Let’s Hear it for Halloween!

Posted on by beautybeyondbones

Halloween in Greenwich Village in NYC is a cultural happening. Lower Manhattan literally shuts down during the parade. Imagine MardiGras, but with costumes and candy, and where the temperature is hovering right above freezing.

It is something you just have to experience.

This is my first Halloween in almost seven years that I’m missing the big Halloween parade. I just got back to Ohio for a shoot tomorrow. So I will be passing out KitKats and Reese’s Cups in the suburbs.

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I think that makes me officially an adult.

Ugh. Say it ain’t so.

Oh well. Over the weekend in NYC, I got carded at the liquor store, and the guy goes – “I could have sworn you were 16.” — I’m hanging onto that with a death grip.

Anywho. Just yesterday, my mom and I were listening to a podcast in the car, and it was one of those Christian-motherhood podcasts. You know the type. Very…I don’t know…peppy. Sunny. Everything is…amazing. And they always feel so blessed.

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Annnywho…the topic of the episode was about Halloween. And it was all about how they weren’t going to be partaking in trick-or-treating with their kids because it wasn’t “Christian.” How they didn’t want to expose their kids to something so secular and borderline satanic.

And I got done listening to the episode, and I was almost angry, thinking…wow, that is a really extreme stance to take.

Later that night, we watched an interesting documentary called One of Us, which is an eye opening exposé about the alleged abuse inside the Hasidic Jewish community in New York City.

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This extreme religious sect has largely closed themselves off from the world, and have created a insular community, with its own Hasidic police force and ambulance system, and private school and bussing system. They’ve created a life where nobody from the outside world gets in, and no one inside the community gets out.

And watching the credits roll, I couldn’t help but draw an eerie similarity between the podcast and the closed off life of Hasidic Jews.

It raised the question:

How do you navigate the secular, godless world as a Christian?

How do you raise your family and keep your faith in a world where God is nonexistent?

Do you close yourself off and forbid your children from partaking in a fun, community tradition of dressing up and carving pumpkins, and hayrides and getting candy in the neighborhood with their friends?

How are we to live as Jesus followers, in a world that disregards Him?

Because I just don’t think that an existence of extreme religious seclusion is what Jesus called us to do.

Be in the world, but not of the world.

I think this quote draws a fine line in the sand, that keeps blurring and fading as time goes on and faith gets pushed further and further out of mainstream culture.

The world isn’t going to nurture your faith. It’s going to lead you to the altar of money and power and selfish advancement.

And sadly, a once-a-week church attendance, and even a christian education isn’t going to foster a fruitful faith life.

Faith starts at home.

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Because anyone can teach their kids to share, and be a good person, and tell the truth. Those universal “goods” are true in every family, Christian or not.

For followers of Jesus, it’s the why behind it.

Why are you being kind to others? Why are you helping those less fortunate or befriending the kid sitting by themselves at lunch?

Why?  – Because we are called to be the hands and feet of Jesus on earth. And the fact is, He demonstrated how to love one another. And it’s our job to respond.

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So — does that mean that we board up our windows and deny children the joy of candy and dress up with friends?

I don’t think so.

Because, in my opinion, another hallmark of living a Christian life in a godless word, is finding the good.

And there’s a lot of good to be found with Halloween. I know a lot of people think it is the “Devil’s Night” but frankly, I think that’s just a bunch of poppy-cock.

And frankly, the real thing people should be upset about is the sexualization of little girls with hoochie-mama Halloween costumes that should make their fathers blush. But I digress.

Halloween is simply fun. Kids can dress up and foster their imaginations with costumes. You get to mingle with the neighbors and partake in a community-building activity.


The fact is, I think a lot of Christians can get so caught up in consciously removing themselves from secular activities that, if we’re not careful, decades down the road, we can find ourselves in an reclusive existence that doesn’t look too different from the Hasidic Jews.

