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Being a Christian personally I don’t celebrate Halloween and I don’t mind other peoples decorations etc. But I do find body bags and bloody hand prints a bit odd with all that’s going on in the world recently. Maybe it’s just me but it seems quite insensitive or maybe it’s just what people are decorating around my village?
Whereabouts are you? Maybe the bloody handprints and body bags are real?
Midsomer Murders has shown us how life-threatening villages can be
Being a Christian personally I don’t celebrate Halloween
What sort of Christian are you? All Hallows Eve is the day before All Hallows Day, also known as All Saints Day - an important day in the Christian calendar, in fact it is a holy day of obligation for Catholics and they must attend mass.
The commercialisation of Halloween is an import from the United States, which in turn imported it from Ireland, which is a deeply Christian country.
Being a Christian personally I don’t celebrate Halloween
I don't know why that makes me smile. Maybe it's being a dastardly uncouth unbeliever and living in a country where (the christian appropriated pagan festival) of Christmas is still a fundamental to the annual national ceremony it feels like a bit of karma! And yes I appreciate the irony of chucking in karma into the melting pot of ideology there.
I genuinely think most people don't really associate the 'gore' of Halloween with the (religiously generated) killing on the news...a bit like few people think of xmas have an awful lot to do with baby Jesus anymore either.
Anyway.....give it a few days and we can all cheer as we throw an effigy of a catholic on the fire. Funny old world.
It's just a bit of fun. I have pumpkin lanterns outside and a large box of Swizzels at the ready
Orange Whinger more like.
APF
To be honest I've not made THAT link but the whole bonfire night thing where the place sounds and smells like a war zone is the one that winds me up.
Having kids has made me reevaluate Halloween, currently on door duty so the teenage scrotes don't come and clean us out of sweets like last year.
There is no obligation on catholics to attend mass on All Saints Day - or any other day.
What sort of Christian are you? All Hallows Eve is the day before All Hallows Day, also known as All Saints Day – an important day in the Christian calendar, in fact it is a holy day of obligation for Catholics and they must attend mass.
The commercialisation of Halloween is an import from the United States, which in turn imported it from Ireland, which is a deeply Christian country.
That might be the medium term history, but I thought the Catholics appropriated it from the pagans first up.
The Americans do a weird Halloween I've never really got my head around - the whole dressing up as a Disney character or a foxy minx etc etc. Is that a modern thing? If you don't look like an extra from the Walking Dead, I'm not really sure what the point is.
I don’t mind other peoples decorations etc. But I do find body bags and bloody hand prints a bit odd with all that’s going on in the world
Edit: And btw Thursday, in the Christian calendar, will be All Souls Day, spare a thought for our dearly departed such as Sean Lock whose loss has made the world a sadder place imo.
Not bothered if people want to celebrate Halloween but why do they have to do it with a load of plastic tat which will end up in landfill.
There is no obligation on catholics to attend mass on All Saints Day – or any other day.
Well, there's no legal requirement. It is a Holy Day Of Obligation though maybe that now means something other than it used to in my childhood.
Yeah always makes me wonder if people actually stop to think what the decorations are. Lets re-enact a mass murder on the front lawn, jump out at kids with a fake chainsaw etc. And yes the plastic tat quantities are quite horrific.
I had dinner around halloween in a pub next to the River Severn a few years ago. All pleasant enough, the usual mahhoosive pub kahoona burger was very filling. Anyway, I dropped a knife and bent down to pick it up and noticed a holdall next to the wall, unzipped. I was nosey and peeked inside - to find a chopped up babies body. I found this very strange
I do like the marking of events as the year comes to an end, who doesnt enjoy the crackling of the bonfire and a glass of hot punch under a starry sky? But it does piss me off that pretty much all of the tat that gets shipped round the world will be in landfill tomorrow morning.
I was hoping that with brexit we would get kids with Guys in wheelbarrows asking for a penny. <br /><br />
If you believe in one kind of supernatural, you're on dodgy ground objecting to the celebration of other kinds imo.
A few years ago when my daughter was still at primary school a trick-or-treat get together was arranged with her friends. One of the parents came dressed as Jimmy Saville - that didn’t go down well!! 😬😬
Halloween is great, organised religion, each to their own, but it's not for me.
I don't care if it's become commercialised, tonight I've walked the street with my youngest and met a load of neighbours that I barely see all year. New families have moved in and it's a great atmosphere.
If you can't distinguish between a fake coffin and bloody handprints, then don't go to an easter parade...
Oh and that plastic tat, goes in the loft for reuse next to the plastic tat for Christmas 😀
It should be quite quiet for the next few days.
