We recently had relatives visit us for the weekend. Again my
wife asked if they were going to give out candy for Halloween. The answer was,
“Oh no! We do not celebrate Halloween. That is Wicca!” Once again, we should
have known. They belong to a conservative church that believes that demons are
real and the earth is only 6000 years old.
As a Christian I have no problem celebrating Halloween. After
all it is a Christian holiday. It is the night before All Saints Day (All
Hallows Day) on November 1. It is a time to remember those we have lost to
death. In worship we read the names of members of the congregation who have
died during the past year. It is a healing time.
It is a time to celebrate eternal life. We usually sing one
of my favorite hymns in church: “For All the Saints.” Sure, the date of
Halloween has been adopted from the Celtic Samhain. That is not a deal-breaker.
After all, the date for Christmas was adopted from the Roman Saturnalia. That
doesn’t stop us from celebrating Christmas Eve, and I don’t see Hobby Lobby
refusing to sell Christmas items.
So what if Wiccans celebrate Halloween? So what if the
holiday has pre-Christian origins? That just shows that religions draw upon a
common spiritual heritage and borrow from one another. That is also evident in the
ubiquity of Flood myths in the world’s religions, not to mention virgin births,
as well as dying and rising deities. Should
we stop celebrating Easter because the name comes the pre-Christian Anglo-Saxon
deity, Eostre, the goddess of the dawn, who was celebrated at beginning of
spring?
I like Halloween. It is a holiday that brings our subconscious
fears into the open so we can play with them, poke fun at them, and laugh at
them. It is a way of acknowledging the fear of death. We all die. Living in our
death-denying American culture, it is healthy to be reminded of that fact. That
is the reason for all those skeletons and tombstones. That is our fate, whether
we admit it or not. “Alas, poor Yorick!”
I suspect the real reason many Christians reject Halloween
is because they have not come to terms with their fear of death, in spite of
worshipping a resurrected Savior. That fear is the unspoken source of the
belief in the Rapture. It is a way conservative Christians hope to bypass death
and get a pain-free trip to heaven.
Fear of death is why so many Christians cling to every
possible minute of earthly life as tightly as any unbeliever. If Christians
really yearned for heaven as much as they claim, they would be eager to get
there – not trying to postpone paradise by every medical intervention available
– usually accompanied with extended pain and exorbitant cost.
So I celebrate Halloween as a Christian. We will be decorating our house and giving out goodies to youngsters at our house on Halloween. Our adult children will be bringing our grandchildren around their neighborhoods to trick-or-treat. I don’t do costumes, but I enjoy seeing the creativity of our neighbors’ costumes – both children and adults. So let me be the first to wish you a Happy Halloween and a holy and meaningful All Saints Day.
I grew up in England without Halloween. When I first arrived in NYC I had no idea what trick or treating is. Later on I had children , stepchildren and foster children and learned to like it somewhat. I was never happy about the ghoulish aspect of this occasion. I stay away from fundamentals Christians as they take the joy out of everything.
ReplyDeleteThanks Marshall,
ReplyDeleteWe have been in Guatamala & Peru (in Bali it's another date)during All Saints Day & have wished that we here,in the US, could adopt what they do in celebrating their lost ones whoare thought to come back to visit.
The families parade after dark, with lots of candles to the community burial place (beautiful to watch) with their visiting dead's favorite foods (delicious to taste). Lots of instruments play their favorite music (lovely & fun to hear)and sing and and dance all night with their neighbors and 'returned' loved ones.
Everyone looks forward to this meeting with their ghosts, young and old and in between in the circle of life and death.
Peggy Longley
I have always enjoyed Halloween and even without children in the house, I dress up for activities. All Hallow's Eve a time to remember those who have crossed the vail and await us to join them. I see nothing "unChristian" about celebrating it. As mentioned, the word "Easter" comes from a Pagan goddess. Enjoy,remember, and don't eat too much candy.
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