Christians can get so up in arms about being counter-cultural — and yes, there is good in that, but as with everything, it shouldn’t be taken to the extreme. Faith needs to be attractive. If you’re going to bring anyone to Jesus, it needs to be appealing.

Not stand-offish. Not “too good” or “too holy” for a little pumpkin carving fun.

People need to see and feel the joy that comes from being a Christian and the way you live. And make it something that people want to be a part of.

Where does that joy come from? Answer: Jesus at the center of your life.

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I don’t really have any answers here – And obviously, I don’t have any kids, so what authority, really, do I have on this topic.

Because there are definitely some strong verses in the bible about how we are to live. 1 John 2:15 and John 15:19 come to mind.

But it just struck me, and I thought I’d share with you, and see what you all thought.

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255 thoughts on “Let’s Hear it for Halloween!”

  2. Annnywho…the topic of the episode was about Halloween. And it was all about how they weren’t going to be partaking in trick-or-treating with their kids because it wasn’t “Christian.” How they didn’t want to expose their kids to something so secular and borderline satanic.

    I ran into this group of people many years ago, I actually work with one. These are the people who condemned Jesus for going into Matthew’s house and partying with him.

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  3. “If you’re going to bring anyone to Jesus, it needs to be appealing.” Exactly. I talk with my mom all the time that we are a greedy bunch, and want what others have. Like the LORD doesn’t know this 😉 “why is she so happy? I want to be that happy?” “Why do things always go his way? Why can’t they go my way? We see and hear these and other statement all the time. We are suppose to be so full of love that others will want that love. God can manage the rest. If we are judging, chastising, making the belief in Jesus an unattainable, and unattractive venture by our actions, then we are the stumbling blocks. God bless you :):)

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  4. After being born again we never celebrated the day. Let’s face it, there is a lot of scary stuff, and death, ghosts, goblins and even demons that are highlighted. But as I left the very conservative Christian world dressing up and having fun didn’t seem too bad. I still think I want to witness to others with life though not death. As parents we looked to team sports for our children to help them interact with others. To be honest what you heard on the podcast is the primary view of many evangelicals and certainly fundamentalists.

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    1. Thanks so much for sharing this. That’s a powerful perspective. you’re right – life-giving and life-celebrating love is the best. I guess part of my feeling too is that Halloween in our house and with our friends was never about death or demons or anything like that. it was about fun costumes, and friends, and trying to get more candy than my older brothers 🙂 haha So i can definitely understand if the focus is on those other things, it would not be something i would want to be a part of either. Thanks for sharing that. Hugs and love xox

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    1. Yes! Thanks Daphne, yeah I look at some of the costume options for young girls, and it just breaks my heart to be honest. It really is engraining a strong message to kids about what is “beautiful” and what traits/clothing styles (revealing/short/tight) we celebrate for women. Breaks my heart. thanks for stopping by! Hugs and love xox

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  6. We struggled a little when our kids were old enough to trick or treat – and decided in the end it’s all what you make it to be. You can choose to see the bad OR choose to see the good. We’ve chosen to see the good and set some parameters around what kind of costumes our kids could dress in. As long as what they do honors Christ, they can do it. We’ve had some great conversations and open doors because of this. Thanks for the post – awesome as always. ❤️

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  7. wonderful post as always. My mother has a friend who is a God freak. Christian but very holier than thou. It was people like her that made me stray from god many years ago. She thinks that her ways are better than everybody else’s and that is shutting herself off from society one person at a time. God has to be about love and love is experiencing life and finding the good

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    1. Hey Billy, thank you so much for sharing your thoughts. I’m sorry that that woman turned you off to God. You’re right – God is love, and that’s how we need to treat people. Thanks for stopping by! Hugs and love xox

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      1. it was only part of it. What matters is I’m back! Happy Halloween in the Burb’s it doesn’t make you an adult if you don;’t act nerdy lol

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  8. It is with great sadness I inform you the enemy uses Halloween to hurt people. I have counseled and prayed with many people of all ages who were caught up in this cruelty. The unthinkable was done to them, especially children. I personal cannot do anything with Halloween because of this knowledge. I was once like you and thought it was just not real but God has shown me what really happens. Jesus Christ is my Lord and my

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    1. Oh gosh, I’m sorry to hear that. Yeah, I guess I have been pretty sheltered and blessed to have grown up in a community where there was no real mischief going on, and the festivities were all about superhero costumes and chocolate. Yeah, when people get mixed up with the dark side of things, that’s definitely something to stay far away from.

