QUESTION: I know that there are some
Celtic or Germanic elements to the holiday that we’ve come to embrace as
Halloween. Which traditions are Catholic and which are not?
Fr. Steve: The festival is not ethnic or
nationalistic. It is Catholic. Certainly there were
regional appropriations of the festivals of the Church, and Halloween was no exception, but bottom line these festal
days belonged to the Church as a whole which meant pretty much all of
Europe. You might have some customs that were specific to regions, but the
festival itself is a distinctly Catholic practice.
There are some folks that have come to believe that there is
some association of Halloween with a pagan
festival called Samhain, but I have come to understand that this association is
more coincidental than actual.
In terms of customs that are specific to Catholicism, it is all
pretty much derivative from the kinds of stuff that you find in the public
festivities of Catholic culture. In this regard Mardi Gras is probably the
best point of reference. We think of Mardi Gras and its attendant
festivities as specific to one day, but it used to be that that kind of
festival environment occurred with great frequency throughout the Church’s
year. Think of all the customs associated with Halloween as
a Mardi Gras before All Saints Day and I think you get a perspective in regards
to all the excess and tomfoolery. The party was meant to culminate in
Solemn Worship, after which one returned to the routine of
life. Unfortunately, the Church has surrendered the party to the secular
culture. It has happened with Halloween. It
is happening with Christmas.
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