| End Time Warriors |
| Halloween |
Romans 8:28
And we know that all things work
together for the good of those who
love God, to those who are called
according to His Purpose.
And we know that all things work
together for the good of those who
love God, to those who are called
according to His Purpose.
Halloween
Halloween (also spelled Hallowe'en) is an annual holiday celebrated on October 31. It has
roots in the Celtic festival of Samhain and the Christian holy day of All Saints, but is today
largely a secular celebration.
Halloween activities include trick-or-treating, wearing costumes and attending costume
parties, carving jack-o'-lanterns, ghost tours, bonfires, apple bobbing, visiting haunted
attractions, pranks, telling scary stories, and watching horror films.
History
Historian Nicholas Rogers, exploring the origins of Halloween, notes that while "some
folklorists have detected its origins in the Roman feast of Pomona, the goddess of fruits and
seeds, or in the festival of the dead called Parentalia, it is more typically linked to the Celtic
festival of Samhain original spelling was Samuin (pronounced sow-an or sow-in)". The name
is derived from Old Irish and means roughly "summer's end". A similar festival was held by the
ancient Britons and is known as Calan Gaeaf (pronounced Kálan Gái av).
The festival of Samhain celebrates the end of the "lighter half" of the year and beginning of
the "darker half", and is sometimes regarded as the "Celtic New Year".
The ancient Celts believed that the border between this world and the Other world became
thin on Samhain, allowing spirits (both harmless and harmful) to pass through. The family's
ancestors were honored and invited home whilst harmful spirits were warded off. It is
believed that the need to ward off harmful spirits led to the wearing of costumes and masks.
Their purpose was to disguise oneself as a harmful spirit and thus avoid harm. In Scotland
the spirits were impersonated by young men dressed in white with masked, veiled or
blackened faces. Samhain was also a time to take stock of food supplies and slaughter
livestock for winter stores. Bonfires played a large part in the festivities. All other fires were
doused and each home lit their hearth from the bonfire. The bones of slaughtered livestock
were cast into its flames. Sometimes two bonfires would be built side-by-side, and people
and their livestock would walk between them as a cleansing ritual.
Another common practice was divination, which often involved the use of food and drink.
The name 'Halloween' and many of its present-day traditions derive from the Old English era.
Origin of name
The word Halloween is first attested in the 16th century and represents a Scottish variant of
the fuller All-Hallows-Eve, that is, the night before All Hallows Day. Although the phrase All
Hallows is found in Old English (ealra hálȝena mæssedæȝ, the feast of all saints), All-
Hallows-Even is itself not attested until 1556. Thus there is no evidence of the term for this
day before the 16th century Reformation.
Development of artifacts and symbols associated with Halloween formed over time
encompassing customs of medieval holy days as well as contemporary cultures. The souling
practice of commemorating the souls in purgatory with candle lanterns carved from turnips
became adapted into the making of jack-o'-lanterns. In traditional Celtic Halloween festivals,
large turnips were hollowed out, carved with faces and placed in windows to ward off evil
spirits. The carving of pumpkins is associated with Halloween in North America where
pumpkins are both readily available and much larger – making them easier to carve than
turnips. Many families that celebrate Halloween carve a pumpkin into a frightening or comical
face and place it on their doorstep after dark. The American tradition of carving pumpkins
preceded the Great Famine period of Irish immigration and was originally associated with
harvest time in general, not becoming specifically associated with Halloween until the mid-to-
late 1800s.
Symbols
The imagery of Halloween is derived from many sources, including national customs, works
of Gothic and horror literature (such as the novels Frankenstein and Dracula), and classic
horror films (such as Frankenstein and The Mummy). Elements of the autumn season, such
as pumpkins, corn husks, and scarecrows, are also prevalent. Homes are often decorated
with these types of symbols around Halloween.
Halloween imagery includes themes of death, evil, the occult, magic, or mythical monsters.
