Halloween: Is it Just About Kids, Costumes and Candy?

Halloween has its origins in the pagan Celtic festival of the dead, Samhain (pronounced Sah-ween).  Samhain:

was the biggest and most significant holiday of the Celtic year.  The Celts believed that at the time of Samhain, more so than any other time of the year, the ghosts of the dead were able to mingle with the living, because at Samhain the souls of those who had died during the year traveled into the otherworld.  People gathered to sacrifice animals, fruits, and vegetables.  They also lit bonfires in honor of the dead, to aid them on their journey, and to keep them away from the living.  On that day all manner of beings were abroad: ghosts, fairies, and demons--all part of the dark and dread.  (The Fantasy and Folklore of All Hallows)

In addition to birthing the concept of a Halloween holiday, Samhain also launched many modern Halloween traditions, such as costume wearing and trick-or-treating.

Virtually all present Halloween traditions can be traced to the ancient Celtic day of the dead.  . . .  The wearing of costumes, for instance, and roaming from door to door demanding treats can be traced to the Celtic period and the first few centuries of the Christian era, when it was thought that the souls of the dead were out and around, along with fairies, witches, and demons.  Offerings of food and drink were left out to placate them.  As the centuries wore on, people began dressing like these dreadful creatures, performing antics in exchange for food and drink.  This practice is called mumming, from which the practice of trick-or-treating evolved.  (Id.)

Irene Park, a former witch and alleged authority on Halloween history, paints a more gruesome picture:

The Druids in Ireland would go through the neighborhoods and countryside on the eve of October 31 to collect offerings for Satan.  They would carry lanterns, bags for money, and canes with very sharp points on their ends (known as leprechaun staffs, good luck horns, or fairies’ wands).  At each house they would demand a specified amount.  If the household would not, or could not, give the offering (Penance or treat), the Druid would use his cane to castrate the male human or one of their prize animals.  . . . 

The guisers went from house to house, singing and dancing.  Their blood-curdling masks and grotesque costumes may have been meant to keep evil at bay, or more likely, were a visible representation of the ghosts and goblins that lurked in the night. These masks have now been transferred to the children, who in the United States, visit neighbors for the food offering which once belonged to the dead - or play tricks akin to the legendary destructiveness of witches and imps abroad on the night.  (See Dale A. Robbins, What People Ask About the Church.)

I appreciate that my friends and neighbors, Christian believers and non-believers alike, participate in Halloween without any intention of promoting evil or sharing in dark pagan traditions.  Until two years ago, I never gave it a second thought; it was only last year that we switched from trick-or-treating to a family “fall festival” based on harvest concepts.  I am not now prepared to say, “No true Christian would celebrate Halloween.”  However, I do believe that every Christian should think carefully about whether to celebrate Halloween.

In addition to our desire to honor rather than offend God, we want our children to understand that evil is real and not to be taken lightly.  We agree with those who believe that Halloween “creates a ‘tongue-in-cheek’ attitude that the forces of evil are not to be taken seriously — that devils, witches, and goblins are considered merely make-believe, plastic masks, with child-like impotence.”  (What People Ask About the Church)

Also important to our decision is the urging of Scripture that followers of Christ remain aware that we are citizens of a different country.  We are to be in the world, but not of it.    Standing as conscientious objectors to Halloween seems to be an appropriate means of beginning to impart these principles to our girls.  Ideas have consequences.  Professing belief in Jesus Christ has implications for how we live.

The most difficult aspect of abstaining from Halloween, in my experience, has been trying to explain our reasoning to our five-year-old who loves both candy and costumes.  She has had to explain to friends and their parents why she will not be trick-or-treating.  To date, our explanation has amounted to little more than:  “We love Jesus.  Halloween celebrates the Devil.  We can have fun (and candy) without Halloween festivities.”  I would love to hear from any parents out there who have alternative suggestions for helping children understand why Christians abstain from Halloween.