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Path: utzoo!utcsrgv!dave
From: dave@utcsrgv.UUCP (Dave Sherman)
Newsgroups: net.religion.jewish
Subject: Re: Haloween and Jews
Message-ID: <386@utcsrgv.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 1-Nov-84 11:18:18 EST
Article-I.D.: utcsrgv.386
Posted: Thu Nov  1 11:18:18 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 1-Nov-84 12:06:26 EST
References: <673@hou2h.UUCP> <1045@ulysses.UUCP>
Reply-To: dave@utcsrgv.UUCP (Dave Sherman)
Organization: The Law Society of Upper Canada, Toronto
Lines: 23

My personal feeling is that we should not celebrate or be involved
in Hallowe'en, not only because of its Christian and/or pagan origins,
but because making a big thing out of it denies the
importance of the Jewish holidays. Typically the kids who
want to go out trick-or-treating are at least partially in a
nonobservant environment (e.g., they go to public school).

Steve Bellovin observes that it's just a way to "have a fun time".
If kids want holidays to have a fun time (and that should certainly
be encouraged), why not encourage them to have fun with Sukkos
(decorating a sukkah), Pesach (searching for chometz, hiding/finding
the afikomen), Purim (dressing up, giving mishloach manos),
Chanukah, Tu BiShvat, Lag BaOmer and Simchas Torah?

Judaism has so many things that are geared towards children. To
look elsewhere for "a fun time" while not giving your children
the opportunity to enjoy everything Judaism has to offer is to
denigrate the validity of Judaism as a way of life.

Dave Sherman
Toronto
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