Chapter 14 From Beyond the Darkness by Shawn Patrick Williams
Behind The Celebration of Halloween
Is It A Trick-or-Treat?
Halloween has become America’s second largest celebrated holiday of the year, only second to Christmas. The average American family will spend $44.00 a child on Halloween. America will spend $586 million on decorations, $2 billion on candy, $1.5 billion on adult costumes, and $2.7 million on greeting cards, pumpkins, and party supplies for a total retail sale of $7 billion during Halloween. “Other holidays have become less important. Halloween is the exception. It has become more important,” said Howard Davidowitz, expert on retail sales and president of a retail firm.160 It seems that Halloween has become big business in the American retail market, but what about the origins of Halloween? I mean, where did it all come from and what is it really all about?
It seems Halloween traditions, like many American holidays have been passed down from generation to generation from our dads and granddads and has sort of evolved each year taking on new additions and a few alterations. Over time, much of the original meaning has gotten somewhat distorted, so much to the point that no one really knows or pays attention to the core message.
With children all over the nation “trick-or-treating,” dressing up in costumes, bobbing for apples, carving “Jack-o-Lanterns” out of pumpkins, having large parties, lighting big bonfires, and telling scary stories, it is a time when most American families have a great time together. For adults, it is a time when the biggest parties of the year are held and everyone flocks to the scariest haunted houses for thrills. All the scariest movies are released during Halloween. I can remember my earliest memory of Halloween. The first release of the movie “Halloween” had just come out and I watched it at a preacher’s house. Then, we all went to a haunted house at the church later that night. I was so scared that I never wanted to go back there. With the recent increase of movies like the Harry Potter series, Van Helsing and other similar movies, we tend to lose sight of and sometimes shrug off the core message and meaning coming from these movies. It’s the same with the Halloween celebration. The American culture has become desensitized to the real message of Halloween. When you think of Halloween, what do you think of? Most people are excited about the parties and the candy. Most people plan to attend Halloween parties or go trick-or-treating. It is time of fun! But what are we excited about? What are we really celebrating?
Just think about a bunch of scary fantasies and stories with monsters and ghosts, witches and warlocks, tombstones and blood. Trick or treat? Blessing or curse? Where did it all come from and what does it all mean? Is it a bunch of silly stories and meaningless traditions or is there some truth and reality behind the traditions of the Halloween celebrations?
Discovering The Origins
The word “Halloween” in the American Heritage Dictionary161 says, “Halloween- October 31st, celebrated by children wearing costumes and begging for treats.” Halloween’s origins were not in America. America’s version of the Halloween celebration came from “Samhain,” an ancient Druidic fire festival celebrated by Celts who lived 2,000 years ago in the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Northern France. They celebrated their New Year on November 1st.
Celts believed that on the night before the New Year on October 31st, the door between the worlds of the living and the dead became open. They believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to the earth. They believed that the evil spirits caused trouble and destroyed crops. They also believed October 31st was a time when their Druid priests could make predictions about the future by consulting the dead, much like the modern day psychics do. To celebrate the festival, the Druids built huge sacred bonfires, were Celts gathered together to burn crops and offer animals as sacrifices to the Celtic deities, Gwynn Ap Nudd for the British and Arawn for the Welsh. During the bonfire festival, the Celts wore costumes and sat around the fire attempting to tell each other’s fortunes. By 43 AD the Romans had conquered most of the Celtic territory. In the course of the 400 years the Romans ruled the Celtic lands, two Roman festivals were combined with the Druid festival of “Samhain.” The first was Feralia, a day in late October when the Romans celebrated the passing of the dead and the second was the day of Pomona. Pomona was the Roman goddess of fruit and trees and her symbol was the apple.162
How did Halloween become the celebration that it is today? The Roman Catholic Church had a celebration called “All Saints Day,” originally celebrated in May. This was a celebration to honor dead saints and martyrs. In 608 AD Roman Emperor Constantine pushed for the combination of the “All Saints Day,” with the ritual of “Samhain.” Some believe he was trying to appease the populace of new conquered territories. Pope Boniface IV moved it to November 1st. Rome’s Pantheon, a temple built to worship a variety of gods was converted into a church. While Christians celebrated the death of saints on November1st, Pagans devoted the night before October 31st to the lord of the dead. Over the centuries, the night of “Samhain” and “All Saints Day” have been intertwined creating the American version of Halloween.163 This is how Halloween originated! You can clearly see the origin of some things we do during this time like “bobbing for apples,” carving pumpkins, and “trick-or-treating.”
