Finding Hope in Halloween 2020?

 Finding Hope in Halloween 2020? 

4 min read

Halloween has survived pandemics before.  It seems set to do so once again.  The current Covid-19 restrictions will no doubt curtail trick or treating and cancel many halloween parties for this year. The enduring appeal of Halloween will, however, ensure fireworks will still burst bright across the sky, freaky costumes will still be worn, ghost stories shared and no doubt sugar laden goodies consumed to alarming levels!  Why is Halloween loved so much?  

Despite the gruesome and gory theme of Halloween the feel of the festival is altogther different.  It’s about having fun together- dressing up, partying, enjoying time with others.  This feel good factor is timely as the summer sun has gone and the cold winter lays ahead.  Some of the season’s customs originate in the Celtic festival of Samhain- which marked the end of summer and helped address the darkness and death that would come with the winter.

So we welcome the feel good factor as the days grow colder, but could the festival of Halloween serve a deeper significance? Psychologist, Dacher Keltner, from UC Berkeley suggests it does: “Halloween rituals turn horror into play, death into levity, gore into laughter” Halloween is one of many “memento mori” (translates remember you die) traditions- which are “designed to make death just a little bit more fun—and provide an age- appropriate hint to children about an inescapable fact of life, which is that life ends,” according to this article from Berkeley University. 

Isn’t that a morbid thought as we live through the current covid-19 pandemic? Could anything be less timely?  Whilst some will decide to leave Halloween go this year and anticipate the cheerier Christmas season, let me suggest there is actually something to be gained from taking a moment to be mindful of our mortality. 

Research has shown that considering our mortality can actually impact our lives now in positive ways.  A study showed that walking through a graveyard made people 40% more likely to help a stranger afterwards and another study showed that visualizing death can make us more grateful for what we have in life.

This research agrees with the ancient wisdom from Ecclesiastes in the Old Testament of the Bible which starkly insists we’d be better off at a funeral than a party. 
It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting,
for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart. 
Ecclesiastes 7.2

We certainly have opportunity for this in the current pandemic, as death has come closer to our doors recently than we are used to in the Western world.  Normally we can avoid thinking of death- thanks to the excellent medical care we receive and our lengthening life spans compared to previous generations.  Yet the coronavirus pandemic has stretched and overwhelmed our healthcare systems.  So too our creature comforts of sugar and spending- so evident at Halloween- are found wanting.  Their comfort is short lived. When dealing with death we can’t sugar coat it or spend our way out of it.  

A different approach was taken in the 14th Century as the Black Death swept across Europe killing more than 25% of the population. Those of Christian faith didn’t avoid their death, but instead actively prepared for it.  They circulated documents known as “ars moriendi” or the “art of dying”. These were instructions available so that anyone could bring comfort and hope to someone who was dying and prepare them for the world after this one.  

Today we are actively preparing to deal with our anxiety and fear, to cultivate resilience and positive mental health.  What if the danger and death which causes our fear could be removed? Just as an effective vaccine which was widely available would be a real game changer at the moment, imagine if death itself was defeated so we might fear it no more?

This is the daring claim of the Christian gospel- Jesus who is the eternal God, who created all life, took on flesh and blood as one of us so that He might die.  He shared our humanity that he might taste death and break its power over us.  He releases us from death and from the head of all evil- the devil and removes our fear once and for all.  For those who believe are truly and forever free.  (See Hebrews 2.14-15 in Bible) 

The medieval church celebrated this freedom at Halloween by mocking of the dark forces of death- giving them their final fling before the breaking of the dawn and the coming of All Saints and All Souls Days, which were grounded in the belief of the resurrection.  Jesus had brought light and life, so they were no longer afraid of the dark! They had a solid hope.

So the Christian message is more than inspiration which helps us face our fears, but transformation- changing our destiny forever in Jesus.  The resurrection of Jesus is more than a spiritual metaphor but a historical event.  We are dealing now with not just a change of mindset but a change of reality.  

If you are someone whose faith in Jesus means you can confidently face death unafraid- how will you display your confidence and freedom from fear this Halloween? Maybe you abstain from Halloween and rather celebrate the light of Jesus brings in the darkness? Or maybe you will choose to enjoy the fun of the festival- dressing up and dancing in the dark- unafraid of death and evil because of Jesus? 

In Ireland in Halloween 2020 we could really do with some hope.  Is there anything more we can do than telling ourselves it will all be ok? To be “making it by faking it”? What a difference it would make if we had solid ground for believing the death that has come to our door is defeated. Imagine how this hope and confidence might help us walk through these days? Maybe it’s time to take a walk in the graveyard.