Halloween seems to mean many more things than one holiday is supposed to. For some men, it means an excuse to hide out in the front yard to startle little, candy-seeking children. For some women, it means an excuse to make as scantily-clad an appearance at a party as they ever made at South Padre Island. For most, it seems, Halloween simply means an excuse to dress up and collect goodies at various locations, or to get together with friends for a good time.
As much fun as it is, the holiday presents a particular dilemma for people of any religion that adheres to a clear distinction between good and evil. I am a practicing Christian who takes the words of the Bible seriously, where it clearly states not to delight in evil or embrace darkness in any way. At the risk of sounding melodramatic, I think that those with similar beliefs, Christian or not, need to evaluate whether or not the celebration of Halloween is compatible with those beliefs. The day’s festivities have roots further back than most people look amidst their innocent celebration, in the occult.
On the night of October 31 two millennia ago, Western European Celts celebrated the festival of Samhain. The festival heralded their new year, beginning November 1. In addition, it celebrated the merging of the realms of the living and dead that supposedly accompanied the changing year. The Celts believed that ghosts walked among them that evening, and their priests, the Druids, prophesied the future at that time.
From there, it’s easy to see where we get our tradition of glorifying scary things on Halloween. However, tradition or not, is it really okay to take one day out of the year and amplify evil, while eschewing it for the other 364?
I grew up with an agnostic father from the southern United States, and a Catholic-turned-Protestant mother from the Philippines, where November 1 is celebrated as All Saints’ Day. In that country, the day is mostly a time to remember loved ones who have passed away. My mother wasn’t put off by American Halloween traditions, though, and faithfully took my older sister, younger brother and me on an annual trick-or-treat. We loved it. To open the night, we attended the local church’s annual “Fall Fun Festival,” an alternative to trick-or-treating (obviously, we didn’t make it just an alternative). We played games to win candy until it was time for the real fun to begin. We were going door to door!
Article comments
1 - Jon Sobel
Beautifully said. I have one big question, though... you talk about evil. But you don't say HOW Halloween encourages or celebrates evil. It's a time to dress up and be someone you're not. That's not evil. Witches, ghouls, black cats... these are ancient figures personifying natural human fears. Nothing evil about them. So while I do not deny your point or your opinion, I'm interested to know where you see the evil.
2 - Daniel Terracina
Good food for thought. Druids making prophecies about the future is probably one of the more alarming holiday origins out there.
3 - EastCoastCommentator
Costumes in themselves are not evil. It is some of the people portrayed by the costumes.
Witchcraft and divination are described as sorcery in the Bible. The Bible is clear in the Old Testament and the New Testament as to whether or not God considers it evil. The New Testament clarifies the list of behaviors (and people) who will not be allowed in heaven. God is holy - he expects His people to be holy.
Galatians 5:19-21 (NASB)
Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
4 - Jon Sobel
OK, I see "sorcery" in the list. But sorcery isn't real - it wasn't then and isn't now. I don't see how an outdated belief in something that never existed can merit the name "evil" today.
5 - Ruvy
Jon,
You missed idolatry. Samhain was a pagan holiday, and the spirit of Halloween is the spirit of Samhain (spirits of the dead called upon to utter prophecy through the Druids?), combined with the "Fat Tuesday" mentality so common to Christians - "let's sin it up good today 'cause tomorrow we gotta behave."
6 - Lily
Go ahead and stop celebrating it. This will leave more free space to those who are seeking out the old ways and re-celebrating the traditions.
Halloween is not evil or celebrating evil, it is silly. Nothing more.
The spirit of Samhain, the celtic new year, is elusive to those who do not seek to understand.
7 - Stephen
Ruvy Fat tuesday was originally so people could finish off any and all meat they still had cause they couldn't eat it for the next 40 days.