Here are some facts about Halloween other than just its history. October 31st, Samhain or Halloween is one of the four major holidays (called Sabbats), which Wiccans and Satanists observe.164 Halloween costumes and bonfires on October 31st come from the ancient Druid ceremony of Samhain, where blood sacrifices were given to Celtic gods.165
The “Jack-o-Lantern” originated from occultists who would carve a scary face in a pumpkin and light a candle in it on their doorsteps on October 31st to scare away evil spirits that were released on this day of the dead. The practice of “bobbing for apples” brings together two Pagan traditions: divination and a fertility ritual. In some witchcraft covens, the closing ritual include eating an apple and/or engaging in fertility rites. The Roman goddess for fruit and trees is called “Pomona” and her symbol is an apple.166
The term “trick-or-treat” came from the Irish tradition when a man led a procession to ask for money from farmers. If the farmers would not, their crops would be cursed by demons. Black cats have represented, in the occult, incarnated humans, male violent spirits, or the “familiars” of witches.167
October 31st, 1517 was also the date Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to a church door in Wittenberg, Germany, which started the protestant reformation. Perhaps you are saying, “I understand the history is not godly, but how harmful can Halloween be? I’m not a witch or Satanist, I’m actually a Christian. I’m just trying to have a little fun! How harmful can Halloween really be? I mean, just because this stuff came from evil beginnings doesn’t mean it’s bad for me, is it?” We’ve already talked about the occultic beginnings of Halloween, but what does the Bible say about Halloween?
Blessing or Curse?
Halloween is the day when divination is practiced around the world more than any other day of the year. Being a festival of the dead, it is a time when witches attempt to communicate with the dead in many different forms.
In Deuteronomy 18:9-13 NASB it says, “When you enter the land which the Lord your God gives you, you shall not learn to imitate the detestable things of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who cast a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For whosoever does these things is detestable to the Lord; and because of these detestable things the Lord your God will drive them out before you. You shall be blameless before the Lord your God.”
The Bible clearly tells us our festivals and celebrations are supposed to be focused on the Lord and the things concerning the kingdom of God. Our celebrations were never supposed to be focused on occultic history or their practices of the past. God gives clear warning about breaking this biblical law. God says to detest them, not celebrate them.
Because America has “learned to imitate” these detestable things in God’s eyes, our whole society has taken on a heavy occultic influence and seductive bondage as a result of observing ungodly rituals, even as harmless as they seem. Hosea 4:6 says, “God’s people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge.” Ignoring God’s law can hinder and even destroy your spiritual growth and walk with Jesus Christ. The effects of this can be seen in the youth of the Body of Christ. But can ignoring these laws and celebrating occultic holidays open a “door” spiritually? It is a scientific fact that the human brain is not finished developing until the average age of 21.
After talking to a child psychologist, she began to explain to me that during the first years 21 years of a person’s life, their mind is still developing boundaries for morals. They are still deciding what is right and wrong. The younger the child is, the more impact the situations have on the development of that child’s values. With America’s glorification of the celebration of Halloween, especially with younger children, the effects on our culture’s view of witchcraft and occultism can be very damaging. Many of the seemingly “harmless” Halloween traditions can be “entries” for the occult and can be very dangerous and destructive in the long run for the unaware, especially little children.
With the recent increase in occultic practices being glorified in our media, entertainment industry, board and card games, many Americans have been desensitized to the seriousness and dangers of occultism. The consequences of ignoring these seemingly harmless entry points can lead to serious demonic oppression and even possession.
Halloween is nothing more than an introduction to the occult. The scripture says in 2 Corinthians 6:15-18 “And what concord hath Christ with Be’lial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing and I will receive you, And will be a father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” God clearly tells us to be separate from practices and celebrations like Halloween that have occultic origins. Even some practices in America’s Easter and Christmas celebrations have been distorted over the centuries.
Protecting Ourselves
Many people have asked me over the years, “What can we do to protect ourselves from these ‘unknown’ traps in our culture?” First, know the origins of Halloween. Recognize and define occultism biblically. Second, know that the only thing that can protect you completely from all demonic forces and can break every spell and hex is the blood of Jesus Christ over your life. The blood of Jesus is more powerful than any demon and not only that, but it completely washes your sins away.
Listen to this powerful description of the blood of Jesus, “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God; being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say at this time his righteousness that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus”( Romans 3:23-26). This scripture says no matter what sin you’ve been involved in, occultism, pornography, murder, addictions, no matter what the sin, that the price of sin was paid for and the blood of Jesus broke the power of sin. It’s the key ingredient to breaking beyond the darkness.
160 John Chartier, “Retailer’s Not Spooked by Halloween,” Money, (CNN, 21 October 2002) p.1.
161 American Heritage Dictionary, ( New York, NY: Dell Printing, 1994) p.378
162 Chuck Missler, Signs in the Heavens, the Mysteries of the Planet Mars Halloween: Invitation to the Occult? (Kiononia House, 1991).
163 Bob Larson, Satanism: The Seduction of America’s Youth (Nashville, TN.: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 1989) p.40.
164 Bob Larson, p.209.
165 Bob Larson, p.42.
166 Bob Larson, p.209.
167 Bob Larson, p.42.
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