Q: Dear Reb on the Web,

Should Jewish kids go trick or treating on Halloween?

A: Since I know Rabbi Goldstein feels so strongly on this point, I’ve asked her to write this week’s Reb on the Web:

I think there are plenty of good reasons to discourage our kids from participating at all in Halloween- and some have nothing to do with Judaism! I speak not only as a Rabbi now, but also as a parent whose kids have never gone trick or treating.

Let’s start by looking at the roots of Halloween- a pagan holiday taken over by the Christians and then appropriated by the candy industry! From a Jewish point of view, we should be aware that Halloween is a sacred day in the Catholic calendar. The word itself, "Halloween," comes from a contracted corruption of All Hallows Eve. November 1, "All Hollows Day" (or "All Saints Day"), is a Catholic day of observance in honor of saints. Candles for the dead are lit in Catholic churches on the evening of October 31. In the pagan world, on that day, it was believed the disembodied spirits of all those who had died throughout the preceding year would come back in search of living bodies to possess for the next year. Naturally, those still living did not want to be possessed. So on the night of October 31, villagers would extinguish the fires in their homes to make them cold and undesirable. They would then dress up in all manner of ghoulish costumes and noisily parade around the neighborhood, being as destructive as possible in order to frighten away spirits looking for bodies to possess. Since I think history is really what we pass on to the next generation, do we want our children to celebrate this day but disconnected from its source?

But even if we didn’t care about the holiday’s origins, I’d still ask: what is the point of the holiday? What values, customs, and messages does Halloween have that we want our kids to get?

One: Gimme candy. Do I want my kids learning its cute and desirable to go door to door begging for sweets? The Jewish way is to give: on Purim, we go house to house delivering sweets, not asking for them! I’m happy to fill my kids lunchboxes to the brim with those little candy bars all week after October 31. I can buy them from the store, and I do; my kids don’t have to go and ask strangers for them. If the neighbors I know and trust want to treat my kids to candy, they can do so any time of the year, as a gesture of friendship. Do I want my kids practicing the art of “gimme gimme” any more than they are prone to already, in the form of a community sanctioned custom?

Two: Dead people are scary. Judaism teaches that the souls of the dead live on and are kind spirits that guide us spiritually. Although there is the occasional folkloristic tale of evil spirits, like The Dybbuk, in the main Judaism doesn’t teach fear of death, graveyards, or the dead. I don’t want my kids afraid that their zayde or grandpa will come back to harm them, or frightened to visit their graves.

Three: Old women are witches, hags, and harmful. As a feminist, I find the images of old women with hooked noses riding broomsticks to hurt little kids as totally offensive. And have you ever noticed how much those caricatures resemble the caricatures of Jews from the Middle Ages: hooked noses, tails, wicked grins, baby eaters? It’s not an accident.

Four: Witches are devil worshippers. I happen to know that witchcraft is part of an ancient religion called Wicca. There are practicing Wiccans today; they do not worship the devil or demons and they do not wish any harm on anyone. The exact opposite: they preach a dignified spirituality and respect for the earth and all its creatures. I know I wouldn’t want Jews portrayed the way witches are portrayed on Halloween. For centuries witches had been persecuted and killed, like Jews, in the name of religion. Most of those witches were women practicing ancient herbal cures and the skill of midwifery which were threatening to the male establishment. Do I want my kids growing up unaware of the stereotypes they are perpetuating?

Five: If people don’t give you what you want, you can hurt them. Throw eggs on their doors or their cars. Go out only with older siblings. There will be police cruisers on call all night. The “harmless pranks” of twenty years ago are not harmless anymore. Can’t trust a treat not store-bought, hermetically sealed. What kind of “holy day” is it when I have to fear for my kids’ safety?

So what does our family do? We get together with a couple of other families who feel the way we do and we go to the movies. It’s great fun- we’re usually the only ones there, and then we all go out for dinner and ice cream sundaes. The kids actually look forward to it. And then when Purim comes, we make elaborate costumes (some of which we buy the week after Hallween when face paint and wigs are half price!!) and bake sweets and treats and go all out celebrating a holiday we feel is truly a holy day. I encourage you to do the same!

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