Every time some adult asks my children this question I cringe internally.
If you read my body language, you’d see my mouth pull tightly at the corners and my eyes narrow. I’m usually not happy about the assumption.
My kids? They never know what to say. They usually don’t answer strangers anyways.
So, I usually answer for them after an awkward pause.
“We don’t celebrate Halloween,” I say.
I usually get an “Oh” and most people don’t know what to say after that.
I celebrated Halloween when I was a kid. We dressed up and I remember it but it was never really a fun memory. It was just something we did.
My husband grew up adamantly opposed to it. His family rented movies and turned out all the lights at night so trick-or-treaters would pass them by. ”It’s a pagan holiday,” he says.
So when we got married I kind of wanted to do it. But as the years passed, I’m glad I didn’t fight this battle.
To me, it’s a meaningless “holiday”. It celebrates nothing. People dress up, look silly, and go asking for treats from strangers. It just seems strange to me.
Also, it is way too commercialized for me (if you haven’t guessed, I hate following crowds). Apparently, Halloween is BIG business, ranking behind Christmas in holiday sales.
I’m wondering what this says about our society. Are we so desperate for an escape we dress up on one night and go to a party because everyone else does?
Me–I’ll take a good novel any day over this.
My kids know what it is. They have to; the society they mingle with Trick-or-Treats every year. We read Halloween books (there are some cute ones out there). My middle child loves black cats so we read a lot of cat books this time of year.
We go to a pumpkin patch every year and paint pumpkins. But that’s all we do.
They don’t seem to care we don’t do what everyone else seems to be doing. They have never asked to go trick-or-treating. They do ask to get the princess dresses on November 1st half-off though! (I have trained them well!).
I’m not opposed to others who choose to celebrate it. I’m indifferent either way. The rest of my family (on both sides) celebrates Halloween. We just choose not to.
I’m wondering what you all think about Halloween and any religious implications. Any opinions either way?
Thank you for this post , I agree with you
I struggle with this as well…I grew up with Halloween being the devil day….my husband grew up with wearing costumes, going to parties and haunted houses. It was hard when we had our kids as my family understands why I don’t like Halloween, but my husbands family thinks I’m strange. I did finally compromise to allow my kids to dress up…but it can’t be scary or bloody ~ which the older the get it becomes more difficult like you said “what does this say about our society?” I dread Halloween and think it’s sad as well how it’s so commercialized! I tell my children Halloween is a celebration of fall…that’s all! When believers participate in anything, their attitude, dress, and behavior should glorify Christ. (Philippians 1:27).
Stay strong….you are raising good Christian moral values to your children!
My husband & I feel the same way. Instead, we choose to celebrate the Fall Harvest. The kids dress up in positive costumes only. Every year, we review the history of the pagan holiday. We go to our church, which hosts a Harvest Festival as a community outreach. If we go trick-or-treating, we only go to homes a few homes that do not promote a dark theme. I usually throw out most of the candy. We do not hand out candy. We also decorate the house related to harvest! They love it.
Long before I even became a Christian, I detested Halloween. I think it is totally stupid to dress up like someone else so you can act like an idiot and nobody know that it’s really you. Celebrate the beauty of autumn, not some ridiculous satan-related activity.
We did not celebrate it at all. We turned off all the lights, lit candles, and played board games. My adult children did theatre throughout their teen years and guess what “holiday” they now, as adults, get all dressed up for when all their friends host parties? It frustrates me.
As a six year old, my whole goal was to quit the silly dress up so I could be the doorbell answerer and by fifth grade, I wanted it to all go away because orange was my least favorite color and fall was my least favorite time of year and I wanted to spend more time on Thanksgiving and Christmas even as a child. Back in my day, <> preteens, teens, and adults would have been ashamed to dress up for Halloween. It was a something for small children.
I think even as a child, I felt it origins were evil. I didn’t know why. I was sensitive that way. One year, the year we started turning out our lights and going to a harvest event at a school, our brick home was spray painted by vandals. Plus, people from out of town would drive in and dump hordes of children in our subdivision because there was a perception that it was “better off” in some way. It long ago lost any “neighborhood fun” for me. We couldn’t even get down the streets to our own home.
Do I eat candy corn? Yes. Do I use the pumpkins to decorate cupcakes? Sure. Do I have a scarecrow outside. Yes.
No more new blogs. I should have been in bed three hours ago! <3
Sorry but I have to disagree here. We’re are not celebrating any pagan holiday rather we are getting to dress up in once a year silly costumes, walk through our neighborhood at night, in the dark, safely I might add and visit with other neighbors doing the same. The real world is plenty scary already. This one night provides an escape from those and let’s us all enjoy each other, or friends, our neighbors and our neighborhood. In a time when kids barely leave the house except for organized activities this is a nice respite. And I have to say – those houses that go dark for just that one night? It always made me think they were just grumpy old folks. I still do.
