Can We Chat About Halloween?
Every October 31st, Halloween is everywhere you look. Kids hit the streets dressed as their favorite characters, going door-to-door for candy. Others cozy up to watch scary movies or head to haunted houses. Front yards are packed with all sorts of spooky decorations—spiders, ghosts, zombies, grim reapers, and even those towering 20-foot skeletons that seem to be everywhere these days.
With so much going on, it’s natural for Christians to wonder: Can we participate in Halloween? Should we?
The History of Halloween
Below is a great short video on the history of Halloween. I also have a written history below the video. (Note: The video refers to “the Church,” this is referring to the Catholic Church and not the Church of Christ).
To answer the questions of can and should we participate, it helps to know where Halloween came from. It didn’t start as the candy-and-costume fest we know today. Halloween has its roots in the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, which goes back over 2,000 years. The Celts—people who lived in what’s now Ireland, the UK, and parts of France—marked October 31 as the end of summer and the start of winter. It was a season they tied to death.
The Celts believed that on this night, the boundary between the living and the dead blurred, and spirits came back to earth. They built bonfires, dressed up in animal skins, and performed rituals to keep harmful spirits away.
When the Romans took over Celtic lands, they combined their own festivals with Samhain. One of these festivals, Feralia, honored the dead. Another honored Pomona, the goddess of fruit. The apple, a symbol of Pomona, is likely where the tradition of bobbing for apples comes from.
Enter Catholic Influence
By the 9th century, Catholicism had spread across these lands. Catholicism began merging Catholic ideas with local customs. In A.D. 609, Pope Boniface IV established May 13 as All Martyrs' Day. Later, Pope Gregory III moved it to November 1 and expanded it to include all saints, calling it All Saints’ Day (or All Hallows’). November 2 was declared All Souls’ Day, a day to honor the dead, complete with bonfires and costumes.
The night before All Saints’ Day became All Hallows’ Eve—which eventually became “Halloween.”
Halloween in America
Halloween came to America with European immigrants, especially the Irish. They brought traditions like ghost stories, fortune-telling, and harvest events, but Halloween wasn’t widely celebrated at first. Protestant influence in some regions limited it.
By the 20th century, Halloween evolved into a community-focused holiday. Trick-or-treating became popular, and kids started dressing up and going door-to-door for treats. By the 1950s, it had become a family-friendly holiday, with costumes, candy, and events. Much of this was aimed at preventing vandalism, thus the origin of “Trick-or-Treat.”
Today, Halloween is a huge commercial holiday in America. We spend billions each year on costumes, candy, and decorations. While you can still see its ancient roots, Halloween today is mostly about fun, candy, community, and festivities.
As you can see Halloween has a bit of complicated history. It is a day that has Pegan roots, Catholic history, and its own American twist. It is a patchwork of its long history.
Can Christians Join In?
Given Halloween’s pagan and Catholic roots, it’s no surprise some Christians feel uneasy about it. But let’s take a step back and think about Halloween as it’s celebrated today.
Are kids dressing up in costumes asking for candy doing anything sinful?
Is it wrong to hand out candy?
Is it wrong to show hospitality to others by having them over to celebrate during this time of year?
Are any of the above practicing witchcraft? Is it worshiping Satan? Are they practicing a Pegan or Catholic ritual?
The obvious answer to all of these questions has to be no.
What we have today is more of a cultural event. In many ways, Halloween is no different than other holidays like the Fourth of July or Thanksgiving. It’s a time for fun, community, and American traditions. From this perspective, there’s no reason a Christian can’t join in. Being part of a cultural holiday or event isn’t wrong on its own.
That said, Halloween can be taken too far. If someone uses it to glorify evil, practice evil, or engage in things that go against Christian beliefs, that’s where it crosses a line. Those actions don’t align with Christianity and should be avoided.
While some Christians feel comfortable engaging in Halloween festivities, others may not—and that’s okay. Those that choose to celebrate Halloween should not judge those that refuse to celebrate the holiday for personal reasons, and those that choose not to celebrate Halloween should not judge those who celebrate Halloween (Romans 14).
While mutual understanding is key, it's worth considering that if the hesitation around Halloween comes from its Pagan or Catholic roots, almost every holiday we celebrate shares similar origins—holidays like Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, New Year’s Eve, and even the names of the days of the week trace back to Pagan mythology.
Reflecting on Death and Evil
Often in our tradition and discussion of Halloween, I believe we miss a larger opportunity. The images of Halloween have deep symbolism. Think of what you see. Skeletons, ghosts, grim reapers, spiders, snakes, slashers. These symbols are all things that represent death, things that quickly bring death, and evil.
Death is a recurring theme throughout the Bible, woven deeply into its narrative. In fact, the central story of Scripture is about the Son of God who was brutally put to death. The Old Testament is filled with accounts of animal sacrifices, vivid reminders of mortality and sin. While I don’t think we should be gory or gruesome, perhaps we’ve sanitized these themes so much that we rarely stop to think about the reality of death anymore.
The Bible reminds us that our life is short and that there are dark forces at work in the world:
James 4:14 – “For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.”
Hebrews 9:27 – “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.”
Ephesians 6:12 – “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
The symbols of Halloween should give everyone pause. It should cause us to reflect on the brevity of life. Our own mortality. The evil in the world.
The symbols can be a great reminder that life is short and temporary. These symbols of death and evil should cause us to reflect on our own death and the afterlife. We should be asking questions like:
Am I going to Heaven when I die?
Am I in a right relationship with God?
If I died today, would I be happy with the legacy and impact I am leaving?
How about your neighbors, friends, loved ones? If they died, where are they going?
These symbols of death and evil can also be an opportunity to open evangelistic doors. While people are in the “spooky” season being scared by killing slashers, haunted houses, spiders, and grim reapers, this can be an opportunity for us. It can be the perfect opportunity to help others think about their own mortality and where they will go when they die.
Instead of seeing Halloween’s focus on death as dark or negative, Christians can use it as a reminder of our need for hope beyond this life. It’s a chance to talk about life after death and point others toward Jesus. We can open our homes and participate in community events; we can shine a light and share the hope we have.
Final Thoughts
Halloween can be a fun and communal time, a lighthearted way to connect with neighbors and friends. For most, it’s simply a holiday to enjoy together. So, participate where it feels right, avoid what would cross the line, and consider how even Halloween can open doors for deeper conversations about life, death, and the hope we have in Christ.