Nor is it an "American" holiday;
It is a Christian holy day
If costumes are what you want, wait for Purim.
The name "halloween" is a corruption of "All Hallows Eve."
That event was "borrowed" by early Christians in Ireland from the local pagans who, on that time, communed with their dead.
Neither pagans communing with their dead not Christians "adapting" the superstitions is unique to Ireland; Mexico has its Día de Muertos, the day of the dead.
The difference between halloween and Purim? We send gifts on Purim; on halloween, people demand treats or there will be "tricks" - such as defacing property and other vandalism.
Samhain - Halloween's foundation
Samhain was halloween's predecessor in Ireland.
In its ‘dark' aspect, Samhain marked a period of destruction and chaos. Perhaps the most dramatic illustration of this was the ritual killing of the Irish kings of Tara.
According to Irish mythology, November 1st marked the day that the demonic Fomorian race oppressed the people of Nemed. During the festival, bands of men, women and children dressed in masks and costumes embodied the havoc-causing divinities and inflicted their own terror and chaos on the neighborhood.
This combination of darkness and light, fear and hope, order and chaos gave Samhain its particular coloring of a merry time of misbehaving.
According to the article, some Samhain traditions are maintained in today's halloween:
- The symbolic kindling of fires in the lit pumpkin
- Games of worth in the popular ‘bobbing for apples' – a water ordeal.
- The havoc wreaked by deities and the dead in modern movies like Halloween, Scream, Dracula and vampire stories, American Werewolf in London and other horror classics;
- The identification of the living with deities and the dead in Halloween trick-or-treating and costume-wearing
- The sacral fear surrounding the Samhain celebration survives in urban legends of ‘razors hidden in apples' to harm children.
- The tradition of Samhain feasts in Halloween parties, trick-or-treating and Halloween candy;
- Mischief survives in the mild "tricks" played on those that do not propitiate the costumed revelers
- Abolition of traditional hierarchy is still present in the ascendance of children over adults during the Halloween season.
From Wikipedia we read: Today's Halloween customs are also thought to have been influenced by Christian dogma and practices derived from it. Halloween falls on the evening before the Christian holy days of All Hallows' Day (also known as All Saints', Hallowmas or Hallowtide) on November 1 and All Souls' Day on November 2, thus giving the holiday on October 31 the full name of All Hallows' Eve.
"Souling", the custom of baking and sharing soul cakes for all christened souls,has been suggested as the origin of trick-or-treating. The custom was found in parts of England and dates back at least as far as the 15th century.Groups of poor people, often children, would go door-to-door during Hallowmas, collecting soul cakes, originally as a means of praying for souls in purgatory. Similar practices for the souls of the dead were found as far south as Italy. The custom of wearing costumes has been explicated by Prince Sorie Conteh, who wrote: "It was traditionally believed that the souls of the departed wandered the earth until All Saints' Day, and All Hallows' Eve provided one last chance for the dead to gain vengeance on their enemies before moving to the next world. In order to avoid being recognized by any soul that might be seeking such vengeance, people would don masks or costumes to disguise their identities"
In France, Christians, on the night of All Hallows' Eve, prayed beside the graves of their loved ones, setting down dishes full of milk for them. On Halloween, in Italy, families left a large meal out for ghosts of their passed relatives, before they departed for church services. In Spain, women, on this night, made special pastries known as “bones of the holy” (Huesos de Santo) and put them on the graves of the churchyard, a practice that continues to this day.
Dia de Muertos
Once a year the Aztecs held a festival celebrating the death of their ancestors, while honoring the goddess Mictecacihuatl, Queen of the Underworld, or Lady of the Dead. The Aztecs believed that the deceased preferred to be celebrated, rather than mourned, so during the festival they first honored los angelitos, the deceased children, then those who passed away as adults. The Mictecacihuatl festival lasted for an entire month, starting around the end of July to mid-August (the 9th month on the Aztec calendar), during the time of corn harvests.
After the Spaniards conquered the Aztecs in 1521, they tried to make the Aztecs adopt their Catholic beliefs.
What the Spaniards accomplished was more like a compromise; a blend of beliefs. The Spanish conquerors succeeding in shortening the length of the Mictecacihuatl festival to two days that conveniently corresponded with two of their own Catholic holidays: All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day, which take place on November 1 and 2 of each year.
The preceding text is copyright protected © Thaneeya LLC: http://www.celebrate-day-of-the-dead.com/dia-de-los-muertos-history.html#ixzz2ikRLijU0
According to Wikipedia, "Traditions connected with the holiday include building private altars called ofrendas honoring the deceased using sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed and visiting graves with these as gifts. They also leave possessions of the deceased."
American holidays for all
There ARE holidays Jews and non-Jews alike can celebrate together.
Thanksgiving is one, although there are a few in the Ashkenazi Orthodox community who forbid celebrating this day. On the other hand, at least one Gadol b'Dor approves of the holiday. (See http://yohanon.blogspot.com/2009/11/thanksgiving.html)
Fourth of July, America's Independence Day. Unlike Thanksgiving, it has no obvious religious aspect.
Memorial Day, honoring those who served in the military.
Labor Day, honoring those who earn their daily wages.
There are minor holidays as well; Columbus Day, and Presidents' Day (Jeff Davis Day in some places in the South) to name two.
Are Jews lacking holidays?
We have holidays on top of holidays.
There are The Big Three, the שלוש רגלים: Passover, Sukot, Shavuot. Not only do we have The Big 3, but they all are multi-day events.
There is Purim where we dress up and send, often at our children's hands, food gifts to our friends, relatives, and neighbors.
And Hanukah, an 8-day feast.
On a more somber note, there are the two days of Rosh HaShana and the long day of Yom Kippur.
Finally, we have our 52 times-a-year holiday - Shabat.
Do we need to borrow holidays from others?
In a word: No.
We have our Jewish holidays and our American holidays. If we need more, we can add Israeli holidays to our list.
For me, I'll skip halloween and go directly to Thanksgiving.
By the way, Christmas, New Years, and Easter also are not "American" holidays; they are strictly Christian. (OK, New Years marks a Jewish event; the melah of their god.)
