The Catholic Origins of Halloween

Compiled by Father Scott Archer 

October 27, 2020

Catholics often ask about the propriety of celebrating Halloween. The truth is that the origins of Halloween are rooted in the theology, liturgy, and popular customs of Catholics. It is said that the ancient Celts celebrated a major feast on October 31 and that Halloween’s origins lie in this pagan practice. However, the Celts celebrated a festival on the last day of almost every month – there was nothing particularly special about the last day of October.

The word Halloween is a contraction of the name for the Vigil of All Hallows Eve; that is, Hallow-E’en. It falls on October 31 not to appease Celtic pagans but because the Feast of All Saints (All Hallows) falls on November 1. The feast of All Saints was originally celebrated on May 13, but Pope Gregory III, in 731, moved it to November 1, the dedication day of All Saints Chapel in St. Peter's in Rome. This feast spread throughout the world. In 998, St. Odilo, the abbot of Cluny Abbey in France, added a celebration on November 2. All Souls was set aside as a day of prayer for the souls of all the faithful departed. Therefore, the Church had a feast for the Saints as well as a commemoration for those in Purgatory. Together, these three days are known as the Triduum of Hallowtide.

Catholics in Ireland came up with the idea of calling to mind those who had not lived by the Faith in this life. It became customary for the Irish to bang on pots and pans on All Hallow's Eve (Hallow-E’en) to let the damned know that they were not forgotten. In Ireland, then, all the dead came to be remembered.

The practice of dressing up arose in France during the 14^th and 15^th centuries. During the horrible bubonic plague (the Black Death) Europe lost half of her population. Artists depicted this on walls to remind the people of their own mortality. These pictures and representations are known as the "Dance of Death" or "Danse Macabre." These figures were commonly painted on cemetery walls and showed the devil leading a daisy chain of people into the tomb. Sometimes the dance was re-enacted on All Soul's Day as a living tableau, with people dressed up as the dead.

The two traditions were brought together in the colonies of North America during the 18^th century, when Irish and French Catholics began to intermarry.

“Trick-or-Treating,”  a relatively modern Halloween tradition, can trace its roots to the 9^th century practice of “souling.” Catholics in England had a tradition of going from house to house and begging for soul cakes on All Souls Day. The beggars would receive a small cake marked with a cross. For each soul cake received, the person promised to say a prayer for the benefactor’s beloved dead in Purgatory

All these practices came together to form what we now celebrate as Halloween. It is a very American holiday; however, the origins are rooted in Catholic theology and cultural customs. Catholics need not worry they are participating in a pagan tradition as they don their costumes and greet their neighbors with a hearty “Trick or Treat!”

Sources: Information from the Diocese of Peoria and adapted from an original article by Father Augustine Thompson.