The History of Halloween
By: Dr. James D. McAfee
It
may come as quite a surprise to discover that this celebration predates the
Christian Church by several centuries.
In fact, it goes back to a practice of the ancient Druids in Britain,
France, Germany, and the Celtic countries, who lived centuries before Christ
was born. This celebration honored
one of their deities (gods) Samhain, the Lord of the Dead. Samhain called together all the wicked
souls who had died within the past twelve months and had been condemned to
inhabit the bodies of animals. In
Celtic Belief, the souls were incarnated as animals until they had expiated
(atoned for) their own sins. Fire
rites and sacrifices were offered to this dreaded god. Human victims, usually criminals, or
captives taken especially for this rite, were enclosed in thatch or wicker
cages in the shape of animals or monsters and roasted alive in the Samhain
bonefire sacrifices (this bonefire eventually became bonfire).
The
date for this celebration was the last day of October, the eve of the Celtic
New Year. It was a time of falling
leaves and general seasonal decay, and it seemed the appropriate time to
celebrate death. That’s what this
was—a celebration of death. It
honored the god of the dead and the wicked spirits of the dead. The druids believed that on this
particular night the souls of the dead returned to their former homes to be
entertained by the living. If
acceptable food and shelter were not provided these evil spirits would cast
spells, cause havoc and terror, and haunt and torment the living. They demanded to be placated. LOOK CLOSELY, here is the
beginning of “Trick or Treat”.
Evil spirits demanding a “Treat”, if they didn’t get it you got a “Trick”.
The
custom of living sacrifices on Halloween continued into the Middle Ages, with
human victims being replaced by black cats due to their longstanding
association with witchcraft.
But
how did all this become associated with Christianity? Part of the story goes back to Rome. The Roman Pantheon was built about 100
A. D. as a temple to the goddess Cybele and various other Roman deities. It became the principal place of
worship where Roman pagans prayed for their dead. After Rome was sacked, the Pantheon fell into
disrepair. In 607 it was
recaptured and turned over to Pope Boniface IV. Boniface consecrated it once again to the Virgin Mary. This was part of the general policy,
wherever pagan celebrations were well established, they would be continued
and incorporated into Christian worship. (See Ex. 34:12-14, Duet. 12:2-3, 29-32)
For
two centuries the major celebration in the Pantheon took place in May and was
called “All Saints Day”, in 834 A.D. it was deliberately moved to the first of
November! Why? To coincide with those pagan practices
that had been going on for centuries.
The Catholic Church wanted to accommodate the recently conquered German
Saxons and the Norsemen of Scandinavia, thus it incorporated yet another
celebration. That’s the wedding of
All Saints Day to Halloween.
Thoroughly, utterly, totally pagan; the worship of the dead, the
placating of evil spirits, the honoring of the Lord of the Dead, the
transferring to Mary the pagan esteem that was previously given to Cybele.
The
Jack-O-Lantern began as a hollowed out turnip or potato in Ireland and
Scotland. The name derived from
that for a night watchman or a Will-O-The–Wisp of the marshes, which is a false
light that leads travelers astray.
The Native American pumpkin was soon substituted for the turnip in the
United States. This hollowed out
pumpkin, carved into a demonic face and mocking grin suggest the throngs of
hobgoblins that roam the dark on Halloween.
The
Halloween masquerade has been traced to the festival of the dead. Although the souls of the departed were
welcomed home with a light in the window and offerings of food, (trick or
treat) their visit was an uneasy one for the living and they were not
encouraged to stay. When it was
time for them to leave the villagers, in costume, formed a procession to escort
them out of town. The masquerade
was presumably a way of inviting the guests to depart without offending them,
but it also served to disguise the identities of the escort and protect them
from supernatural visitants. Some
masks were of saints but most celebrants costumed as ghosts, skeletons, demons,
and witches.
Apples
and nuts figured in divination customs of Halloween. The game of bobbing for apples was originally a form of
augury (fortune telling) in which apples and a sixpence were immersed in a tub
of water and the success in capturing one in the mouth meant a prosperous year
to come. Nuts roasting in the fire
prophesied the fidelity of lovers when they burned side by side, but if one of
them burst or fell in the ashes the love would not endure.
Deut
18:10-14, Lev. 20: 6,27, Gal. 5: 19-21
This
is only an abbreviated history of this demonic origin of Halloween. As a Christian, it is a celebration
that needs be left alone. In the
United States, the season of Halloween has become the second most productive in
commercial sales, coming in second only to the Christmas Season. It has totally supplanted the season of
Thanksgiving and in most towns it is difficult to find decorations suitable for
Thanksgiving, a holiday dedicated to giving thanks to God for the manifold
blessings we have received.
Source
of information: The Encyclopedia Britannica and the Britannica Library Research
Service. Various other Historical
Books on Halloween. This
information was compiled and edited by Dr. & Mrs. Jim McAfee, 420 Ash
Dr. Baxter, TN 38544. jgmcafee@charter.net
Also
look on the internet for Halloween-Christian perspective.
Mike
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