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What is Mardi Gras? Should Christians celebrate Mardi Gras (Shrove Tuesday)?

by United Church of God 4 comments Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Mardi Gras literally means "Fat Tuesday" in French (called Pancake Tuesday in England) and is associated with the Roman Catholic custom of Lent. But is it taught in the Bible? Would God want Christians to celebrate it?

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In places like New Orleans, the period of merrymaking with fancy balls and parades goes on for weeks leading up to Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday).

The idea behind Mardi Gras or carnival celebrations is that people overindulge before giving up something for Lent, which begins the following day with Ash Wednesday. (Lent is the 40 weekdays from Ash Wednesday to Easter observed by the Roman Catholic, Eastern and some Protestant churches as a period of penitence and fasting.)

The idea of partying before repenting seems to be to get as much revelry and additional sin out of the way before you decide to do anything about it. But that attitude doesn’t show a belief that God’s way is really right and that sin is really wrong.

Note the following encyclopedia article excerpt:
“Some scholars have noted similarities between modern Mardi Gras celebrations and Lupercalia, a fertility festival held each February in ancient Rome. However, modern Carnival traditions developed in Europe during the Middle Ages (5th century to the 15th century) as part of the ritual calendar of the Roman Catholic Church.
“Today pre-Lenten Carnivals are celebrated predominantly in Roman Catholic communities in Europe and the Americas. Cities famous for their celebrations include Nice, France; Cologne, Germany; and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. New Orleans, Louisiana, holds the most famous Mardi Gras celebration in the United States. Residents of New Orleans have been celebrating Mardi Gras since the 18th century” (“Mardi Gras,” Encarta).
Mardi Gras “ is a lively, colorful [not to mention bawdy and debased] celebration held on Shrove Tuesday, the day before Lent begins ,” says the World Book Encyclopedia. It “ goes back to an ancient Roman custom of merrymaking before a period of fast. ” In places like New Orleans, the period of merrymaking with fancy balls and parades goes on for weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday itself.
It has been suggested by some scholars that the pagan practice of “weeping for Tammuz” that Ezekiel decried (Ezekiel 8:14) was the actual origin of Lent. Tammuz was a pagan god associated with death and rebirth in nature and the husband of the goddess Ishtar (See the Bible commentary on Ezekiel 8 for details. )
The idea of partying before repenting seems to be to get as much revelry and additional sin out of the way before you decide to do anything about it. But that attitude doesn’t show a belief that God’s way is really right and that sin is really wrong, harmful and something to be avoided because it wars against us (1 Peter 2:11) and is contrary to God’s instruction (Romans 13:13-14). It doesn’t show the 100 percent commitment that God wants (Romans 12:1-2).
God says we should always live holy lives and obey His laws because they are good for us (Deuteronomy 10:12-13). Satan is the one who wants us to think that doing wrong things is fun, and his deception has been quite successful (Revelation 12:9; 1 John 2:16).
Neither Mardi Gras nor Lent are commanded in the Bible but come from pre-Christian, pagan customs. What does God think about such pagan customs?
“When the Lord your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess…do not inquire after their gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.’ You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way; for every abomination to the Lord which He hates they have done to their gods… Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it” (Deuteronomy 12:29-32).
The New Testament continues this theme. The apostle Paul addressed the issue of whether outside religious customs and practices had any place among Christians:
“What fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: ‘I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.’
“Therefore ‘Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.’ Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (2 Corinthians 6:14–18; 2 Corinthians 7:1).
Instead of renaming some of the pagan customs as Christian or allowing the new converts to retain some of their former practices, Paul commanded them to leave behind all of these forms of worship.
Mardi Gras celebrations have nothing to do with God’s commanded Holy Days. On the contrary, they are part of the system from which God’s people should separate themselves.
For more information, please read our booklet “Holidays or Holy Days: Does It Matter Which Days We Observe? “

Mardi Gras God's Holy Days or Man's Holidays?

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3 Bible Tips on Avoiding Pornography and Lust

1. Looking with lust is mental adultery.
"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell" (Matthew 5:27-29).
Jesus used hyperbole here to make a strong point: if the only way to avoid lust were to pluck out an eye, that would be better than eternal death. Thankfully that's not the only way!
2. Like all sins, the best way to avoid pornography is to avoid the source. Block such sites on your computer, etc.
"Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body" (1 Corinthians 6:18).
3. God's Spirit can give us help to avoid giving in to lust.
"I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh" (Galatians 5:16).
For more on avoiding pornography, see Pornography: Definitely Not for Adults.

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Does the Bible forbid women from wearing pants?

