A really frightening Halloween
In certain less evolved parts of the South, there is an uproar because Halloween falls on a Sunday this year, and some families are forbidding their children dress in costume and go trick or treating. This would be amusing if it weren't so ridiculous.
First of all--if you want to play by the book--Sunday is not the Sabbath: Saturday is. But even accepting the altered modern Christian Sabbath, Halloween--All Hallow's Eve--is part of the religious observance of All Saints' Day. In predominantly Catholic communities, families still bring food to their loved ones' graves on All Saints' Day. This is, of course, part of the ancient observance of Samhuinn, just as Christmas is also derived from an ancient festival of the seasons. But no one is bashing Catholics for toting picnic baskets to the cemetaries, nor is any Southern Christian refusing to let her child go visit Santa or open gifts that are stacked under the Christmas tree.
I am currently visiting Seattle, where they are having a bit of a twist on the Halloween problem. One of the nearby school systems has decided to eliminate the annual public school celebration of Halloween because it disrupts schoolwork, and it may offend Wiccans.
Wiccans are certainly some of the most misunderstood people in our culture, and the annual October emphasis on witches, devils, and goblins does nothing to clear misconceptions about Wicca. However, the two Wiccan leaders who were interviewed by the Seattle news media said they thought letting children celebrate a culturally important holiday was more important than trying to change misconceptions about Wicca. They were not offended by the school observance, they said, and in fact, they themselves costumed for Halloween.
Needless to say, there is some controversy in these parts about the decision to cancel Halloween, just as there is in the Bible Belt about the move to cancel it. First Harry Potter, now this. The desire to snuff out imaginary evil is at a peak, but little attempt is made to get rid of the real thing.
First of all--if you want to play by the book--Sunday is not the Sabbath: Saturday is. But even accepting the altered modern Christian Sabbath, Halloween--All Hallow's Eve--is part of the religious observance of All Saints' Day. In predominantly Catholic communities, families still bring food to their loved ones' graves on All Saints' Day. This is, of course, part of the ancient observance of Samhuinn, just as Christmas is also derived from an ancient festival of the seasons. But no one is bashing Catholics for toting picnic baskets to the cemetaries, nor is any Southern Christian refusing to let her child go visit Santa or open gifts that are stacked under the Christmas tree.
I am currently visiting Seattle, where they are having a bit of a twist on the Halloween problem. One of the nearby school systems has decided to eliminate the annual public school celebration of Halloween because it disrupts schoolwork, and it may offend Wiccans.
Wiccans are certainly some of the most misunderstood people in our culture, and the annual October emphasis on witches, devils, and goblins does nothing to clear misconceptions about Wicca. However, the two Wiccan leaders who were interviewed by the Seattle news media said they thought letting children celebrate a culturally important holiday was more important than trying to change misconceptions about Wicca. They were not offended by the school observance, they said, and in fact, they themselves costumed for Halloween.
Needless to say, there is some controversy in these parts about the decision to cancel Halloween, just as there is in the Bible Belt about the move to cancel it. First Harry Potter, now this. The desire to snuff out imaginary evil is at a peak, but little attempt is made to get rid of the real thing.
posted by Diane at 11:21 AM
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