Every year, around this time, Christian families are – or should be – confronted with the question of whether to celebrate Halloween or not. The reason I say this is, because as Christians we should stay alert and re-evaluate what we are doing. Too often, we continue on in life and let life, the world, our neighbours and even our friends sweep us along and make choices on our behalf.
The same is the case for Halloween. Maybe you have always celebrated Halloween? Maybe it is part of your and your friends’ tradition. Maybe you remember the wonderful moments as a child when you dressed up as a princess, Kermit the Frog or a more frightful character.
The question is, do you really know what you are celebrating? Do your children really know? Here in Vienna, Austria, in the run-up to the 31. October, all I see are masks and images of evil characters and dark costumes abounding in black material. On the night, again, that is all I see. Children dressed up as the best evil creatures they can think of, asking for sweets. But what does it all mean?
Here a few points to consider:
1. Is Halloween a pagan or Christian tradition and does it matter?
Halloween has pagan and, indeed, Christian roots. It comes from All Hallows’ Evening also known as Hallowe’en or All Hallows’ Eve, i.e. the evening before All Saints Day. This day, was, according to Wikipedia: ” part of the major feasts in the Christian Church (such as Christmas, Easter and Pentecost) had vigils which began the night before, as did the feast of All Hallows’.[65] These three days are collectively referred to as Allhallowtide and are a time for honoring the saints and praying for the recently departed souls who have yet to reach Heaven.”
Do you pray for the dead? I don’t. As an evangelical, bible-believing Christian, I do not believe in praying for the dead. The dead have gone, either to be with Christ, or to eternal damnation. I therefore would not want to get involved in this particular “feast”.
2. Where does the idea of “Trick or Treating” come from?
It is said that this part of the evening is linked to “souling”, when groups of poor people, many times children, would go door-to-door during Allhallowtide, collecting soul cakes, and in return would promise to pray for the dead, particularly the souls of the givers’ friends and relatives.
Again, I do not pray for the dead – nor do I take money or cakes in return for praying for people. Do you?
3. Why costumes?
Some say that the costumes and the celebrations linked to Halloween originated from the idea that people would dress up as evil in order to make fun of it and show that they were not afraid of it. Traditionally people believed that the souls of the dead wandered the earth until All Souls Day (so they waited?). People were worried that these souls would cause havoc in the meantime by trying to revenge themselves on their enemies (well, that could have been anyone and everyone…). So, the people came up with a clever way of avoiding this, dress up as one of them and be incognito…( if you are not smiling at this point – trust me, I am!).
So, just to be clear, I do not believe that the souls of the dead are wondering on the earth. Nor am I afraid of them. I also do not believe that, if they were, they would be fooled by a costume.
4. And the pumpkins and lights?
It is said that in the Middle Ages the carved pumpkins represented the souls of the dead.
According to Wikipedia: “In addition, households in Austria, England, Ireland often had “candles burning in every room to guide the souls back to visit their earthly homes”. These were known as “soul lights”.[81][82][83] Many Christians in continental Europe, especially in France, acknowledged “a belief that once a year, on Hallowe’en, the dead of the churchyards rose for one wild, hideous carnival,” known as the danse macabre, which has been commonly depicted in church decoration, especially on the walls of cathedrals,monasteries, and cemeteries.[84] ”
While I see no danger in carving nice images into pumpkins, I really cannot join in on this. I am not fascinated by the dead at all. I prefer focusing on the living, both here and in Heaven. And, wasn’t there something about predestination? So, lighting a candle for the dead, especially to avoid the “dance macabre” is far from my beliefs. Is it in line with yours?
What about your children’s?
5. Is today’s Halloween anything like that of days gone by?
I come back to my earlier point. What I see when I observe Halloween is a pure fascinating with evil. It is a desire to be “evil” just one night out of 365 and to get away with (similar to Fashing in Europe), playing tricks, behaving like the monsters we dress up as.
Today’s Halloween is nothing like the original ones. It is focused on commercialism and desiring to “be evil” for a short moment. Halloween as we know celebrates evil.
And yesterday’s Halloween, rooted in Catholic tradition and mixed with pagan influences from across Europe and later America, was also far removed from any beliefs evangelical Christians hold today.
So, why spend time and money on a festival that focuses on the dead, encourages us to uphold evil as something special and underlines beliefs we, as evangelical Christians do not agree with? (Oh and before you say that Christmas was a pagan festival – which of the two has more chance of pointing to Christ?)
Would our time be better spent on the living? Maybe time to re-evaluate.
There are many decisions a parent has to take on behalf of their children. At times, we are torn between one or the other. As Christians, however, there is one thing we should not wonder about – that is the core of what our children should learn while they are young. We need to ask ourselves what it is we want them to leave with as they fly out from under the protective shade of our wings?
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