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Haunted History: Where Halloween Comes From Part 2

Published

10 years ago

October 8, 2014

Welcome back to our ongoing lesson on the history of Halloween! When we left off last time, the Druids were calling the clans together to celebrate their connection to the dead and the harvest.

By around 37 CE, Christianity began to become more popular in the Roman Empire, but it wasn’t until Constantine the Great came to power as the Emperor that the Empire was declared a Christian one in around 314 CE. One of the first orders of business under the new regime was the systematic dismantling of the faith of the non-Christians. This was a huge turnaround from Rome’s stance before this time. In the past, it had been the way of Rome to allow a conquered people to continue their faith and practices within a region. This, more than anything, lessened the blow of people taken over by Rome. After all, their taxes might go up and they may be paying them to a different government, but they could still receive the comfort of their familiar Gods and Goddesses when they entered the temple.

Not so with the new Christian regime. Many scholars believe that this stringency came not only from the belief in singular deity (almost unheard of at the time) but also because of the way they were treated early in their development. You see, they had once been considered an insidious cult by Roman leadership, and belief in the new cult-like faith which taught that Roman leaders were teaching the people evil doctrine and should be overthrown saw many Christians thrown to the lions in the gladiatorial games. Now that they were in power, they were definitely ready to let everyone under their rule know that it would be their way or death.

While many eventually bowed to the new Christians leaders, the Celts and their Druid priests and priestesses were not so willing to let go of their faith. In fact, the Celts and their Saxon counterparts caused more problems for Rome than almost any other section of the Empire. When Christian priests attempted to tell the people that their Gods were demons and their celebrations were Satanic (Can something be Satanic if you don’t believe in Satan?), they had a tendency to find themselves on the receiving end of an uprising. The Druids led these uprisings and so they became public enemy number one in the Celtic lands under Rome’s rule.

What do you do in a situation like that? The solution was simple. Get rid of the Druids! That’s right, it became illegal to practice the rituals and beliefs of the Druids and doing so was punishable by death. As the Druid numbers decreased, larger numbers of Christian priests were sent into the area, but they still could not manage, especially in the areas of modern day Ireland, to completely beat down the old faith. So, they took an “If you can’t beat them trick them into joining you” attitude. It was an enterprise that would take centuries to complete, and some would argue that it never fully did.

Pope Gregory I in the late 6^th century sent his priests into pagan temples to re-consecrate them in the name of the Christian God. The Goddess Brigid of Ireland was so loved by the people they could not get rid of her, so they told the people it was okay to still pray to her because she was obviously a saint. While they were at it, they started renaming some of the beloved celebrations of the Celts and Saxons. Yule became Christmas; Oilmec/Ostara became Easter, and you guessed it, Samhain became All Hallow’s Eve followed immediately by All Saint’s Day.

The bonfires and other rituals were obviously out of All Hallow’s Eve. There would be no celebrating the return of the ancestors because the souls of all good people were carried away to Heaven after death. So if your dead Uncle Finn showed up in your house on Samhain night, he was obviously evil and an agent of Satan. There was, however, one other possibility. If someone you knew wasn’t bad enough to be sent to hell, but not quite good enough to get into Heaven, they might find themselves in Purgatory. All Hallow’s Eve began to evolve into a night of prayer and fasting for those who might be caught in Purgatory so that they could move on to Heaven.

This worked well in the larger parts of Britain, but once again, the early Irish Celts just couldn’t be kept down. They were more than willing to pray and fast, but there would definitely need to be a celebration to follow that time. And the Romans…well, they just couldn’t think of a good enough way to get them to stop.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the second leg of our journey in the history of Halloween. We have moved from dancing and bonfires to prayer and meditation and we’re not nearly done with our journey! Join me again next week for part 3!

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

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Movies

Trailer for ‘The Exorcism’ Has Russell Crowe Possessed

Published

12 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

The latest exorcism movie is about to drop this summer. It’s aptly titled The Exorcism and it stars Academy Award winner turned B-movie savant Russell Crowe. The trailer dropped today and by the looks of it, we are getting a possession movie that takes place on a movie set.

