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"You're not going to celebrate Halloween are you?" She looked as if she'd just witnessed a murder.

"Of course not," I quipped, "This is the way we always dress."

Deanne was not amused. "Don't you know what Halloween really stands for? You, of all people. A Sunday School teacher!"

She had me. I had no real clue what she was talking about. Our family always made a big deal of any holiday, decorating the house, having parties and special meals and enjoying the festive moods.

To us, Halloween was carving the pumpkin, dressing in costume and trouping around the neighborhood begging for goodies. What could be sinister about that?

After a heart-to-heart with Deanne, I called our pastor to get his take on the evils of Halloween. Then I called my mother. Then I called several Christian friends and my old pastor. Then I shook my head in total confusion. Everyone I had spoken with had their own ideas about Halloween.

Meanwhile, my husband was carving the pumpkin, doing a truly tasteless job of it, and the kids were mixing and matching costume elements to come up with some ghastly fashion statements of their own.

By now, the fun of Halloween had faded for me and I went to my room to pray and search the scriptures.

"Hey, you're missing all the fun," said my pumpkin stained hubby as he entered the bedroom trailed by a motley crew of short people who couldn't possibly be my own children.

Sending the midgets back to the trashed living room, I shared my concerns with this man who had pumpkin pulp on his nose and seeds stuck to his chin. It was hard to keep a straight face, but I tried to fill him in on what I had learned about the vile history of Halloween and demon worship and…

I couldn't hold it in. I burst out laughing as his quizzical expression, with its orange decorations made him look like a benevolent, but completely witless clown. Was this my answer from the Lord?

We talked and prayed and I took my honey's picture. Then we went back to join the mess in the living room. We had a plan.

Our plan was to enjoy the harmless traditions of Halloween just as we had when we were innocently uninformed, but with one exception. There would be no scary stuff and no witch stuff.

Now, please don't think our plan should be yours. Each must come before the Lord and do his best to follow what God leads him to do as best as he understands it. To help you in your own quest for understanding, I've included views from various sources and a brief history of Halloween.

Col. 2:16
Do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day.

History of Halloween

To the Celtic people, who lived over 2000 years ago, Oct. 31 was the most fearful day of the year. It was the eve of their festival of Samhain. Samhain was a harvest festival that marked the death of the old year and the birth of a new one. They paid homage to the sun god Baal who they believed provided the ripened grain. At evening evil spirits were believed to be everywhere and charms and spells were said to have more power. Rituals were performed by the Celtic priests, Druids, to appease the Lord of the Dead.

Within the 4th century A.D. Roman Empire, Christian Fathers tried to stamp out paganism. But the Celts held firmly to their Druid customs. So, the Roman church gave them new meanings and new names, telling people that the Oct. 31 fire rites they had previously held for the Lord of the Dead would now protect them from the Devil, the enemy of God.

In the 7th century All Saint's Day was celebrated in May, but by the 9th century the date had been changed to Nov. 1st. The original festival for the pagan Lord of the Dead became a festival for dead saints. People went on expecting the arrival of ghosts on Oct. 31st. Another name for All Saint's Day was All Hallows' Even later known as Halloween.

In the 10th century the Roman church named Nov. 2nd as All Souls' Day in memory of all dead souls. Halloween, All Saints' Day, and All Souls' Day come so close together and are so similar that in some countries they tend to merge together.

The Witch

The witch was a central symbol of old time Halloweens, and is warned about in scripture. Recall the Witch of Endor with whom Saul consulted.

The Halloween Masquerade

In ancient times people wore masks when disasters struck. They believed that demons who brought their misfortunes could be frightened off by hideous masks. Long after the festival of Samhain had merged with Halloween, Europeans were fearful at this time of the year. Food was stored up for the winter and houses were snug and warm. They believed cold, envious ghosts were lurking outside, so people often wore masks when going out after dark.

Until this century children dressed up as ghosts and goblins to scare the neighbors, but did no trick or treating. Then, people began to offer treats to the costumed youngsters. In parts of England the poor once went to houses singing and begging for soul cakes or money and Spanish people put cakes and nuts on graves on Halloween, to bribe the evil spirits.

Nancy says:
For Christian Families who are having a hard time with Halloween.....our church does something wonderful for the "holiday?" that takes away the risk of trick or treating, the "questionable" reasons for this day (some say demon worship), and blesses the Lord at the same time.