I don’t really have a staunch opinion one way or the other. When I was a kid (Man it was a long time ago) and up through my early 20′s Halloween was easily my favorite day of the year. Many many thoughts went on year long for what I was going to be, usually beginning my plan the very next day. Having a very large family (I grew up with 8 step-brother/sisters) and have 5 others back here in VA. It was another day of the year where most of us would be together, collaborating on ideas for making our house the most scary one of them all. We literally walked miles when we went out trick or treating, and others would come miles just to get to our house and see what we had in store for them this year. Inevitably, new friends were made, new families were joined with ours, and it really turned into an “event” every year.
Life was a whole lot different back then, though. Kids were very respectful, minded their P’s and Q’s, always said “Thank You”, and moved on about their evening of enchantment.
With 3 children of my own, I looked forward to them getting the same out of the spirit of halloween as I did growing up, but things changed. Kids/parents just weren’t creative, it was far more rare for a kid to say “thank you”, and the day became just another day in the year.
I try not to sit in judgement of people and what they do. I try not to opine my Christian beliefs onto others who are of different religious views than mine. I have a serious issue with hypocrisy, and this kept me away from church for years. (This is a very long story, perhaps to be told when A to Z has something in context of it)
Nowadays, I pretty much don’t do anything on Halloween, because it is no longer what it was. As A to Z said, very commercialized.
I would challenge those who oppose Halloween, because it is “Evil” and celebrates the dark side by saying, Why don’t you dress up as a deciple or something of Christian Yore? Why does it have to be something “Pretend” or evil? Or do you feel you would be ridiculed by dressing up as Moses, Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John, and perhaps even sharing the “Word” with your neighbors?
I suppose folks can turn everything into something else based upon their own views of the world, but I prefer to be accomodating in letting people formulate their own opinion of right and wrong, rather than push my view unto them. So what day is next for us to call pagan? Birthdays? Valentine’s day? Anniversaries? Perhaps the 4th of July? Or maybe even the most commercial of them all, Christmas? No, I think I will not sit in judgement of any of those days, live my life with my fellow man/woman, have a relationship with God, knowing I am not perfect, ‘lest be judged by others as to how I spend my time on holidays.
i live in a small town where the business section invites all the kids downtown from 4-6 to trick or treat. for us it was a fun time to gather and the kids loved to see what each other dresses up as. when i was young we never thought of buying costumes, we had to use our imaginations and make a costume and that was the fun for us.
My dear, you are on the right track. I told my children it was a Satanic holiday and we did not celebrate it, b/c what were we “celebrating” .. a night of freedom for all the dead spirits to rise and have fun before the next day– All Saints Day. Nope. I never saw a baby in a devil costume and thought it cute. We turned the lights off and watched movies, we made homemade fudge and popcorn. My children went to Christian schools and those schools celebrated Harvest Day on the first Friday of November wen they could dress in fun costumes and bob for apples and run thru corn or hay mazes. I had a good confidence during the formative years of my childrens’ lives that I was doing the right thing. However, my children are grown now. When my daughter turned 18 she submersed herself in the Goth lifestyle, even had a friend who shaved his teeth so they would look like vampire fangs! So my adamant decision to NOT celebrate Halloween backfired on me to a certain degree. On the other hand, my daughter has come thru her Goth experience with some really good friends. She has returned to the God she loved as a child and has recommited her life to Christ and is a witness to these former Goth friends. She has told me that she has had some good conversations about God and the Bible with these friends and she is hopeful that one of these days one or more will repent and turn to God.
So, did I do the right thing buy standing firm on my belief that Halloween is a Satanic holiday. Yes, for me I do believe that I did the right thing. Yes,k it caused me heartache during my daughter’s Goth years, but I have also grown closer to God by staying in constant prayer for her and for her influence on her younger brother.
I tell you all this, friend, so you can be prepared for ANY and EVERY consequence of your belief and lack of celebrating Halloween. God Bless You.
