Maybe I Won't Get Targeted for This

Halloween is approaching quickly, and I wish to interject a few calm, rational thoughts into the hysteria one often encounters this time of year concerning the dreaded 'night of evil.' Perhaps I won't become a target of Christian hysteria in writing these things.

This morning I was listening to a certain radio program, talk radio in fact, on which the host launched into a two-hour lecture on the 'dark and evil origins' of Halloween, topped off by a plea for Christian churches to avoid even so much as using the term 'Halloween' and to opt instead for a 'Fall Festival' or some other innocuous-sounding name.

I do not particularly wish to use this article as a means by which to discuss the whys and wherefores of good and evil. Such a subject would take all of one's time, effort, and attention for weeks, months, perhaps years on end, and even then the subject would not be adequately covered. Suffice it to say that I do believe that evil exists in the world and that honorable people of faith should fight it.

Wisdom, however, dictates that we choose our battles wisely. I am not convinced Halloween is worth the effort.

When alarmists point out that Halloween had its origin in ancient paganism, the automatic assumption seems to be that any observance of 'Halloween' will result in the inadvertent unleashing of all of the dark forces of evil upon an unsuspecting mankind. It is to be remembered, however, that most of our religious celebrations within the Christian tradition had their origin in paganism as well, and that early Christians proceeded to 'Christianize' those celebrations as soon as they were in a position of power. For example, we borrowed and Christianized many of the symbols that are used at Christmas.

The Church had its way of Christianizing ancient pagan celebrations revolving around Halloween. And thus, with All Saints' Day being celebrated by Christians around the world on November 1, the evening before All Saints was designated as 'All Hallowed Ev'n,' or all hallowed evening. The word 'hallowed' is reserved for God Himself in the Christian tradition, the term being used by Jesus in the Lord's Prayer to refer to the name of God. The concept is that God's name is Holy and is thusly to be revered and hallowed.

All Saint' Day is a most sacred time when the more liturgical bodies of Christianity remember the ones of their number who passed on to their heavenly reward within the past year, as well as those Christian saints through the centuries who have left a heritage of courage and perseverance.

So what am I getting at in all of this? Simply this--evil only gains power over those who allow it. And a simple day on the calendar that was once used by persons of a different faith and culture is no guarantee that having a celebration on that day is an evil endeavor, any more than celebrating the birth of Christ on a day when pagans used a 'Christmas' tree is an invitation for gargoyles and goblins from the spirit world to be unleashed on the planet.

If Halloween is truly 'All Hallowed Evening' in anticipation of All Saints' Day, then how could it be in any way evil?

In this case, evil is in the eye of the beholder. Halloween becomes what we make it, just like anything else. We can use the day to do great harm or we can use it to do something productive, worthwhile, and meaningful, such as remembering the legacy left behind by our forebears.

And so, my wish for you for tomorrow night is that you have a very hallowed evening!