Hiding from trick or treaters again this year, a reactive dog is not an easy thing to manage with weird costumes and the door going all night.
Bruce
Full Member
Not bothered if people want to celebrate Halloween but why do they have to do it with a load of plastic tat which will end up in landfill.
Agree.
Also that netting stuff that gets strewn over trees and hedges, is so bad for wild life, especially bats and birds.
Sometimes you have to spend time on the dark side to appreciate the light.
But I do find body bags and bloody hand prints a bit odd with all that’s going on in the world recently.
death is a part of life and there’s wars going on all the time. So when you say recently, last 100 years?
I think it's a pointless exercise in plastic tat consumption (think Love Day in the Trash of the Titans episode of the Simpsons) but each to their own.
Banging doors of randoms demanding sweets bugs me though. As a household with a dog that has strong guarding instincts and a difficult past I don't want him jumping and stressing every time the doorbell goes and frankly I've better things to do after a long day at work than getting up and down from the sofa to give tooth rot to someone else's kids.
If the place is decked up with ghoulish tat on the outside then fill your boots but leave the non participants in peace.
I'm also against the vast amount of plastic tat which gets bought and thrown away.
I've told my kids that they can take the spade from the shed, and pointed them to the place in the village where with a bit of effort the can get a locally sourced, organically raised skeleton rather than this plastic shite...
Yeah probably just you.
Some great setups in the street again this year, luckily as plastic doesn’t rot it can be reused next year too.
The chocolate covered sprouts were a hit again! (Well until they get home).
It was good to meet a load of the local youngsters 2 to 14/15 were out tonight. All the sweets were gone in 70 minutes.
I don't think anyone really "celebrates" Halloween in so far as we all sit around rejoicing about its true meaning, whatever that may be. It's just an excuse to have a bit of fun and to do something different which is a break from the day-to-day mundane existence of everyday life. Much like Guy Fawkes' Night, Easter and Christmas.
I’m catholic and took this opportunity to buy a job lot of Haribo 😃
Is that to balance Zombie Jesus week?
Yeah, it's really not for me but I'll admit (I'm more a 5th of November man), I saw some really nicely carved pumpkins down my road earlier this evening all lit up with candles and I did have a smile.
It's been a few rough years for many, including kids, and still is tough for many people at the moment. I'll indulge my slight grumpiness but I don't begrudge other people a bit of fun tonight if I'm honest.
Anyway, the little devils will all be keeping their parents awake at night for days after having huge sugar rushes tonight.😁
A few years ago on Halloween. My partner was unloading the car after returning from work. She had been doing a Halloween event for work.
Some kids appeared looking for trick or treat and got more than they bargained for as she had properly scarey witch face paint. The look of terror on their faces was priceless.
Our street was great fun tonight. Nice chance to have a chat with the parents, the kids were suitably stimulated and entertained.
I miss the good old days when a gang of tracksuit yoofs (no masks or costumes) would knock on your door trick or treat mate.
American isn't it, the elaborate OTT extravaganza. The British version used to be more low key. We are becoming more American every year. Baby showers, gender reveals all that nonsense. Showing off on social media! It's not just the common use of American English, it's a societal thing, the culture of money talks, showing off and not being a negative Nancy. The rise of SUV's and massive pickup trucks. Just look around at the knocking down of old houses to replace them with McMansions that's all the rage.
If the place is decked up with ghoulish tat on the outside then fill your boots but leave the non participants in peace
I've nothing against it and we had a big bowl of sweets ready.
We didn't leave the front lights on though and didn't decorate, but it was clear we were in the house
The decorated houses with the lights on got the hordes of kids, we were pretty much left alone.
Bleedin' hell @BoardinBob!
Did you have to provide complementary free underwear for some of the kids!😁
We are becoming more American every year.
Two things here:
1) Our entire culture, society and identity has been stolen from appropriated from influenced by others. Our national dish is chicken tikka masala and there aren't many tea plantations in Glasgow. We're the poster boy mongrel state, we've built an entire nation out of "ooh, that's nice, we'll take/do that and then call it ours."
2) Where do you suppose the Americans got it from in the first place?
why do people think that halloween decorations get thrown out?
they don’t, they get put in the loft to be used next year.
i don’t like halloween. my wife takes our son trick or treating and i stay home handing out sweets. bores the shit out of me.
as for people complaining about it upsetting their dogs, should have thought about that before getting a dog. (joke!)
Where do you suppose the Americans got it from in the first place?
the irish, apparently.