Traditional characters include ghosts, witches, skeletons, vampires, werewolves, bats, and
black cats. The colors black and orange are associated with the celebrations, perhaps
because of the darkness of night and the color of fire, autumn leaves, or pumpkins.
Halloween (also spelled Hallowe'en) is an annual holiday celebrated on October 31. It has
roots in the Celtic festival of Samhain and the Christian holy day of All Saints, but is today
largely a secular celebration.
Halloween activities include trick-or-treating, wearing costumes and attending costume
parties, carving jack-o'-lanterns, ghost tours, bonfires, apple bobbing, visiting haunted
attractions, pranks, telling scary stories, and watching horror films.
History
Historian Nicholas Rogers, exploring the origins of Halloween, notes that while "some
folklorists have detected its origins in the Roman feast of Pomona, the goddess of fruits and
seeds, or in the festival of the dead called Parentalia, it is more typically linked to the Celtic
festival of Samhain original spelling was Samuin (pronounced sow-an or sow-in)". The name
is derived from Old Irish and means roughly "summer's end". A similar festival was held by the
ancient Britons and is known as Calan Gaeaf (pronounced Kálan Gái av).
The festival of Samhain celebrates the end of the "lighter half" of the year and beginning of
the "darker half", and is sometimes regarded as the "Celtic New Year".
The ancient Celts believed that the border between this world and the Other world became
thin on Samhain, allowing spirits (both harmless and harmful) to pass through. The family's
ancestors were honored and invited home whilst harmful spirits were warded off. It is
believed that the need to ward off harmful spirits led to the wearing of costumes and masks.
Their purpose was to disguise oneself as a harmful spirit and thus avoid harm. In Scotland
the spirits were impersonated by young men dressed in white with masked, veiled or
blackened faces. Samhain was also a time to take stock of food supplies and slaughter
livestock for winter stores. Bonfires played a large part in the festivities. All other fires were
doused and each home lit their hearth from the bonfire. The bones of slaughtered livestock
were cast into its flames. Sometimes two bonfires would be built side-by-side, and people
and their livestock would walk between them as a cleansing ritual.
Another common practice was divination, which often involved the use of food and drink.
The name 'Halloween' and many of its present-day traditions derive from the Old English era.
Origin of name
The word Halloween is first attested in the 16th century and represents a Scottish variant of
the fuller All-Hallows-Eve, that is, the night before All Hallows Day. Although the phrase All
Hallows is found in Old English (ealra hálȝena mæssedæȝ, the feast of all saints), All-
Hallows-Even is itself not attested until 1556. Thus there is no evidence of the term for this
day before the 16th century Reformation.
Development of artifacts and symbols associated with Halloween formed over time
encompassing customs of medieval holy days as well as contemporary cultures. The souling
practice of commemorating the souls in purgatory with candle lanterns carved from turnips
became adapted into the making of jack-o'-lanterns. In traditional Celtic Halloween festivals,
large turnips were hollowed out, carved with faces and placed in windows to ward off evil
spirits. The carving of pumpkins is associated with Halloween in North America where
pumpkins are both readily available and much larger – making them easier to carve than
turnips. Many families that celebrate Halloween carve a pumpkin into a frightening or comical
face and place it on their doorstep after dark. The American tradition of carving pumpkins
preceded the Great Famine period of Irish immigration and was originally associated with
harvest time in general, not becoming specifically associated with Halloween until the mid-to-
late 1800s.
Symbols
The imagery of Halloween is derived from many sources, including national customs, works
of Gothic and horror literature (such as the novels Frankenstein and Dracula), and classic
horror films (such as Frankenstein and The Mummy). Elements of the autumn season, such
as pumpkins, corn husks, and scarecrows, are also prevalent. Homes are often decorated
with these types of symbols around Halloween.
Halloween imagery includes themes of death, evil, the occult, magic, or mythical monsters.
Traditional characters include ghosts, witches, skeletons, vampires, werewolves, bats, and
black cats. The colors black and orange are associated with the celebrations, perhaps
because of the darkness of night and the color of fire, autumn leaves, or pumpkins.