Like Christmas, (anyone out there still think Jesus was born in December – no one knows when He was born and besides they had a different calendar) it’s an overly-commercialized secular, too expensive day that’s lost its meaning. Going back to thinking of Halloween as something connected to pagan worship is stretching it quite a bit in today’s society. I see nothing wrong with the little girls down the street dressing up like princesses and coming to my house for a Snicker’s bar. To me Halloween was always just a part of my favorite time of year – autumn – a time to carve a pumpkin, make pumpkin pie, decorate the dining room table with pretty red and gold leaves and enjoy the cooler weather – certainly has absolutely nothing to do with pagan worship at my house, or anyone’s house I have ever known. If you asked 50 people on the street for a definition of pagan worship, they wouldn’t have a clue – and neither do I. The next day, November 1st, in thousands of churches is celebrated as All Saints’ Day, and the following day, November 2nd as All Souls’ Day – so I like to think of “Halloween” as Hallowed Eve, the evening before All Saints’ Day.
*GASP* We cannot have any common sense arguing!!!!
)
Interesting point of view with some good points about Christmas. Based on accounts, and the positioning of the star of Bethlehem (Reputed to be Venus), and the description of the events surrounding the Mesiah’s birth, it has been pretty much narrowed down to the Late September into October time fram by our calendar.
My heart goes out to the people who are confused and celebrate this holiday in a Satanic ritual. This is their day. And when we join in the seemingly harmless fun, we support their holiday.
More of the public should be educated on just exactly what this ‘holiday’ means.
I think as Christians we should take ownership of ‘thanksgiving for the fall harvest’ and abundance the Lord has blessed us with. We have so much to be thankful for, even in the hard, lean times. We can still dress up, have a party, and share food “candy” with our neighbors, but with the spirit of the light, not the spirit of the dark.
If the spirit of the holiday is thanksgiving instead of scarey monsters, then we have something to celebrate freely and with joy.
I agree with Lisa C that people should “be educated on just exactly what this holiday means”.
“My heart goes out to the people who are confused and celebrate this holiday in a Satanic ritual. This is their day. And when we join in the seemingly harmless fun, we support their holiday.”
You have equated Halloween to a Satanic Ritual, and that if “we” participate we support Satanism. From my research that dates back to the 16th century, I cannot find one reference to Satanic Rituals ever being part of Halloween. Pumpkin (Turnip) carving appeared in the 18th century in Europe, and the 19th century here in the US. Apparently to symbolize remembering “souls” held in Purgatory. Obviously purgatory is part of Catholocism, so are they now satanists?
Trick or treating dates back to medevial times when people would go “Souling” on Hallowmass prior to “All souls day”. Basically would offer prayer for souls lost in exchange for food. Most “Soulers” were quite poor.
Yes, indeed we should educate ourselves better, and perhaps not sit in judgement of others who celebrate Halloween, because unless you know what is in their hearts when they do, then you are merely judging.
I think this is one of the cases where every family and individual has to decide for themselves what they are comfortable with, what feels right to them, what their local church encourages, and yes, what they feel the Bible encourages us to do or…wait, Steve…never mind. I have enjoyed reading all the comments and childhood memories above even the one that put people who made the choice we did in the “grumpy old people” category. LOL That’s probably fairly accurate although most people who know me in real life would disagree. I’m pretty bah humbug about the whole autumn, fall decorating, harvest parties, pumpkin carving, pumpkin pie, pumpkin painting…not because I’m anti everything but because if I had to list my top 100 days of the year, I can’t think of one that falls between August 31 and Thanksgiving unless it involves a football game…preferably a high school game. I was very sad in first grade when I was scolded for coloring my fall leaf for my locker green. Alas, I was a realist at six. I lived south of Interstate 10 and leaves were two colors. Green most of the year and brown for one month before they fell off in late November or mid December and thankfully appeared again…green in two months in mid February. I was an adult before I saw leaves in yellow, red, and orange. I tried to put my happy on when we lived up north various times but my color dial was set early. Green leaves belong on trees. All those other colors belong to people who live in a too strange to me land. So Halloween falls into that category of strange to me. I don’t like it because I don’t like fall, I’m not wild about earth tones, this time of year depresses me, I don’t like horror movies, zombies, and ugly witches scared me then and now, and I like happy things, happy colors, and happy people who are cheerful, say please and thank you, and bunnies, and puppies. Cats are not my favorite animal even though they have a magnetic attraction to my house, brooms around here are usually engaged in sweeping up vast amounts of dog hair, and I’ve never been fond of striped socks. My kids didn’t read Goose Bumps, or vampire books, Anne Rice, or Stephen King. Naturally, as soon as they went to college, they dressed in black like native New Yorkers and found deep thinking friends who loved Anne Rice and Stephen King, playing Dungeons and Dragons one night a week (like their church going daddy before them), and dressed up for Magdrigal Feasts and singing in the church choir on Sundays. Sometimes I truly don’t know the people at my dinner table when we all gather together and they start to talk about Star Wars, Lord of the Rings (my kids had read the entire trilogy by third grade and I think I was hobbited out at by page three), Robert Jordan, and other SciFi people I don’t care to know. I’m a misfit in my family. So…in the spirit of my annual fall bah humbug, I’ll do my best to think about Thanksgiving (oh, how I wish the Pilgrims had worn lime green, hot pink, bright purple, and turquoise blue dresses and Madras plaid and carried Billy Graham red Bibles) and on to Christmas around the World. My dear father-in-law puts on his liturgical bah humbug as soon as the Thanksgiving dishes have barely been washed and his son, my husband has to be highly coerced to cooperate with the commencing of the longest Christmas ever (one year, only the advent of Passover, convinced me that alas, I really needed to put Christmas away). Everyone have a blessed day whether you’re wearing orange or not.
