By Bishop Alexander (Mileant), of Blessed Memory
It is that time of the year when the secular society in which we live is preparing for the festival of Halloween. Many do not know its spiritual roots and history, and why it contradicts the teachings of the Church. The feast of Halloween began in pre-Christian times among the Celtic peoples of Great Britain, Ireland and northern France. These pagan people believed that life was born from death. Therefore they celebrated the beginning of the "new year" in the fall (on the eve of October 31 and into the day of November 1) when, as they believed, the season of cold, darkness, decay and death began. A certain deity whom they called Samhain was believed by the Celts to be the Prince of Death and it was he whom they honored at their New Year's festival.
From an Orthodox Christian point of view, we can see many diabolical beliefs and practices associated with this feast, which have endured to this time. On the eve of the New Year's festival, the Druids, who were the priests of the Celtic cult, instructed their people to extinguish all hearth fires and
lights. On the evening of the festival, a huge bonfire built from oak branches was ignited (oak was regarded by the Celts as sacred). Upon this fire sacrifices were burned as an offering, in order to appease and cajole Samhain, the Prince of Death. It was also believed that Samhain, being pleased by the offerings, allowed the souls of the dead to return to their
homes for a festal visit on this day. It is from this belief that the practice of wandering about in the dark, dressed up in costumes imitating ghosts, witches, hobgoblins, fairies, etc. came about. The living entered into fellowship and communion with the dead by what was, and still is, a
ritual act of imitation, through costume and the activity of wandering around in the dark of night, as the souls of the dead were believed to wander.
The dialogue of trick or treat is also an integral part of this system of beliefs and practices. It was believed that the souls of the dead who had entered into the world of darkness, decay and death, and therefore into total communion with and submission to Samhain, bore the affliction of great hunger on their festal visit. Out of this grew the practice of begging,
which was also a ritual enactment and imitation of what the Celts believed to be the activities of the souls of the dead on their festal visit. Associated with this is the still further implication that if the souls of the dead and their imitators were not appeased with "treats," i.e. offerings, then the wrath and anger of Samhain would be unleashed through a system of "tricks," i.e. curses. Such is the true meaning of this pagan
feast. It is then evident that for an Orthodox Christian participation at any level is impossible and idolatrous, resulting in a genuine betrayal of God and Church. If we participate in the ritual activity of imitating the dead and
wandering in the dark asking for treats or offering them to children, we then have willfully sought fellowship with the dead, whose Lord is not Samhain, but rather Satan. It is to Satan then that these treats are offered, not to children.
There are other practices associated with Halloween from which we must stay away, such as sorcery, fortune telling, divination, games of chance, witchcraft and the carving of an ugly face upon a pumpkin and then placing a lit candle within making it the infamous Jack O'Lantern. The pumpkin (in
older days other vegetables were used) was carved by the Celts in imitation of the dead and used to convey the new light (from the sacred oak fire) to the home where the lantern was left burning through the night. This "holy lantern" is nothing more than an imitation of the truly holy votive light (lampada) offered before an icon of Christ and the saints. Even the use and display of the Jack O'Lantern involves participation in this "death" festival honoring Satan.
The Holy Fathers of the first millennium (a time when the Church was one and strictly Orthodox) counteracted this Celtic pagan feast by introducing the Feast of All Saints. It is from this that the term Halloween developed. The word Halloween has its roots in the Old English of All Hallow E'en, i.e. the Eve commemorating all those who were hallowed (sanctified). Unfortunately, either due to a lack of knowledge or understanding, the Celtic pagan feast being celebrated on the same day as the Christian feast of All Saints (in western Christiandom) came to be known as Halloween.
The people who remained pagan and therefore anti-Christian reacted to the Church's attempt to supplant their festival by celebrating this evening with increased fervor. Many of these practices involved desecration and mockery of the Church's reverence for Holy Relics. Holy things, such as crosses and
the Reserved Sacrament, were stolen and used in perverse and sacreligious ways. The practice of begging became a system of persecution designed to harass Christians who were, by their beliefs, unable to pa rticipate by making offerings to those who served the Lord of Death.
One can see in contemporary Western society that the Western Church's attempt to supplant this pagan festival with a Christian feast failed. How then did something that is so obviously contradictory to the Holy Orthodox faith gain such acceptance among Christian people?
The answer is spiritual apathy and listlessness, which are the spiritual roots of atheism and turning away from God. Today's society urges that Halloween and other such festivities, notwithstanding their apparent pagan and idolatrous origin, are nonetheless harmless and of no consequence. Upon closer consideration, these pagan festivals are the source of destruction of any kind of spiritual foundation and lead to disbelief and outright atheism.
Halloween undermines the very basis of the Church, which was founded on the blood of martyrs who had refused, by giving up their lives, to partake in any form of idolatry.
The holy Church must take a firm stand in counteracting any such (pagan) events. Christ taught us that God is the judge in all our actions and beliefs and that we are either FOR GOD or AGAINST GOD. There is no neutral or middle of the road approach.
Today we witness a revival of satanist cults; we hear of satanic services conducted on Halloween night. Children are kidnapped by satanists for their ritualistic sacrifices. Orthodox clergy are ritualistically killed, as has happened more than once in California. Everywhere Satan reaches out to ensnare as many innocent people as possible. The newsstands are filled with material on spiritualism, supernatural phenomena, seances, prophesies and all kinds of demonically inspired works. These works all serve Satan, for they are not the fruit of the Holy Spirit, but the fruit of the spirit of this world.
Halloween is NOT a Kid's Holiday!
It is the most solemn day for witches, warlocks and demon worshipers all over the world in which they attempt to disrupt the Christian's prayerful Vigil for All Saints (according to the Latin calendar). With all these evil powers manifesting themselves on this evening, what are we thinking when we
send our children out into the night, much less disguise them as little demons, goblins, witches and aliens?
Trick or treating must be strictly avoided. At best, it teaches our children to beg or threaten for candy; at worst, it is dangerous and reenacts satanic cult practices of the past. We also need to avoid any sort of Halloween party or celebration as well as decorations in our homes. If our children attend schools that hold such parties, no matter what the day, they must not participate.
Today, schools openly embrace evil as an interesting theme and the whole month is dedicated to Halloween activities. Therefore, Orthodox children who are not home schooled should be kept out of school during the month of October, or at least during the last week of October.
To combat these evil influences, the Church celebrates the Vigil of St. John of Kronstadt on this night. God's house is the safest place we can be. Halloween is a time of fear and trembling. It will not hurt our children to learn this. Fear of God is the beginning of Wisdom, said the Holy Prophet King Solomon (Pr 9:10). Fear of evil is natural and a good protection for us against all assaults. Fear is vital for our salvation. Fear will guard us against Antichrist. Halloween is not a game.
,and it's been around eastern europe mostly because of catholic influence).but,as i said before,the american halloween isn't as popular around here as other import holidays.
