Should Christians Celebrate Halloween?

Being a mother of school-age children has me struggling with the topic of whether or not to celebrate Halloween.  As an adult, I have no problem refraining from activities that associate with the holiday, but explaining it to a 7 year old is a whole other ball game.

 

History of Halloween

Ironically, Halloween, as we know it today, is a hodge-podge of pagan traditions and Christianity.  The Celtic people of Europe and Britain were pagan Druids who celebrated the Samhain festival.  This festival “celebrated the final harvest, death, and the onset of winter, for three days –October 31 to November 2. The Celts believed the curtain dividing the living and the dead lifted during Samhain to allow the spirits of the dead to walk among the living—ghosts haunting the earth.” (gty.org)

In reaction to this season, some resorted to practices such as séances, communicating with the dead, consulting psychics, etc… Others, out of fear of being ‘haunted’, created other practices in their attempt of warding off these spirits.  Heard of “trick-or-treat”? Well, this practice came about because people thought that if they didn’t offer up treats to the spirits, they would be tricked in the form of being haunted, curses, etc…  What about costumes?  Well, that was another practice created in reaction to wandering spirits.  People believed that if they wore costumes resembling the evil spirits, they could essentially fool them into believing that they were spirits themselves. 

The term Halloween came from “All Hallows Eve” which was the early Christian church’s way of celebrating All Saints Day.  In the ninth century, Pope Gregory IV moved the celebration of All Saints Day to November 1^st in an attempt to provide an alternative to the Samhain festival.  Instead, what has happened over the years is that Halloween has become a mixture.  We have haunted houses, scary costumes, trick-or-treating, and pagan traditions on the one hand.  On the other hand, we have people attempting the alternative of ‘good’ costumes, candy and harvest festivals. 

 

 

So what should Christian parents do?

Pray!  We have the responsibility to pray and ask God for direction.  We should also pray for others struggling with this issue as well.  “Keep praying for us, for we are convinced that we have a good (clear) conscience, that we want to walk uprightly and live a noble life, acting honorably and in complete honesty in all things.” (Hebrews 13:18). 

Secondly, don’t get into judging others.  “Do not judge and criticize and condemn others so that you may not be judged and criticized and condemned yourselves” (Matthew 7:1).  Third, be mindful of the events you are allowing your children to participate in and the customs being practiced.  Ask yourself if the event is bringing honor to God and if its representative of your light as a Christian.  “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel" (Philippians 1:27).

Whether you choose to not participate in any events and ignore the holiday; or participate in alternative events; or perhaps take advantage of all of the people coming to your door for candy as an opportunity to evangelize and share the gospel, the decision is yours.  “But as with all things, we are to incorporate the principles of Romans 14.  We can’t allow our own convictions about a holiday to cause division in the body of Christ, nor can we use our freedom to cause others to stumble in their faith.  We are to do all things as to the Lord.” (raisinggodlychildren.org)