All Hallows Eve (Halloween), All Saints Day, and All Souls Day are part of a small “triduum” of feasts known as Hallowtide. They occur on October 31st, November 1st, and November 2nd, respectively. Many people associate Halloween (and, October in general) with trick-or-treating, scary decorations, and dressing up. Today, I will share some of the Catholic roots of Halloween, and why these 3 days are actually meant to direct us towards heaven (while we remember our death and consider that Hell truly does exist).
Find more Hallowtide and November Feast Day resources here.
All Hallows Eve (Halloween) – October 31st
This is one you probably already know about, so now let’s connect it to its Catholic roots. The word “Halloween” is derived from the words “All Hallows Eve,” and “hallow” means “holy”. All Hallows Eve (like Christmas Eve) falls on the night (or eve) of a very important Feast Day (All Saints Day, which we will discuss next). All Hallows Eve is also known as the Vigil of All Saints Day, and marks the start of Hallowtide.
The eves (or vigils) of Catholic feasts have been traditionally reserved for fasting and preparing for the holy feast. In the early church, it was actually required for all Catholics to fast and abstain from meat on both Christmas Eve and All Hallows Eve. Fasting from meat and offering extra prayers and sacrifices on All Hallows Eve is a very good and very Catholic thing to do. Highly recommend!
Halloween is also a fantastic chance to evangelize by decorating with holy decorations and dressing up as saints (and these costumes can be put to good use again tomorrow!)
Older children can also give up their treats as an extra sacrifice and observance of this Holy Eve. You could also choose to attend a vigil Mass, and then break your fast by trick or treating! Beautiful, holy, and fun!
Unfortunately, society encourages a lot of unholy (and downright evil) behavior on this night, and this can be hard (or even impossible) to avoid. Again, Halloween is NOT the focus for Catholics, so I believe it’s a good idea not to idolize or overdo Halloween, and, of course, I do not recommend or condone anyone partaking in anything evil, scary, or scandalous on this night or ever!
You could also take some time away from school or work on this day to bake some soul cakes (the origin of “trick-or-treating) to prepare for a beautiful and holy feast day coming up in just 2 more days. I also have a fun Memento Mori Science Activity that you could do some time this month. Tomorrow is November, and it’s about to get busy (and extremely prayerful)!
For more information, read this lovely and informative article about “Restoring Halloween to the Domestic Church” by Claudio Salvucci here.
The Solemnity of All Saints (All Saints Day) – November 1st
Now that we sorted out the origin of the word “Halloween,” we will always remember the very important feast (which is also a Holy Day of Obligation) that follows – All Saints Day! Catholics MUST attend Mass every November 1st just as we attend Mass every Sunday. All Saints Day is the day when we celebrate all of the Saints (canonized or not) in heaven. THIS is true joy, beauty and hope!
First, I recommend attending Mass on All Saints Day as a family and/or with friends.
Then, you can continue the celebration by dressing up as favorite saints, playing games, and having each child talk about the saint they chose. Here is an awesome post for making saint costumes from tshirts! Brilliant!
You could also organize a trunk or treat (saint themed, of course) or potluck. Ask everyone to bring a dish that represents their favorite saint! This is my all time favorite cookbook just for this purpose.
Here are the most adorable treat labels for a tea party or gathering. You could also re-use these throughout the year on each saint’s feast day.
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Read lots more ideas for celebrating All Saints Day with kids here!
All Souls Day – November 2nd
While All Souls Day (or Dia de los Muertos in Mexico) is not a Holy Day of obligation (you guessed it) you should attend Mass! At Mass, you should specially pray for any family or friends who have died. We cannot assume that everyone who dies goes straight to heaven, and they need our prayers. All Souls Day (and the entire month of November) is set aside to pray specifically for the Holy Souls in Purgatory. Whenever a deceased loved on comes to mind, I pray this prayer for them. This is perfect to pray all November or any time you pass a cemetery:
Eternal Rest Prayer
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
and let perpetual light shine upon them.
May the souls of the faithful departed,
through the mercy of God,
rest in peace.
Amen.
What is purgatory? At our death, our soul will leave our body, we will come face-to-face with Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and He will judge the state of our souls. If a person chooses to be completely separated from Him, he or she will go to hell.
If the soul is in a perfect state of grace, he or she will join Our Lord and all of the angels and saints in heaven. If the soul needs further purification, he or she will enter purgatory, where the soul may no longer offer penances or sacrifices. That’s where we come in.
On All Souls Day, we pray and celebrate Masses for the dead – specifically the souls in purgatory who need further purification before entering heaven. Catholics can also gain plenary indulgences this first week in November (see here).
Remember the soul cakes you baked on Halloween? Now, you get to break them out for our next liturgical living adventure!
On All Souls Day, invite friends to meet at a cemetery to pray and exchange soul cakes. Soul cakes originated in the UK and were baked and exchanged for prayers for the dead on All Hallows Eve (trick or treat…prayer for a treat…get it??).
Even when my children were small, they truly enjoyed participating in the spiritual work of mercy of “praying for the living and the dead” by praying for each name we passed on the tombstone and leaving a rose at the gravesite.
We always make sure to especially pray for the people with very old, worn, or bare gravesites because maybe they no longer have anyone to pray for them.
This post is part of an excerpt from an article originally published on www.oraetschola.com.