ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, October 26, 1996 TAG: 9610280107
SECTION: RELIGION PAGE: B9 EDITION: METRO
TYPE: COMMENTARY
SOURCE: TOM SCHAEFER KNIGHT-RIDDER/TRIBUNE
Let me make this as clear as possible: Halloween will not - I repeat, will not - seduce your children into following Satan or even into becoming a full-fledged Druid.
It's true that the origin of Halloween goes back to Ireland and Scotland where 2,000 years ago Druids celebrated the year's end on Oct. 31 by honoring Samhain, lord of the dead.
And, yes, they believed that as winter approached, the spirits of the dead in their search for warmth visited the living. There were other superstitious beliefs about fairies, witches and goblins who came to steal infants, kill farm animals and destroy crops. All kinds of evil, scary stuff.
But let's face it. There are few Druids around today. And the scariest visitor I've seen at my door on Halloween was a Jimmy Carter-masked teen-ager, about 6 feet tall, whose deep-throated ``trick or treat'' sent me scurrying to the kitchen for an extra Snickers bar.
So, lighten up, O ye who decry this secular holiday, and let the kids have some fun. There are lots of other holidays in November and December that have spiritual significance, no matter what your religious persuasion.
Tom Schaefer writes about religion and ethics for the Wichita (Kan.) Eagle.
LENGTH: Short : 35 linesby CNB