Just like this year’s recent demon-in-media-space film Late Night With the Devil, The Exorcism happens during a production. Although the former takes place on a live network talk show, the latter is on an active sound stage. Hopefully, it won’t be entirely serious and we’ll get some meta chuckles out of it.

The film will open in theaters on June 7, but since Shudder also acquired it, it probably won’t be long after that until it finds a home on the streaming service.

Crowe plays, “Anthony Miller, a troubled actor who begins to unravel while shooting a supernatural horror film. His estranged daughter, Lee (Ryan Simpkins), wonders if he’s slipping back into his past addictions or if there’s something more sinister at play. The film also stars Sam Worthington, Chloe Bailey, Adam Goldberg and David Hyde Pierce.”

Crowe did see some success in last year’s The Pope’s Exorcist mostly because his character was so over-the-top and infused with such comical hubris it bordered on parody. We will see if that is the route actor-turned-director Joshua John Miller takes with The Exorcism.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

News

Win a Stay at The Lizzie Borden House From Spirit Halloween

Published

14 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Spirit Halloween has declared that this week marks the start of spooky season and to celebrate they are offering fans a chance to stay at the Lizzie Borden House with so many perks Lizzie herself would approve.

The Lizzie Borden House in Fall River, MA is claimed to be one of the most haunted houses in America. Of course one lucky winner and up to 12 of their friends will find out if the rumors are true if they win the grand prize: A private stay in the notorious house.

“We are delighted to work with Spirit Halloween to roll out the red carpet and offer the public a chance to win a one-of-a-kind experience at the infamous Lizzie Borden House, which also includes additional haunted experiences and merchandise,” said Lance Zaal, President & Founder of US Ghost Adventures.

Fans can enter to win by following Spirit Halloween‘s Instagram and leaving a comment on the contest post from now through April 28.

The prize also includes:

An exclusive guided house tour, including insider insight around the murder, the trial, and commonly reported hauntings

A late-night ghost tour, complete with professional ghost-hunting gear

A private breakfast in the Borden family dining room

A ghost hunting starter kit with two pieces of Ghost Daddy Ghost Hunting Gear and a lesson for two at US Ghost Adventures Ghost Hunting Course

The ultimate Lizzie Borden gift package, featuring an official hatchet, the Lizzie Borden board game, Lily the Haunted Doll, and America’s Most Haunted Volume II

Winner’s choice of a Ghost Tour experience in Salem or a True Crime experience in Boston for two

“Our Halfway to Halloween celebration provides fans an exhilarating taste of what’s to come this fall and empowers them to start planning for their favorite season as early as they please,” said Steven Silverstein, CEO of Spirit Halloween. “We have cultivated an incredible following of enthusiasts who embody the Halloween lifestyle, and we’re thrilled to bring the fun back to life.”

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Spirit Halloween is also preparing for their retail haunted houses. On Thursday, August 1 their flagship store in Egg Harbor Township, NJ. will officially open to start off the season. That event usually draws in hordes of people eager to see what new merch, animatronics, and exclusive IP goods will be trending this year.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Movies

’28 Years Later’ Trilogy Taking Shape With Serious Star Power

Published

15 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Danny Boyle is revisiting his 28 Days Later universe with three new films. He will direct the first, 28 Years Later, with two more to follow. Deadline is reporting that sources say Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes have been cast for the first entry, a sequel to the original. Details are being kept under wraps so we don’t know how or if the first original sequel 28 Weeks Later fits into the project.

**Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ralph Fiennes**

Boyle will direct the first movie but it’s unclear which role he will take on in the subsequent films. What is known is Candyman (2021) director Nia DaCosta is scheduled to direct the second film in this trilogy and that the third will be filmed immediately afterward. Whether DaCosta will direct both is still unclear.

Alex Garland is writing the scripts. Garland is having a successful time at the box office right now. He wrote and directed the current action/thriller Civil War which was just knocked out of the theatrical top spot by Radio Silence’s Abigail.

There is no word yet on when, or where, 28 Years Later will start production.