Halloween
 Halloween, October 31. Halloween, or
All Hallows Eve, is the eve of All Saints' Day.
In much of Western Europe, including France, Spain, and Italy, this eve is observed
with masses and prayers at the graves of deceased loved ones.
In the United States and Britain this is a night when children get dressed up in
costumes of ghosts, witches, and the like, and go trick-or-treating.
Since World War II it has been an occaision in the United States to collect for
UNICEF (United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, now known as
United Nations Children's Fund).
The largest celebrations in the United States are in Sanata Barbara, California,
and New Orleans, Louisiana.
History of Halloween
This trick-or-treating celebrations of this day are associated with All Hallows Eve
in name only.
Long before the establishment of All Saints' Day, this night was celebrated by the
Druids as the eve of Samhain, the New Year of the Druids, when the Lord of Death
called together the souls of the wicked who had died during the past year.
When the Romans occupied Britain, they brought with them the festival in honor of Pomona,
goddess of fruit.
This added to the harvest theme of this day.
Halloween is on the eve of All Saint's Day, which was moved in the eighth century
from May to November, probably to replace the Druid celebration Samhain.
The customs of wearing costumes and masks, dancing, and lighting bonfires were
believed to frighten away evil spirits, ghosts, witches, goblins, and the Devil.
The widespread observance of these Halloween customs came to the Unites States with
the massive Irish immigration of the 1840s during the Irish Potato Famine.
The customs as they were observed in Scotland in 1785 have been captured in Robert Burns'
poem
Halloween.
Customs of Halloween
The original jack-o'-lanterns of the Irish were made out of turnips, rutabagas,
and potatoes, not pumpkins.
In
The American Book of Days, Jane M. Hatch relates the following story about the origins of the jack-o'-lantern.
The name
jack-o'-lantern supposedly came from an Irish tale of a man named Jack who was
notorious for durnkenness and for being stingy.
One evening at the local pub, the Devil appeared to claim his soul.
Jack skillfully persuaded the Devil to "have one drink together before we go."
To pay for his drink, the Devil turned himself into a sixpence, which Jack immediately
snatched. He put it into his wallet, which had a catch in the form of a cross, thus
preventing the Devil from escaping.
Jack eventualy released the Devil on condition that the latter leave him in peace for
another year.
Twelve months later, Jack played another practical joke on the Devil, letting him down
from a tree only on the promise that he would never pursue him again.
Finally, Jack's body wore out.
Barred from heaven because of transgressions and from Hell because of the pranks he
played on the Devil, Jack in desperation begged the Devil for a live coal to light his
way out of the dark.
Jack put it into a turnip he was chewing and, as the story goes, is condemned to walk
the earth with his lantern until Judgment Day.
|
Haiti
