(I wrote this piece for the Christian History Institute’s Glimpses for Kids)
Before Christianity came to Great Britain, the Celtic people had a lot of pagan beliefs. In late fall, they thought the dead would visit them. It is believed that they left food on their doorsteps and built bonfires. Some even dressed like the dead and went house to house. This is how the tradition of “trick or treat” began.
In the third and fourth centuries, Christianity began to spread through Europe and into Great Britain. But even so, many of the pagan Celtic customs were still popular. Then, Christians removed the Pagan temples, but still Celtic traditions carried on.
Finally in the eighth century, the church decided to have a day to honor the great Christians of the past, on November 1. This is called “All Saints’ Day.” The word “hallow” means “to make holy or sacred.” Therefore, October 31 would be known as hallow’s eve to describe the night before the day to honor those great souls. That is where the name “Halloween” comes from. It is a night that can remind Christians that, rather than worry about evil spirits like others do, they can honor and remember the great Christian heroes of the past.
HALLOWEEN IN THE U.S.A.
For the first 200 years of American history, Halloween wasn’t observed. When the Irish came in 1840, they brought along an old legend about a man named Jack. The story goes that Jack couldn’t go to Heaven because he kept all his money for himself. He was not allowed in Hell, because he kept playing tricks on the Devil. The legend says Jack was ordered to roam about with a lantern lit by a live coal. Though “jack o’ lanterns” could be made from turnips, potatoes, or beets, there were so many pumpkins in America that the Irish used them.
Tags: All Hallows Eve, American History, Halloween, Trick or Treat
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