Hello members!

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays; an occasion that allows us to have fun and be goofy! I thought that it would be interesting to educate all who do not know about the history of Halloween.


HALLOWEEN 101

As history indicates, there is much more to Halloween than candy, costumes and so-called devil worshipers. Many individuals identify Samhain as a Celtic Death God, which is one of the most tenacious errors associated with Halloween. Almost all stories about the origin of Halloween correctly state that Halloween had its origins among the ancient Celts and is based on their "Feast of Samhain." But many conservative Christian authors which are critical of Halloween, Druidism, and/or Wicca have stated that Samhain was named after the famous Celtic "God of the Dead." No such God ever existed. By the late 1990's many secular sources such as newspapers and television programs had picked up the error and propagated it widely. It is now a nearly universal belief, particularly among conservative Christians.


History:

The Celts in Britain had festivals for two major gods - a god of the sun (summer) and a god of the dead (winter), which was called Samhain. Samhain is pronounced "sow-in" (where "ow" rhymes with "cow"). Samhain is Irish Gaelic for the month of November. Samhuin is Scottish Gaelic for All Hallows, NOV-1.

A special festival named after Samhain was held each year on November 1st, the beginning of the Celtic New Year. The festival lasted for three days, marked the end of the season of the sun (summer) and the beginning of the season of darkness and cold (winter). The eve of the festival was a time for settling bills. Workmen were given their wages and rents were expected to be paid.

On October 31st, the eve of Samhain, after the crops had all been harvested and stored for the long winter, the cooking fires in people's homes were extinguished. The Druids (Celtic Priests) met on hilltops, among sacred oak trees, where they lit bonfires and offered sacrifices of crops and animals (yes, Priets, not devil worshipers). The Druids would also parade in costumes made from skins and heads of animals.

The next morning, the Druids handed out embers from their fires so people could start new cooking fires in their houses; these fires were meant not only to keep the homes warm, but also free from evil spirits.

The Romans invaded Britain in the first century, brought with them many of their own festivals and customs. One of these was the festival known as Pomona Day, named after their goddess of fruits and gardens, and celebrated around November 1st.

After hundreds of years of Roman rule, the customs of the Roman Pomona Day and the Celtic Samhain festival became integrated. The rituals of Pomona Day included apples, nuts, and a celebration of the harvest rituals, while some of the festivities during Samhain included magic, evil spirits and death (coming of winter).

As Christianity took hold in Britain, the festival of Samhain was gradually incorporated into Christain ritual. In 835 A.D., the Roman Catholic Church declared November 1st to be a church holiday to honor all the saints. It was called All Saint's Day, also known as Hallowmas, or All Hallows' Day: in Old English, the word "hallow" meant "sanctify". Years later, the Church made November 2nd a holy day. It was called All Souls' Day and was a time to honor the dead. It was celebrated with big bonfires, parades and dressing up as saints, angels and devils.

Over time, October 31st became known as All Hallows' Eve, or Hallowe'en; Halloween is the modern spelling of the word.

The history of "Trick or Treat" came about through incorporation of the Samhain festival (explained in 1st and 2nd paragraphs) It was common practice in Ireland to knock on doors collecting money, bread, cakes, nuts and apples. Another Irish custom was to beg for "soul cake" in exchange for blessings and promises of prosperity or protection against bad luck.

The Irish believed that fairies (little people) were about on the night of Halloween, playing pranks and causing mischief; many people would leave an offering of food or milk on their doorstep. This gesture meant they would be blessed with good luck for the coming year.

Emigrants from Ireland and Scotland took these customs across the Atlantic, and today "Trick or Treating" is more prevalent in the United States than anywhere in the world.


References:

Religious Tolerance.org
http://www.encyclopedia.com
The Book of Halloween, Susie Johns



Until next time...
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