[Berserker]

I am not religious in any sense of the word. I do believe there is a spirit world but it is not represented as Heaven or Hell (b/c let's be honest, NO ONE knows). Anyway, I used to work with this die hard christian monster; the type of dude that is hypocritical about his beliefs and will judge everyone for theirs.
So 2 years ago when I was still working there, everyone was asking me about my Halloween plans and we were all getting excited; sharing stories, haunts, pumpkin beer etc.

The cutie intern, Heather, had to work with this freak that day and so she asked him about his Halloween plans and he says with a deadpan face:

"Ugh....it's a Satanic holiday"

After she told me that I was planning on his education lesson so he came over to my desk hence I took the moment to briefly explain Halloween or All Hallow's Eve was actually called Samhain, the Celtic holiday where the barrier b/w living and the spirit world is so thin the transfer b/w worlds was easy. I explained it was about welcoming your passed loved ones into your home for another visit...basically celebrating their lives.

He looked at me and said "oh that's fine, and I don't judge but it is an evil day"

I gave in and said yep, and I fully celebrate the evil. He had no response.
What a douche!
Any experience with this?

 

[StanFam3]

I have too many experiences JUST LIKE THIS to describe them all.

I live in the deep, rural south. I am surrounded by closed / small minded folks who fear anything different.

The older I become, the less patience I have with bigotry, ignorance, and sheer stupidity. Especially because of my own personal spiritual beliefs/practices.

 

[Skeletoncrew]

I live in a really small non progressive southern town in the Bible Belt .. Yes, I've had lots of experience with this. The final and last time I threw a halloween party for the girls, I had one mother totally freak out and not let her kids come over anymore. Even though it was a VERY tame party, with no religion threatening practices or ideas and EVERYTHING had been talked about prior with all the parents. Never threw another party, just wasn't worth the angst and drama! I could tell a lot of stories .. Like the lady that followed me a round the dollar store preaching, I mean serious hell fire and damnation preaching to me because I had a lot of Halloween items in my in my cart. I finally was rude to her to get her to leave off. I grew up in upstate NY, but have lived here for the last 17 years .. It's different in a lot of views.

 

[StanFam3]

I live in a really small non progressive southern town in the Bible Belt .. Yes, I've had lots of experience with this. The final and last time I threw a halloween party for the girls, I had one mother totally freak out and not let her kids come over anymore. Even though it was a VERY tame party, with no religion threatening practices or ideas and EVERYTHING had been talked about prior with all the parents. Never threw another party, just wasn't worth the angst and drama! I could tell a lot of stories .. Like the lady that followed me a round the dollar store preaching to me because I had a lot of Halloween items in my in my cart. I finally was rude to her to get her to leave off. I grew up in upstate NY, but have lived here for the last 17 years .. It's different in a lot of views.

Sounds like rural S GA to me!!!!!!!!!!

I cannot even remember how many times I've been preached too. Blegh.

 

[Skeletoncrew]

I love NC, it's a beautiful state. I love the mountains and the coast, I love my house .. We spent years renovating it. If I could pick it up and plop it in a different town however, I'd do it in a heartbeat. The people here are close minded, backwards and ignorant, not all NC is like this. I don't want to move the kids because they are doing so well in school, but once all the girls graduate, we are out of here. Maybe live on a boat at the coast, we keep ours in beaufort.They have huge pirate festivals every year, lots of 5K and 10K, more progressive and artsy environment .. Much more my speed.

 

[StanFam3]

I love NC, it's a beautiful state. I love the mountains and the coast, I love my house .. We spent years renovating it. If I could pick it up and plop it in a different town however, I'd do it in a heartbeat. The people here are close minded and ignorant. Not all NC is like this, don't want to move the kids because they are doing so well in school, but once all the girls graduate, we are out of here. Maybe live on a boat at the coast, we keep ours in beaufort, they have huge pirate festivals every year .. Much more my speed.

I feel the same way. I love our home too. And I like Georgia geographically.... N GA is more my speed. I lived in the ATL area for 20+ years before moving back to my hometown.

 

[annamarykahn]

"sheeple", although isn't officially a word, describes these and many others that don't think for themselves and follow the herd ...

amk

 

[UnOrthodOx]

I live in Utah, and am Mormon. Despite the fact that the LDS church has no official position on the holiday, there are those members that do. I've had neighbors so adamantly opposed that they've tried to sue me and get police involved.

I've had groups in the church specifically organize the Trunk or Treat as the safe alternative to trick or treating.

Attitudes started changing when I changed. We started a harvest party in 2010, not specifically to be an alternate to a "Halloween party", but our THEME that year was "The Harvest". It's become the basis of our yard since.

