Reflection week beginning 31 October 2016 What is Halloween? Reflection week beginning 31 October 2016

Why do we have festivals and celebrations? Every celebration we have is linked to the natural world around us: At Easter we celebrate new life we can see in the plants and animals In Christianity it is a celebration of new life via the Resurrection of Jesus

Why do we have festivals and celebrations? At Christmas, the darkest time of the year, we celebrate light and love and laughter to try to banish the dark days – After Christmas the days start to get lighter again. In Christianity Jesus is celebrated at Christmas as ‘the light of the world’

So what about Halloween? Traditionally, autumn was seen as a time of death (rather than birth in the Spring). However, as the trees and plants die, so they send their seeds down to earth and have the potential for new life in the Spring In mediaeval times, at “Hallow ‘een”, children would dress up to mock, tease and belittle death (the ‘trick’ part of the tradition)– because it has been defeated by the new life we know is coming (the ‘treat’). The next day would be All Hallows Day (All Saints Day), and their dead relatives would be remembered and prayed for.

Reflection https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zty8Ns5BQtQ&feature=youtu.be Watch the video clip.

Reflection Halloween can be a time to have a party or enjoy dressing up. It can also be a time for quiet reflection for those who have lost love ones. A time to remember. However, it can also be a time to be grateful for the fact that after the winter comes the Spring – with the promise of new life and hope for the future