Halloween can be a troubling holiday.
Many of us carry fond memories of Halloweens long ago, back when we were growing up. Many of us remember it as innocent fun—a special day just for children.
I remember dressing up in silly costumes and going door to door begging for candy. When I was little, I carried a small, decorated bag. When I got a little older, I began to carry a pillowcase—the better to carry my loot home. My favorite house to visit was on my block, a few houses down and across the street. A little old lady lived there, and every Halloween she gave out homemade popcorn balls—mmmm, mmmm, good!
That was another time…before parents even thought to bring their children’s candy to the police station to be x-rayed…before it became common practice to throw away anything not in a sterile sealed commercial wrapper.
On the other hand, even more ominous than concerns for safety, many of us are growing more and more aware of the pagan origins of the holiday and the pagan, and even satanic, activities associated with Halloween.
In some places I have lived, it has been common practice for people who owned outdoor cats to bring them inside in October, especially if they were black cats. Experience showed that as Halloween approached, unwatched pets would begin to disappear, and it wasn’t just due to childish pranks.
What’s a Christian to do?
The short answer is found in 1 Corinthians 10:31. “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”
So how does a Christian deal with Halloween in a way that glorifies God?
First, become informed about Halloween’s pagan origins.
(A number of sermons at sermoncentral.com helped provide information. Thanks are due to the following preachers: James Bryant, Christopher Roberts, Ronnie Thrower, Joe Bedy, Michael McCartne.)
Long before the gospel of Jesus Christ came to northern Europe, the Celtic people of that region were pagan and the Druids were their intellectual or priestly class. The Celtic new year began on November 1, and so their new year’s eve was October 31.
The Celts believed that as winter approached, the sun god was growing weaker and the “lord of death” was growing stronger. October 31 was considered to be the day when the barriers between the world of the dead and the world of the living were most permeable. The “lord of death” (also known as the “grim reaper”) came at the new year to retrieve the souls of those who had died during the previous year. The evil spirits of those who had died were loosed for awhile to haunt the living.
By lighting bonfires on the hillsides on the eve of their new year, the Celts hoped to scare away the evil spirits. Also on October 31, all the cooking fires were extinguished in the kitchens around the land. New fires were then lit from the great bonfire to honor the coming of the new year. By waving burning wisps of plaited straw aloft on pitchforks, people tried to frighten off demons and witches. Sometimes they also put on grotesque costumes, in the hopes that the evil spirits would think they were evil spirits too and leave them alone.
The wandering evil spirits were believed to cause all sorts of mischief and disaster, from spoiled milk to sickness. Food left on the door step would convince the spirits to pass your house by. (The Druids would collect the food and burn it a sacrifice to their gods. They might burn the house down or castrate the males in the house if no offering was provided. The Druids are also thought to be the builders of England’s “Stonehenge”, to be used as a sun worshipping temple and site for human sacrifice. The special day for human sacrifice at Stonehenge was October 31.)
The jack-o-lantern was also a Druid symbol. People put a candle inside a hollowed-out gourd or pumpkin to show that they were supportive of the Druids and deserved mercy from them.
After Christianity spread across northern Europe, the Roman Catholic Church sought to overcome the pagan traditions of the people, in part by Christianizing the most important pagan holidays.
A lot of the traditions that we associate with Christmas and Easter actually have origins in Celtic pagan religion. The Church co-opted these traditions and symbols and gave them Christian meanings. For example: evergreen trees, wreathes of pine boughs, and holly all were involved in old Druid rites but now have Christian meanings. Some Christians do not celebrate Christmas precisely because of these pagan associations. On the other hand, many Christians feel that the Church’s co-opting of old pagan rituals has been successful, so that the birth of Christ is indeed celebrated at Christmas and the resurrection of Christ is indeed celebrated at Easter, even when some of the old symbols are used, and in both cases the glory goes to Jesus Christ.
Three related Church holidays were involved in seeking to co-opt the pagan new year’s rituals: All Hallow’s Eve on October 31 (from whence comes the name “Halloween”), All Hallows Day (or All Saints Day) on November 1 to honor dead martyrs of the faith (or those who have died during the previous year), and All Souls Day was on November 2 as a day of prayer to move people from purgatory.
Just like at Christmas and Easter, attempts were made to re-define the old pagan symbols.
For example, a legend was established to explain the meaning and use of jack-o-lanterns in a way that was more “Christian”. The story goes that a man named Jack tricked the devil into chasing him up a tree. Jack then jumped out and mounted his crucifix so that the devil could not get to him. The devil threw embers at him. Jack put one of these embers from hell inside a hollowed-out pumpkin or gourd or turnip and used it as a lantern. Wahlah…jack-o-lanterns!
Dressing in costumes and going door-to-door relates to old Druid practices but also are shaped by a much later tradition in the British Isles, a practice not restricted to Halloween. Masked players would go from house-to-house, putting on a skit or playing music in return for food and drink. Often these performances had Christian themes.