We have "Hallelujah Night" instead....a couple weeks in advance our Pastor makes announcements at all sermons that Candy will be collected in designated areas throughout the church....people donate bags of candy....we got close to a ton last year!! People of the church volunteer for things such as games, face painting, rides, petting zoo, pony rides, etc. On Halloween night the kids can come dressed in their costumes and play games etc. They earn Candy for winning or losing a game. Fun for the whole family, volunteers, and a great way to spread the good news of Christ to your community.

Joanne says:
The ancient roots of Halloween, the pagan Druid rituals, the institution of All Saints and All Souls days, etc., have little connection to the Halloween traditions of today. These were man-made rituals of an era so far in the past that few people now have any real understanding of them.

With all due respect to those who take a more conservative view, I see no evil in celebrating Halloween as the American tradition it has become today. The Jack-O-Lantern, costumed children trolling for treats, bobbing for apples, etc. which constitute a modern observance of Halloween have lost all pagan connections. God sees what's in our hearts, and He knows that my costumed four-year old is not paying homage to the dead or trying to ward off evil spirits; he's just having fun dressed up like a teddy bear and gathering goodies.

I do feel, however, that witches and other demonic symbolisms have no place in the Christian's life on any day. And furthermore, any tricks or mischief are never ever justified!

Carrie says:
We denounce any connection between Halloween in modern America and the demonic nonsense of ages passed. Sadly, the date has not changed, but everything else has been altered to a degree that I can see no real connection.

BUT, if you think celebrating Halloween brings disrepute to Christ or is honoring demons, you should have nothing to do with it. And if you feel it's wrong in any way, then it IS wrong—for you.

Beth says:
We were worried about how Christian families could participate in Halloween fun and bring honor to Christ at the same time. Here's what we did:

We carved pumpkins with Christian symbols, the fish (very hard to do!), the cross, etc. We banned any scary or "evil" costumes. Instead of saying "Trick or Treat," our kids say, "Treat and Treat," and they hand out keychains with crosses to the homes they visit. You can order these very inexpensively from mail order catalogues.

Iona says:
Our school hosts elementary Halloween parties and an indoor parade during the day and has an evening party with games and refreshments for teens. We have almost no problem with vandalism even though most children and many teens go out Trick-or-Treating in the early evening.

As far as the evils of Halloween go, I personally feel any ancient ties to demonism are long gone. I would have to cite Paul's attitude about special days, feasts, etc. Throughout his writings, Paul stresses the freedom we have in Christ and the fact that it is what God sees in the heart that counts. So, it is our motive for taking part in Halloween activities which is important, not whether we participate.

Betty says:
Celebrating a pagan holiday is an invitation to Satan even if the person doesn't know what Halloween stands for. It's just like having a Ouija board in your house. I think Christians need to be very careful. There is a spiritual war going on all around us and the stakes are very high! Remember the days of the Judges when "everyone did what was good in his own eyes." Look at all the trouble they got into!

Avoiding Sin & Pleasing God

Christians obviously have widely divergent opinions on the issue of Halloween. Some say it's all just innocent fun and others believe it to be an invitation to evil. While I can't pretend to have the final answer, I would like you to consider these ways to avoid sin and please God:

1. Don't contend with your brother or sister in Christ whose ideas on Halloween differ from your own. We are to love one another and tolerate our weaker brother. After all, you may yourself be the weaker brother!

2. By all means, don't participate in Halloween activities (or any other activities) if you feel it is wrong in any way. If you feel convicted but proceed anyway, it is sin, plain and simple.

3. Pray! Study scripture and pray some more. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you and be open to His leading.

4. Don't become a spiritual bully. Your holier-than-thou attitude will drive people away and your witness will be lost on them.

5. When in doubt, don't.

6. Beware of "legalism." The absolutes we find in scripture are well defined and we never find ourselves in doubt about how God feels about them. But there are many "gray areas" in our lives about which we can find no definite scriptural reference. It is just these "gray areas" which can lead to stiff-necked legalism.

In the quandary about Christians and Halloween, our biggest danger doesn't lie in Halloween participation but in dissentions, divisions and disruptions within the Body of Christ.

My prayer is that no matter what you chose to do about Halloween, you will continue in the agape love of Jesus for all your brothers and sisters, no matter how they feel about the last day of October.

The following link leads to a different viewpoint on Halloween from a Christian perspective:

Gloria Phillips' Christian Perspective on Halloween