Halloween Revisited
A Christian Perspective by Mary Katherine May
When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there. Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead.
Anyone who does these things is detestable (abomination) to the LORD, and because of these detestable practices the LORD your God will drive out those nations before you You must be blameless before the LORD your God. …Deuteronomy 18: 9-12 NIV.
Anyone who does these things is detestable (abomination) to the LORD, and because of these detestable practices the LORD your God will drive out those nations before you You must be blameless before the LORD your God. …Deuteronomy 18: 9-12 NIV.
Past and Present
I don’t ever recall as a child thinking anything about Halloween but that it was the day for a school party, getting lots of candy, and wearing a costume. I have never like scary movies or anything scary, and don’t recall at my church ever talking about Satanic influences or the inappropriateness of participating. It may seem odd to those who read this, but I was out of high school before I learned about the trick part—throwing eggs at windows, knocking over outhouses, and the like.
Nowadays, of course, children don’t have the freedom of going door-to-door and being certain that all they will receive is candy. Innocence is taken away from them at far too young an age. Children of today, in case you are older and don’t know about such things, now have something called play dates. Safety issues and work schedules preclude most opportunities for impromptu playtime socializing.
Truth or Fiction--
Halloween for the young is fun—costumes, candy,
and games—what’s not to like??
and games—what’s not to like??
As much as we would like to set the rules and be firm, our children are the ones who will feel the pressure of others their age when not being a part of the group, and may be too young to understand why we as Christians don’t participate in certain functions that are a part of American culture in general. Parents, however, must weigh not only the faith issues surrounding Halloween against the importance of the holiday in peer groups, but also if believing it alright to make participate in Halloween activities, ask the question: Will it open the door to acceptance of what is becoming the norm: thinking that wiccan, or witchcraft, is a viable belief that either fits in with, or negates Christianity?
What is to be done with Halloween? Perhaps this is a non-issue for you because you already have chosen not to honor the day, or just don’t care. I firmly believe that we must care. Our children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and the children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews of our friends’ futures are at stake. It wouldn’t matter if we could permanently live only within a good Christian community, but if we did that—how would we fulfill what God has planned for us? How would Go ye into all the world be possible, or in the world but not of the world?
The Practice of Branding Morality
and Customs of Society
and Customs of Society
Those whose greatest desire is to destroy the core of our faith continue to press for their agendas to become the new core. Slowly, by continually presenting through the various media avenues what they want to be truth, and by time and time again calling for a vote on what they want for themselves, they are getting what they want. It is a truth that familiarity in name only will yield acceptance.
One of the best ways Christian opponents further their cause is not by focusing on the issues at hand by turning away from discussion and to character attacks. Christians who rightfully state biblical teaching on what are the current issues of today are attacked through character assassination instead of having a respectful discussion. This is a method used by challengers to put their opponent on the defensive. You, however, don’t need to be the opponent. Under such circumstances, you can only be the opponent if you oppose. An argument needs at least two people to be an argument.
It is my opinion that Christian need not defend God, but instead Christians should explain God. God is quite capable of His own defense. Explanation is a theological subject. It is called apologetics. If challenged and the Lord desires we speak, He is the one who will be speaking through us.
Unpacking Halloween
Replacing Pagan Ways with Christian Ways
Using a current term, let’s unpack Halloween, and find out how it has come to mean what it now means, and has for a long time. We need to go way back in history, back to the seventh century when the first Festival of All Saints was celebrated. In the year 609, Emperor Phocas made a gift of the Pantheon to Pope Gregory IV. With its rededication on May 13 to the name, St. Mary and All Martyrs, the first festival was held.
The first All Saints Festivals were held the Sunday following Pentecost. At the beginning of the 10th century, the festival was renamed the Feast of All Saints to include all saints, and moved to November 1. As was the custom of Christian leaders to match the important observances of the church to previous pagan holidays and rituals, the moving of All Saints was the same. The naming of November 1 coincided with ancient European festivals of the dead.
The Feast of All Saints began the evening previous with the Vigil of All Saints, a solemn time of remembrance, reflection and prayer. In my mind, I find that beginning feast days with a vigil may be cross-over from the Jewish Sabbath and Feast Days, which always begin at sundown and end at sundown. The Vigil of All Saints was also called All Hallows Eve, or All Saints Eve—even so it was not at first abbreviated to Hallowe'en. The first recorded use of something close to Halloween is the year 1556 in Scotland with All Hallow’s Even.
It is in Ireland where the holiday of Samhain, believed to have been the Celtic New Year —was celebrated. The harvest had ended, and with the change of seasons, the time of darkness was about to commence, for this was how time was measured—by the amount of daylight and the weather. Light symbolized life and the dark, death.