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      1. Satanic rituals are done using children that have been taken against their will. The unthinkable is done during holiday and others, all in the name of the enemy. And yes, some are adults that have been deceived and paid a heavy price for that deception. I share openly now because I too did not know.

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  9. Rabbi Kalman Packouz at Aish.com has a different take on the Hasidim regarding why they wear such (to us) outlandish clothing and seem so internally focused. My wife has been back to Brooklyn (thought it’s been a few years) with the local Chabad Rabbi’s wife for a women’s conference. I too have heard of abuses inside the Hasidic community, and the risk potential certainly can skyrocket in a group that’s so self-contained, but there are also good sides to want to keep yourselves separate.

    Halloween in an event the Christian Church is terrifically conflicted over. I listed to a short video of a Pastor who used to be a Satanist for 25 years warning believers not to celebrate it in any way shape or form, but some (most) of the things he said seemed pretty sketchy.

    My wife and I don’t celebrate just because we’re not into it and our kids are all adults. We close up the house, turn off most of the lights, and I for one, watch Ghostbusters (1984) as my traditional movie for October 31st.

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    1. Ghostbusters hah that’s awesome. personally have never seen it. But in all seriousness, thank you James, for sharing this perspective. Yeah, I guess I have been pretty sheltered and honestly, blessed (there’s that word, lol) to have grown up in a home and in a community where Halloween was just about fun costumes and getting more candy than my older brothers! There was never anything dark or scary about it. But you’re right, we need to stay away from the darkness. and what’s that Ephesians verse…”Whatever is pure, good, lovely…think on those things?” Thanks again for stopping by! Hugs and love xox

      Liked by 1 person

  11. Is that little angel you??

    Tough issue. I hear echoes of Paul in one of his letters telling people that, if eating meat offends someone, don’t eat it in front of them. So what do we do about holidays with questionable origins? Is it “whether or not” or “how to do it in a God-pleasing manner?” Christmas is the one I’ve wrestled with over the years, but Halloween is another one that has changed much since my childhood.

    More at Patreon.

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    1. haha yes it is me!!! yeah, i can definitely see both sides of the debate for sure. it’s tough, especially since it is seen as such a fun fall tradition. i look forward to reading more 🙂 thanks for stopping by, Jeff! Hugs and love xox

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  12. I’ve always enjoyed Halloween as a kid. As I got older I learned that many people use this day for satanic rituals – with youngsters. It’s sickening to think about but it’s out there. To this day I continue to pass out candy to see the kids faces light up. Can’t beat that. 💜

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    1. thank you for sharing this. yeah i am learning through the comments section that that is a sickening reality. it just wasn’t a part of my upbringing to even think about that. yeah – the joy with the kids is truly priceless. the power of sugar haha Hugs and love xox

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  14. Good post Caralyn! Funny, I wrote about the subject myself earlier today. In thinking about it being a community thing, I agree. I too am currently kid-less and even though I’m personally not for the celebrating of Halloween, I can’t bear the heartbreak it would give my two nephews if they were forbidden to trick or treat. If God ever blesses me with children, I think I’ll go the route our parish and my previous Novus Ordo priest suggested which was to have the children first research then dress up as their favorite saint. I can’t argue with that, right? They get to learn about a saint and hopefully they will be inspired to live a holy life as the saint of their choosing did as well. Plus, perhaps it can evangelize a few people along the way. 😊

    God bless you, my friend in Christ.

