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I distinctly remember the feeling, as a child, of not being allowed to celebrate Halloween like my friends could. The costumes, evening walk from house to house, and candy were off-limits to me because my mother believed it was not Christian to celebrate Halloween. Witches, goblins, ghosts, and devils - all so integral to the evening - were inherently evil, and so not something to be celebrated. One year, she did bend and allowed me to trick or treat - but I had to be an angel. Another year, I wore all black and stayed over a friend's house. When they trick-or-treated, I said I was a shadow and went with them.

Did I learn more about being a Christian by not participating in Halloween? Not really. However, I did learn that my mother felt strongly about how holidays are truly "holy" days, and that Halloween was not one of them. This sentiment spread into other holidays as well - combating the commercialization of Christmas, and the "bunnification" of Easter. These days of celebration are different when you are a Christian, and should be celebrated as holy days, not just holidays.
Halloween is certainly not a holy day like Christmas or Easter. As such, should it be participated in by Christians? This is a tough question, and really up to the individual to decide. For me, it has been an interesting decision. Now a mother myself, the first Halloween my daughter experienced, I did decide to take her out to trick-or-treat, and she had a lovely mermaid costume. Amusingly, my mother wanted to buy her a Halloween costume also! Somewhere between motherhood and grandmotherhood, her opinion about Halloween mellowed a bit.
What I believe is this: if you can celebrate Halloween as a cultural tradition, without getting tangled up in good and evil, Christianity versus paganism, "tricking" or "treating", then Halloween is fine to celebrate. If all it is to you and your family is an evening to don a costume, visit neighbors, and enjoy some sweets, then it is a harmless activity. However, if embracing witches and devils becomes the norm, it may become important to separate yourself and your family from these potentially harmful activities. As parents, we must remember that evil is in the world, and having a night that celebrates evil invites it further into our lives. Children do not understand this, and it is up to parents to keep them safe.
If I could go back in time, do I wish my mother had let me celebrate Halloween more when I was a child? Not really. I know that I learned a valuable lesson in not being allowed to dress as a witch and treat Halloween with the same importance as Christmas or Easter. Some celebrations are much more important than others for a Christian. Will I ban Halloween from my child? That remains to be seen, as she is only an infant, but I don't think so at this point. With open honest conversation about holidays versus traditions, I think she will be able to differentiate between the importance of Christmas and Easter as a believer in God, and the cultural day that is Halloween. If she cannot, than perhaps she will also spend Halloween night at home, with her family, doing the normal evening family things. As a Christian child, we will have to guide her along a safe path.

Learn more about this author, Jennifer Vose.
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