Halloween (or Hallowe'en), a contraction of All-Hallows-Even ("evening"), is an annual holiday observed on October 31, which commonly includes activities such as trick-or-treating, attending costume parties, carving jack-o'-lanterns, bonfires, apple bobbing, visiting haunted attractions, playing pranks, telling scary stories, and watching horror films.
On Tuesday, many Christians will celebrate All Saints' Day. The day before, Oct. 31, most Americans, in one fashion or another, will observe Halloween. The two events spring from the same history.
Since the 600's Christians have set aside a specific day to thank God for the lives of martyrs — those killed because of their love for Jesus Christ. Over the centuries, Christians settled on Nov. 1 as the date to celebrate this holy day, sometimes referred to as "All Hallows Day." Why that day? No one knows for sure, but a very plausible explanation is that Christians linked it to an Irish Celtic harvest festival, celebrated at the beginning of November. Originally, "All Hallows Eve" or "Halloween" (a Scottish variation of All Hallows Eve) simply marked the evening before the holy day of All Saints' Day.
Times have certainly changed. One need not be a practicing Christian to wonder about the deleterious effects of our contemporary Halloween practices. Many of us are concerned that the fascination with macabre behavior and violence — in full bloom on Halloween — denigrates life's beauty and goodness.
All Saints' Day is a luminous antidote to the darkness that so often takes center stage on Halloween.
Halloween carries spiritual, secular significance for different groups
One Halloween Story - Jack-o-Lantern story.
Jack was an 18th century nasty Irish drunk who liked to play games with the devil. On several occasions, he bested the demon with trickery until one dark night, Old Scratch climbed a tree to avoid another confrontation. Seeing the devil up in the branches, Jack carved a large cross into the trunk, knowing he could not slither down without touching the holy symbol. Frustrated, the devil granted his tormenter 10 more years of life and freedom from hell upon death. But the notorious sinner was barred from heaven as well, so Jack was doomed to roam the earth. However, the devil gave him a burning coal to light his way. Jack hollowed out a large turnip and placed the coal from hell inside. Walking dead, Jack still wanders the world with the turnip, glowing eerily. He is, then, Jack of the Lantern.
Perhaps the answer to the Halloween dilemma is ... there is no right or wrong answer! I believe one's unique convictions about Halloween must be individually sought, independently found, and personally followed.
Courtesy : Various Internet resources; Wikipedia
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