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    1. Hi David, thank you so much! I really appreciate your perspective. Yeah, that’s a really great compromise, and I have some family friends that do the same. It’s a great way to navigate. thanks for stopping by! Hugs and love xox

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  15. Ahh, the Halloween debate; I didn’t even realize there was such a thing until I was about twelve, and one of my teachers told us about the extensive history of the holiday. Like you, I grew up with it being more about dressing up (which the actress in me loved) and getting candy, but suddenly there was another side to it. And I think lots of things should be taken into account when deciding how to handle Halloween, but I read an interesting perspective on that a few years ago. One (Christian) mom-blogger stated that she uses it as an opportunity to engage with her neighbors because the whole neighborhood willingly knocks on your door. What better way to show Jesus to them. I don’t have kids yet either, but I do like her thoughts on the subject, and I’ll likely take that approach someday.

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    1. Thanks for this reflection. Yeah, i fully agree. it definitely is a community building evening. That’s what i remember about it during my childhood. it was like *the* neighborhood happening. complete with one house having a cotton candy machine! haha so glad you stopped by! Hugs and love xox

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  16. Thanks for a nice post. The Halloween I remember (from the 70s) was still good fun and aimed at kids. I also took a poke at this same topic previously on my blog: https://imlacsjournal.wordpress.com/2012/10/11/fall-is-here/ . I agree with you that it’s the type of costumes one has to worry about, or apparel in general — Halloween or not. Recently I was in Las Vegas, for the first time, and honestly the way this country’s fashions and behavior have trended the past 30 years, I didn’t think it was that outrageous a place (on the surface) and probably less so than many bigger cities! “Sin CIty” really ain’t that special anymore, at least not on that score.

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  17. You know what? I never understood why some Christians chose to not allow their children have fun with their friends and the neighborhood as well. Sure, I may be an adult and don’t mind passing out treats to the children, but I’d rather they enjoy themselves and have fun, as I had when I was a kid. Plus, as a bonus, both my mother and I smile at the costumes the children wear and how they’re so appreciative to receive a treat. All we can do is pray that they have a safe walk around the neighborhoods and be careful.

    As for the Jews and Christians that live on the extreme, I cannot lock myself away from the outside world. To me, that will feel like that of a prison cell. I never been jailed or locked up before, but I have watched documentaries about that where you can only eat when it’s time, and so on. I do believe that… and it hurts to admit this… but that’s why some Christians are having divisions on topics, actions, and steps that a Christian should walk and abide by. Before I get to know Jesus, I asked my spiritual mother a lot of questions about situations like this and she told me that she couldn’t understand it either. Lol. All we can do is stay in prayer about it all.

    Happy Halloween and enjoy passing out the treats with your mom! 🙂
    Hugs and Kisses xoxo

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    1. so true, thank you for this reflection! lots of really great food for thought here. yeah, i love seeing children just delight in being a princess or a superhero for the night. it brings out imaginative play, and it’s really special to witness! thanks for stopping by! hugs xo

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  18. This just reminded me of the sermon series Make Disciples (Liberty Church Marietta) that my pastor has been going through this year explaining that we are the only culture that has rejected the multi-cultural community where children grew up interacting with other responsible, reliable, believing adults so they did not outright reject Christianity in adolescence or college because their parents were not the only believing adults they truly knew and no teenager wants to be like or spend time with their parents regularly. Faith does start at home and within that God also intended for the church to be a safe place to foster community and allow teens to interact with other strong adult believers to properly develop their brains.
    The way that many church communities have decided to safely do Halloween is through trunk or treat in the church parking lot where you know everyone coming onto the property and are able to dictate more of what is allowed instead of sending children into neighborhoods that are both safe and dangerous simultaneously. Halloween is definitely a tricky time for believers to regulate how to handle the occasion properly and in the way that they can present those days to the Lord as each is responsible for children in their lives. I think it is great to be intentional to make memories and have fun with kids, but you cannot ignore the evil in the world like you mentioned shutting families away from the world so maybe trunk-or-treat is the best for many families. We all know that it is up to each parent because they are the ones responsible to God for raising children properly and that is no easy feat!

