Posted on 10/31/2005 10:00:31 AM PST by Ed Hudgins
Scared of Halloween By Edward Hudgins
Exective Director The Objectivist Center & Atlas Society ehudgins@objectivistcenter.org
October 31, 2005
Halloween has its origins in superstition and sadly, it invokes old and new superstitions still. Halloween, from "All Hallows Eve," was the evening before the Catholic All Saints Day and was supposed to be haunted by demons jealous of the holy day to follow. It also had roots in prehistoric Celtic mythology.
But in modern times it's developed into a fun day where children dress in ghoulish or cute costumes and canvass the neighborhood for candy while adults at masquerade parties imbibe more mature fare. Granted some juveniles get more into the tricks than the treats. And the occasional morbid-Goth youth can make it into an obsession with darkness and death, though they probably do that on the other 364 days of the year as well. But generally Halloween's about having fun.
Yet in our politically correct age this fall tradition is falling on hard times, under attack from, shall we say, rather diverse sides. Some extreme Christian groups oppose Halloween because the day represents the worship of Satan. Declares one Christian website, "Our forefathers recognized Halloween's association with the occult. The Pilgrims banned celebrating Halloween in America. The ban lasted until 1845." According to that site it was those damned Irish Catholics who raised that tradition from the dead.
On the other side of the—what to call it?—religious/political spectrum, in Canada a memo from the Toronto District School Board cautioned teachers that students from different backgrounds won't understand "the Christian, sexist demonization of pagan religious beliefs as 'fun.'" It went on to state that "Halloween is a religious day of significance for Wiccans and therefore should be treated respectfully." Wiccans are witches, that is, grow-ups who dress up funny but make a show of taking primitive superstitions seriously—worshipping the Earth-goddess Gia, magic spirits they imagine populate our world and the like.
And we find Europeans reacting against encroachments of Halloween back into the Old World from whence the tradition came. Some, like Catholic theologian Giordano Frosini, complain that it's a "manifestation of neo-paganism." But most nay-sayers just don't like American-style commercialization of that day—sales of costumes and candy—which, says Frosini, "undermines our cultural identify."
If you like to have fun on this day, fine. If not, if you think it's silly, fine as well. But it's sad that a jumble of competing superstitions and sensitivities are politicizing what was once a lark of a nice autumn night.
I didn't state that the "Pilgrims" banned "Halloween in America." So your question is a either not for me or a strawman fallacy.
Just leave the candy in a bucket on the porch.whoooooooooOOOOOOOOOOooooo and nobody will get soaped!
I spent about four hours carving pumpkins yesterday, for one night's use. How selfish is that? Actually, as a kid, my avarice meter was a lot higher on December 24 than it ever was on October 31.
When Fr. Frank was still there, he allowed just about any costume that would be appropriate for the age group, but witches, vampires and devils -- while allowed -- were not eligible to win any prices, no matter how good the makeup.
The event usually sells out and good times are had by all.
Well, we don't observe it as a family and never have. However, we don't put down or sneer at those who do. To each his own.
I'm surprised they don't condemn Halloween as a holiday celebrating the looters making demands on the altruism of the producers (even if the little looters do look cute in their costumes). Would Hank Rearden or Dagney Taggert pass out unearned candy?:-)
Karl -- You're under no obligation to give out candy but since I'm a fun-loving, benevolent Objectivists, I say have enjoy the day if you wish!
Watched the History Channel documentary on it. Halloween only became a kid's holiday about 90 years ago or so. But, I do agree about those types of masks. THey are disgusting. I don't even want to see them.
Not YOU the giver - the kids. ;-)
I think the other part of the selfish kid is that in Halloween you're expecting something from EVERY1 - not just your immediate family (Xmas).
I don't practice Halloween because I've seen all the dead people I want to see. I think it trivializes and desensitizes us to the real horrors -- and the real monsters -- in our world. After you've stood waist-deep in corpses, a holiday celebrating the worst in us isn't quite so "fun" anymore.
No, I know you did not and it's not for you; since you quoted the OP I simply used that recent post as my launching point rather than the OP. If anything it's only rhetorical for you!
There ain't no such thing as good and evil. It's all matter in motion, right?
If it's looting, it's looting by engraved invitation.
Objectivists do not consider the phrase "American-style commercialization" to be in any way pejorative.
Similarly, Halloween is a “blended” holiday, with both Christian and pagan origins. All Hallows Day is a Catholic Holiday that occurs on November 1st. In the 5th century B.C., the Celtic Ireland summer officially ended on October 31st, and the Celtic New Year on November 1st was called Samhain. Celtics’ believed that the spirits who had died during the year gathered that night either to possess the souls of the living, or to seek their relatives to help them cross over to the land of the dead. Celtics would hollow out turnips and gourds, and use them to carry the spirits to their proper location. They would paint faces on the gourds in order to ward evil spirits away from their relatives’ spirits. Celtics would extinguish all fires in their homes, and dress up in ghoul-like costumes to frighten away evil spirits. The Celtics also believed that on this night faeries would disguise themselves as beggars, and go door to door asking for handouts. If the faeries were turned away they would visit some type of unpleasantness upon the home. Pope Boniface the 4th replaced the old festival of Samhain with the festival of All Saints Day in order to eliminate the pagan ceremony. People, however, continued to celebrate both ceremonies. Finally, Pope Gregory the 3rd decided to change All Saints day so that it always fell on the exact same day as Samhain. By the 1500’s, the two celebrations had merged, and become All Hallows Day, and the evening before had become all Hallows Eve or simply Halloween.
Halloween is about candy. Only dentists and dingdongs think that's evil.
I'm not complaining one bit.
BTW, I was TDY in Williamsburg, VA when my daughter was four and we had a horrible Halloween. Almost no one answered the door (in the condo complex we were staying in). Those who did, did not offer treats. I wonder if it had anything to do with the fact that Williamsburg was mostly White and nearby communities were mostly Black. Were they afraid of being deluged with out-of-neighborhood kids?
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