Neighborhood kids come carve pumpkins. There's really not much more to it than that. I light everything at dusk, but the music is not going, the costumes aren't on, and kids are just over helping make the display, it's truly a community undertaking.

The "Halloween is evil" people have SEEN that, and understand the community building aspect. The combative neighbors come party now (and leave town on halloween, but hey, take what I can get), the trunk or treat is moved a week before halloween, because they've now HELPED with the display at the 'harvest party' they want to see it on Halloween too.

In fact, I was at a costume donation drive giveaway the other night organized by the church the other night, and the organizers were bemoaning how few in the community were coming by. They asked how it is I manage to get so many non-members over to my party each year. The answer is simple. Halloween is not about religion, my party is not at the church. If you want to reach out to the community at large in Utah, you have to step away from the church building.

 

[StanFam3]

I live in Utah, and am Mormon. Despite the fact that the LDS church has no official position on the holiday, there are those members that do. I've had neighbors so adamantly opposed that they've tried to sue me and get police involved.

I've had groups in the church specifically organize the Trunk or Treat as the safe alternative to trick or treating.

Attitudes started changing when I changed. We started a harvest party in 2010, not specifically to be an alternate to a "Halloween party", but our THEME that year was "The Harvest". It's become the basis of our yard since.

Neighborhood kids come carve pumpkins. There's really not much more to it than that. I light everything at dusk, but the music is not going, the costumes aren't on, and kids are just over helping make the display, it's truly a community undertaking.

The "Halloween is evil" people have SEEN that, and understand the community building aspect. The combative neighbors come party now (and leave town on halloween, but hey, take what I can get), the trunk or treat is moved a week before halloween, because they've now HELPED with the display at the 'harvest party' they want to see it on Halloween too.

In fact, I was at a costume donation drive giveaway the other night organized by the church the other night, and the organizers were bemoaning how few in the community were coming by. They asked how it is I manage to get so many non-members over to my party each year. The answer is simple. Halloween is not about religion, my party is not at the church. If you want to reach out to the community at large in Utah, you have to step away from the church building.

Good for you! Seems you've found a way to walk the walk and talk the talk. I hope your Halloween Harvest Party goes well this year!

 

[Skeletoncrew]

I feel the same way. I love our home too. And I like Georgia geographically.... N GA is more my speed. I lived in the ATL area for 20+ years before moving back to my hometown.

I really understand this! When we go to other parts of NC it's much different.

I will say not everything has been bad, really .. A lot of people are very happy to see the house get decorated each year. People start asking when we are going to decorate when the time gets near. I can't tell you how many mom's with younger kids tell me they have to drive by the house every single day with the kids .. We say the spider has groupies with the tot agers. On halloween night we draw kids from all over and parents tell me the kids have been dying to come by the house in person .. so in my mind the good out weighs the bad.

I occasionally will get a rude or stray comment. Had one very frail elderly lady stop the day we were putting stuff up, she said you have such a beautiful house. Of course I said thank you .. Then she went on to drop .. it was too bad I put 'that wickedness' all over it. I smiled and said .. Have a nice day too and walked away. Lol .. But then the next weekend when I was out grocery shopping my youngest called me to tell me we had a yard full of elderly women, laughing, asking questions and taking pics with the skeletons. So, all in all .. There are bitter people out there, it's their choice .. There are a lot of good too.

 

[Tyrant]

I get this all the time. From my own tribe, no less. I'm Christian and other Christians just don't understand how I can participate in something so "dark" and "evil". I explain to them all the time that Halloween is like anything else in that it is what one makes it to be. I often go into Halloween's history when/if they listen, and never hesitate to pull up all of the Pagan symbolism and influence in Christmas and Easter. That alone usually shuts them down.

If they want to live a fearful life of avoidance, so be it. I'll be out and busy having fun like most people come October 31st.

 

[Madame Leota]

This is not the way it has always been. I grew up in a small predominately southern Baptist town in the 60s and 70s. Every church had Halloween parties with costumes, apple bobs, hayrides, the whole bit. We dressed as witches, ghosts, devils, whatever and no one thought a thing about it. They were intelligent people that knew it was nothing more than dressing up and having fun. Then along came the 80s and 90s and something changed. Suddenly everything was "satanic". My older sister got caught up in the panic and her poor kids never once got to participate in Halloween. I am happy to say though, as adults, they whole-heartedly enjoy the holiday with their own kids.
I don't see nearly as much of the anti-Halloween stuff anymore but there are still a few closed minded ignorant ones that want to ruin it for everybody else. Always will be, that's just life.

