A Halloween Post: Candy, Costumes, and Christians

            I’m just going to come out and say it. Yes, I do dress up on October 31^st. Yes, I have gone out trick-or-treating with my friends on October 31^st. No, I do not celebrate “Halloween.”

            What I mean is I don’t celebrate Halloween as the way many think of it. I don’t dress up like a devil, go to haunted houses, pull pranks on the neighbor houses and scare my siblings half to death. Some say that’s all the fun there is to do on October 31^st, but that’s just not how I was raised.

            In my house, my mom has always been careful when it comes to Halloween. She would put up decorations, such as a wreath on the door made of colorful leaves and pinecones, or an un-carved pumpkin. When I wanted to wear a costume, she always made sure to explain to me what costumes were appropriate to wear as a Christian. As I grew up, I gradually understood the difference between the Halloween some of my non-Christian friends were celebrating and what we were celebrating.

            My family was celebrating autumn, or harvest.

            There’s a lot of controversy over whether or not Christians should celebrate Halloween. Some people do inappropriate things on the day. The origins are pagan. There are quite a few reasons people question the holiday.

            Personally, I don’t see anything wrong with dressing up and going trick-or-treating. Halloween has its pagan roots, but so does Christmas even (such as the tree). I think so long as Christians steer clear of doing anything they feel uncomfortable doing, such as dressing up like the devil (big no no), and keep in mind that the harvest can also be celebrated, I think Christians can have a fun time on October 31^st instead of sitting inside with the lights off avoiding trick-or-treaters like the plague (or ebola, that’s a big thing now).

            One other particular reason why I like the idea of Christians participating on October 31^st is that it is a great chance to share the gospel.

            I specifically remember one October 31^st when I was younger when I went to a neighbor’s house to trick-or-treat. A kind, elderly Asian woman greeted me and, with a big, warm, smile on her face, placed a bag of goodies into my pillowcase of candy. After conversing with her for a few minutes about how cute I looked (I was a cat), I gave my thanks and skipped off with my mom. The last thing I heard was, “God bless!”

            Later that night, I was going through my goodies to see what I wanted and what I would trade when I came upon the bag my neighbor had given me. It was clear and had a colorful ribbon tied around the top to seal the bag. I could see the assorted candies in the bag, but also a little booklet.

            Curious and nerdy as I am (I have always loved books), I rushed to open the bag and read the booklet. It was a story about a brother and sister at a costume store with their mother, picking out costumes. The boy wanted to be a cowboy and the girl a princess. Suddenly, they came upon an assortment of scary masks, including witches, ghouls, devils, etc.

            The girl was so startled she began to cry. Her mom heard and came up to her. The girl asked why there were so many scary things for Halloween. The mom explained how some people believed Halloween was a time for scaring and trickery, but that their family didn’t do that because that’s not what Christians do. She then explained that was why they were celebrating the time of harvest, which was a beautiful part of God’s creation, instead of a scary Halloween.

            At the end of the booklet it reminded the reader about Jesus’ love and to use the holiday to spread God’s word.

            I will never forget that booklet, though I unfortunately lost it some time ago. It was the first time I realized I could do more than just celebrate harvest on October 31^st. I could use it as a time for community to spread the gospel to those kids who do trick-or-treat for Halloween, unaware of Jesus’ love.

            “Halloween,” so to speak, isn’t for every Christian. Some Christians feel uncomfortable celebrating anything on that day, and that’s okay. Others are comfortable. It’s always simply important to keep Jesus in mind. I personally think October 31^st is a great day to witness for Jesus to many who celebrate without knowing Him.

            I also think if Jesus were around today, He wouldn’t be avoiding trick-or-treaters. He’d be outside, greeting anyone who came up to Him, and sharing His love.

            But hey, that’s just what I think.