Halloween - behind the mask

Earlier this week, Sue's Aunt Joan celebrated her 90th birthday.  She currently lives in a village in East Yorkshire, but is hoping to move down to Leicester to be near us.  Sue and I spent Aunt Joan's birthday with her; at lunchtime we took her to a pub in a nearby village.  The lady behind the bar didn't seem particularly pleased to see us (despite the fact that we were the only customers present!)  However, the meal she eventually produced was worth waiting for.  The pub was a typical old village pub; there was a blazing fire in the hearth which we greatly appreciated on a cold day.  What wasn't quite so traditional, however, was the fact that the whole place was absolutely festooned with Halloween figures; the owners really had gone to town.  Aunt Joan commented on how well they had decorated the pub; Sue and I weren't so sure.

It is clear that the UK has embraced the idea of Halloween.  Many shop windows reflect this fact.  A few days ago I was visiting my bank and noticed a shop window, decorated for Halloween, with the message: "Happy Halloween".  Perhaps many people wouldn't think anything of the greeting, but to me it seems a rather strange and mixed up message.

I guess that to most people Halloween seems to be just harmless fun.  Dig below the surface, however, and one discovers elements which are not so "happy".  A couple of weeks ago I was taking a school assembly in a local infant school.  The school theme for the week was "Overcoming Fears".  I began by asking the children what kind of things make people afraid.  A few suggestions were made, and interestingly one little boy said, "Halloween".  A slightly nervous laughter came from many of his fellow pupils, almost as if they agreed with him but weren't really sure whether it was ok to admit that they were fearful of aspects of Halloween.  It is significant that my daughter Caz, who is a teacher in South Wales, had told me earlier that a pupil in her school had become very upset by a Halloween advert.

The reality is that Halloween does tend to stress some things which aren't altogether wholesome, such as ghosts, witches and devils etc.  The masks/costumes which are worn can be really frightening to some impressionable children; and not only children, of course.  In some areas of the country, in police-supported initiatives, leaflets are handed out to the elderly to put on their front doors to deter Halloween callers.  Opening one's front door at night to be greeted by people in hideous masks can be an extremely frightening experience.  Children themselves can be vulnerable when out in the dark calling at houses.

Most people don't realise that the origins of Halloween go back to a time when fear and superstition ruled.  Apparently it was believed that the souls of the dead were called back on 31 October and if families didn't welcome them, they were cursed (trick or treat!)  I am all for having fun, but I really think that in commemorating Halloween we do need to think seriously about all those who might find the whole thing rather frightening and upsetting.  Behind the mask of Halloween lie elements which are far from happy.  How much better to focus on things of light and love, rather than things of darkness and fear.