 

[StanFam3]

This is not the way it has always been. I grew up in a small predominately southern Baptist town in the 60s and 70s. Every church had Halloween parties with costumes, apple bobs, hayrides, the whole bit. We dressed as witches, ghosts, devils, whatever and no one thought a thing about it. They were intelligent people that knew it was nothing more than dressing up and having fun. Then along came the 80s and 90s and something changed. Suddenly everything was "satanic". My older sister got caught up in the panic and her poor kids never once got to participate in Halloween. I am happy to say though, as adults, they whole-heartedly enjoy the holiday with their own kids.
I don't see nearly as much of the anti-Halloween stuff anymore but there are still a few closed minded ignorant ones that want to ruin it for everybody else. Always will be, that's just life.

I agree with you fully!

The same town I grew up in the 70's is where I live now. My childhood did not have the satanic hysteria that the 80's brought. Unfortunately, we still have a lot of this here.

So few houses here decorated AT ALL. Not even a wreath! Nothing.

 

[Pumpkinhead625]

I'm a Christian myself, but these people are just ignorant extremists. There's no sense in trying to reasonably argue with them, because they won't see reason. I've never been lectured, chided, or preached to about my Halloween display, but if it ever happens, I kind of look forward to it. I have a few select replies on hand for the person who tells me "Halloween is evil":

..."Yes, but it's HAPPY evil."

..."It's not all that bad. We stopped doing ritualistic human sacrifices in the '80s."

..."Yeah, but a bagful of free candy more than compensates for the evilness."

..."Well, if that's true, then you better leave me alone, because if you say one more word to me about it, I might just get ticked off enough to unleash my evil, demonic minions to torment you."

 

[Berserker]

I'm a Christian myself, but these people are just ignorant extremists. There's no sense in trying to reasonably argue with them, because they won't see reason. I've never been lectured, chided, or preached to about my Halloween display, but if it ever happens, I kind of look forward to it. I have a few select replies on hand for the person who tells me "Halloween is evil":

..."Yes, but it's HAPPY evil."

..."It's not all that bad. We stopped doing ritualistic human sacrifices in the '80s."

..."Yeah, but a bagful of free candy more than compensates for the evilness."

..."Well, if that's true, then you better leave me alone, because if you say one more word to me about it, I might just get ticked off enough to unleash my evil, demonic minions to torment you."

That's great.

 

[pyrosaxplayer]

I'm a Christian myself, but these people are just ignorant extremists. There's no sense in trying to reasonably argue with them, because they won't see reason. I've never been lectured, chided, or preached to about my Halloween display, but if it ever happens, I kind of look forward to it. I have a few select replies on hand for the person who tells me "Halloween is evil":

..."Yes, but it's HAPPY evil."

..."It's not all that bad. We stopped doing ritualistic human sacrifices in the '80s."

..."Yeah, but a bagful of free candy more than compensates for the evilness."

..."Well, if that's true, then you better leave me alone, because if you say one more word to me about it, I might just get ticked off enough to unleash my evil, demonic minions to torment you."

Love It! I will use them and give you credit haha

 

[StanFam3]

I'm a Christian myself, but these people are just ignorant extremists. There's no sense in trying to reasonably argue with them, because they won't see reason. I've never been lectured, chided, or preached to about my Halloween display, but if it ever happens, I kind of look forward to it. I have a few select replies on hand for the person who tells me "Halloween is evil":

..."Yes, but it's HAPPY evil."

..."It's not all that bad. We stopped doing ritualistic human sacrifices in the '80s."

..."Yeah, but a bagful of free candy more than compensates for the evilness."

..."Well, if that's true, then you better leave me alone, because if you say one more word to me about it, I might just get ticked off enough to unleash my evil, demonic minions to torment you."

LOLOL!!! Love them!

Unfortunately, at least in my area, I have a lot more of the ignorant extremists than the educated believers (like yourself!).

 

[xredge]

During my teen years late 70s early 80s our church used to do haunted houses, usually I did most of the planning and ran them. We would switched between the church I went to and the other church that our Minister preached at as we had our youth groups combined. I really don't mention to much about it at the Church I go to now just to avoid the hassle, some know about it though. I don't usually do much at home as where I live don't have many kids lucky to top out at 30, but do a big campground one.

 

[ironmaiden]

Grew up in Southern California and been living now in New Hampshire for many years. I have never encountered anything like this.
From one coast to the other, I can say I have had the best of both worlds

 

[texmaster]

In Dallas, never met anyone who called Halloween evil but I know others here are telling the truth when they say they've experienced it.

Its sad since I've seen both political sides come out against Halloween for stupid but different reasons.