In the far east we have a month for the dead. The community will set up traditional opera in open space with chairs etc after sun set in order to perform for the "audience". But if you look closely most of the chairs are not occupied. You can join to watch the opera if you wish coz it's free. This is also the time of the year where people don't out late in order to avoid unwanted encounter.
orangewingerFree Member<br />Being a Christian personally I don’t celebrate Halloween and I don’t mind other peoples decorations etc. But I do find body bags and bloody hand prints a bit odd with all that’s going on in the world recently. Maybe it’s just me but it seems quite insensitive or maybe it’s just what people are decorating around my village?
How do you feel about celebrating people being nailed to trees? Or crowned with thorns?
Hoi. Scotland wants a **** word. It’s a Gaelic tradition
Oidche shamhna
OP=troll?
Death and murder aren’t that recent so I think the distaste you have for Halloween is perhaps just you.
It’s a great festival day with a rich heritage. And much better now than it was back in the 80s.
Not sure it’s a holy day of obligation but those still seem to be around https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_day_of_obligation
I understand from a colleague in Southern California that in her area it’s now mostly Halloween parties and not so much trick or treating for kids. 😢
I've always enjoyed Halloween. In Derry when I was a child, pumpkins were not a thing, so we hollowed out and carved turnips!
We didn't trick or treat (that may be because we lived in the sticks) but there was always a bonfire, lots of nuts, apple bobbing etc.
Guy Fawkes night wasn't a thing either IIRC, but we saw English people do it on the telly. Private fireworks were banned (too many security concerns) but you could buy indoor fireworks (about 50% more exciting than watching an incense stick burn)
The best bit was when we were boozy teenagers - Haloween night in Derry is amazing! Thousands in fancy dress, bands in the street, underage drinkers in masks trying to get into pubs, a bouncer's nightmare!
Sorry, slight nostalgia tip there. Anyway, these days, plastic tat is kept in the loft when not in use, and as long as the more gory content isn't traumatising young kids, go for it.
weve got a good local loop, and all the primary aged kids get stuck in, I was amazed how restrained they were with the handfuls of jelly beans.
I do find they get taller as the evening goes on, and when they end up 14 ish wearing just a crappy scream mask as a token effort with backpacks full of loot and cigarettes, it loses its appeal and we wrap it up.
I miss the good old days when a gang of tracksuit yoofs (no masks or costumes) would knock on your door trick or treat mate.
When was that? I remember people getting dressed up and wearing masks in the 70s.
As a child born in the late 60's Halloween really wasn't a thing in the 70's (round our way anyway!).
Pushing a Guy in a wheelbarrow round the village in the week leading up to bonfire night was. Shouting 'PENNY FOR THE GUY!!'.
And as I grew into a yoof - newsagents would gladly sell you air-bomb repeaters and bangers. Then used for jolly japes popping them in peoples plant pots and milk bottles outside their front door.
My wife went out to check the letter box last night to be confronted by an 8' T-Rex which she found hilarious. Eventually. 😂
burning a religious terrorist at the stake…
Nothing quite as uncivilised as that.
Hanged, drawn, and quartered.
Where do you suppose the Americans got it from in the first place?
TV?
I've got an 8 year old daughter so Halloween is religiously observed. Its a nice neighbourhood event, despite the spooky theme I find it to be a more wholesome and friendly affair than bonfire night.
It was very different when I was a small child 30y ago in central Scotland, where it was guising rather than trick or treat and the whole point was to go round the houses of people you knew in disguise, rather than going round strangers houses.
Some daft woman on the village FB group asking where the best place to take her little one trick or treating was. How about her own street?
How about her own street?
I don't think there are any under 20yo in our street but we still get plenty of visitors 🙂 not quite sure where they all come from, obviously the lure of sweets is strong.
I bought a big box of Celebrations. We didn't get any trick-or-treaters. Imagine my disappointment at being stuck with the full tub.
Forget witches and ghouls, all the youngsters round my way last night appeared to have dressed as teenage Neds. Hundreds of the little scrotes roaming the streets.
there were a few groups of younger kids out last night as well, but they only went to houses with decorations outside, which is fair enough.
As someone without kids it’s not something I partake in anymore, but I use to enjoy it as a kid.
My girls are 14 now and were worried they were getting a bit too old, but ended up getting into the swing of things. Daughter (the one who is having the horrible migraines if you follow my other thread) on the left, her friend in the middle and our foster placement on the right wielding a baseball bat. They were about to go over the road to where our other daughter was at a Hallowe'en party to sneak into the garden and scare them all 🙂
Cougar
I bought a big box of Celebrations. We didn’t get any trick-or-treaters. Imagine my disappointment at being stuck with the full tub.
Did you have a lit pumpkin outside, or any other decoration?
It's pretty much an unwritten rule near us, that you can knock on any door with an obvious Halloween decoration, but leave any other houses well alone.
