1. Informing Your Worldview
Halloween

2. overview Historical Halloween: The Debate
Informing your worldview: Halloween
overview
Historical Halloween: The Debate
Christian “Origins” of Halloween
Pagan “Origins” of Halloween
Modern Halloween
Impact
Samhain Celebrations
Conclusion

3. Historical halloween: The Debate
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Historical halloween: The Debate
Christians claim Halloween is a Christian holiday that started in 609 AD to celebrate “All Saints Day”.
Pagans claim that Halloween is a far more ancient holiday that stems from:
The Celtic/Druidic holiday of Samhain.
The Roman festival of Lemuria.

4. Halloween: a christian holiday - Name study
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: a christian holiday - Name study
Alholowmesse (Middle-English)
All-hollowmas
All-hollows
All Hallow Even
All Hallows Eve
Hallowe’en
Halloween (Modern English)

5. Halloween: a christian holiday - origin
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: a christian holiday - origin
The celebration of “All Saints Day” is a Catholic holiday.
It was first celebrated on May 13th, 609 (or 610) AD.
The first celebration was performed by Pope Boniface IV, when he consecrated the Pantheon in Rome.
The Pantheon was consecrated in the name of the Blessed Virgin and all Christian martyrs.

6. Halloween: a christian holiday - A new date
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: a christian holiday - A new date
Pope Gregory III gave a speech at St. Peter’s in 731 AD.
The speech was given for the relics “of the holy apostles and of all saints, martyrs, and confessors…”
At this time the celebration of “All Saints Day” was moved from May 31st to November 1st.

7. Halloween: a christian holiday - evolution
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: a christian holiday - evolution
“All Saints Day” eventually expanded and became:
Nov. 1st - All Saints Day - A celebration of the Christians who had died and found their reward in Heaven.
Nov. 2nd - All Souls Day - A day of prayer and remembrance for all of the souls still held in Purgatory.

8. Halloween: a christian holiday - the reformation
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: a christian holiday - the reformation
With the Protestant Reformation came conflict between Catholics and Protestants.
The Protestants rejected the Catholic holidays they saw as corrupted, superfluous, or pagan-influenced.
All Saints Day (then called All Hollows) was rejected.
Protestants took it upon themselves to disrupt Catholic celebrations and events they didn’t agree with.

9. Halloween: a christian holiday - treats
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: a christian holiday - treats
On the night before “All Saints Day” Catholics would go out to their Catholic neighbors and mock beg for a sweet TREAT.
Typically people handed out fruit or soul cakes.
Soul cakes were often made to look like skulls to be a reminder of the deceased saints that would be celebrated the next day.

10. Halloween: a christian holiday - costumes
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: a christian holiday - costumes
When people arrived at the door of a home they either said a rhyme or put on charades, pantomimes, and small dramas.
Eventually, these began to lead to people wearing costumes to play their role in the activities.
It initially started by wearing clothing of deceased saints who the “plays” were about.

11. Halloween: a christian holiday - rhymes
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: a christian holiday - rhymes
Two old rhymes were:
“A soul cake, a soul cake, have mercy on all Christian souls for a soul cake”
“Soul, soul, an apple or two,
If you haven't an apple, a pear will do,
One for Peter, two for Paul,
Three for the Man Who made us all.”

12. Halloween: a christian holiday - tricks
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: a christian holiday - tricks
Protestants made it a point to disrupt Catholic preparations and celebrations on the night before All Hallows.
The Protestants eventually marked their activities on the the night before All Hallows with the name ALL HOLLOWS EVEN.
From that point on Protestants considered “All Hollows Even” a night to play TRICKS on their Catholic neighbors.

13. Halloween: a christian holiday - “Trick or Treat”
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: a christian holiday - “Trick or Treat”
“Trick or Treat.” is a common phrase stated today by those standing at the door asking for a treat.
A common misconception is that the meaning of the phrase is “Give me a treat or I will play a trick on you.”
Originally “Trick or Treat?” was a question asked by the Catholic person at the door.
What they were asking is “Are you a Catholic here to celebrate or a Protestant here to make trouble?”

14. Halloween: a christian holiday - In America
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: a christian holiday - In America
From it’s birth, American’s were aware of the Halloween traditions that they had celebrated in their homelands.
Halloween was not a recognized holiday.
During the 1840s, Irish immigrants moved to the United States due to the Irish Potato Famine.
They brought their Halloween traditions with them, from their communities Halloween traditions were “Americanized” and spread through the culture.

15. Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: Today
crime-in-10-cities
Charlotte-Mecklenburg #9 in the country.

16. Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: Today
Deputies check-in with sex offenders ahead of Halloween
WCNC.COM: October 30, 2015
FBI warns of possible Halloween attacks on local police - WCNC

17. Halloween: samhain rituals
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: samhain rituals
Feast for the Dead or Silent Supper or Dumb Supper
Typically a solemn meal paying honor to the dead followed by an evening of drinking and revelry. Ideally includes the Samhain bonfire.
The Samhain Bonfire
The center of the Samhain celebration. Witches gather around the bonfire and perform different incantations, spells, blessings, and curses.

18. Halloween: CONCLUSION
Informing your worldview: Halloween
Halloween: CONCLUSION
How is a Christian to respond to Halloween?
Are there any positive, redeeming, or God honoring elements in the Christian history of Halloween?
Do we teach our children the difference between the Christian and Pagan elements of Halloween?
Are we equipped to recognize and avoid the elements of the holiday that do not honor God?

19. informing your worldview: Halloween