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  19. Interesting post! I’ve been thinking about this subject lately – how the Church has taken very questionable cultural practices and essentially redeemed them. It’s one of the most important things we as followers of Christ are called to do; but what about those times when something is so bad that we can’t participate? Just a philosophical musing! 🙂
    I was one of those kids who never did trick-or-treating on family principle, and I understand the objections – though as an adult, I’ve come to see how much clean, innocent fun it can be! But I have grown more concerned about Halloween in recent years: Not because of the pagan roots, but because it has become so sexualized and ghoulish. It seems less about kids, then about adults’ fetishes and obsession with blood, gore and zombies. Even as someone who never really celebrated Halloween, that’s just sad!

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    1. Thanks for sharing your thoughts! yeah, i agree. everything is short and revealing – for little girls! it just breaks my heart actually. sending the wrong kind of message. thanks for stopping by! hugs x

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  20. Amen, Amen, Amen. I could just hug you. Jesus didn’t avoid the woman at the well. He approached her with love and acceptance. Only through loving others can others see the beauty of the Christ we love.
    Hugs!

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  24. I’ve known a lot of people like this who pretty much already have closed themselves off from the rest of the world. And they don’t just say Halloween is borderline Satanic, they say it IS Satanic. It’s sad. I feel exactly the same way you do about all this.

    Incidentally, the legalistic Christians who love to point out Halloween’s Satanic roots never say anything about the pagan fertility festival roots of Valentine’s Day. No, let’s celebrate Valentine’s Day, because it’s about love and marriage, which these kind of Christians pretty much literally idolize.

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    1. Thanks for this. Yeah it is sad. Because for little kids, there’s so much joy with the princess and superhero costumes and the candy – it’s priceless to see the delight in their faces 🙂 lots of great food for thought here. Hugs and love xox

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  25. I completely agree with this!! I have been asking myself these same questions while trying to raise my 3year old son in a Christian environment but I have come to the same conclusions that it’s up to us to find the good in each celebration and let it shine on to others!!

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  28. God is Love. INFINITE LOVE IS THE ONLY TRUTH. EVERYTHING ELSE IS ILLUSION. Choose life and Love. God has given you the way to Him through LOVE; He gives us His son and divine love. God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks to our conscience, but shouts in our pains and grief. Your forever journey leads to C. S. Lewis’ “GOD and us.”.Love is forever. When the mind, body and spirit work as one anything is possible.

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  29. So totally agree! Couldn’t have said it better myself (really, I couldn’t have 😉) I’ve been on the legalistic side of religion and it was not good—tends to breed rebellion if anything—plus it’s short-sighted. Like you said, Jesus wants us to be in the world and show others the love of Christ, but we, as Christians, can’t do that if we isolate ourselves and push others away with overly strict rules and judgmental views.

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  30. Golly gee, Caralyn, for saying you don’t really have any answers here you certainly display more than a little discernment with wisdom! As far as being in the world but not of the world, I always say “chew the meat, but spit out the bones.” That is, to look for the good that is good for use, but reject the corruption and abuse. I remember seeing Jesus chastise the pharisee and scribe for adding so, so many man-made laws to God’s laws which smothered the true meaning of God’s guidance through the purpose of His laws. Anyway – Happy Halloween!

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  31. Thank you for this! I often see people post on Facebook how terrible it is for Christians to celebrate Halloween. Usually it just makes me roll my eyes. I see nothing wrong with letting kids dress up and go trick or treating. We are called to redeem The darkness in the world, not shut ourselves out from it. Sure, I don’t love all the witches and zombies and scary stuff, but we can still have fun and celebrate with our neighbors and friends.

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  32. Halloween was my least favorite “holiday” as a Christian. Now we remember and invite the memories of this who have past back for a visit

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  33. I ask myself, does Halloween honor God? The answer is no.
    So, I choose not to celebrate the occasion.
    Does that make me legalistic, or closed in? The answer is no.
    Am I critical of those who think it’s innocent fun? No.
    It’s so sad, they do not know who they are celebrating. They think they are just dressing their kids up and handing out candy.
    It is only when we understand for ourselves the true nature of the occasion will we make the choice who we will honor.

