Reimagining Tradition: My Journey with Halloween, Christmas & Even Easter…

I’m not sure why I’m writing such a personal blog. I just felt like it. haha. It’s cathartic to express my views every once and awhile.

Once I turned about 6 or 7 years old (I can’t quite remember the exact age, but I do remember trick-or-treating when I was little at least once…), something changed. 

The church my family started going to decided that Halloween, because of its pagan origins, was “evil,” and we would no longer participate. It sucked it was yet another thing that could have been fun ripped away from me.

Instead of Halloween, the church held a “fall fest” where we could still dress up—but only as Bible characters. It was fun in its own way, I def won best costume for Esther one year…

but I always wondered why we couldn’t celebrate Halloween itself and enjoy the community and excitement it brings. 

After all, so much of Halloween, as most families experience it, is full of joy, creativity, and togetherness.

Kids dressing up as their favorite characters leaning into imagination and joy, the thrill of going door-to-door, and neighbors handing out sweet treats to anyone who comes to the door. 

It’s a chance for kids to bond with family and friends, and for neighborhoods to feel alive with fun and generosity.

The idea that Halloween is inherently “evil” because of its past feels like an approach driven by fear. And I personally believe that making choices out of fear is not what God wants for us. 

I’ve come to feel that when we choose to look for evil, we miss the beauty and joy right in front of us. 

Sure, we can certainly set boundaries and avoid the darker elements of Halloween if we choose because they do not align with our value system or faith, but we don’t need to deny the goodness that can come from the day.

We have the power to shape these traditions to reflect what’s meaningful to us.

I even think the Christian Bible itself would back this up- hear me out… The bible reminds us that fear is not from God and that when we live out of fear it’s not how we were created to live. If we want to pull a random scripture haha

• 2 Timothy 1:7 “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” 
• 1 John 4:18, “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear…” 

When we make decisions motivated by love, not fear, we’re more free to experience the fullness of life, to find joy, and to connect with others in meaningful ways.

I PERSONALLY see Halloween as a beautiful opportunity for community and family bonding. 

I mean even Christmas and Easter have roots in pre-Christian, pagan traditions, and they were gradually adopted and transformed into Christian celebrations by the early church to align with Christian beliefs and narratives. ( and our church also took those joys away from me…)

They took the joy and spirit of Christmas out of our home – no lights, no trees, no decor, no santa, nothing. OKay maybe not nothing- we had some traditions

• Christmas Eve midnight mass at their catholic church with the grandparents followed by grandma’s delicious blueberry muffins
• Candelight services at our baptist church too
• Family christmas dinner
• The grandparents had a tree (praise the lord) I looked forward to huddling under it handing out gifts. it was my FAVORITE.

Yes, Christmas has pagan roots too… but somehow 90% of the westernized church ignored that and were able to make it theirs…

Christmas Pagan Roots. December 25 was not originally celebrated as the date of Jesus’ birth; rather, it coincided with various winter solstice festivals in ancient Rome and across Europe. The Romans held a festival called Saturnalia in late December, celebrating the god Saturn with feasting, gift-giving, and merriment. Meanwhile, northern European pagan cultures held Yule, a festival honoring the winter solstice and the rebirth of the sun.

When It Became a Christian Holiday. By the 4th century, as Christianity spread through the Roman Empire, Christian leaders designated December 25 as the official celebration of Jesus’ birth. Some believe this choice was strategic, helping Christians blend in while still marking a significant event in their faith. Others see it as a way to redirect pagan worship of the sun to worship of the “Son of God.” This adaptation allowed early Christians to retain familiar customs while focusing on Christ’s nativity. This gave rise to traditions like feasting, decorating with greenery, and gift-giving, which have become central to Christmas today.

Easter too was robbed of traditions

I wasn’t allowed egg hunting, bunnies or anything related to the word “Easter”. We had Sunday morning church services & pretty dresses & “Happy Res” day. By the way if you ever say “Happy Res” day to me you will trigger the living crap out of me and we won’t be friends… haha. Kidding. I’m the forgiving and tolerating type. lol.

Easter Pagan Roots. Easter is tied to springtime festivals celebrating renewal and fertility. In many cultures, these festivals marked the return of life to the earth after winter. The Anglo-Saxon goddess Ēostre (or Ostara) is often cited as an influence, though her role is debated. Symbols of fertility and new life, like eggs and rabbits, were part of these celebrations.

When It Became a Christian Holiday: Easter became a Christian holiday in the early centuries of Christianity. Early Christians began observing a resurrection celebration during Passover, as Jesus’ death and resurrection coincided with this Jewish holiday. Over time, Christian celebrations centered around the resurrection of Jesus and were set near the spring equinox, aligning with existing celebrations of renewal and rebirth. Easter eventually incorporated symbols of new life, like eggs, but the holiday’s focus was entirely on Christ’s resurrection.

Why and How They Became Christianized

The early church used these celebrations as opportunities to draw parallels between the themes of life, rebirth, and light in pagan traditions and those in Christianity, such as Christ’s birth and resurrection. By embracing and reshaping existing traditions, the church could appeal to people familiar with these customs and give them new meaning within the Christian faith.

Instead of focusing on what might be “bad” in any tradition, we can choose to celebrate the joy it brings. We can create experiences that align with our values. Celebrating with joy instead of fear brings light into our lives and into the world.

I support turning everything to good. I support giving your kids the truth about holidays. We told our kid about the traditions, good, bad & ugly.

I personally never told our son that Santa was real. We did a wink wink and isn’t this a lovely make believe tradition. Same for Easter, Halloween. The tooth fairy- and all the things. He grew up experiencing the magic & beauty of it all. We did it in a way that felt right and honest and truthful to us and our beliefs. I wanted him to experince all the goodness life has to offer!

Okay that’s all. Here are our cute halloween costumes this year. lol.

Reimagining Tradition: My Journey with Halloween

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