I took my daughter round the block last night - there was a massive range of decoration, from one lonely pumpkin (like we had) to full front gardens decorated. There was even a severed head hanging from a road sign - pretty sure it was fake.
One local house had a motion-sensing hanging zombie that caused both of us to almost soil ourselves when it started up. Very funny.
We had a 6foot inflatable unicorn turn up just as we got back to the house. Highly amusing, but I struggle to see the Halloween connection. Apparently it was very warm in the suit & she kept having to de-mist the viewing window.
Our kids love it, we got cleared out in an hour. Loads of families out having fun, I'm sure it's not just you OP but we put up with church bells early every Sunday morning. 😉
All our decorations last for years but most are home made. Particularly fond of the ghosts the Mrs knocked up this year.
Our village usually have a few kids out 'n about, with parents in tow. The local rule is to only knock on houses with a pumpkin out the front.
That said my house is almost impossible to see from the road. PITA when DPD etc can't find us, but quite useful on Halloween. We haven't had any kids finding us for years, despite having a pumpkin out by the road in the past. I think they all went to my neighbour by mistake!🎃
Its a load of meaningless yank cringe horse sh!t. Adults who 'celebrate' it need their laptops/phone checking by the police. Hideous fake people.
What did Alan Partridge say that's applicable to Halloween, it was something along the lines of:
"Yet another example of America tightening its grip around the neck of British culture with little to no resistance"
Johnny Vegas said his dad called it a "blasphemous celebration of evil".
Did you have a lit pumpkin outside, or any other decoration?
It’s pretty much an unwritten rule near us, that you can knock on any door with an obvious Halloween decoration, but leave any other houses well alone.
We didn't, though we do have twinkly lights which I thought might attract them. Maybe I'm confusing them with moths.
Honestly, it's pretty much the first year I've thought "eh, why not." Historically (as I touched on earlier) it was more the "give us some money mister, or we'll egg your car" brand of trick or treating that I'm used to seeing. I wasn't really expecting any, just figured I'd get some chocs on the off-chance.
Maybe next year.
a “blasphemous celebration of evil”.
If I'd known that I'd definitely have put some pumpkins out.
(Also, learn some history.)
I understand from a colleague in Southern California that in her area it’s now mostly Halloween parties and not so much trick or treating for kids. 😢
Again that’s been around for a long time too, I can recall going to them as a kid and certainly in my 20s for other people’s kids. Now I have little choice as my youngest was born in the 31st October.
As a child born in the late 60’s Halloween really wasn’t a thing in the 70’s (round our way anyway!).
It’s been a thing for a very long time, my parents both did it.
Now I have little choice as my youngest was born in the 31st October.
Username checks out.
It's not just you.
For reasons best known to themselves some "youths" decided to egg our house at about 9pm last night.
So that was ****ing fun sorting last night and this morning.
I have been in the US at Halloween and we are crap at it in comparison. You also don't tend to get groups of 14 year old Purge wannabes wandering the streets until god knows when, can't imagine why...
I'm Roman Catholic by birth, and really couldn't care less about religion any more - it seems to cause a lot of death and destruction all in the name of what religion people are. No thanks. Nice to see lots of kids out last night having fun !
the 'no decorations, no knock' is pretty much a universal rule
Penny for the guy won't work any more - so few coins in circulation in a cashless society - it also used to be that the smallest kid in the family/friend group would get dressed up in all kinds of old clothes and get barrowed, haven't seen a 'guy' in years
Hah, that reminds me. A few years back I had,
ding dong
"Penny for the Guy!"
"Uh... where's your Guy?"
"... what?"
For reasons best known to themselves some “youths” decided to egg our house at about 9pm last night.
Yeah we had that last year. It took literally seconds to clean off.
I was always forbidden to trick or treat by my mother who said it was a form of begging.
it also used to be that the smallest kid in the family/friend group would get dressed up in all kinds of old clothes and get barrowed, haven’t seen a ‘guy’ in years
How did that go when the guy was thrown on the bonfire, which is the whole point of the guy? 😀
Halloween is great, it was well attended last night. Loads of kids dressed up going round the houses and having a great time. The local church did a good job too. Not many decs (🤣) but an open door, kids everywhere, ‘treasure trail’ round the property, hot chocolate, sweeties, a cheery reverend and some other friendly church faces too. A bit of propaganda heading out the door and job’s a good ‘un. I’m not religious at all but great to see them getting involved with the community.
I CBA with it all, but to be fair had a good time at a Halloween fancy dress party at the weekend so its a good excuse for a piss up if nothing else. Only got one group of 3 young kids last night so loads of Haribo left!