Halloween will reflect the times this year, with Osama bin Laden costumes and fake gas masks best sellers. But do you want your children and grandchildren involved in a celebration of demons and witchcraft? Halloween is not innocent fun with costumes and candy, as many believe. You may be surprised by the roots of this religious holiday.

Religious? Yes. Last October I spoke with a school principal about the fact that most schools don’t allow the celebration of religious holidays. Christmas has become winter break, and Easter is spring break. She agreed. "Why then," I asked her, "do you celebrate the religion of witchcraft in your school?" She didn’t realize that was what was happening, but after I explained the true significance of Halloween, she agreed that they would stop all celebration of the pagan aspects of the holiday and concentrate on a "fall celebration."

The last day of October has been known as "The Festival of the Dead" for centuries. Druid (pagan) priests celebrated this day as the passage from life to death. Today Halloween is the most "sacred" day of the year for Satan worshippers and witches. Occultists practice such rituals as lying on graves and trying to summon the spirits of the dead on Halloween.

I was shocked when I discovered the origins of the "innocent" customs of Halloween. In medieval Europe witches taught that spirits and ghosts left their graves on Halloween and tried to go back to their warm homes. Villagers would dress up in costumes to try to scare these demons away. They also left treats to appease the dead so that they would not destroy their crops. This is why children dress up and go door to door asking for candy today. Another ancient practice is carving frightening faces into pumpkins to scare away evil spirits. Bobbing for apples? Just as in Christianity and Judaism the apple is a symbol of death, in witchcraft and pagan religions, it is a symbol of life. Witches eat apples as part of their fertility rituals.

Every year we hear warnings of the dangers of Halloween on the news, which many parents ignore. Children have received poisoned candy and apples containing razor blades. Abductions of children increase on Halloween. There have even been infant sacrifices. But the spiritual dangers are also great. Many children are terrified by the witches and ghouls, and often experience nightmares. Most parents do not understand that they are allowing their children participate in a celebration of all that is unholy.

When I was a firefighter-paramedic the fire and police departments dreaded Halloween more than any other night of the year. The occult practices and animal sacrifices, combined with the drugs used in Halloween fertility rituals and witchcraft practices, often resulted in violence and even death. We had increased incidents of house fires. I remember getting almost simultaneous calls to four fires in abandoned buildings one Halloween night. We also got far more than our usual number of calls from mentally disturbed people on this night of evil.

Our five-year-old daughter, Sarah, has never celebrated Halloween, and never will. We do not want her to participate in a celebration of witchcraft, the occult, and demons. There are much better things for her to celebrate. "Whatever is good, whatever is true, whatever is honest, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." (Phil. 4:8)

As an alternative to Halloween, we are having a Hallelujah Night party at our home on October 31. The children will enjoy fun, games and candy. They will dress up in costumes – but not scary ones. They will be no skeletons, witches, demons or goblins at the Barrett home this week.