Halloween can be a polarizing time of year for Christians. Some Christians believe that Halloween is inherently evil while others believe that it is harmless. Some churches prohibit their members from celebrating Halloween, some churches offer fun Halloween night alternatives (Reformation Nights, Fall Festivals, etc.), some churches encourage their members to “redeem” Halloween.

The name “Halloween” comes from “All Hallows’ Eve” (All Saints’ Eve).

As far as the Christian origins of Halloween are concerned, it began in the earliest centuries of the church. As early as the mid-second century, the church celebrated and remembered its martyrs, at times dedicating special days to remember their faithfulness. As the number of special commemorations increased, the idea of having a common day for all martyrs gradually evolved.

The earliest known celebration of “the Feast of All Martyrs” was in Antioch in mid-fourth century, falling on the first Sunday after the feast of Pentecost.  Over time, this celebration started to embrace not just martyrs but all departed saints, celebrating Jesus’ victory over death by remembering the faithful saints who had gone before them. In 610, Pope Boniface IV consecrated the Pantheon, the old pagan temple, to “all Christian martyrs.” He officially consecrated that day as the new “All Saints’ Day” and ver a century later, Pope Gregory III moved All Saints’ Day to November 1 to honor the saints of St. Peter’s church.

Many believe this move was made to coincide with Samhain, a Gaelic harvest festival celebrated at the same time, this ancient pagan festival was, for those who believed, a season when the veil between our world and the next was very thin, allowing the spirits to easily move back and forth. Feasts were held and the souls of departed relatives were invited to come. Because not every spirit was deemed friendly, various rituals were used to ward off or appease them. In time, Samhain and All Saints’ eventually co-mingled, leading to the variety of Halloween traditions we have today.

The 3 choices Christians have

When dealing with anything in human culture, Christians have three primary choices: receive, reject, or redeem.

Reject

A Christian named Pat Robertson called Halloween the “festival of the Devils” and said it was wrong for Christians to participate. But to reject it outright without answering this question, would be foolish… “To what extent does something’s evolution from pagan roots entail that its present practice is tainted?” Because today, there’s been a huge shift in the original practices of Halloween, to kids dressed up in cute costumes for a sugar fest once a year.

If you are going to outright reject Halloween are you consistent in rejecting other holidays completely as well? There are pagan practices rooted in most holidays as is excess, like too much candy on Halloween.  So should we reject Thanksgiving too because some people eat too much and gluttony is a sin?
Other Christians reject Halloween because they fear the evil will influence their Christian faith. The idea is, ‘garbage in, garbage out.’ But Jesus says the exact opposite is true in Mark 7:21-23. The fruit of our lives (whether holiness or sin) is always tied to the root of our hearts. Sin absolutely corrupts but the sin is not so much ‘out there in the world’ as much as it is in the heart of every person. Holding fast to the outright rejection position falsely assumes sin is mostly what we do rather than who we are.

Receive 

Receiving halloween means one might take it in its full glory, jumping in with both feet and embracing every single aspect of the holiday and its practices without ever thinking through the why and the how. This in and of itself may not be a problem, but the concern may be that we might have too quickly and blindly just accepted something culture had to offer without thinking deeply about it. There are things in culture that are part of God’s common mercies to all people. These are things Christians can freely receive.

Paul and Silas could walk the same Roman roads and sail in the Roman ships alongside any pagan without any stain on their consciences. Today, we can appreciate the electric lights in my home just like my neighbor and not feel guilty that the power company isn’t owned by Christian people. We can buy my produce from the farmers’ market without the concern that the farmers are pagans.

Redeem

If we have an informed understanding of the history of Halloween and realize that as a Christian we have the biblical freedom to redeem cultural practices (1 Corinthians 10:22-23), Christians should follow their conscience in choosing how to approach this holiday.

How one goes about which aspects of Halloween to redeem or receive is still a tricky issue. One suggestion is to distinguish between the cultural aspects of Halloween and the religious aspects of Halloween. “There is a big difference between kids dressing up in cute costumes for candy and Mardi-Gras-like Halloween parties with offensive costumes and uninhibited excess.”

“It’s naive to make a blanket judgment to reject or receive Halloween as a whole. There should be no pressure to participate, but for those Christians whose conscience permits, we should view it as an opportunity to engage wisely with our culture and to choose how we can redeem this aspect of culture. Many Christian use this culture piece of Halloween as a way to get out into their neighborhoods and hang out with those around them, build relationships, and be together with people they live near when they otherwise might not get to do as often. And, let’s be honest, mom and dad really enjoy raiding the Halloween buckets once all the kids are sleeping (just don’t forget to garboflage the evidence)!

Timothy George, wisely says Christians should have “theology of reclamation.”  When we look at days like Halloween that have been hijacked by the devil, we shouldn’t be intimidated by this. Instead, we should “tweak the devil’s beard” and find ways towards redeeming Halloween for the church again.  The aim of the Christian life is to do what pleases God.  When we’re confused on what to do, the desire to honor God makes our way clear. With this in mind, I encourage you to pray and discern how to best honor God as Halloween draws near.