This day

Halloween is the United States is a mostly secular holiday, which has mixed pagan and other religious roots. The Celts of Ireland, Britain and France held a pagan harvest festival called Samhain beginning at sunset of October 31st. The mixed roots show up in Roman Catholicism and other denominations who mark the Roman Catholic holidays. October 31 is Hallowe’en (Hallow evening), the beginning of Allhallowtide – a three-day Catholic tradition dedicated to remembering the dead, Halloween (October 31), followed by All Saints or All Hallows Day (November 1), and All Souls Day (November 2).[i]

For many Protestants, October 31 is Reformation Day – a religious holiday or commemoration of the beginning of the Reformation. According to Philip Melanchthon, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses on the door of the Wittenberg, Germany Catholic Church on October 31, 1517.

For some churches, like the Catholics before them, this has become a day or time to repurpose or rebaptize Halloween, and still celebrate it as a “Fall Festival” or “Harvest Festival” or “Hallelujah Night.”

For Bible-believing Baptists, let it be “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” This is a bold banner that may be highly hung over each day to which the Lord leads us on.[ii] And in its context, Psalm 118:24 is a reminder that the stone Jesus, which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner. “This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.”

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[i] Probably Greek Orthodoxy as well, but I do not know as much about them, and did not take the time to look it up.
[ii] Thus far the Lord hath led me on. Thus far his power prolongs my days. And every evening shall make known, some fresh memorial of his grace. (Isaac Watts)