Christianity was having difficulties because it collided with indigenous pagan cultures and confronted established customs through Europe. The new converts found them to be a stumbling block to their faith on this pagan holidays and festivals including All Hollows Eve or Halloween. To deal with the problem, the organized church would commonly move a distinctively Christian holiday to a spot on the calendar that would directly challenge a pagan holiday. The intent was to counter pagan influences and provide a Christian alternative. But most often the church only succeeded in "Christianizing" a pagan ritual--the ritual was still pagan, but mixed with Christian symbolism. That was the history of All Saints Eve--it was the original Halloween alternative. The exciting part is where they wore villain costumes of their favorite story like vampires, mummies and witches. But more prefer costumes of lead roles like Cinderella or Dorothy costume from the Wizard of Oz.
Christians should not respond to Halloween like superstitious pagans. Pagans are superstitious; Christians are enlightened by the truth of God's Word. Evil spirits are no more active and sinister on Halloween than they are on any other day of the year; in fact, any day is a good day for Satan to prowl about seeking whom he may devour. Christians should respond to Halloween Traditions with cautionary wisdom. Some people fear the activity of Satanists or pagan witches, but the actual incidents of satanic-associated crime are very low. The real threat on Halloween is from the social problems that attend sinful behavior--drunk driving, pranksters and vandals, and unsupervised children.
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