The Greek philosopher Heraclitus says, “You cannot step into the same river twice.” It simply means, “change.” Conversely, “a thing either exists or does not exist,” the other Greek philosopher Parmenides also asserts. It simply means, “permanence.”
The reality is that while change is true, permanence is also true. Some things change over time, but some things also remain the same in the course of history. Halloween is a case in point.
In ancient Ireland and Scotland, there was a Gaelic festival known as Samhain, celebrated on Nov. 1, the end of harvest season and the start of winter. The celebration used to begin on the evening of Oct. 31.
In this festival, souls of the dead were believed to visit their homes, and those who died within the year were believed to roam to the other world. To frighten away the spirits, people lit bonfires on hilltops and wore disguising masks and other costumes to avoid being recognized by the ghosts. This practice paved the way for such beings as demons, fairies, hobgoblins, and witches to be associated with that festival day.
The time came when All Saints’ Day was instituted by Pope Boniface IV in the 7th century, originally commemorated on May 13. Pope Gregory III moved it to Nov. 1 in the next century. It is thought that the Christian celebration was a move to supersede the pagan festival, Samhain. The day before All Saints’ Day has been called All Hallows Eve, or Halloween.
In Christian tradition, Hallowe’en means “saints’ evening.” It comes from (All) Hallow(s) E(v)en = Halloween. It is part of the triduum or three days celebration called Allhallowtide, the time Christians in the West honor all the saints and offer prayers for the departed souls who are yet to enter God’s kingdom. The triduum encompasses the Halloween (Oct. 31), All Saints’ Day (Nov. 1) and All Souls’ Day (Nov. 2).
In this post-modern era, however, I have observed some changes. First, some people commemorate All Souls’ Day on Nov. 1 and All Saints’ Day on Nov. 2 even to this day. The dates have been exchanged.
But the second one calls for particular attention. The change in the course of time is that Halloween now has become associated with demons, fairies, hobgoblins and witches as in the ancient pagan Gaelic festival, Samhain. For now children in particular dress up in the manner of witches, ghosts, fairies, hobgoblins, etc. And many Christian parents now even encourage their children to join the Halloween party. In this way, they have fun by imitating those entities, not sensing the spiritual impact of such practice.
The Christian content of Halloween has been lost and replaced with the devil’s traps. There is a deep misconception or twist of the original meaning of Halloween here. The Christian meaning is that it is supposed to signify “all-holy-eve” in preparation for All Saints’ Day commemoration. Consequently, children, as well as adults, are supposed to dress up in the manner of the saints and make activities that honor them.
Halloween today is inconsistent with All Saints’ Day. However, though it is dressed up today with a meaning associated with Samhain, its essential Christian meaning, though concealed, is never annihilated; it’s permanent.
Heraclitus’ change is right in the surface of things, but Parmenides’ permanence is right in the essence of things. As to Halloween, Christians are called to stick to what is permanent.