Why I Don’t Do Halloween
Restored from the Empower Network archive (2011–2017), lightly edited to meet our current advertising standards. Views are the original author’s.
Why I Don’t Do Halloween
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You may be shocked to discover that I am a father of two young children and I do not celebrate halloween.
Well, that is one of the many reasons why I do not celebrate halloween.
A Bit of Halloween History
I know many festivals and celebrations have backgrounds that come from pagan roots or all on dates where pagan festivals used to be celebrated. But for me Halloween has a particularly sinister background not just in the past but even now.
It came from a Celtic pagan festival from centuries ago, called Samhain (pronounced sow-en). Where the belief was that spirits of the dead would visit and so people would put out various items of food in order to offer as gifts to these visiting spirits.
The 31st Oct was also seen as the end of the summer.
There are also said to be connections with the Catholic church in which ‘All Saints Day’ or ‘All Hallows Day’ was celebrated on Nov 1st. This was a day to remember all the saints who had died or been martyred.
Why I Don’t Celebrate Halloween
There are a number of issues that I have with Halloween.
Firstly, as a born again Christian, I am not accustomed to taking part in any event that commemorates the dead.
In addition to that, I am aware that with the pagan roots in this festival, the modern day equivalent seems to draw from a lot of those traditions. Traditions like pumpkin carving, trick or treating and the general connection with the things of the occult.
I am also aware that for real witches and other people that are involved in occultic practices, Halloween is a day of significance. Their belief is that is their new year and it is a time when they seek to connect with Spririts and take part in divination and other things that the Bible speaks against.
Even though many profess that halloween is a bit of fun and many in our Western culture see it as an excuse to have a party, for me there is too much connection with evil, death and things of the occult and therefore not something I would encourage my children to participate in.
From my understanding of the Bible and the effects I have seen on people who dabble with the occult, I am inclined to keep well out of any practices that would steer me towards those things.
You may call me a bit of a killjoy or a religious nut but I can be quite comfortable with that, knowing that to not be aware of these things can be a lot more harmful than you realise.
As I heard it once said: ‘The best trick the devil ever pulled was convincing people he didn’t exist.’ Just a little something to think about.
I would rather focus on light and life and for me that is found in the good news of Jesus Christ.
Whatever your choice for halloween I encourage you to not be ignorant of what really goes on and exercise caution in what you get involved in.