Halloween costumes

Like it or not, Halloween IS a Pagan Festival ... along with many other Christian Festivals - simply google any of them and you'll see for yourselves.

images.app.goo.gl/LBJ3Dq64bjV78jPx6

Paganism – What is It?
Paganism has been broadly defined as anyone involved in any religious act, practice, or ceremony which is not Christian

Lilyflower and Llamidos

I recommend to you (and anyone else) episode 4 of Motherland, BBC2 Monday 10pm or iPlayer.
Halloween hilarity.

Oh its lots of fun for the children, but a great way to get people talking and interacting too!
Down our road we all make a dish (I am always asked to make Bacon Clanger!) we have a BBQ, sparklers for the kids, bobbing for apples, and some fireworks at the end of the night.
There is no harm in any of it, ok the plastic, but most of the children seem to like wearing the cardboard masks we have in our village.
It started off over here, and while America do it on a huge scale (the theme parks really go overboard, I love it!) it can be a time where everyone gets together!
My gc have already started making posters and pictures to be hung outside round the close, so yes lol, forgetting my waffle, the charity shop lady just sounded like she has never had a fun Halloween to me, and thats just sad!

Growing up in Scotland in the 1960, Hallowe'en was MASSIVE. We used to get dressed up in costumes and go around in groups, knocking at doors, being invited inside to do a "party piece" (gosh, the very thought of that now!! lol) and being rewarded with monkey nuts, tablet, toffee apples or maybe a sixpence if you were REALLY lucky.

No thoughts of Trick or Treat. We'd not DARE play tricks on anyone. If people said no, we said thank you and moved on to the next house.

It was a lovely night. Our Sunday School at church used to have a Hallowe'en party for the children with party games, apple dooking, eating treacle scones that were dangling from a string with your hands behind your back etc.

I get quite irritated when it's described as "more American nonsense" as we were going out "guising" long before Trick or Treat made its way across the Atlantic.

I've always loved Halloween ? When my DD's was younger I always took them out & we've celebrated with DGC since the youngest was born 11 years ago. Dd1 & I used to take eldest DGD out & we always painted our faces. We followed the same rule, no lit pumpkin ? then no door knocking. You would always know which houses would be decorated the best.
We have passed our love of Halloween onto the younger ones & as our half term holiday always in Halloween week Dd1 has a party for all the dgc & their friends. Both dds make decorations out of loo rolls etc & use the same decs each year. Children & parents alike have a fabulous time then mum & dad take the little ones out trick or treating after tea.

We always had a party for Halloween with family and friends children and adults. Had 40 + here last year. DC and nieces nephews etc went trick or treat then pinato hitting, apple bobbing, and pass the parcel. 2 DC knocked the door with parents and ran in, sat down and played pass the parcel with us all. Didn't mind at all and parents came in too. I cooked hot dogs burgers and salad, fruit and chocolate fountain, gateau etc. Family all brought something to share was a good night. Last party though as we're moving away.

I think there's a lot of fun to be had for children and no harm in pumpkins, apples, spiders and other such things. What I detest is a) all the tat in the shops which only adds to the mountain of plastic waste and b) the way adults have taken over and made it much more scary. Some people are copying the Americans and putting horribly frightening displays in their front gardens. I'm talking about severed bloody heads and frightening monsters, which can be very upsetting for young children walking past. My little grandson was always very scared at Halloween and I don't see why he should have to see such things just walking down the street.

The Christian churches in the main don’t encourage it .That being said there’s no harm in a pumpkin .I think it’s the mischief that comes with it sometimes. And people opening their doors to witches and the like . The Salvation Army welcome volunteers and not all of them are Christians let alone Salvationists . Anyone who asks to volunteer doesn’t go through a grilling process but I agree she could have explained more kindly

Not my favorite holiday, but nothing to do with religion. I just never enjoyed wearing a mask or dressing up in some ridiculous garb.

We do enjoy handing out sweets to the neighborhood children. DH carves out a 'scary' face on a large pumpkin and we place a lit candle inside for effect. As long as the pumpkin on our porch stays lit, they all know it's still not too late to come knocking. Other than that, Christmas is my favorite, without a doubt.

Not surprised you had that reaction. Halloween is a pagan tradition. See that some Catholic schools are banning anything to do with Halloween. You mention Halloween in Scotland. I too went out 'guising' at Halloween. No sweets were involved, only money so either a different era or different area from you. Everyone was expected to perform a little act whether that be a few jokes, a song, poem, dance just something to earn your loot. The money could be 2d or if you were lucky a 6d. In my family we were allowed to keep it or to put towards fireworks for 05th Nov. Do not like the modern trick or treat imported from USA, to me it's basically begging.

A lot of churches now celebrate light night . Halloween is a pagan festival so it isn’t popular in Christian circles . There’s nothing wrong with a pumpkin but some people use the night to cause terror and So I think the churches like to spread light and not encourage youngsters to get into mischief .