“….what they feel the Bible encourages us to do or…wait, Steve…never mind” Yes Mama?
“I lived south of Interstate 10 ” House Boat?
“I’m not wild about earth tones” The 70′s must have been a real downer then. (Remember the bright orange counter tile rage? LOL)
“Cats are not my favorite animal” I knew I liked you for other reasons besides your clarity.
“brooms around here are usually engaged in sweeping up vast amounts of dog hair” You should see my mother-in-laws broom she rides.
“I’m a misfit in my family” We must be related.
“oh, how I wish the Pilgrims had worn lime green, hot pink, bright purple, and turquoise blue dresses” Are you Mrs. Roper
Wonderful to know there are others who choose not to celebrate Halloween. We have been severely criticized over the decades by family members for “denying” our children this “exciting” time. My children are grown now and choose to “sort of” celebrate it but not the way so many do. Sometimes, our children would dress as Bible characters or saints or part of God’s creation (i.e., animals – one time my daughter dressed up as a wrapped gift and was “the gift of God” and another time as a bride as the “bride of Christ”) and go to a party at church (where they received was more good candy than others) for All Saints Eve; there would often be games, stories of the saints, and even special visitors (we had the Donut Man one year). We didn’t like it’s meaning spiritually and I thought it odd to tell my children not to take things from strangers 364 days and then encourage it one day.
It would probably shock many to know we also never did Santa in our house. Like you, our children always knew about these things but never felt deprived. We told them never to say there wasn’t a Santa (or Easter Bunny, etc) because that was what some families celebrated and it would hurt the children. We had plenty of gifts. We did this because some close friends advised us on that when our son was born when we asked what they did about Santa. They said “We tell our children about Jesus who they can’t see. What will they think about Jesus when they discover Santa, who they can’t see, isn’t real?”. Made a lot of sense to us. We focused on Christ’s birth and family time.
We don’t do Santa, tooth fairy, or easter bunny either. I wrote about that last year. Probably will again at some point. Thanks for sharing!
It is a pagan holiday!!!
There is so much to celebrate in life, I don’t feel any need to go looking for something else to celebrate. Our kids have always had a trunk full of costumes to play with. Why wait for that once a year holiday to celebrate the joy of pretending? Our children have sometimes felt ridiculed by kids in the church and even adults
( when they have said we don’t celebrate Halloween. I reminded them that when we buy candy they rarely end up eating it because they feel sick afterwards. In fact we were at a party over the weekend where candy corn was served & our littlest threw it up. We have never done Santa, the tooth fairy or the Easter bunny either. I feel so strongly about our decision that I never even enter a discussion about it. We will have our porch light off and be watching movies in the basement. Not because we are old grumpy people but just because Halloween isn’t our idea of fun. Our community has a Reformation Celebration the same night as trick or treat that specifically states “no costumes” as this is not a Halloween celebration it is an alternative. We tried that for a couple of years but our kids got invitations to get together with friends for the Reformation Celebration with the added note that they would be trick or treating afterward so bring a costume. Seemed like a bigger hypocrisy than just staying home. After all, our kids need to know that somethings are wrong, some are unnecessary, and we don’t need to reward ourselves with an alternative because we gave up something that we shouldn’t be doing anyway.
My husband and I have recently had to make our decision on this subject. Our twins are 3 1/2 and they really want to dress up and go get candy. That is all they see it as at this age. It is difficult when ALL of the other children in church are doing it. I was asking myself how do we handle this and where do we stand on this Holiday? We have decided that for us and for now, if they want to dress up in cute costumes and go visit people we know then we will. We are not going to force them to do it every year and we are going to be teaching them along the way (each year a little more, as they can understand more as they grow) what Halloween is really about and at some point they will make a choice to not participate. They will never be allowed to where anything remotely scarey, gory, or demonic. No devils, witches, etc.