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    1. Thank you so much, Helena, for this perspective. I definitely respect your position on this. And yes! We should always honor God. It’s a tough issue with a blurry line. I really appreciate hearing from all sides and positions! Sending big hugs xox

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  35. We don’t celebrate Halloween simply because we believe it does not give God glory. But we don’t lock our doors, hide from it and sulk while others ‘celebrate’ and ‘have fun’. We also dont condemn other Christians that do. Instead we use it to evangelize, we have candies and gospel tracks we give away to the trick or treaters. We are in this world but we are not of it, we live here but we dont do as the world does, so it may seem killjoy that we dont dress up but we do something else that is just as fun! I have a 4 year old who and I dont shield from this world, but i explain that we don’t celebrate ghosts and spirits and witches and monsters which is the very theme of Halloween and we only celebrate God! Some things may seem harmless, but as Christians we should always be alert, on the look out for anything that may deceive us. And in everything, yes find the good, but make sure that good is God’s standard of good and it brings Him glory all the time.

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    1. Hi Lara, thank you so much for this powerful perspective. this seriously provides such great food for thought. you’re so right – we need to be alert and ready. I appreciate you sharing your position on Halloween. There’s something awesome to be learned from every person’s experience! big hugs to you xo

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  36. The way my husband and I see it, there are two sides to Halloween: the child side, that’s all about dressing up as someone/thing else for an evening of running around the neighborhood and getting candy, and then the adult side…which I choose not to know much about; I just know it’s dark and it exists (I went to college near Salem, MA, and we were warned never to go into the woods on Halloween). Our family focuses on the child side, but once the kids are older, it will be nice to ignore it, save for answering the door multiple times that night. 😉

    I don’t think people can just throw out a blanket statement about Halloween, though, as in, “Christians should never participate,” because that boxes God in, IMO. I think it needs to be approached prayerfully by each individual, and God will ask some families to do one thing and other families to do another thing, and we shouldn’t go pointing fingers or judging those on the “other” side. But I do agree with what another person said, about keeping costumes modest and honorable to God. Thankfully we live in Montana, so modesty isn’t a problem as we typically battle winter temps and crazy wind–haha!

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    1. Hi Laurie, thank you so much for this thoughtful response. this is such a great perspective. you’re right – i’ve always -and still do- think about Halloween from the child’s side – that’s how my community celebrates it. but you’re right – the darkness should be stayed far far away from. It’s scary stuff for sure. Thanks again for sharing your thoughts. i really appreciate it. Stay warm up in Montana!! 🙂 Hugs and love xox

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  37. Love this! Totally on point! We need moderation! Extremism is toxic! Christians need to embrace the culture by being in the world but not of it. We can enjoy Halloween without embracing the Satanic! Our church in fact hosts a Trunk or Treat annually! It’s good fun! And it is relevant! Why not dress up as Biblical characters? There is always a reasonable solution! I grew up in a church that was against Harry Potter! Man were they rigid! Imagination is healthy for children 🙌🏻 Praise God that we can have these creative minds who come up with characters to play! It is a blessing not a curse!

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  38. Hey ya Caralyn,
    Another great post. Look forward to them like it was 60 minutes or sumthin! You are so funny.
    Okay, here’s my 2 cents:
    You nailed it. Right down the line. Bearing in mind I consider myself a hardcore evangelical fundamentalist Christian I think it carries some weight because I see Christ in the letter and spirit of your post. Am in full agreement with you on this deal. If Jesus were here i believe He’d be handing out Almond Joys and Butterfingers and not ” forbidding the little ones who came to Him”.
    Listen, you are full of the Spirit of God and He’s going to keep blessing you for it.

