The history of Halloween is long, complex and somewhat uncertain.  Halloween, as we celebrate it today can be traced back to pagan, Catholic, and relatively recent American roots.  It is therefore difficult to pinpoint any one single source of this over-commercialized holiday.  Christians have long avoided this night due to its occult overtones, choosing rather to throw “Harvest Festivals” (which can be argued to be nothing more than the same thing under a different name).  Modern day witches (i.e. Wicca) and occult practitioners are offended by how they are portrayed by popular costumes.  At the same time, the general populace gives little thought to the day other than what costume to wear, which party to attend and how much candy to consume.  

When all is said and done, is there anything redeeming about this evening of costume-wearing and, oft times, gluttonous candy-eating?  Is it possible to trick-or-treat for Jesus? Do we provide candy to neighborhood ghosts and goblins or settle for the highly unpopular and dreaded tract + Gideon Bible combo (note: please don’t do that)? Practically, how can Halloween point us and others to Jesus? 

Before we go there, let’s first cover a bit of the history of his sugar-coated holiday. (Disclaimer: The history of this holiday is long, complex, interwoven and often debated. This is my attempt at synthesizing my research.) There are signs that in the early 4th century the church had a day, the specific day is unknown, during which they celebrated the lives of well known Christians. Several hundred years later on May 13th, 610 AD, Pope Boniface IV consecrated the Pantheon and established that day to specifically celebrate Mary and the martyrs of the Church. Now, in the late 8th century, Pope Gregory III changes that day from May 13th to Nov 1st and names the day “All Hallows Day” (aka All Saints Day, or Hallowmas) to remember all the dead, not just the martyrs.  

This change of date happened to coincide with the ancient Celtic holiday of Samhain (of the Irish, Celts, Scots) that officially marked the end of summer and the beginning of the winter. Thus, Oct 31st became known as All Hallows Eve (i.e. the day before All Hallows Day, aka Halloween). In 998 AD, on Nov 2nd, Saint Odilo of Cluny established All Souls Day to commemorate souls condemned to purgatory.  Therefore, up until this point we have All Hallows Eve (Oct 31st), All Hallows Day (Nov 1st) and All Souls Day (Nov 2nd). Just wait, it gets messier. 

Moving ahead 600 years, Martin Luther posts his 95 theses (which were primarily against the indulgences required by the Catholic Church for those in purgatory) on the door of Wittenberg Castle on Oct 31st, 1517, appropriately on the eve of the ensuing Catholic celebration and remembrance of the dead in heaven (Nov 1st) and for those in purgatory (Nov 2nd).  Thus, Oct 31st assumes the name of Reformation Day in addition to All Hallows Eve (aka Halloween). While all of this is taking place in Europe, All Saints and All Souls Days are combined into one holiday in Mexico called Dia de Muertos (in English, the Day of the Dead), which corroborated with an ancient Aztec custom of regularly remembering the dead. 

It wasn’t until the 19th century that Halloween customs were brought over to America. Most historians say that “trick or treating” did not become significant in the US until the 1930s. Since then, good ole fashioned Americanism has paved over much of these former traditions. One example of this is the use of pumpkins for Jack-o-Lanterns versus the original use of Irish turnips and rutabagas. Therefore, given this long, complex, confusing, and constantly evolving history of days, cultures and customs associated with this day - what do we do with Halloween? Can Halloween point us to Jesus? Stay tuned for Part II.