Christians Should Celebrate Halloween

Halloween has deep Christian roots, in celebrating the saints and the hope of resurrection, and should not be abandoned by Christians even if the culture distorts its meaning.

Catacombs of Paris

Halloween is fast approaching. During this time of year, article after article is shared across social media platforms about why Christians should not celebrate Halloween. These articles will make a series of seemingly tried-and-true claims, “Halloween is pagan. Halloween glorifies death. It’s the night of the demonic. They're putting razor blades in the candy.” Even though I know the last one is a myth, I still check my children’s candy every year.

Actually, these claims are all myths, at least concerning the historical form of the holiday. Halloween is not pagan or demonic. Nor does it glorify death. Halloween is a thoroughly Christian holiday with Christian roots, and I think Christians everywhere should celebrate it (I’m looking at you, my fellow Protestants). For those who would link Halloween to the ancient Celtic harvest festival known as Samhain, I recommend a video by Joe Heschmeyer, who thoroughly refutes this claim.

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I am not claiming that the modern secular version of Halloween follows the historical Christian example of the holiday. Indeed, Halloween is often appropriated by pagans as if it were their own. Many use the holiday to glorify death, the demonic, and all things macabre and immodest. But these actions are a deviation from the original practice, an artificial and inferior placeholder for a culture that does not want to consider the sacred, much like the vanity of the Easter bunny without the empty tomb or Santa Claus without the gift of Christ.

We should not abandon Christmas even when the culture abandons the incarnation. We should not abandon Easter even when the culture abandons the resurrection. And we should not abandon Halloween even when the culture abandons those holy ones who have gone before us.

Halloween, or All Hallows Eve, is the eve of All Saints' Day, a time to remember those true believers who have passed from this life and now bask in the presence of God. Much like Christmas Eve preceding Christmas, Halloween is traditionally celebrated in preparation for All Saints’ Day. Historically, Christians have loved their feast days and needed no pressure to start their celebrations a day early for many of their holidays.

In the fourth century, before it was called All Saints' Day, it began as a humble feast to honor the martyrs and took place on May 13. Both St. Ephrem the Syrian and St. John Chrysostom mention this feast in their writings. Over time, it grew to commemorate the martyrs and all those who now stand in God’s presence, whether known or unknown. In the Western Church, the date was later moved to November 1 by Pope Gregory IV in the ninth century.

Even after the Reformation, many Protestants continued to celebrate All Saints' Day. Martin Luther chose Halloween to post his 95 Theses because All Saints' Day was the following day. As Steven Martinson, a professor of German Studies at the University of Arizona, explains, "The reason he did that was because the next day was All Saints' Day. He knew that well-educated people were going to come to the services." Halloween was not a point of contention between Protestantism and Catholicism, though they might have disagreed on certain doctrines, like the veneration of saints. Today, Catholics, Anglicans, Lutherans, and Methodists still observe All Saints' Day together on November 1.

All Saints' Day, and by extension Halloween, serves as a reminder that the Church is one, not just across denominational lines, but also across time and eternity. The Church Militant (those living on earth) and the Church Triumphant (those living in heaven) are separated by death but united by the blood of Christ—for those who hold to the doctrine of purgatory, this would include the Church Penitent. On Halloween, the Church Militant honors the Church Triumphant for their faith, purity, and perseverance, celebrating the hope of resurrection that all true believers on earth eagerly await.

“This is the Son of the carpenter, Who skilfully made His cross a bridge over [death] that swallows up all, and brought over mankind into the dwelling of life. And because it was through the tree that mankind had fallen into [the grave], so upon the tree they passed over into the dwelling of life. Through the tree then wherein bitterness was tasted, through it also sweetness was tasted; that we might learn of Him that amongst the creatures nothing resists Him. Glory be to Thee, Who didst lay Thy cross as a bridge over death, that souls might pass over upon it from the dwelling of the dead to the dwelling of life!”¹ (Ephrem the Syrian, AD 306-373)

How ought Christians to celebrate Halloween?

Just as there is nothing wrong with celebrating Easter with an egg hunt or Christmas with a tree, it is also perfectly acceptable to enjoy the innocent Halloween traditions of our society. However, these cultural traditions should never overshadow the true meaning of the holiday. While we may enjoy dressing up and trick-or-treating with our children, we must remember to honor the heart of what makes Halloween…well, Halloween.

1. Honor the Saints

Honoring the saints should not be controversial. Those who came before us, enduring the trials of life and death and now living eternally, are worthy of remembrance and respect. Reflecting on their lives and sacrifices not only honors them but also shapes our own lives and prepares us for the reality of death. Their virtues, faith, lessons, and even their failures serve as guides for those willing to listen. We become what we honor—so honor God, yes, but also those who have reflected His image well and are accessible examples of how to follow Christ.

2. Remember your Death

“Memento Mori” or “Remember your death.” This phrase, which the Stoics likely coined, was later adopted by the Christians. As we remember the saints, the holiday is the perfect time to consider the brevity of life and how we are living today in light of eternity. Halloween serves as a reminder that death is a reality for all men but that through following the example of Christ, and in His power, even our deaths can be redeemed.

3. Mock the Grave

Everyone fears death, but Christians have no reason to. While we must never celebrate death, we can, like Paul, mock it because through Christ we have victory over the grave: “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” Halloween should remind us of the hope of eternal life, a hope strong enough to drown out the fear of death. In Christ, we are triumphant, and, at our deaths, He will crush the serpent beneath our feet. So, mock death. Mock the macabre. Laugh at the skeletons, demons, and ghouls—they hold no power over you. Turn the empty philosophies of our culture back on themselves, for Christ has already won the battle. The saints who have gone before us are proof. We win in the end.

1. Ephrem the Syrian, “Three Homilies,” in Gregory the Great (Part II), Ephraim Syrus, Aphrahat, ed. Philip Schaff and Henry Wace, trans. A. Edward Johnston, vol. 13, A Select Library of the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church, Second Series (New York: Christian Literature Company, 1898), 307.