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  39. Love the post. As a family, we keep the decorations and costumes on the fun-side. No death or dark stuff allowed. It has opened up conversations with our three boys about Halloween – that we omit the dark parts because they remind us of death and separation from God, and we include greeting neighbors and wearing nice costume because that stirs up fellowship and celebration, which are Biblical ideas. I have friends that don’t celebrate for various reasons, Hallowen is a difficult holiday — it’s just one of those celebrations that falls into gray, rather than black and white.

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  40. It’s a difficult one, a lot of the things we take for granted as Christian come right out of Sharman and Druid practices not to mention the pagan Roman practices. Same with the trappings of Christmas and Easter as practiced in today’s commercial world. It’s Santa and the Easter Bunny now. That’s the history but in our generation we don’t celebrate with the same purpose as the ancients did. We’ve given our current holidays different meanings, different purposes. Sometimes we do need to think about what our purpose is. I don’t think our generation kids celebrate our current season for more than just plain fun. “In the world, not of the world”. That’s a statement that will carry different meanings to different people. Witnessing for one’s faith cannot be accomplished sitting in an ashram on top of the Himalayas though I applaud the sincerity of those who do that. But as we celebrate our fun days, and we should, we need to pause to reflect on the fact the majority of our world people groups can’t scrape up enough money or energy to get one meal a day or spend much of the day walking miles to get drinking water. They really don’t know what fun is! Enjoy your visit with your Mom and see how many you can scare trick or treating. 🙂

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  41. Like all things, you can find good and bad in the holiday. The kids pointed out to me this year how some witches they see at Halloween are scary and some are cute. They asked me why??? I didn’t know exactly how to answer that question other than to say, Halloween is what we make it to be. We can choose to make it scary and evil. OR we can choose to make it fun and a time to spend with friends/family. Our tradition is to go to Trunk or Treat at our church which is actually quite amazing. We don’t have to worry about scary or inappropriate costumes or tampered with candies etc. We can focus on just having fun with our church Ohana (family) and celebrate being together.

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  42. Wow. I love this! We are exactly the same over here in NI. There are some from my local churches who refuse to celebrate Halloween. But as a Christian bringing my children up in our local community, in what you would refer to as “the burbs”, we as a community are embracing it. We are meeting on the green where we live. We are having a cookout. The parents can stand around and chat, whilst the little kids safely trick or treat in our line of site at the homes that surround the green. Many of the organisers are incredibly active in our church but it is for everyone, all the families regardless of your faith or denomination. It’s really just a bit of fun and innocent dress up for the kids. And all I can see is that we will shine out as a light in the darkness. Surely that’s something to aspire to?

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  43. Halloween is an interesting one… as a child my dad used to run light parties on the same night and we played games and sang songs, got our faces painted etc… but it was all around positive life affirming things.
    I haven’t necessarily got such a strong opinion on it as yet although I am now a mother of an 8 month old.
    In terms of making Jesus appealing – I think the gospel is forever appealing and relevant, but I know what you mean. But When you look at Jesus He was anything but community building, He was controversial, messing with the views and culture of the time and it got Him crucified….. however it was all for love. And He definitely loved all it wasn’t just for a special community, His love and forgiveness were and are relevant for all.
    His radical dedication to love.
    I do also believe those that practice things of darkness use this holiday as a key date in their calendar and I don’t think I would want my kids dressing up as the devil and making light of something as a joke that is actually real. I wouldn’t go as far as to say they are worshipping him just because they celebrate this night though! It’s rather just making him into a fictional character when he is real.
    However Jesus has overcome the world, so I guess I would rather focus on that like others have said.
    I was thinking I might use it as an opportunity if people come knocking to give them a treat with an invite to our Christmas carols attached! I didn’t get organised quick enough (# new mum life).
    I think there’s ways to not ‘celebrate’ it and still be kind to people and also make it not a big deal for your kids so they don’t feel left out and others don’t feel like you’re holier than thou.

