Why You Should Never Celebrate Halloween
Halloween is a holiday that many people in the Western world celebrate annually on October 31st. It has its origins in pagan Celtic festivals, particularly the Gaelic festival of Samhain, and has been widely adopted by other cultures around the world.
Halloween is now a day where people dress up in costumes (oftentimes gory or scary ones), go to parties, go trick-or-treating, and generally celebrate all things spooky. This might sound like a lot of fun (and it is), but there are several reasons why you might not want to celebrate Halloween.
Halloween has pagan roots
One of the biggest reasons why you shouldn’t celebrate Halloween is because it has pagan roots. Samhain was a pagan Celtic festival that marked the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter.
It was believed that on this day, the boundary between the world of the living and the world of the dead became blurred, and spirits could cross over into our world.
This is obviously not something that most people believe in today, but celebrating a holiday that has its origins in paganism isn’t something that Christian, Jewish, etc. households should be doing.
Halloween is a commercial holiday
Halloween has become extremely commercialized in recent years, with stores selling Halloween-themed decorations, costumes, and candy months in advance. This is all driven by the fact that Halloween is big business: it’s estimated that Americans alone spend between $8-10 billion on Halloween per year.
This commercialization takes away from the holiday’s original meaning and makes it more about making money than anything else.
Halloween is associated with violence and horror
Another reason why you might not want to celebrate Halloween is that it is often associated with violence and horror. This is due in part to the fact that many popular horror movies are released around Halloween time, but also because of the holiday’s roots in Samhain.
Some people argue that this isn’t a big deal and that Halloween can be celebrated without being violent or gory, but it’s something to keep in mind if you’re not a fan of those things.
Halloween teaches children to take candy from strangers
One of the most controversial aspects of Halloween is the practice of trick-or-treating, where children go door-to-door in their neighborhoods and collect candy from strangers.
This might not seem like a big deal, but it actually teaches kids to take food from people they don’t know – which can be extremely dangerous when applied in the real world.
Celebrating Halloween can be expensive
Finally, another reason why you might not want to celebrate Halloween is that it can be quite expensive. Between the cost of a costume, makeup, decorations, and candy, you can easily spend a lot of money if you’re not careful.
Conclusion
These are just a few of the reasons why you should consider skipping Halloween. While it can be a fun holiday, there are definitely some risks and downsides that you should be aware of before deciding whether or not to participate.