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It’s Time for Catholics to Embrace Halloween

As we near All Hallows Eve, a.k.a. Halloween, we fired some questions at the walking encyclopedia that is Fr. Steve Grunow, and he responded with everything you ever wanted to know about Halloween and its deeply Catholic roots.

I always figured that Halloween had pagan roots, but you are telling me they are Catholic. Huh? How so?

Fr. Steve: The origin and traditional customs associated with Halloween require no other explanation than that they are examples of the kinds of festivity that served as a means of celebrating the various holy days of the Catholic Liturgical Year. This includes everything from masquerades, feasting, and the associations of a given day of the year with supernatural or spiritual truths...

Fr. Steve Grunow

Word On Fire

The Real Meaning of All Hallow's Eve, also known as Halloween

Many people think Halloween is just about costumes, candy, and spooky fun — but did you know it actually began as a Catholic holy day?

The word “Halloween” comes from “All Hallows’ Eve” — the night before All Saints’ Day (November 1) — when the Church celebrates all the saints who are now in Heaven. Long ago, Christians would light candles and pray through the night to honor the saints and remember the victory of good over evil.

St. Joseph's Corner - 7:08 mins

A Catholic's Guide To Halloween

Catholics and Halloween:

A good or bad mix?
Is this a pagan holiday?
Should we not celebrate it?

The short answer is that the true substance of Halloween belongs to the Catholic Church. Any violence, gore, sensuality, or demonism now commonly associated with Halloween is not, in fact, true to the origins of this holiday. (By the way, the word “holiday” comes from the words holy day.)

What’s true—and false—about the origins of Halloween?

Here are the facts. (And scroll to the end for a guide on how to celebrate Halloween as a Catholic!)...

Gretchen Filz

The Catholic Company