The "trick-or-treat" custom we know today is mostly American in origin. In the nineteenth century, when Irish and Scotch immigrants brought their Halloween traditions to North America, the night became an occasion for pranks and mischief. Vandals would go through the night, soaping windows, overturning outhouses, and pulling gates from their hinges. The joke was that the pranks were said to be the work of witches and ghosts. As time went by, though, the pranks grew more outrageous and the joke wasn’t funny anymore.
To counteract Halloween vandalism, community clubs like the Boy Scouts began to organize alternatives that were safe and fun. Children were encouraged to go door-to-door and receive treats from homeowners and merchants, keeping the troublemakers away, and the modern practice of "trick or treat!" was born.
All three Christian holy days associated with October 31 to November 2 still exist in the Catholic Church, and Protestants recognize All Saints Day. It is clear, however, that at least in this country, any Christian connection to Halloween has been lost. It is at best a purely secular holiday.
It is equally clear that the pagan origins of Halloween have not faded into obscurity. They persist today. In fact, in many ways, the pagan origins of Halloween are experiencing a resurgence of popularity, belief, and practice.
So how does a Christian deal with Halloween in a way that glorifies God?
First, become informed about Halloween’s pagan origins.
Second, become informed about the ways that the pagan origins of Halloween are re-emerging.
Today, Wicca is one of the fastest growing cults in America. Wicca is a neopagan religion. It can be traced back to Gardnerian Witchcraft which was founded in the UK during the late 1940’s. Wicca is based on the symbols, seasonal days of celebration, beliefs and deities of ancient Celtic society. The Druids worshipped elements of creation, and not the creator himself. So, too, modern Wicca is a nature religion. In addition to ancient Druidic beliefs and practices, Wicca incorporates Masonic and ceremonial magical components from recent centuries.
Modern witches (wiccans) celebrate eight main holidays, the most important of these is the Druidic new year’s festival (in other words, Halloween). This is the most important holiday because this is the time when the veil between the worlds of the living and the dead is supposed to be its thinnest point in the year, making communication easier.
For the same reason, Halloween is also the most important holiday for modern Satanists. Satanists believe that Halloween is a night when demons and the devil have special powers. For Satanists, Halloween is a particularly important night for sacrificial rites.
There’s no getting around it. Check out any of the new specialty stores popping up that sell nothing but Halloween paraphernalia. Halloween, even in its secular and commercial form, glorifies death and honors symbols of evil.
So how does a Christian deal with Halloween in a way that glorifies God?
First, become informed about Halloween’s pagan origins.
Second, become informed about the ways that the pagan origins of Halloween are re-emerging.
Third, do not have anything to do with the pagan aspects of Halloween or those commercial aspects that glorify death and honor symbols of evil. At the same time, do not fear October 31 either.
The reality is that Christians in America live in an incredibly pluralistic society. On a daily basis we brush elbows with people of many different religions, including neopagans and even Satanists. The instruction that Moses gave the Israelites as they prepared to enter into the Promised Land applies equally well to American Christians today.
To the Israelites, Moses said: “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, engage in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord…” (Deuteronomy 18:9-12)
It’s important that those who are seeking to witness to the life-giving love of Jesus Christ avoid glorifying death or giving honor to symbols of evil.
October 31 may be a special day to groups who oppose the one true and living God, but still our God reigns. Our God is a God of love, and there is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.
In the Letter to the Colossians, we are reassured: “He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” (Colossians 1:13)
So how does a Christian deal with Halloween in a way that glorifies God?
Third, do not have anything to do with the pagan aspects of Halloween or those commercial aspects that glorify death and honor symbols of evil. At the same time, do not fear October 31 either.
Fourth, stake a claim on the fun and innocent aspects of this day, and feel free to mock the devil’s attempts to claim this day.
Just because we choose to disassociate ourselves from practices that glorify death and honor symbols of evil, doesn’t mean we can’t play on October 31.
This time of the year is a wonderful time for celebration. For those who have ties to agriculture, the harvest is in. For the rest of us, the kids are back in school! Wearing costumes can be fun. Playing games and sharing candy in a safe and loving environment can be joyful.
The Letter to the Colossians also notes that Jesus “disarmed the powers and authorities” and “he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” (Colossians 2:15) On the cross and by his resurrection, Jesus humiliated Satan. One aspect of Satan’s defeat was humiliation—shame—dishonor—disgrace.
Satan hates to be mocked. He counts on fear to underwrite his illusions of power. When we refuse to fear, but instead stand up to his ultimately futile attempts to claim October 31 or any other day as his own, then we—by the grace of God—join in undermining Satan and those who would follow him, knowingly or unknowingly. We can stand up to Satan by celebrating on October 31 in ways that let Satan know that we do not accept and do not fear his attempt to claim this day. We can stand up to Satan by celebrating on October 31 in ways that lift up Jesus Christ and share the light of Christ in the world.
Do not be overcome by evil, but instead overcome evil with good.
Celebrate if you will, but celebrate in a way that glorifies God and lifts up Jesus Christ.
Celebrate if you will, but celebrate as children of light. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.
Celebrate if you will, but celebrate in a way that shares the light of Christ.
Celebrate if you will, but celebrate in a way that does not seek your own good but the good of others.
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” (Philippians 4:8)