What does the biblical statute about a woman not wearing anything that pertains to a man mean today?

Answer: Deuteronomy:22:5The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman's garment: for all that do so are abomination unto the LORD thy God. says: "A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman's garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the Lord your God." Like many of the statutes, this law had to do with pagan customs of the time, and as we will see, does not refer to women wearing pants. The Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary explains:
"Disguises were assumed at certain times in pagan temples. Maimonides...mentions that a man attired in a coloured female dress, in honour of Venus, Ashtaroth, or Astarte, and a woman equipped in armour, worshipped at the shrine of the statue of Mars...
"Asiatics, when they engaged in the worship of Ashtaroth, were accustomed, according to Philocorus, quoted by Townley (in his edition of Maimonides, note 33), to exchange the male and female dresses. In fact, all idolators confounded the sexes of their deities—representing them sometimes as male, at other times as female; and hence, their worshippers, male and female, fell gradually into the custom, which became extensively prevalent, of changing their attire in adaptation to the sex of a particular divinity."
God's command to Israel forbade the people from incorporating pagan religious rites into true worship. In spite of this instruction, today's Christianity commonly mixes paganism in with the worship of Christ.
Does Deuteronomy:22:5The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman's garment: for all that do so are abomination unto the LORD thy God. forbid women from wearing pants? No, it doesn't. In fact, even men in the Middle East through the history of the Old and New Testaments did not wear pants; they wore a robelike garment. However, there is an underlying principle that applies today. Men should dress in an appropriately masculine manner and women should dress in an appropriately feminine manner. Clothing manufacturers make pants designed for men and pants designed for women.
For more insight, please read our article The Modesty Question: How Far is Too Far?

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The Gay Agenda: Coming to a School Near You

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article by Tom Robinson

Fox News radio commentator Todd Starnes observes in his new book God Less America that those in "the militant gay rights community . . . not only expect you to accept their lifestyle, but they also want you to affirm it. They want your children exposed to it in their public school classrooms. They want private business owners to endorse their court-sanctioned 'marriages.' And woe be to any person who dares object" (2014, p. 64).

In 2007 a Massachusetts federal judge ruled that the gay agenda must be taught in public school, "ordering that it is reasonable, indeed there is an obligation, for public schools to teach young children to accept and endorse homosexuality" (Bob Unruh, "Judge Orders 'Gay' Agenda Taught to Christian Children," WND.com, Feb. 24, 2007).
And it's happening: "An elementary school in Oakland, California, topped off its school year with a 'Pride Day' celebrating all types of families, including those in which the parents consider themselves to be lesbian, 'gay' bisexual, transgender or queer," complete with indoctrinating lectures, videos and a sing-along (Leo Hohmann, "5-Year Olds Taught to Celebrate 'Queer Pride," WND, June 16, 2014).
Again, it's not only in America. LifeSiteNews reports on Scotland: "While Scottish government draft guidelines currently allow teachers with moral objections to opt-out of certain aspects of the country's new sex-ed curriculum [such as teaching about gay marriage], several National Health Service boards have objected to the opt-out clause. They are also objecting to provisions allowing parents to opt their children out of the classes . . .
"Another NHS board warned against allowing parents too much influence over children, saying that the decision about whether to attend the classes should be left up to the students, even if their parents object" (Hilary White, "Teachers Cannot Opt Out of Teaching Gay 'Marriage' in School Sex-Ed Classes: Scottish NHS," May 15, 2014, emphasis added throughout).
It's truly disturbing to read a recent report from the pro-family organization MassResistance titled "'GLBT' Teachers Conference in Boston Reveals Latest Plans to Push Homosexuality Even Further Into Schools. Well Organized, Fueled With Taxpayer Dollars" (May 13, 2014).
The report states: "GLSEN (Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network) is the nation's largest homosexual and transgender activist organization working inside schools in all 50 states. It has set up 'gay straight alliance' student clubs (GSAs) inside thousands of high schools (and even some middle schools) across the country.
"GLSEN pushes a wide range of psychologically penetrating homosexual and transgender programs and activities into the schools . . . It also directly organizes and trains teachers to integrate their techniques throughout the curriculum . . .
"In 2000, the Boston-area GLSEN Conference gained national outrage when MassResistance (then known as Parents' Rights Coalition) exposed the sickening . . . workshop which involved adults teaching young kids explicit sex acts."
In this workshop students as young as 12 were given graphic instruction in homosexual sex acts by state employees. The Massachusetts Legislature, along with several U.S. corporations, continues to support the organization.
Some of the 2014 conference workshops for training teachers, administrators and activist students included how to start a "gay-straight alliance" in middle schools (for students aged 10-14!) and "Queering the Classroom" to provide "a safe environment for GLBTQ youth" and "a more comfortable, creative environment for all students."
For those concerned about their children, it's highly disturbing to see a picture of a sign behind conference speakers that proudly proclaims, "GLSEN: Making a Difference in K-12 Schools."
No doubt this has had an effect—along with all the other forces pushing young people to accept and embrace homosexuality. "As evidence of a major cultural shift . . . [one family advocate] pointed to a recent poll by the Pew Research Center indicating a full 70 percent of Millennials (born in 1981 or later) support same-sex marriage.
"By contrast, 49 percent of those in Generation X [born between the early 1960s and 1980], 38 percent of Baby Boomers [born between 1946 and the early 1960s] and just 21 percent from the Silent Generation [born between late 1920s and 1945] support homosexual marriage" (Chelsea Schilling, "Claim: Christians Sin By Putting Kids in Public School," WND, May 17, 2014).
In the Fort Worth, Texas, area, when discussion in a ninth-grade German class shifted to religion and homosexuality, as it often did, 14-year-old Dakota Ary turned to a friend and said "that he was a Christian and that 'being a homosexual is wrong' . . . [whereupon] Dakota was sentenced to one day of in-school suspension and two days of full suspension" (Starnes, p. 122).
This was in a classroom where the teacher's "world wall" had a picture of two men kissing that offended some students. "He told the students this is happening all over the world and you need to accept the fact that homosexuality is just part of our culture now," said Liberty Counsel attorney Matt Krause (Starnes, p. 123).
The superintendent of Miami-Dade County Public Schools sought to evict a Baptist church renting space in one of their buildings because the congregation opposed homosexuality, stating that renting to those who hold such views "appears to be contrary to school board policy as well as the basic principles of humanity" and calling the eviction a "rejection of prejudice and intolerance" (quoted by Starnes, p. 81).
Students across Massachusetts were warned by a Department of Education directive to affirm transgender classmates. "And if little girls took issue with sharing a bathroom with a transgender boy [a boy claiming to be a girl], the state said those little girls could be punished" (p. 119).

