HALLOWEEN question - is this a Christian thing, or something else?

Question

A friend employed in a public school in the midwestern US recieved this in an email today:

Staff,
As you discuss our upcoming holiday just want you to be aware that some of our community members are VERY sensitive to the word HALLOWEEN. Thus we have refered to this day as our Fall Festival and steer clear of witches, and other demonic figures - pumpkins and bales of hay still seem to be ok. Just wanted to give you a heads up to save you ........the scare! :) If you have a student that expresses that they can not participate in Halloween please let's forward that information to Paula who can work with the other speciailists in forming our routine "alternate activity" Thanks specialists! :)

Susan xxxxx, Principal
xxxxxxxxxx Elementary School
xxxxxx District Schools USD #xxxx

My question:

Is this something new?
Is it religion related?

Sometime during the early '90s I happened to be in Leesburg, VA, on Halloween. The whole town turned out for a costume parade in the evening. There were even refreshments served in City Hall and in a church on the town square.

Difference in perspective, I suppose

Answer 1

I used to teach in rural conservative public schools and also Christian private preschools and daycares, so I can tell you what I know from my perspective. Some religious faiths (such as Jehovah's Witnesses) do not celebrate any secular holidays or even birthdays. Maybe a follower of this faith will post with a better explanation of their particular beliefs.
From what I have been able to learn, the origin of the holiday came from Catholocism assimilating into various cultures around the world. All Saint's Day (November 1) was proceeded by All Hallow's Eve (October 31), which came to be associated with ghosts, goblins, etc.
The short answer to your questions are probably 1) no, it's not new (the Puritans outlawed pretty much all holidays!) and 2) yes, it's probably a Christian thing (I have no idea how other religions such as Jews or Moslems feel about Halloween)
Although as a child I tricked-or-treated throughout my Southern Baptist upbringing in Texas in the 60's-70's, and I have always allowed my children to dress up,etc., the holiday began to take on a more sinister connotation during the late 70's with actual cases and urban legends of tainted candy, as well as all the gory scary movies, and the growing fascination in our society with alternative spiritualism, the occult, etc.
If you take any holiday to its extreme logical origins, you can find pagan elements in the symbolism of the celebrations. (Christmas and Easter, for example) Is it possible to celebrate any holiday in a completely un-offensive, secular way in this over-sensitive day and age??
Below are a couple of websites to give you some more relevant info.
Here are some guidelines I would use as a teacher when planning to celebrate a holiday (or approaching any controversial subject.)
1. Know what is expected by your school/district and go along with their guidelines. Refer to your school handbook, or ask a mentor teacher or principal.
2. Know your class. Hopefully you can build a rapport with your students and parents where they feel that they can freely and openly express their personal beliefs and help you create proper church/state boundaries. The older your students are, the more you can allow them freedom to express their own beliefs....the discussion can be enlightening for all and this way, no one can say he didn't have the opportunity to have a say. There may be situations where you will have the give the students the choice to opt out of a particular assignment if it would infringe on their beliefs (if in doubt, ask someone....refer back to #1)
3. Know the curriculum. Prepare ahead of time to head off any possible problem areas. For instance, don't pick up a holiday story to read at grouptime if you have previewed it for objectionable content.
4. In general, stay away from violent, mystical, and occult themes. If you are doing a dress-up day, how about having them dress up according to a character in a book or as what they want to be when they grow up?
5. Realize that if you carry this to an extreme, it will drive you crazy. Do the best you can to please everyone, and beg forgiveness if something happens to offend someone anyway.

Answer 2

It might be new to your area. Yes, it is religion related. Halloween is mostly though to be based on the pagan festival of Samhain (the new year, an open gateway between the underworld and the living world, a day of the dead and a day of judgement) and some groups of Christians just recently figured this out and want no part of it because it's considered witchcraft. I think it's mainly the Baptists since a lot of Catholics from Ireland and England came from the deep pagan roots that celebrated the old holidays like Samhain, Ostara, (Easter and why we have eggs and Rabbits) Yule (Christmas-ever wonder how they got evergreens in Jerusalem?) Imbolc (groundhogs day but it used to be a spring holiday) and a feast of other fun loving party days the old Druids used to celebrate before the Catholic Church absorbed and converted them.

Answer 3

I believe it is religion related.

In the olden days when I was a child we had Halloween parties in school. We had popcorn balls and candied apples too. Too bad times are so different now.

My son never had a Halloween party in school but there were Halloween decorations in the classrooms.

I think an "alternate activity" is a good way to handle it if any parents object to the holiday.

In my opinion, it is wrong to deny a child the ability to enjoy this night of fun.

Answer 4

I just moved to the south from the north and I was told by my neighbors not to even bother buying candy because, they do not celebrate Halloween down here. I found the same to be true when I lived in Kansas. However, when I lived in Delaware I had 350 children come to my house to trick-or-treat. My sister who lives in Florida told me when we were discussing this that they have a Fall Festival at the school she works at. I guess it must be regional as to how Halloween is viewed.

Answer 5

Drake gave a good answer
However
I did not have the school when my kids were growing up
be "sensitive" about Halloween towards me and I did not care or expect them to be! I simply went my own way and took my kids to a "harvest party". All this placating people is just ridiculous. It does nothing to solve anything and in the long run, people end up with a bunch of frustration that gives them ulcers trying to "pretend" to be all at peace with each other. It's better to just let people disagree and have it out once in a while. don't you think?

Answer 6

It's the religious fundamentalism spreading up from the South. Down here (the Southern U.S.) we have had to deal with this for years. But with Christian Fundamentalism spreading out across the nation, this type of nonsense is spreading too. Wait 'til the "Hell Houses" get there. They show all sorts of horrific scenes to try to get kids to not have abortions.

The fundies preach that Halloween is a Satanic celebration. Some churches even go to church on that night and they stay up all night to pray against the evil that they perceive.

Sigh... Those poor children. Remember when Halloween was fun?!

Answer 7

Hallowe'en is a contraction of "All Hallow's Eve" (All Saints Day, Nov. 1). The pagans in Ireland would dress up and light candles on this night for fear the dead would rise and harm them on this night. Christian churches usurped the day's remembrance as a religious holy day, but the pagan rituals remained the night before.

Answer 8

No it's not a Christian thing, I was wondering the same thing.

As I drive back from work I pass a lot of Churches and a lot of them have announcements for Halloween activities. Makes ZERO sense

Answer 9

i dont think it's about religion as much as it is about awareness. christians aren't the only people who view this holiday as satanic. there was a soldier in the army who was also a practicing witch and asked for halloween off as a religious holiday and got it. it is satanic whether you believe it or not. some people don't believe evil exist until they encounter it .

Answer 10

It's just political correctness...same reason we don't have Christmas plays/concerts/pageants anymore. They're afraid of offending one person, so everybody suffers.

I know some Christians do equate Halloween with the devil and think celebrating it is wrong. I don't have a problem with it.

I have heard of Hell Houses that show what happens if you reject Christ, but not ones that feature AIDs, abortions, etc. Sheesh.