This reply is to katana and other confused hecklers of why we do not celebrate Halloween. There is nothing to celebrate unless you are born that day - i.e. katana.
I repeat it is a Catholic import to the U.S.. I'm surprised that people don't know that.
Many Christians celebrate holidays, such as Halloween, without thinking about their origins or true meaning. It is impossible to separate Halloween from the Druids because they originated the "holiday."
For several hundred years before Christ, the Celts inhabited what is now France, Germany, England, Scotland and Ireland. Celtic priests were called Druids. These people were eventually conquered by the Romans.
Information about the Celts and Druids comes from Caesar and the Roman historians, Greek writings from about 200 B.C., and very early records found in Ireland. Greek and Roman writings about the Druids dwell heavily on their frequent and barbaric human sacrifices. The ancient Irish texts say little about human sacrifices, but detail the Druids' use of magic to raise storms, lay curses on places, kill by the use of spells, and create magical obstacles.
Davies, however, a 16th century writer who traced his family lineage directly back to Druid priests who fought against Caesar, clearly describes the human sacrifices of his ancestors and the secret sacrifices still performed regularly by the Druids of his time.
By 47 A.D., Rome finally defeated the Druids in England and outlawed human sacrifices. The few remaining Druids went underground.
Today a growing group of people claiming to be of direct Druid descent, still practice their religion, including human sacrifice. Those in England still perform ceremonies at Stonehenge.
October 31st was celebrated by the Druids with many human sacrifices and a festival honoring their sun god and Samhain, the lord of the dead. They believed that the sinful souls of those who died during the year were in a place of torment, and would be released only if Samhain was pleased with their sacrifices.
Irish records tell of the fascination the Catholic monks had with the powerful Druids, and Druids soon became important members of their monasteries. Pope Gregory the Great decided to incorporate the Druids' holiday into the church. He made the proclamation, "They are no longer to sacrifice beasts to the devil, but they may kill them for food to the praise of God, and give thanks to the giver of all gifts for His bounty." Pope Gregory III moved the church festival of October 31st to November 1st and called it All Hallows or All Saints' Day. Pope Gregory IV decreed that the day was to be a universal church observance. The term Halloween comes from All Hallows Eve.
The founding fathers of America REFUSED to permit the holiday to be observed because they knew it was a pagan holiday. Halloween was NOT widely celebrated in the U.S. until about 1900. In the 1840's there was a terrible potato famine in Ireland which sent thousands of Catholic Irish to America. They brought Halloween with them.
The modern custom of going from door to door asking for food and candy goes back to the time of the Druids. They believed that sinful, lost souls were released upon the earth by Samhain for one night on October 31st while they awaited their judgment. They were thought to throng about the houses of the living and were greeted with banquet-laden tables. People greatly feared these spirits and thought that the spirits would harm and even kill them if the sacrifices they gave did not appease Samhain. They carved demonic faces into pumpkins or large turnips, placing a candle in them to keep the evil spirits away from their homes.
The tradition of bobbing for apples and giving out nuts came from a Roman addition to the Druidic New Year’s eve. The Romans worshiped Pomona who was the goddess of the harvest. They combined their harvest festival to Pomona with Halloween.
Very little archeological evidence of the Druids has been found, but there is excellent agreement between the Roman and Irish documents. Both clearly state that the knowledge of the Druids was never committed to writing but passed from generation to generation by oral teaching. This was to protect their secrets. In his writings, Davies indicates that he came under much persecution by his family for putting in writing his information about Druids. The same is true today. Nothing is put into writing. The Druids continue on secretly with much the same traditions.
The widespread problem of harmful substances such as razor blades, drugs, poisons, needles, etc. being placed in the Halloween treats here in America is no accident. Testimonies of several ex-Satanists show that these children killed and injured by the "treats" are sacrifices to Satan (or Samhain). Satanists throughout the world continue to perform human sacrifices on Halloween.
References: Celebrations - The Complete Book of American Holidays, Robt. J. Myers, (Doubleday & Co., 1972). The Famous Druids, A. L. Owen, (Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1962). The American Book of Days, George William Douglas, (H.W. Wilson Co., 1948).
This is WHY we DO NOT celebrate Halloween. Hey if you want to - knock yourself out - celebrate whatever makes you happy.
The Puritans, and all other English colonists, didn't celebrate Christmas, as we do today either. The reason for that is very simple, our oresent day Christmas celebrations weren't in practice until after the Christmas of 1843 and Charles Dickens' publication of " THE C HRISTMAS CAROL "! Oliver Cromewell, had just about done away with every kind of Christmas celebration, when he took power and they were NEVER restored, in England, to their former " glory "; much of which was pretty wild, ribald, and pagan!
If you'de read more articles, books, etc., which offer more than just YOUR perspective, you just might not post such foolish posts here.
Oh, and FYI, the Druids NEVER believed that they were placating " tormented souls " of the dead. Samhain was one of their high holy days and commemorates the death of one of their gods ( as many of their Sabbats do, which,BTW, was an alligorical representation of the changing seasons ! )and also a time when there was a " crack " opened between the world of the living and the world of the dead.
What you don't know,about Halloween, would fill up untold reams of paper/space, and waste bandwidth. I suggest that you do further research, or just stop posting about things you know little about.
Isn't "Witchcraft" titillating and fun, though? I see some cute people on here teasing each other with leading comments about it. Have fun, kiddies. You don't "choose" to be a "witch", and then get "trained" in it - it chooses you, and God help you if it does. I personally watched a professing, churchgoing Christian woman kill her own sister, my former lover, by witchcraft, without even knowing that that was what she was doing. (No, I will not discuss it). I'm sure you don't think that's possible, but trust me, you know nothing - *nothing* - and be thankful for that, and hope for your own sakes that you stay ignorant.
Don't trust your neighbors much??