Customs, Costumes and Spirits
Celtic belief was that the wall between the living world and the Otherworld thinned, allowing for spirits to pass through, both good spirits and harmful spirits. People would wear costumes and masks or facial coloring to disguise themselves from the harmful spirits. Interestingly enough, the belief was that though the harmful spirits could pass through a “wall,” they were not smart enough to recognize people if they wore a disguise. The good spirits—the departed family members, were believed to visit their loved ones at this time. I I think it safe to assume that with the spirits so readily available it was a good time to seek their guidance, and so during Samhain divination—fortune telling was practiced.
There were other practices in Britain and Ireland where we will find direct correlations to Halloween today. The first is the custom of carving—turnips! Similar to pumpkin carving, turnips were hollowed out and carved with faces, then placed in windows with a candle lit inside to ward off evil spirits. In America, the carving of pumpkins was first done as a part of harvest celebration. With the Great Famine in Ireland and large immigration to the United States beginning in the 1800s, the custom of carving of pumpkins came to be associated with Halloween—pumpkins are a lot easier to carve than turnips.
Souling, Tricks and Treats
Another Halloween ritual practiced in the British Isles is called souling , which dates back to not only pagan rituals but also the time when Britain and Ireland were Catholic, or before Henry VIII, former Defender of the Faith, broke with Rome over his sovereign power allowing him to marry and divorce at will. It was mainly children and the poor who would go from door to door, singing and saying prayers for the departed. The singers would be given a soul cake, which upon being eaten released the designated soul from purgatory.
Information leads to thoughtful questions.
The Protestant Perspective
What, then, is the conclusion to be drawn from becoming informed of the background and practices that created the present day holiday of Halloween? Parents might refuse to their family’s participation and give explanation to older children, but for younger children who think it great fun to dress up and get candy, what are the alternatives?
There are more than a few protestant churches that plan and implement All Saints’ Eve, All Hallows Eve, and even Halloween parties and activities—is it a viable choice, or is it only a masking of the truth of what Halloween is all about? What does participation under a different name do to the credibility of what Christians are called to accomplish? Does it matter that Halloween was initially a solemn evening in preparation for a festival day in the church and not incorporated with pagan rituals and spirits—or do we take the holiday as it stands today? Can Christians justify participation and remain true to their faith?
In two articles I read while researching this topic, the author stated that evil and scary elements were not added until fiction authors created stories using them. My research tells me this is not wholly true. I think it instead another excuse to ignore the current meaning of Halloween. Taking into consideration that Wiccan (witchcraft) as a belief system is growing quickly, particularly among teens and young adults as well as society as a whole that coming to accept the notion that there are good witches, the implications of participation cannot be ignored.
Developing Your Own Practical Thoughts
1. What we know to be false teaching and satanic influence should not be silent subjects. Openness to hearing what others are thinking is a doorway to offering Christianity as well as a means of guiding our children on their Christian walk.
2. Be informed about faith matters that are part of our world today—not to steep and acculturate yourself to them, but rather have information that will allow intelligent conversation.
3. Do not go out of your way to be a part of a non-Christian group that espouses believes contrary to the Word of God. Instead, pray for answers as to where the Lord is leading you—perhaps to an alternative group as a witness, or perhaps elsewhere.
4. Be equipped to be in the world through participation in worship, fellowship and study. This is the armor spoken of in the Bible. Study not only on your own but with a group where ideas and conclusions can be shared and affirmed.
5. Develop relationships with other Christians and support each other with prayer, testimony, and love.
6. With young children and all children, develop strong family ties to faith and stay firm that this is the way your family operates by talking about your faith, praying together daily, read the Bible together. The parents are the shepherds of their families.
7. Create opportunities for your children to make Christian friends, and create opportunities for them to spend time together.
8. If taking part in an October 31st holiday however you might name it, set rules and guidelines for what will happen. For example, what kind of costume will you allow? You might say that a costume must be one that represents someone who doesn’t harm others, or the costume must be an animal or vegetable, or a person from history who lived life heroically.
9. We are what we take in, and the body is God’s temple—it is His home and we live through Him. Children, young though they may be, can understand this at their level of thinking. What do we want to put into our bodies through what we see and hear? This is a good starting point for developing the ability to make good choices.
10. Structure and limits the child’s mind is a demonstration of your love for them. Children may seem rebellious while at the same time wear your love with pride among their friends. It just may give them the courage to be different and not succumb to peer pressure.
11. In purchasing objects for your home and for yourself, make choices that will reflect your Christian faith.
12. If you are challenged about your faith, pray. Ask God what He is going to say through you. There is nothing wrong with silence. If you do offer response, stay on subject and keep your challenger on subject. Know your Bible. Remember, we live in a country that has free speech. We cannot keep others from speaking, but we can walk away.
13. Showing respect and courtesy for others who are not Christian is not an act of agreement, it is a command of God.
14. As Christians we are not defined by our past. What was done in the past does not have to be what we do today. At one time you might have thought nothing wrong with what happens on Halloween as I did, or you might decide to do things differently than before.
We are God’s people in the year 2010, and God has put us here for a reason. Let us be strong through fellowship, worship and study in the Living Word of God, remaining faithful for His purpose. Amen.
