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"Then Jesus spoke to them again,
saying, "I am the light of the world.
He who follows Me shall not walk
in darkness, but have the light of life."
John 8:12
Print This Bible Study
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The Symbols of Halloween
Trick-or-Treat
Some say the frightened townspeople in the Celtic lands gave gifts of fruit and nuts to these wandering
spirits to make them happy so they wouldn't kill their flocks or destroy their property. This is where we
get our present day Trick-or-Treat" practices. Others say that Trick-or-Treat practices never came from them.
That the custom of playing tricks or doing mischief started in the late 1800's in America and came from
Irish and Scottish immigrants. They had a practice called "Mischief Night" where they tipped over outhouses,
soaped windows, switched store signs and unhinged fence gates. That night became more destructive until
neighborhood committees organized safe and fun alternatives to vandalism. Good children were told to go
door to door and receive treats encouraging good behavior, thus Trick or Treat became widespread in America
from the late 1930's. Yet others say that Trick-or Treat dates back to the nineteenth century European
custom of "Souling". On November 2nd, "All Souls Day" early Christians would walk door to door begging for
"soul cakes". In return they would pray for the families dead relatives. This was encouraged by the church
as a way to replace leaving food for roaming spirits.
Costumes
Some say the townspeople in the Celtic lands believed that in addition to dead loved ones rising from their
graves, that evil spirits also rose at that time. To protect themselves these superstitious townspeople
wore masks and disguises so they would blend in and not be noticed by the evil spirits. Some say it was to
frighten away spirits looking for bodies to possess. This is where the tradition of wearing goolish masks
comes from. Yet others say that the Celtics never dressed in costume. Instead that dressing in costume came
at a much later time when poor people dressed in masks and costumes and went from house to house playing
music or doing a simple play in return for food.
Jack-O-Lantern
The story of how the Jack-O-Lantern came to be used in Halloween goes back hundreds of years to an Irish
myth about a drunk man who liked to play tricks on everyone including the devil, nicknamed "Stingy Jack".
He invited the devil to have a drink with him but didn't want to pay for it so he convinced the devil to
turn himself into a coin so that Jack could use to buy their drinks with. But Jack decided to keep the
money and put it into his pocket next to a silver cross which prevented the devil from changing back to
his natural form. Jack finally freed the devil but made him promise that he would not bother Jack for 1
year and if Jack died, would not claim his soul. The next year, Jack tricked the devil again into climbing
into a tree to pick some fruit. Jack carved a sign of the cross into the tree bark so the devil could not
come down until he promised not to bother him for 10 more years. As the legend goes, after Jack died God
wouldn't let him into heaven because of his mischevious ways, and the devil wouldn't let him into hell
(keeping his promise). The devil tossed him a coal from the flames of hell to light his path of which
Jack put into a carved out turnip. So he was doomed to roam the earth until the end of time. The Irish
referred to this figure as "Jack of the Lantern" then "Jack O'Lantern". In Ireland and Scotland, people
began to make their own Jack-O-Lanterns by carving scary faces into turnips or potatoes and placing them
in windows or near doors to frighten away Stingy Jack and other evil spirits. England used large beets.
Immigrants from these countries brought the Jack-O-Lantern custom with them when coming to America and
soon found that the pumpkin made a perfect Jack-O-Lantern. Pumpkins were then cut with demon looking
faces intended to frighten away evil spirits.
Bobbing For Apples and Apple Peeling
The tradition of bobbing for apples goes back to when the Romans merged with the Celtic celebrations
and had a festival dedicated to Pomona, goddess of fruit. It was a marriage practice and the first
person to bite an apple would be the first to marry in the coming year. The symbol of Pomona is the apple
which is where the tradition of bobbing for apples probably came from. Apple peeling was to see how
long your life would be. The longer the unbroken peel, the longer your life.
Black Cats
Years ago, people used to believe that witches could change into cats. After dark, everything looked
shadowy and all cats looked black and because of that, a witch's cat was thought to be black. People
thought that evil spirits embodied black cats. Druid priests believed cats were once human beings but
were reincarnated as punishment for evil deeds. They thought the cat was a sacred animal.
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