Every now and then I get questions about celebrating Halloween as a Christian.
There are certainly things that present problems for a Christian on Halloween. One of those is the presence of imagery and costumes that seem anti-Christian. I remember showing up for a Halloween party where a guy had an inverted pentagram and “666” written on his chest. There can be other costumes and decorations that allude to or even encourage anti-Christian occult practices. Additionally, there are some costumes that might serve to poke fun of the faith or marginalize Christians. There are certainly some things in Halloween that we as Christians should be aware of and steer clear of.
That said, there is something about Halloween that might at least allude to the Gospel with more clarity than even our cultural celebrations of other holidays. If you think about it, Halloween night is the only time when as a culture we are encouraged to dress up like weirdos and come to somebody’s door to ask for candy. More than the “perfect” that people try to communicate with their “perfect holiday family photos” or their “perfect” Thanksgiving spread, or their “perfect” Christmas gift – Halloween may allow us to be a little more honest about our quirks and issues. It encourages us to go to our neighbors with a need (for candy), and to celebrate the relationship that is created by our neediness. It reminds us of the neediness of the penitent sinner crawling to God’s door looking like an imperfect Ninja Turtle despite our trying really hard to get the costume right. It reminds us of the grace of God who celebrates our attempts and gives us grace despite our not being perfect.
Not everything about Halloween is the Gospel, but perhaps some of it is. Happy Halloween.