Halloween: Peeling Back the Disguise

Celebrants claim it’s not about worship. It’s about make-believe, candy, fun for the children and—for the more adventurous—a heart-pounding horror film or haunted house attraction. But the trouble with Halloween is that it is about something real. And whether intended or not, it is a form of worship—yet not of the true God.

From its origins in ancient times, Halloween has seen a subtle shift. The Encyclopedia Britannica notes that present-day Halloween connects to the ancient observance of Samhain (pronounced soww-in), rebranded by the Catholic Church as All Hallows’ Day. As the early American colonies formed, its practice was largely forbidden. When it did reemerge, brought to the United States by later immigrants, it did so mainly as a secular holiday.

Why was Halloween forbidden in the early American colonies? Did people see something darker and more insidious in the common practice? Let’s take a look at some popular Halloween traditions and whether we should engage in them.

Evil in disguise

The practice of dressing in costume for Halloween arose from the original custom of disguising oneself to hide from ghosts and evil spirits during Samhain. Originally, costumes were usually ghosts, evil spirits and other monsters, as people sought to avoid detection by malevolent beings.  

Centuries later, many people who celebrate Halloween still dress for the darker side of the holiday—skeletons, goblins, witches, etc. But an increasing number of people dress as favorite fictional characters, historical figures or cute animals. The creativity of dressing in costume may seem to make this celebration merely about having fun, but does participation in this aspect alone mean we’re clear of the darker elements?

It turns out that a costume change doesn’t make it okay. Even if you don’t wear your costume to hide from evil spirits, participation is acceptance. “Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them” (Ephesians 5:11).  

The same thought can be applied to other seasonal practices such as carving jack-o’-lanterns or hanging lights to ward off wandering spirits. Like the costumes, some of this decor may actually appear cute or humorous, but ask yourself: Does changing the look and feel of a practice ultimately change what’s within?

During the time Christ walked on earth, the influence of the Pharisees had led many astray to a form of religious adherence that was only outward. If something technically followed the rules, the spirit of the law was ignored. Christ called out this hypocrisy: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence” (Matthew 23:25). If the root of the celebration is wrong, no amount of external polish can cover the real problem.

The trick behind the treats

The practice of giving food or small treats in exchange for entertainment (such as singing a song, performing a trick, etc.) goes back all the way to the Celtic practice of Samhain. History.com notes in the article “How Trick-or-Treating Became a Halloween Tradition,” that in England, around A.D. 1000 it was commonplace for the poor to visit the homes of wealthier families and offer to pray for the homeowner’s dead relatives in exchange for food, money or ale.

Today, trick-or-treating has developed into an activity where children in costume go door-to-door to collect candy from their neighbors. The underlying concept is related to extortion where an evil intentioned person states they will give a “trick” unless you give them a “treat.” It turns out that this cutesy practice of sending your children to collect candy is yet another way of sugar-coating the darker themes of the day. Even if you’re not actively participating in a pagan practice, you can’t just pick out the pieces you see as harmless and consider yourself safe from the dark side of the day.  

If you bite into a slice of old bread and eat around the patches of mold, there are still mold spores that aren’t visible to the eye, and you risk contamination with every bite. Likewise, participating in just the “fun, harmless” aspects of Halloween does not protect you from the spiritual risk of participating in a day connected to a very real, dark spiritual world.

“Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you” (2 Corinthians 6:17). God does not want us to take part in anything that is even a “little” wrong.

A draw to darkness

In a culture where many no longer consider themselves religious or where borrowing practices from other religions is common, the idea of Halloween still may not seem concerning. In fact, many would go so far as to say there’s no need to remove ghosts, zombies and demons from Halloween at all since those are just another fantasy concept?  

The trouble is, the spirit world is very real. Scripture warns us to “be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). God warns His people to have nothing to do with witches and mediums (Leviticus 19:31, Galatians 5:19-21).

Furthermore, God is against practices rooted in stirring up fear. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7).  

Fascination with evil is nothing new. The roots of the problem go a lot deeper than Halloween itself.  

If you trace these roots back, they’re connected to a tree—the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It makes sense to our human nature that the more knowledge we have of evil, the more prepared we will be in facing it. But such knowledge is corrupting. As mentioned, Halloween quickly progressed from human attempts to ward away evil to subtle (and not-so-subtle) ways of embracing it!

The heart of the issue

Is it acceptable for a Christian to participate in Halloween? When it comes to evaluating anything we do, it really comes down to a more important question: Will this please God?

God has called us to walk in light rather than in darkness. He encourages us to fill our minds with good things that are pleasing to Him rather than the evil that opposes His way of life.

As Philippians 4:8 exhorts us: “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.” This October 31, instead of observing Halloween, challenge yourself to do more than merely avoid darkness. Choose an activity in line with the Philippians 4:8 model. Maybe that’s opening your Bible and finding some more verses to further this study. Perhaps it’s spending quality time with your family, focused on something uplifting rather than the macabre.  

“For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light” (Ephesians 5:8). God wants us to not only abandon darkness, but to be His children who walk and live in light!