[Northkeep] Halloween

[Ld.blackmoon]

greetings

lol, I've heard many versions of the roots and reasons of Halloween, / all 
hallows eve,etc. but never that one before . thank you for a different twist 
; )

Be Safe , Be Happy, Have Fun .
Arthur
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Kathryn Helstrom" <kiamichikate at gmail.com>
To: "The Barony of Northkeep" <northkeep at lists.ansteorra.org>
Sent: Friday, October 07, 2011 6:02 PM
Subject: Re: [Northkeep] Halloween


>I have researched this off and on over the years and found many
> interpretations.  The best, however, was the story that Sister
> Venancia told me in sixth grade:
>
> Halloween is slang for "All Hallowed Eve", the evening before All
> Saints' Day, one of the High Holy Days in the Church Calendar.  In
> England, the Celtic religion was still practiced in secret, and
> Samhain (sp?) fell on All Hallowed Eve.  The druids would recruit from
> the homeless and disaffected, particularly the youth.  Their
> recruitment was strongest during Samhain where "all kinds of decadent
> rituals" were performed.  In order to bring the young in off the
> streets and out of the reach of the druids during this time, religious
> houses and pious citizens would offer gifts of food to anyone who came
> to their door on All Hallowed Eve.  The smart ones would go from door
> to door and collect enough food to see them through the winter.
>
> As the tradition grew, folks would ask the callers to perform a trick:
> a somersault, juggling, sing a song, and so forth.  The best performer
> would get the best or most food.  Thus began the saying "a trick for a
> treat."  City dwellers began to compete with each other to show their
> generosity by giving out exotic foods such as pastries and candies.
> The youth would compete with their tricks and costumes.
>
> There were still many superstitions taken very seriously, even by the
> clergy, in these days.  One was that if you carved a scary face into
> the gourd you used as a door lamp, it would frighten off the wicked
> spirits of the night, preventing them from coming into your house when
> you opened the door.  This  was especially true on very evil nights,
> such as Samhain.  The druid witches and their cat familiars were
> particularly feared.
>
> The facts, as with all long-held traditions and myths, are blurred.
> How people in York practiced All Hallows Eve probably differed greatly
> from how people in London did.  Of course, it became another excuse
> for adults to have a party and dress up and act silly before the
> somber and holy day following.
>
> So says Sister Venancia.
>
> Franziska
>
>
>
>
>
> On 10/7/11, Rene Shepard <reneshepard at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> What part are you looking for? Customs? By country? By culture? 
>>> Religious?
>>
>> Helps to narrow it down.
>> Rene
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>
>
> -- 
> Remember this: that there is a proper dignity and proportion to be
> observed in the performance of every act of life.  --Marcus Aurelius
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