A
Christian Perspective![](images/corny9trail.gif)
on Halloween:
by
Fr. Richard Lonsdale, 1996
Some
people think that Halloween
celebrates evil and should be
banned. Just the opposite is
true!
"Halloween"
is a short form of the words
"All Hallows Evening".
"Hallow" means holy,
as in "Hallowed be thy
name...". So Halloween
means "the evening before
All Holy Ones' Day," the
Christian feast of All Saints.
Every Year Christians celebrate
this feast on November 1.
During
the Middle Ages, Christians
would gather in Churches for
worship. They would recall the
saints' victories over evil. At
some of these services, the
Churches would put on little
plays in which they acted out
Jesus' victory over Satan and
his forces. The actors would
wear unusual masks and costumes
to act out the story.
So, when Christians
celebrate Halloween, we are
really recalling that Jesus has
defeated evil by His death and
resurrection. We remind
ourselves that with the power of
FAITH and God's GRACE we can
overcome evil, too. Happy Holy
Evening!
The
Meaning and Origin of All Saints
Day
All
Saints Day is a universal
Christian Feast that honors and
remembers all Christian saints,
known and unknown. In the
Western Church (esp. Roman
Catholics, Lutherans, Anglicans)
it is kept on November 1. The
Orthodox Churches observe it on
the first Sunday after
Pentecost.
Ephrem Syrus (d. 373) mentions a
Feast dedicated the saints in
his writings. St. Chrysostom of
Constantinople (d. 407) was the
first Christian we know of to
assign the Feast to a particular
day: the first Sunday after
Pentecost. The Feast did not
become established in the
Western Church, however, until
the Roman bishop Boniface IV
consecrated the Pantheon at Rome
to Christian usage as a church
on May 13, 609 or 610. The Feast
was observed annually on this
date until the time of Bishop of
Rome, Gregory III (d. 741) when
its observance was shifted to
Nov. 1, since on this date
Gregory dedicated a chapel in
the Basilica of St. Peter's to
"All the Saints." It
was Gregory IV (d. 844), who in
835 ordered the Feast of All
Saints to be universally
observed on Nov. 1.
All
Souls Day
All
Souls' Day is a Roman Catholic
holyday commemorating the
faithful departed. It is
celebrated on November 2 unless
this date falls on a Sunday.
When this happens, All Souls'
Day is celebrated on November 3.
Odilo,
abbot of Cluny, established All
Souls' Day in the eleventh
century. The day purposely
follows All Saints' Day in order
to all faithful Christians who
have died. |