Halloween and the Christian

This is Part 1 of a 3 part series written primarily for Christians who wonder about their participation in Halloween.  Stay tuned!

Every year around the end of September, Christian publications and blogs begin a monthly process debating whether a Christian should observe Halloween.  With this happening every year, you would think that eventually Christians would at some point have come to a determination regarding this holiday.  So I decided I would throw my hat into the ring of ambiguity.

Personal Background

It is always helpful to understand an author’s background and perspective when reading opinion literature.  I grew up in a very conservative home and church where separation was taught and practiced.  There were issues of separation that were taught that when I look back on today, I must admit they were extra-biblical; but for the most part, my upbringing was conservative but not extreme (at least in my family).  You can imagine then that Halloween was not celebrated in our house or church.  I remember the fall-festivals (church alternatives to Halloween) in which some really seemed eerily similar to Halloween with haunted houses and costume parties, but the name Halloween was definitely eschewed.  We did not go trick-or-treating and I remember handing out candy to our neighbors along with gospel literature, but secretly hoping no one would come to our door so that I could eat the left-over candy.  So I have fond memories of Halloween, not of witches and goblins and “dark” parties, but of times at home with my sisters and my parents.  But those fond memories had nothing to do with a Halloween celebration, they were memories of time with my family, really not that much different than another day of the year.  I even remember as a child being so thankful that my family did not allow trick-or-treating because being a shy child with a speech impediment and a mild form of anthropophobia, I could not imagine knocking on the door of a stranger to ask for candy. Whereas there may not have been consistencies in my church fellowship regarding the celebration of Halloween, I recall that there was consistency within my home.  We were discouraged from watching movies, reading books, or any other form of engagement in the horror genre or magical arts at any time during the calendar year.

It should be obvious that my upbringing has had an effect on my present perspective of Halloween, namely that I still do not like it and really do not want much, if anything, to do with it. I prefer to just sit at home with my family, turn the lights off and enjoy a quiet evening (notice I did not say that is the right thing to do, but rather is what I would like to do).  Although I may have a negative presupposition regarding Halloween, in this discourse, I hope to be objective in handling the question of what Christians should do with Halloween.  For sake of time, I am not going to be dealing with the possibility that Christians could celebrate “Reformation Day” as an alternative to Halloween.  The argument before us is the one which applies to this author in my current culture.  The celebration of the modern holiday come to be known as Halloween.

History of Halloween
Ancient Origins

Modern Halloween observances are taken from a mixture of ancient Celtic practices, Roman Catholic religious expressions, European folk traditions, Roman festivals, and various urban legends.  Being able to distinguish fact from fiction is not easy as they often blend together.  Most agree that the most ancient origins of Halloween can be traced to the Celtic practice of celebrating the festival of Samhain.  The Celts celebrated their New Years on November 1 and as superstitious pagans, they believed that the day before the New Year spirits (both good and bad) would be released as the line separating the living and the dead became unstable.  Many believed that the evil spirits would seek to steal the living and therefore costumes were worn to “mask” individual’s identities.  They also believed the good spirits would enable the Druids, the pagan priests, to better tell fortunes.  So while in costumes (usually animal heads and furs), they would practice telling each other’s fortunes around large bonfires.  Periodically they would offer crops and animals as sacrifices upon those bonfires.  From what we can tell, the stories of human sacrifice or virgins being kidnapped to appease the deities are urban legends.

By AD 43, the Romans had conquered Celtic regions and had mixed Samhain celebrations with their own festivals.  Interestingly, one such Roman festival is where some believed bobbing for apples came from as the festival celebrating Pomona (goddess of fruit and trees) is symbolized by an apple.  The Roman festivals also contained the primary content of celebrating the passing of the dead.

(To be continued. . . )