Why all hallows eve

That really became popular in the 19th century. Some of the rules came from the folklore, and some of the rules he made up. That has to do with taming the monster. Zombies started out as part of the folklore of the Haitian culture. Folkloric zombies are not really that. Vampires are interesting because of this fear of contagion as well. I find zombies depressing. You have to run for the rest of your life? Some Americans play zombie games and run from evil creatures, and they are criticized because other people in the world are running from real villains.

They always seem so tortured. I like the cyclical nature of what happens to a werewolf, the full moon. If you grew up religious, I think you are already primed for it. Stephen King once said that horror is a way to face death. Want more Halloween history? Boston University moderates comments to facilitate an informed, substantive, civil conversation. Abusive, profane, self-promotional, misleading, incoherent or off-topic comments will be rejected.

Moderators are staffed during regular business hours EST and can only accept comments written in English. Statistics or facts must include a citation or a link to the citation. They shred Pentheus — the local ruler who denied the worship and divinity of Dionysus.

Then shall with universal dread the Book of Consciences be read to judge the lives of all the dead. For now before the Judge severe all hidden things must plain appear; no crime can pass unpunished here. O what shall I, so guilty plead? O King of dreadful majesty! Recall, dear Jesus, for my sake you did our suffering nature take then do not now my soul forsake! In weariness You sought for me, and suffering upon the tree!

O Judge of justice, hear, I pray, for pity take my sins away before the dreadful reckoning day. More O God, Lord of mercies, grant to the souls of Your servants and handmaids, the place of refreshment, the bliss of etrnal rest and the splendor of Your Light. It is a solemnity, a holyday of obligation and the day that the Church honors all of God's saints, even those who have not been canonized by the Church.

It is a family day of celebration—we celebrate the memory of those family members sharing with us in the Mystical Body, the doctrine of the Communion of Saints now sharing eternal happiness in the presence of God. We rejoice that they have reached their eternal goal and ask their prayers on our behalf so that we, too, may join them in heaven and praise God through all eternity. The honoring of all Christian martyrs of the Faith was originally celebrated on May 13, the date established by the fourth century.

Pope Boniface IV in established it as the "Feast of All Martyrs" commemorating the dedication of the Pantheon, an ancient Roman temple, into a Christian church dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary and all the martyrs. By , the feast included not only martyrs, but all the saints in heaven as well, with the title changing to "Feast of All Saints" by In , Pope Gregory IV transferred the feast to November 1st, timing it around the harvests to be able to provide food for the pilgrims.

Some scholars believe this was to substitute a feast for the pagan celebrations during that time of year. See related links. Encyclopaedia Britannica states that this date may have been chosen "in an effort to supplant the Pagan holiday with a Christian observance". The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions also claims that Hallowe'en "absorbed and adopted the Celtic new year festival, the eve and day of Samhain". Festivals commemorating the saints as opposed to the original Christian martyrs appear to have been observed by In England and Germany, this celebration took place on 1st November.

In Ireland, it was commemorated on 20th April, a chronology that contradicts the widely held view that the November date was chosen to Christianize the festival of Samhain. Certainly the festival of Samhain, meaning Summer's End, was by far the most important of the four quarter days in the medieval Irish calendar, and there was a sense that this was the time of year when the physical and supernatural worlds were closest and magical things could happen, but however strong the evidence in Ireland, in Wales it was 1st May and New Year which took precedence, in Scotland there is hardly any mention of it until much later, and in Anglo-Saxon England even less.

Heavy Irish immigration into the Scottish Highlands and Isles in the early Middle Ages carried the name Samhain there, in local variations, but to the Welsh the day was 'Calan Gaeaf', 'the first day of winter', and the night before was termed 'Nos Galan Gaea', winter's eve'.

Perhaps significantly, the earliest Welsh literature attributes no arcane significance to these dates in sharp contrast to May Eve and describes no gatherings then in sharp contrast to New Year.

It began as a Celtic end-of-summer festival during which people felt especially close to deceased relatives and friends. For these friendly spirits, they set places at the dinner table, left treats on doorsteps and along the side of the road and lit candles to help loved ones find their way back to the spirit world.

We avoid crossing paths with black cats , afraid that they might bring us bad luck. This idea has its roots in the Middle Ages , when many people believed that witches avoided detection by turning themselves into black cats. We try not to walk under ladders for the same reason. This superstition may have come from the ancient Egyptians , who believed that triangles were sacred it also may have something to do with the fact that walking under a leaning ladder tends to be fairly unsafe.

And around Halloween, especially, we try to avoid breaking mirrors, stepping on cracks in the road or spilling salt.

Many of these obsolete rituals focused on the future instead of the past and the living instead of the dead. In particular, many had to do with helping young women identify their future husbands and reassuring them that they would someday—with luck, by next Halloween—be married.

In 18th-century Ireland, a matchmaking cook might bury a ring in her mashed potatoes on Halloween night, hoping to bring true love to the diner who found it. In Scotland, fortune-tellers recommended that an eligible young woman name a hazelnut for each of her suitors and then toss the nuts into the fireplace. In some versions of this legend, the opposite was true: The nut that burned away symbolized a love that would not last.

Another tale had it that if a young woman ate a sugary concoction made out of walnuts, hazelnuts and nutmeg before bed on Halloween night she would dream about her future husband. Other rituals were more competitive. At some Halloween parties, the first guest to find a burr on a chestnut-hunt would be the first to marry. At others, the first successful apple-bobber would be the first down the aisle. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us!

Subscribe for fascinating stories connecting the past to the present. Although it's derived from ancient festivals and religious rituals, Halloween is still widely celebrated today in a number of countries around the globe. In countries such as Ireland, Canada Halloween's origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when it was believed the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead become blurred.

It has since evolved into a holiday when spooky legends, myths and folklore take center stage. Trick-or-treating—setting off on Halloween night in costume and ringing doorbells to demand treats—has been a tradition in the United States and other countries for more than a century.

Its origins remain murky but traces can be identified in ancient Celtic festivals, early Roman