Hallowe'en

A Christian name (the Eve of All Hallows or All Saints) for what is in essence a pagan festival, and one of the many such festivals designed to counter our very basic fear of the dark and all that the dark might contain. The lighting of fires at this time has been transferred to bonfire night, and to the memory of Guy Fawkes, but would originally have been a practice at this season.

Having said that, what for some people is designed to counter evil can become for others a celebration of the dark side. Perhaps Hallowe'en is at risk of becoming too much a celebration these days, not least because for many people there is no established and practised faith in the light side. I don't necessarily believe that youngsters are seduced into satanism because they celebrate Hallowe'en - well, I don't believe that at all, and I find those who shout about that from (generally) a conservative evangelical standpoint, somewhat risible; what I do believe is that when we turn the occult into an occasion of fun, we maybe cease to believe as much as we should in the true presence and persistence of evil.

That's not to say that a bit of play and fun today is always unhealthy. While the wealth of plastic Hallowe'en trivia sold in the supermarkets is probably doing more for the Chinese economy than it is for our own wellbeing, I remember how much I used to enjoy Hallowe'en as a child, and that the experience of being just a bit scared of the dark and the turnip lanterns (not pumpkins, for the most part, in those days) was probably good for me - not least because the following day we also celebrated All Saints and the triumph of light. I used to hate apple-bobbing, though . . .

As a Christian, I believe (with Desmond Tutu) that light is always stronger than darkness. How can the Church demonstrate this and teach it? Not, I think, by fulminating against Hallowe'en, not by setting up alternatives to it, but by joining in the fun. All the Hallowe'en activities I attended as a child were church-based, since that's where much of our social life centred. Today a church that seemed to celebrate Hallowe'en would come in for a lot of stick from other Christians, I suspect - but that's a shame. We should include Hallowe'en in what we do, but just make sure that when we do so, we teach the whole story: firstly, being serious among the fun about the reality of fear and of evil, that the stuff we make light of and have fun with today is still real and still doing harm; and secondly, making clear that the reason we can have wholesome fun with the dark is that we know in Christ the ultimate victory is already won. Dark is scary, but in the end the light is stronger; even the smallest of candles, once lit, will drive the shadows back.