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Original poster

To wonder why some Christians have a problem with Halloween?

215 replies

JellyDiamonds · 29/10/2014 16:12

The first time I encountered this was at Uni when a girl I was friends with refused to partake in any Halloween celebrations whatsoever on the grounds that it was "evil". Her family were evangelical Christian, and even though she was more relaxed in her religious beliefs than them she wouldn't budge on Halloween. It was a shame as she missed out on all of the fun. But she'd never celebrated it, and her family would go out on the 31st to avoid trick or treaters.

I don't understand it? My mum was raised a Christian and has always loved halloween. She sees it for what it is, a bit of fun for kids.

I feel a bit sorry that these people won't allow their children to take part in the same customs that their peers do. Doesn't it leave them feeling a bit left out at school etc?

Should these people just get a grip and stop being intolerant?

OP posts:
Bunbaker · 29/10/2014 19:04

"I find it more surprising that so many Christians don't have a problem with it."

Because some of us are broad minded and don't take it seriously. I don't think it is linked to the occult. I just see it as a bit of nonsense. There is no point in demonising it.

Darkesteyes · 29/10/2014 19:05

Timeforabiscuit i was brought up Catholic and my mum HATED Halloween and refused to let us take part as kids. I remember my friends coming over in costume and my mum wouldnt let us answer the door. We stood at DBs open bedroom window which was just above the front porch and threw some sweets out of the window.

Lambstales · 29/10/2014 19:08

This period of the year was seen by older religions as a time when the upper and lower world (living and dead) were less separated than normal.
Look at today's weather dull and misty pissing down and think of guttering candle or a bundle of rushes in the misty air and echoing noises. It's not hard to think of ghosts and otherworldly beings.

Christianity then decided to put All Saints and All Souls day in place of the old rituals. The old Christians did this to other festivals, tweaked it for their own ends.

Notagainmun · 29/10/2014 19:09

I am a Christian and not a big fan but if a little child came to my door all excited and dressed up I will give them a fun size milky way.

My own children were not allowed to trick or treat and Carol singing was only done for charity in an organized group such as the church or young farmers club.

As a child in the seventies I vaguely remember a Sunday school party for Halloween but we didn't dress up or talk of ghosts and ghouls.

Askja · 29/10/2014 19:17

I grew up in a vicarage and we did Halloween. Not trick or treating, which I'm not a fan of, but pumpkins, apple bobbing, dressing up etc. I always understood the festival to have quite Christian undertones - you dress up and make scary lanterns to laugh in the face of evil by making fun of it, not to celebrate it.

LandOfCakes · 29/10/2014 19:18

I'm from rural Scotland and in my mid thirties. We always had a halloween party at school and people just went in fancy dress. My friend and I went Mary and her lamb one year. I think it was because spooky costumes were harder to make at home.

My parents are very religious and they let me go but I think it may have been frowned upon by the church for the reasons mentioned above.

bigbluestars · 29/10/2014 19:22

My family frown upon Halloween. That have a light party for the kids.

BackOnlyBriefly · 29/10/2014 19:30

I can see that Christians might be opposed to Halloween if it really was encouraging the worship of someone/something that wasn't god, but it's just a bit of fun and an excuse to eat lots of sweets.

I'm wondering how do the same Christians feel about people who really do worship another god? Surely what the Hindus worship must seem much worse than Halloween and they really are serious about it and teach it to kids.

Hatespiders · 29/10/2014 19:39

Well I'm a Christian and regular churchgoer, and I love Hallowe'en. As a child we dressed up in spooky costumes, but I don't remember 'trick-or-treat. We had apple-bobbing and ate toffee apples in our village hall.
When I lived up in Edinburgh and also Glasgow, the children did guising, with just blackened faces, (1960's) They sang a song or told a joke and expected a coin/sweets. But they never said the words 'trick or treat'.

I see it as a tradition and not evil or dodgy at all. We love to see the children at our door. Mu pumpkin is alight on our doorstep already (most of the neighbours have lit one) and that will go on until it rots away next week!
Nobody on our PCC has ever said they don't approve.

BeetlebumShesAGun · 29/10/2014 19:44

Astounded at all the "celebrating evil" bouncing about here. As JellyDiamonds said the origin of Halloween is Samhain which is still celebrated by many people. No "evil" here.

MrsAtticus · 29/10/2014 19:57

Much the same feelings as desperately, though we are Muslims. Evil spirits are real, and there is nothing funny about them. I also don't like the idea of trick or treating.

Lambstales · 29/10/2014 20:13

It's the conquering of evil with light and fire much like diwali.

IamMummyhearmeROAR · 29/10/2014 20:21

I always went guising- we dressed as whatever we wanted and really put effort into an all singing and dancing show, with The Witches of Halloween played on recorders- my sister would play her recorder thru her nose Hmm and we were always given cold hard cash which we split. I was raised RC and it was never an issue for us

ApocalypseThen · 29/10/2014 20:32

I was also brought up catholic in Ireland. We went to mass, had the dinner (ham and colcannon followed by brack) and then dressed up and were brought to the aunts and granny for trick or treating, then to the kid's disco in the local GAA club and home for party games like bobbing for apples.

