First let me say that I am no expert. I've read several books and have studied enough on the subject to satisfy my own mind, but am quite sure I've only scratched the surface.
1. Knowledge is Power
It all started with the Celtic festival of Samhain (Summer's End).
The Celts only observed two seasons; summer and winter. Sometime around November, they would bring the finest of their herds into shelter. The rest would be slaughtered for a feast.
This marked the start of what they called the "dark" time. Nights were longer, darkness fell early, and this time of year was thought to belong to the spirits. It was believed that spirits and demons alike roamed freely during this time. The people took to dressing as ghouls in the belief that malicious spirits would take them as one of their own and pass on by.
Families would lay out food offerings in their homes in the hopes that departed loved ones would drop by for a visit.
Since this time also marked the Celtic new year, people would pay their debts, renew leases, buy land and trade livestock.
Samhain also represented one of the Fire Festivals. The Celts noticed the sun growing weaker in the winter months and feared it would leave forever. They would light bonfires on hilltops in an attempt to "rekindle" the sun.
Yeah, that'll work.
Enter the conquering Romans.
Samhain begat the Roman Festival of Pamona;
The Roman Festival of Pamona begat All Saints/Souls Day;
All Saints/Souls Day begat Martin Luther and the 95 Theses;
Martin Luther and the 95 Theses begat the Reformation;
The Reformation begat Guy Fawkes Day. . .
And so it went.
Fledgling colonies begin in the new world.
Massachussetts, New Hampshire and Connecticut settled by rigid Puritans tried to kill the holiday all together.
Rhode Island and New York championed religious freedom and celebrated many different styles of the festival.
Yada, Yada, Yada. . . the colonies were inhabited by Dutch German, Swiss, Africans, Native Americans, Catholics and Anglicans. The Holiday became a mish-mash of traditions and customs.
So, Halloween has it's
roots in Celtic Samhain and the christian All Saints Day.
Today it is predominantly a secular holiday.
2. Ignorance is bliss
I remember as a kid having a
blast on Halloween! What kid doesn't love to play dress-up? And then of course there's the candy!
Some years were spent Trick-or-Treating house to house. Some years the churches would have hayrides or bonfires or Fall Festivals of some kind.
I even remember a few spook houses made up in the basements of churches.
Say it ain't so!!!
Not once in all my growing did I consider
ritual or
religion when choosing a costume or handing out candy.
I remember laughing kids and smiling parents. A cool crispness to the air and the crunch of fallen leaves under foot.
I remember costume contests for the little and pie eating for the big. Roasting hot dogs and telling stories at the bonfires, and being giddy beyond belief when a cute boy wanted to sit next to me on the hayride home.
Then we grew up. And got more smarterer. And realized that there is a meaning behind
everything. And when we find that meaning, all the innocent fun goes out the window.
It's exhausting, isn't it, trying to decide where to draw the line?
Take books for example.
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Chronicles of Narnia has witches and mythical creatures and magic. It's a moral tale of good versus evil. It's ok because it was written by a christian.
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Harry Potter has witches and mythical creatures and magic. It's a moral tale of good versus evil.
It's bad! Evil! Stay away!
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Lord of The Rings has witches and mythical creatures and magic. It's a moral tale of good versus evil.
It's ok because it was written by a christian.
Seriously? So when my kids ask why they can't dress up and wear make-up and rake in the candy, I have to say, "Well, you see, thousands of years ago there were these nut jobs . . .".
Now please understand, I would
never presume to judge another's ideals. But - my blog, my soapbox.
Our pastor talks about two kinds of issues.
Ones that are open handed - things that Christians can agree to disagree on sometimes without sin or eternal consequence.
The others are closed handed issues - things that are at the very core of our beliefs and should
never be compromised or ignored.
Halloween is one of those open handed issues.
Joey and I have run the gamut with this and have finally reached a peace about it.
-We do not celebrate Samhain. We do not practice divination. We do not burn sacrifices.
-We do not celebrate All Saints Day. As much as I love my family that has already crossed over, no amount of praying or baking "Soul Cakes" is going to help them at this point.
-We celebrate Secular Halloween. We dress in silly costumes and go out in public. We tell age appropriate ghost stories because our girls are at that "love to be scared" stage. We jump out of closets and yell "Boo!". We watch old scary black and white movies, and the girls watch the Michael Jackson 'Thriller' video. We carve pumpkins.
Because it's fun!!!