In Ireland Halloween has always been celebrated, but in a slightly different way from the modern American import. As children, we dressed up, often as witches, and went to houses we knew, saying "help the Halloween party" - not "trick or treat". Most people gave apples or nuts, and we would go home and play games like dunking for apples.
In 50s and 60s, Ireland was very Catholic (not sure how Christian!) but we never heard any church leaders condemning Halloween.
In recent years there have been a number of family events around Halloween, such as scary walks through woods and an old railway tunnel along a "Greenway" - cycle or walking path. (photo). It's all good fun, but doesn't have the slightly nasty undertones of the American Halloween.

The NE has along history of celebrating Halloween. When my DSs were young they always had to visit an old man who lived round the corner. He was in his 80s. They had to sing a song or say a rhyme. He said he had done it when younger. He usually gave them 5 pence each.
I remember Mischief Night, knocking on doors and running away and somebody's gate being taken off and put on the other way round!

The 'snippy' lady doesn't sound very Christian like to me. Surely, everyone's point of view should be respected.

I agree that it certainly helps bring communities together and is harmless fun.

Enjoy it, your staring role as fortune teller sounds fab.

Julia

Yet more landfill.

I went to a CofE school and the vicar arranged a Halloween party for the children,dunking apples,racing black cats on string and toffee apples for everyone.We used to make our faces from Swedes not pumpkins,I don't think I had heard of them 60 years ago,we used to put a candle inside for the light.On bonfire night we all three the Swedes into the bonfire.

As a child growing up in Yorkshire but within the sight of Pendle Hill (Lancashire Witches) Halloween was a traditional affair certainly no "trick or treat". Dressing up was as witches & traditional games played i.e apple bobbing, turnip lanterns were made not not a pumpkin in sight

4th November was "Mischief Night" when harmless tricks were played on family, friends & neighbours

Lilyflower - loved your post
Llamedos13 is probably one of those mums you mention. ?

This is the work of Stephanie Pokorny:
crochetverse.com/crochetverse-costume-gallery/

nannarose I think you are right. As I understand it, over here it came from Samhain and was tied into Christianity later (8th Century?.)... but as a child at a Catholic school we acknowledged both All Saints and All Souls‘ Day. We did not have a Hallowe'en as such and certainly didn’t do trick-or-treating. At home, however, we did carve a turnip for 31st and then put it on the bonfire on bonfire night. I loved the turnip lanterns even though they were hard to make!

I expect what most of us don’t like now is the commercialisation of the “fun”. In the 1980s we lived for a while in America and it was madness over there. I see the same rubbish over here now with plastic pumpkins and throw-away ready-made outfits.

I did, however, send my daughter a picture of some home made outfits that were extraordinary as I knew she would be busy helping with the grandchildren’s creations.
Will see if I can find them for “crafty gransnetters” delectation!

iam64 I have never in my life heard of Mischief night and never ever heard or saw kids getting up the tricks you did Gosh what a sheltered life I led
Halloween was never heard about until 60/70 s in my area and then very low key until maybe the 90 s or more Mind you it seems Scotland / northern / Ireland / west thing so as
I m in the south east I m well away from it all I guess

I too grew up in Scotland and have happy memories of "guising" at Hallowe'en, "dooking for apples" and so on.

However, there were even then various sects that didn't approve of it as they felt that there was a lot of pagan superstition connected with it, which now as a historian of religion I cannot help but agree with.

A lot of people re-act against the commercialism of the American version of Hallowe'en too.

It would have been nice if your Salvation Army lady had explained nicely why they don't hold with Hallowe'en instead of biting your nose off. They don't hold communion services either, which has always struck me as a little odd in a Christian community, but they do not feel that sacraments are necessary for salvation, only belief in Christ.

Lilyflower,Halloween grinch dosen’t even begin to describe you!

Your post makes you sound a total killjoy.

I suppose the SA lady was right - was a festival long before Christianity. Celtic and Roman and then Christianity 'incorporated' the idea. Bit sniffy though really. These days is can be fun or totally OTT, all depends how you do it. www.forbes.com/sites/kristinakillgrove/2015/10/31/how-the-ancient-romans-gave-us-bones-of-the-dead-cookies-for-halloween/

I remember Hallowe'en and All Saints' Days as being in the calendar as quite low key events in my childhood. Sometimes, better organised parents would have some apple bobbing and games but that was it. Guy Fawkes night was the real treat for those who were allowed fireworks or who attended displays.

Latterly, the name, Guy Fawkes, was dropped by New Labour to avoid offending Catholics, though, even as a baptised Catholic, it never much bothered me.

At the same time, Hallowe'en, as an all singing, all dancing kiddifest with highly commercial overtones, has been imported from America and rampages around our streets with noise and menaces.

The most annoying feature to my mind is the presence of dopey, middle class mothers who should know better, accompanying dressed up, hyped up, capacious bucket-carrying littlies. Small imps who really should be in bed, doing their homework, having a bedtime story or sucking their thumbs.

Wrong on so many counts.

Yours sincerely,

Lilyflower the Hallowe'en Grinch. (Grrrr!)