It was always great.

LackaDAISYcal · 29/10/2014 20:36

afaik scots and irish exported guising to America where it grew into the huge holiday it is over there today. And like a lot of American traditions has come back to us with knobs and bells on.

We went guising as children, in home made costumes that could be anything. I remember going as a "chef's square soup" one year in a decorated box and Charlie Chaplin another year. We would ask, "would you like to help the guisers?" and either be invited in, or not. If invited in we would do a song/dance/poem/joke and would either get sweets, toffee apples, nuts or money in return.

Everyone did it, even the minister's children from our local Church of Scotland Church. I remember joining an evenagelical christian church in my mid teens, and though I donlt specifically remeber any hallow'een parties etc, I don't remember it being actively discouraged on the grounds of it being evil.

LackaDAISYcal · 29/10/2014 20:39

though it was more often money than the alternatives. A handful of nuts was scorned, and getting something without having to perform, was always a bonus!

The trick or treat thing doesn't sit well with me at all; I think my chidren should be working a bit harder for their booty, as I had to Wink

therenter · 29/10/2014 20:46

www.mirror.co.uk/opinion/news-opinion/reverend-j-john-six-reasons-2486777

This article; I believe is very well written and outlines some of the reasons that my children do not participate.

KitCat26 · 29/10/2014 20:46

My very catholic mother used to carve pumpkins with us as children. She never let us trick or treat as she thought it bad manners, but we always had a stash by the door for when my friends visited dressed up. There was always Mass to go to as well on all saints day.

Our typically huge catholic family doesn't seem to mind a bit of Halloween fun either, so I guess its a personal choice. I thought the dressing up in scary outfits was to scare evil away?

I never encountered a Christian objection to Halloween until very recently from some folks in the Free Church. They don't allow their church hall to host Halloween parties, but they do a cracking bonfire night display.

SparkyLark · 29/10/2014 20:50

"We avoid it. Don't like the associations with the occult (and yes, I know the majority of Halloween parties are just fun and games, but I do remember a few teen parties where fortune telling cards, ouija boards, etc. played a part. I think that opens doors which should be left firmly shut.

For me personally (and I cannot possibly speak for all Christians, and may very well be mistaken), it's potentially opening the doors to evil. It's giving evil power, and it's celebrating it.

I also deeply dislike the idea of teaching children to demand sweets with menaces".

So agree with DesperatelySeekingSanity. I tolerate it through gritted teeth mostly. I think there is some kind of celebration of evil though, I really do ... I also think evil exists, and its enough already without giving it more power so to speak. Its not really from a Christian perspective particularly, as much a humanist one.

Trinpy · 29/10/2014 20:53

I'm Catholic and was brought up in a Catholic family but my parents were happy to buy/help make us Halloween costumes (witch, vampire, ghost, etc) and always had sweets ready for trick or treaters. We had a Halloween party one year too.
My mum wouldn't take us trick or treating because she saw it as begging, but she didn't stop us going out doing it with our friends when we were old enough. I can understand why other people might not like it though.

I was really shocked this year at how gory and adult (as in based on 18 rated horror films) so many of the kids Halloween costumes on sale seem to be. Maybe I've forgotten what I was like when I was growing up but I can't remember any of us dressing up in such disturbing costumes, usually it was just some plastic fangs and a bit of fake blood.

Greengrow · 29/10/2014 20:54

We have never gone in for Halloween much in the UK thankfully. There are the two festivals of All Souls and All Saints.
We have never really done Halloween in any kind of sense.

Also sweets are poison so anything that encourages just disgusting junk foods is an American import we could well do without.

As for Guy Fawkes some of us were on his side so not into burning him so that's the 5th November out too.

SparkyLark · 29/10/2014 20:55

p.s. What Lambstales says is interesting - that it was traditionally a period of the year that was seen by older religions as a time when the upper and lower world (living and dead) were less separated than normal. But I don't think this is how Halloween is presented now; it feels somehow more tacky and ghoulish..

raltheraffe · 29/10/2014 20:58

I am a Christian and I love Halloween!

Personally I do not judge anyone on their religious beliefs or lack of.

I would not judge a Christian who does not wish to participate and I think judging anyone on their religious beliefs is unacceptable.

trixymalixy · 29/10/2014 21:00

Greengrow, you do realise that Scotland is part of the UK?

lougle · 29/10/2014 21:02

Around my area, there are less young children trick or treating and many more teenagers. They expect lots of sweets etc., and those who don't comply or answer the door get their door egged. We live relatively rurally.

We are Christians and don't 'do' Halloween. However my father really likes Halloween, so we compromise and allow Mum & Dad to give the children a Halloween tea with their cousins, where they eat 'dragons' legs', 'dead men's fingers', etc, and drink 'bats' blood'.