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Where did Valentine's Day come from? Is it wrong for a Christian to celebrate it?

Like many of the world's major holidays, St. Valentine's Day is an annual observance with its roots entrenched firmly in pagan beliefs and customs. What would God think about Valentine's Day?

Answer:

Source: Photos.com

The ancient Roman festival of Lupercalia, an annual three-day ritual believed to ward off evil spirits and increase fertility, was held on February 13 to 15.
Lupercalia (also known as Februatio, which is where we get the name for our month of February) was popular among many of the new converts to the quick-rising Catholic Church, and as Celebrations: The Complete Book of American Holidays notes, "Everywhere that [mainstream] Christians came into power they immediately adapted the holidays and customs of the people to their own creed” (Robert J. Myers and the editors of Hallmark Cards, 1972, pp. 50-51).
Such was their course of action with this festival of Lupercalia. While Pope Gelasius officially condemned the pagan Roman festival and banned its observance at the end of the fifth century, many of its accompanying practices quickly appeared in a newly established holiday added by him to the official church list of feast days in A.D. 496—St. Valentine's Day.
Soon, people were no longer looking to obtain fertility by being beaten with strips of animal skin called februa. Instead, they turned their focus to St. Valentine, the patron saint of "engaged couples and anyone wishing to marry" (Celebrations, pp. 48-49), whose actual identity is even murkier than what connection he bore to romance.
What amounted to a renamed, refurbished Lupercalia then picked up steam, gradually adapting itself into the Valentine's Day we know today, which included the added elements of Valentine cards and Cupid, the Roman god of erotic love.
Friendship and sending cards are wonderful things, and God is not opposed to romance at the right time in the right way. But does the pagan religious history of Valentine's Day taint the modern practices? What does God have to say about observing pagan traditions, renamed or not?
"When the Lord your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess…do not inquire after their gods, saying, 'How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.' You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way; for every abomination to the Lord which He hates they have done to their gods... Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it" (Deuteronomy:12:29-32 [29] When the LORD thy God shall cut off the nations from before thee, whither thou goest to possess them, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their land;
[30] Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.
[31] Thou shalt not do so unto the LORD thy God: for every abomination to the LORD, which he hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods.
[32] What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it.).
Though the practices of Lupercalia have been repackaged and dressed up in the form of Valentine's Day, these verses indicate they remain just as detestable as they have always been in our Creator's eyes. Instead of pagan days and practices, our focus should be on the Holy Days God has given us in the Bible, which point us toward His amazing and incomparable plan for all of humanity.
For more information, please read the free Bible study guide  "Holidays or Holy Days: Does It Matter Which Days We Observe? "



 

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• What Holy Days and holidays does God want (or not want) us to celebrate?
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What is Mardi Gras? Should Christians celebrate Mardi Gras (Shrove Tuesday)?

