All Hallows Eve
Is Halloween the least Christian holiday in America, or could it be the most Christian holiday? When discussing Halloween with the children in my church, I remind them of the meaning of All Hallows Eve. I ask them where else we hear the word “hallow” or “hallowed”, and we turn to the Lord’s Prayer: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. We talk about how “hallowed” means holy. All Hallows Eve (or “all holy night”) leads us to All Saints Day and All Souls Day, when we remember with love, sadness, and gratitude those who have departed. These three holy days encompass the All Hallowtide Triduum of the Church.
I have been in other church spaces where adults believe that Halloween is not appropriate for Christians to celebrate. There is a strong desire to distance oneself not only from images that are representative of evil, but also from the vulnerability of children receiving potentially tainted items from neighbors who may be evil.
What Do We Mean by Christian?
This leads to an interesting question: what makes a holiday more or less “Christian”? Is a holiday Christian if it finds it’s basis in the life of Christ? Is a holiday Christian if it is formally recognized as a feast day in the life of the Church? Are Christian holidays the ones that we celebrate when we are surrounded by fellow believers in the shelter of the Church? What about holidays that are central to the life of the Church, like Christmas, that are celebrated as secular holidays by many people?
Singer-songwriter Derek Webb once said that only people can be Christian. He claims that when the word “Christian” is used to describe anything other than a person, it is a marketing term (such as Christian music or Christian books). This question about the term Christian also reflects what makes us Christian as well. Is a Christian someone who finds the basis for their life in the life of Christ? Is a Christian someone who has been formally recognized by the Church through baptism? Are Christians the people who gather together in the shelter of the Church?
Following Jesus to Our Neighbor
In the Christian life, we have many opportunities to go to church and worship God. We also have opportunities to follow Christ’s teachings, and do what Jesus did in the world, including “love your neighbor”. This is the primary place of discernment that I have come to regarding Halloween: in my neighborhood which receives hundreds of trick-or-treaters, Halloween is the holiday neighborly love.
It is not a day when we go to church to worship God, but it is a day when we “let the little children come” and receive our neighbors with the expanded sense of love, charity, and hospitality that Jesus asks of us. In my town, Halloween is a holiday that is centered on loving your neighbor.
We can love our neighbors at other times, but may we never forget what a profound gift from God it is that our neighbors come to us on Halloween. May we receive them with care and appreciation, not as visiting ghouls or ghosts, but as visiting angels whom we can love as we if we are receiving Jesus himself.
If nothing else, Halloween is a reminder that we do have neighbors, and that Jesus has called us to love and serve one another, not once a year, but as the primary way that others will recognize us as Christians.
What makes a person or a holiday more or less Christian?
Jesus said, “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another”. John 13:35
To read more posts, visit my column here. Check out my published writing in “Soul Food: Nourishing Essays on Contemplative Living and Leadership”. If you are interested in contemplative leadership and are between the ages of 25-40, visit Shalem.org to learn about Crossing the Threshold: Contemplative Foundations for Emerging Leaders.
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