We are in the season of Halloween, the most mysterious and perhaps the most misunderstood of all holidays.

As a chaplain, I have often been asked if Halloween is really a Christian holiday or simply some carryover from an old pagan tradition pre-dating Christianity. Although I have studied the issue a little, I am not an expert on the subject. Nevertheless, I have observed that most folks know very little at all of Halloween’s origin. Would you say that Halloween is Christian or pagan? Is it simply just silly, harmless fun for children with no real redeeming value?

Some seem to favor the idea that Halloween is really based on a collection of old pagan traditions adopted or adapted by the church, but not a Christian celebration. Others point out how the early church remembered the death of martyrs with commemorations that coincided with Celtic and Roman festivals and how their influence helped shape modern Halloween. These traditions are now so mixed that most folks do not know the difference. Consequently, many do not know what to make out of Halloween.

The following is what I have been able to determine with some level of certainty.

By the end of the 4th century Christians in local areas observed days of commemoration for individual martyrs often on the sites where they were killed. As the list of martyrs grew, Nov. 1 was set aside to remember all the martyrs. By the 9th century this observance was expanded to remember all saints.

Some place the true roots of Halloween to an old pre-Christian Celtic celebration from what is known today as the British Isles. The Celtic festival for the Lord of the Dead observed a night when the souls of the dead mixed again with the living, some good souls and some bad.

Masks and bonfires were used to scare away evil spirits, and food was left for friendly ghosts (apparently evil spirits were wimps). Later theRoman customs of apple-bobbing and drinking cider from their fall harvest celebration were added to the mix. Much later the Irish added door-to-door trick-or-treating and turnip carving to the tradition; today we use pumpkins.

In today’s Christian church, Halloween is really known as All Hallows Eve or Holy Evening and, over time, pop culture has absorbed many old customs that present a real mixed bag.

It is actually not too surprising that a church holiday could absorb popular culture. For example, most people celebrate Easter with bunnies and dyed eggs. For Christians, Easter is the high holy day of the year, yet many remember it with pagan fertility symbols, such as rabbits and eggs.

Through the years, the Church accepted use of bunnies and eggs as a part of the tradition, as long as the people understand they do not have any power toincrease fertility. I suspect most do not know the pagan roots of the symbols.

The closest modern tradition I found that is still linked to the ancient remembrance of martyrs is the All Souls Day celebrated by Catholics and others toremember those who have died, not just martyrs and saints, but friends and loved ones as well.

The celebration is a reminder that the souls of the dead may not be all that far away. If nothingelse, remembering the dead reminds us that wewill meet them again.

Personally, a day to remember those who have passed away would be a time to remember my father who passed away just a few years ago. Not that his soul is meant to come to me on any single night but, rather, my soul hopes for meeting him; that is, going wherehe is. That is a little bit of a different twist onthe celebration.

Here is what I have been able to determine: Halloween has its roots in early Christian commemoration of martyrs, saints and later loved ones. This has become mixed with ancient pre-Christian customs that lost their meaning years ago.

For Americans, Halloween has just become a part of pop culture, and we Americans may be about the biggest celebraters of Halloween in the world.

In the end I suppose that it comes down to an issue of conscience. There are a lot of different ways to decide whether or not to celebrate Halloween. For many folks the old pagan symbols have lost their meaning and, therefore, any real purpose. Others choose to not beassociated with traditions that were once associated with evil spirits. Always go with your conscience.

As a final reflection I conclude that, for Christians, remembering the martyred and those who have gone before should not be lost. The rest is at best a mask or a costume used for one night every year with very little meaning for most folks. And if the old pagan stuff is not for you, celebrate without using them. Remember those saints who left their mark on the world and remember those spirits that really mean something to you — those you love and hope to see again.