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      1. Well thanks to you for sharing your blog! It’s great to hear different perspectives, it makes the world a better place 🙂

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  44. you know something your blog title understates your beauty you are beautiful beyond imagination I hope your shoot goes well. I did some drama in college but I couldn’t act to save myself and to be honest it’s not something I wanted to pursue.
    You have to be very strong to be an actress/actor and hold on to your faith in Christ. I wanted to be a singing artist when I was a young man and but illness ravaged my voice and to be honest I’m not sorry.
    You’ve come the other way through illness and it is Christ who brought you to where you are. Don’t trade your beauty, your youthfulness and most of all your integrity if it means compromising your faith.
    You are so very precious.

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  46. Brave piece since so many Christians can end up behaving like the whole point of their faith is to become separate and to ignore or condemn ‘the world’. God ‘so loved the world that he gave …’ etc – in other words, he got stuck in and Jesus teaches us why we do things, and that underlies a lot of things secular people do which are good and right, but they do them with no acknowledgement of Jesus! Hallowe’en is what people make it – fun or sinister … and everything, absolutely everything, can be turned into dark and evil by people who have that in their hearts. “Out of the heart …” comes how we handle things … Hearts where Jesus dwells should not fear this celebration, or use condemning it to look more moral than their neighbours.

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  47. The problem with Halloween isn’t Halloween…it’s the people who forgot why we celebrate it to begin with. Both Christians and non-Christians have secularized it a great deal, much to our detriment.

    Let’s go back to the meaning of the word itself: All Hallows Eve. For the Catholic, this should be familiar. Hallows are the Saints we know have gone on before us into Heaven and have defeated death. Tomorrow, Nov. 1, we celebrate that day as All Saints Day (Nov. 2nd is All Souls Day, for those who are saints but not Saints). So tonight, in the realm of the Church we begin our celebration of the victory over death. We celebrate all Saints starting tonight, much as we do every Sunday by celebrating Mass at 5PM on Saturday.

    Halloween, therefore, and properly celebrated, is a night of victory over death. Where we don’t have to be afraid of the dark. Children go out and mock death because as Christians we can be assurred that death is not the end of us.

    Christians and non-Christians alike forget this history, and so they have a lack of understanding of the meaning of the day. It’s because of this lack of understanding that what started out as a mocking of death and destruction has turned a bit and become more like a fright night.

    So, let’s celebrate Halloween! Let the kids have their fun and Catholic parents all over the world will bring their children to Mass tomorrow to reinforce Who we celebrate when we celebrate the Saints victory over death.

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  49. You are wise beyond your years. I’ve always been a huge fan of Halloween and the many traditions from around the world that it blends together. My youngest daughter is too old to trick or treat, but we’re all going this year to show our Central American exchange student what a small-town Halloween is like. My husband and I can’t wait (we might be more excited than the teens) because it’s all about seeing friends and neighbors and watching people have fun together in a harmless, friendly atmosphere. Families should enjoy it while they can. Kids grow up too fast, and someday, parents are going to regret all the things they never let their kids do. Faith begins at home. If you’ve got that covered, one night a year of gathering candy with friends isn’t going to hurt anyone.

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    1. Hi Amy! Gosh thank you for the encouragement. I am humbled by your words. Yes! It was always such a fun holiday growing up – getting to dress up and hang out with friends on a school night. Love hearing your thoughts! Hugs and love xox

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  50. We have light parties at church, which are alternative to Halloween, which is nice in one way. Also look how we celebrate Christmas, we expect to be receiving presents and/or money when we should be focusing on celebrating Jesus’ birth, even if he wasn’t born on that specific day 😂, this post honestly cleared my mind about Halloween so thanks Caralyn, you don’t need to dress up as an angel for Halloween you already are one 😘😍 God bless you & love you 💛

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      1. hope your project going well, is there any shows we can see you in, would be amazing to see you act normal hehe x

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      3. Totally didn’t think of that sorry lovely if you want to tell me DM me on twitter, I won’t tell anyone 😩 hope what happened in NY isn’t near where you’re from 😩

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