This trade show is the main event for everyone in the amusement, attractions and entertainment industry. There will be major ride manufacturers demonstrating the latest in amusement ride technology. New products and concepts designed to grow your attendance. Live demonstrations in gigantic "theatre" film presentations, by leading simulation and virtual reality companies. A 'High Tech' Area devoted to latest advancements in animatronics. Amusement and theme park merchandise to sell at your event, and consulting services for everything under the sun.

Formed in 1918, IAAPA is made up of professionals who own, manage and operate amusement parks, waterparks, family entertainment centers, attractions, and the manufacturers and suppliers that serve them. Dedicated to the preservation and prosperity of the entertainment industry, IAAPA is made up of more than 4,500 members in 80 countries around the globe.

IAAPA works through a series of volunteer committees to create services, educational products, and opportunities for exchange between members worldwide. Membership benefits and goals include improved efficiency, marketing, safety and profitability, together with the highest possible professional standards in the amusement industry.

You may contact them at: IAAPA, 1448 Duke Street, Alexandria, VA 22314-9512, Phone 703-836-4800, Fax 703-836-4801 or www.iaapa.org

The Church vs. Halloween: by Amy Schwend The Reverend Amy F. Pringle

Halloween did begin as a Celtic festival; one of two annual
"fire festivals" to celebrate the beginning of winter and
summer (the other was on May 1). The one in question was called
Samhain; and it was treated as a New Year festival. Samhain,
the lord of death, assembled the spirits of those who had died
during the previous year; and they supposedly roamed the earth
that night, doing mischief among the living -- unless a "treat"
was left out for them. It was not long before children realized
if they dressed up as ghouls and goblins, they could either
play tricks or get treats. It was a much that the holiday
became associated with the harvest (hence pumpkins and gourds
etc.) An even later development, key to the argument about
religious connections with Halloween, was that Christianity
came to celebrate the day after Samhain, November 1 as All
Saint's Day. A day when the heroes of the faith, martyrs and
saints and so forth, were commemorated, and November 2 as All
Souls' Day, when special prayers were said for all of the
departed.

The argument from history is that Halloween is only pagan in
its roots. Both Christmas and Easter "took over" existing pagan
holidays as well, (winter solstice and spring harvest
celebrations); yet there is no public outcry that these ought
not to be celebrated by Christians. Similar to Christmas Eve
Christianity took over Samhain, and made it into the Eve of a
Christian feast day (All Hallows' E'en - the evening before All
Hallows' or All Saints' Day). Halloween, put into this
Christian context, is not a celebration of the devil nor of
death, but of the defeat of these by the Lord of life. We as
Christians can dress our children up like goblins because we
have the last laugh, because figures like that are impotent in
the face of the eternal life we believe we will enjoy. We play
with our fears on Halloween; because the next two days
celebrate the fact that, just like the saints and martyrs, we
have nothing to fear from death, nor from the devil. Ultimately
God has power over these things.

If zealots wish to be outraged about something, they should be
so about the fact that the commercializing process has isolated
Halloween from its proper place as the prelude to a Christian
celebration of eternal life. Just as it has isolated Christmas
and Easter from their religious meanings and Mardi Gras from
being a prelude to Lent.

One last word of advice: when we put on a Haunted House at our
liberal-like church - and we do - these are arguments that I
use with confused people or concerned parents of kids in the
congregation. When we get outraged letters from religious
extremists in the community - and we do - I don't engage in
discussion with them. There are plenty of churches where they
can go to hear their views supported (most of those same
churches, by the way, also denounce "pagan" holidays like
Thanksgiving and New Years'); ours has a different view. If you
attempt to reason with those sorts of letters or phone calls,
you won't win; you will only accelerate their aggravation. As
with all bullies, it's best to ignore them, as politely as
possible.

Amy Schwend The Reverend Amy F. Pringle is an ordained minister
Episcopal Priestserving Oneonta Congregational St. George's
Church, in South Pasadena La Cañada, California. The church's
web site is http://www.Oneonta.org