What is Carnival?

Answer

Carnival is a festival celebrated in many predominantly Roman Catholic countries in the days leading up to Lent. In contrast to the forty-day focus on fasting and self-denial during the Lenten season, Carnival is a period of excess and self-indulgence—a time to “eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we diet.” Carnival represents indulgence before the fast, one final binge before having to give something up for forty days. The most renowned Carnival takes place annually in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Other Carnivals are hosted in Venice, Italy, Uruguay, Spain, and various regions of Brazil. In the United States, Mardi Gras is the equivalent of Carnival.

The fundamental concept behind Carnival is that you can enjoy life to the fullest for a brief period—and then confess your sins on Ash Wednesday. Different countries observe Carnival for varying durations, but in most locations, the hedonistic celebration lasts approximately a week, featuring pre-Carnival festivities, parades, traditional dances, and street revelry. In certain areas, post-Carnival events even overshadow Ash Wednesday with continued festivities.

For many individuals, the Carnival week is a time to engage in unrestricted behavior. Revelers openly pursue their worldly desires: each year in Rio de Janeiro, there is a ceremony where the keys to the city are handed to “the king of carnal delights.” Party attendees believe that any misconduct during Carnival is excusable. During Carnival, nothing is considered significant; it is as if it never occurred. Due to the freedom to sin, people lie, quarrel, become intoxicated, use drugs, and partake in sexual promiscuity more than at any other time of the year. Crime is a persistent issue during Carnival, with annual arrests for offenses such as sexual assault, murder, illicit gambling, theft, illegal possession of firearms, and more.

While the world asserts that Carnival is a celebration of life, the immoral behaviors endorsed by Carnival participants lead to death. «As righteousness»

Tendeth to life: So he that pursueth evil pursueth it to his own death.” (Proverbs 11:19). Revelers at Carnival display a false facade of happiness and joy, yet beneath it lies rebellion against God.

Certain churches in Brazil organize retreats to escape the noise and corruption of Carnival, focusing instead on spiritual matters. Others use the Carnival period for street evangelism, aiming to reach the lost.

“Beloved, I urge you to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul” “Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;”, (1 Peter 2:11, ESV). Carnival glorifies the fleshly desires that we should avoid. We are engaged in a spiritual warfare, with our soul’s well-being, strength, freedom, purity, and comfort at stake.

When we indulge in sin and the fleshly desires that battle against our souls, we resemble Samson in Delilah’s lap (see Judges 16:4-6, 15-21). A Christian who plays with the fleshly desires celebrated at Carnival is akin to Samson toying with Delilah. Just as Samson risked his spiritual strength and freedom in Delilah’s lap, compromising morals puts a Christian in a similar peril.

We are “children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness” (1 Thessalonians 5:5;cf: Romans 13:13-14). Instead of partaking in worldly festivities like Carnival, it is wise to heed Galatians 5:16 “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh” (NKJV).