From http://el-paso.ucg.org/  or call 1-888-886-8632.

What is Mardi Gras? Should Christians celebrate Mardi Gras (Shrove Tuesday)?


Mardi Gras literally means "Fat Tuesday" in French (called Pancake Tuesday in England) and is associated with the Roman Catholic custom of Lent. But is it taught in the Bible? Would God want Christians to celebrate it?



Answer:







Source: Photos.comThe idea behind Mardi Gras or carnival celebrations is that people overindulge before giving up something for Lent, which begins the following day with Ash Wednesday. (Lent is the 40 weekdays from Ash Wednesday to Easter observed by the Roman Catholic, Eastern and some Protestant churches as a period of penitence and fasting.)



Note the following encyclopedia article excerpt:



"Some scholars have noted similarities between modern Mardi Gras celebrations and Lupercalia, a fertility festival held each February in ancient Rome. However, modern Carnival traditions developed in Europe during the Middle Ages (5th century to the 15th century) as part of the ritual calendar of the Roman Catholic Church.



"Today pre-Lenten Carnivals are celebrated predominantly in Roman Catholic communities in Europe and the Americas. Cities famous for their celebrations include Nice, France; Cologne, Germany; and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. New Orleans, Louisiana, holds the most famous Mardi Gras celebration in the United States. Residents of New Orleans have been celebrating Mardi Gras since the 18th century" ("Mardi Gras," Encarta).



Mardi Gras "is a lively, colorful [not to mention bawdy and debased] celebration held on Shrove Tuesday, the day before Lent begins," says the World Book Encyclopedia. It "goes back to an ancient Roman custom of merrymaking before a period of fast." In places like New Orleans, the period of merrymaking with fancy balls and parades goes on for weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday itself.



It has been suggested by some scholars that the pagan practice of "weeping for Tammuz" that Ezekiel decried (Ezekiel 8:14Then he brought me to the door of the gate of the LORD's house which was toward the north; and, behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz.



See All...) was the actual origin of Lent. Tammuz was a pagan god associated with death and rebirth in nature and the husband of the goddess Ishtar (See the Good News Bible Reading Program's commentary on Ezekiel 8 for details.)



The idea of partying before repenting seems to be to get as much revelry and additional sin out of the way before you decide to do anything about it. But that attitude doesn't show a belief that God's way is really right and that sin is really wrong, harmful and something to be avoided because it wars against us (1 Peter 2:11Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;



See All...) and is contrary to God's instruction (Romans 13:13-14 [13] Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.

[14] But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.





See All...). It doesn't show the 100 percent commitment that God wants (Romans 12:1-2 [1] I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

[2] And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.





See All...).



God says we should always live holy lives and obey His laws because they are good for us (Deuteronomy 10:12-13 [12] And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,

[13] To keep the commandments of the LORD, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?





See All...). Satan is the one who wants us to think that doing wrong things is fun, and his deception has been quite successful (Revelation 12:9And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.



See All...; 1 John 2:16For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.



See All...).



Neither Mardi Gras nor Lent are commanded in the Bible but come from pre-Christian, pagan customs. What does God think about such pagan customs?



"When the Lord your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess…do not inquire after their gods, saying, 'How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.' You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way; for every abomination to the Lord which He hates they have done to their gods... Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it" (Deuteronomy 12:29-32 [29] When the LORD thy God shall cut off the nations from before thee, whither thou goest to possess them, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their land;

[30] Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.

[31] Thou shalt not do so unto the LORD thy God: for every abomination to the LORD, which he hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods.

[32] What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it.





See All...).



The New Testament continues this theme. The apostle Paul addressed the issue of whether outside religious customs and practices had any place among Christians:



"What fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: 'I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.'



"Therefore 'Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.' Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God" (2 Corinthians 6:14Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?



See All...–18; 7:1).



Instead of renaming some of the pagan customs as Christian or allowing the new converts to retain some of their former practices, Paul commanded them to leave behind all of these forms of worship.



Mardi Gras celebrations have nothing to do with God's commanded Holy Days. On the contrary, they are part of the system from which God's people should separate themselves.



For more information, please read our booklet "Holidays or Holy Days: Does It Matter Which Days We Observe?"

.