Hold Up On Halloween Celebration!
Some of my Christian brethren are irritated with me speaking out a word of caution concerning Halloween. A few have even voiced the belief that it does not matter. To my beloved, how many wiccan’s are celebrating Easter with you. We use Easter to promote something. Why are you so against seeing that they are doing the same thing under the cover of a cultural practice. Just sayin’. Many Wiccans observe Samhain around October 31 as a religious festival involving ancestors, the dead, divination (witchcraft), and seasonal renewal.
The following examples come from Wiccans and Satanist documents.
| Observance | What some practitioners do | Supporting source |
|---|---|---|
| Honor ancestors and departed loved ones | Create ancestor altars, display reminders of the deceased, light candles, and place offerings. | Fox (n.d. – means no date) explicitly recommends ancestor altars, offerings, and candles. |
| Prepare a meal for the dead | Set an additional place at a feast and offer food or drink to departed relatives or other spirits. | Both Fox (n.d.) and Kardia (2021) describe meals with places reserved for unseen guests. Let that sink in as your consider Deuteronomy 18 and how the Samaritans became so troubled by demons. |
| Practice divination | Use tarot cards, runes, or other methods to seek insight concerning the coming year. | Kardia (2021) specifically identifies tarot and runes; Fox (n.d.) also recommends divination. On what day? Halloween, y’all. But keep on being irritated with me. I am just delivering mail. |
| Seek contact with the spirit world | Some light candles to guide ancestral spirits home; others attempt spiritual travel through practices they describe as astral projection, meditation, or visualization. | Kardia (2021) connects these activities with the belief that the boundary between worlds is especially permeable at Samhain. If you are really irritated you have no read this far. But if you have, please stop being so casual about Halloween! |
| Perform rituals of transformation | Reflect on death, release unwanted habits, and make resolutions for a new cycle. These may be framed as magical or religious acts. | Fox (n.d.) describes Samhain as a festival of endings and transformation. Going to a Halloween party? Might want to ask what kind of resolutions are being made… and how. |
| Celebrate the harvest and a new year | Share seasonal meals, express gratitude, review the previous year, and prepare for the next. | Kardia (2021) describes harvest feasting, reflection, and planning. These activities can accompany explicitly spiritual observances. Hey, it is just a harmless harvest festival… right? |
Can you attend a Halloween celebration? The real question is: Why are you there, and what are you doing? Are you among the people on mission, as Jesus was, or are you participating in and endorsing works He came to destroy (1 John 3:8)?
Avoiding all association with people who practice sin would require leaving the world (1 Corinthians 5:9–10). Our lights are not to be hidden or kept entirely away from the darkness. And we must stay away from judging those outside the church; Someone qualified has that job already (1 Corinthians 5:12–13). Yet being present among unbelievers cannot become participation or promotion of prohibited practices (Deuteronomy 18). We are called to reach people while refusing fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness (Ephesians 5:11). Let’s go love on some people. But celebrating in the way of the world is taking it to far.
In His grip by His grace,
That Guy
References — APA 7
Church of Satan. (n.d.). F.A.Q. holidays. https://churchofsatan.com/faq-holidays/
Fox, S. (n.d.). Guide to celebrating Samhain. Circle Sanctuary. https://www.circlesanctuary.org/teachings/Samhain-Lore-and-Rituals
Kardia. (2021, October 27). How do Wiccans celebrate Samhain? Living Wicca Today. https://wicca.com/livingwiccatoday/how-do-wiccans-celebrate-samhain/