and then complain that they were given a religious comic book? Amazing. Yes, I’ve read plenty of Chick tracts, I have the same opinion of them that most here have. But if you’re going to go around begging for gifts all night, you take the gifts as offered from those kindly enough to give them, or you decline.
Every responsible parent looks through his son or daughter’s treat bag before they are allowed to eat the candy, that’s the only safe thing to do. If you spot a tract in there, you can take it and throw it away. Next year, you can tell your kid to decline such offerings. But don’t get all pissy about the person who put it in there, nobody force-marched your kid up to their doorstep begging.
Of course, if you do plan on ruining Halloween for the kids, but sure to check out these tips first.
Of course, it doesn’t have to be Chick tracts. CJ listed some good examples. Just something to share the gospel along with the candy. Baldwin, If I had children and they brought home literature, I’d look at it and if it didn’t agree with what I believed to be true, I would throw it away and tell my children why. I happen to like Chick tracts but that’s just me. Also, I don’t consider Christians, at least true Christians to be evil, hate-filled, sadistic, wart faced, etc. I just see nothing wrong with taking the opportunity to use Halloween to share the gospel with kids, whatever type of tract you use. As I said doesn’t have to be Chick.
I am not assuming anything about anybody, **CJ[/b}. I simple said that a person can go to church and not be saved. You’re right that only God knows a person’s heart. But being a churchgoer doesn’t save anyone. That’s simply all I’m saying. The Bible doesn’t say “go to church and you will be saved.” That’s simply all I’m pointing out.
My own opinion (other than the one I’ve already stated above) is that there’s more to life than religion.
Robin
If your kids are going as M&Ms, why don’t you go as a bag. Like a big brown plastic bag (with M&Ms on the side).
…Well, that’s what I would do anyway…