Trick or treat?
It’s Halloween, and it’s also Shabbat. As churches all around our area put up anti-Halloween signs, I haven’t seen anything similar at my synagogue, and I’m hoping Rabbi S addresses the relationship between Judaism and this holiday tonight.
Orthodox Judaism forbids celebrating the holiday, but I’m studying to become part of the Reform tradition, which apparently takes a more lax attitude toward it, jettisoning its other connotations and treating it as yet another secular holiday, like the Fourth of July. Still, I’d love to know how this conclusion was reached, since Halloween has two layers of religion baked into it.
I’m also wondering who’ll show up for the service. All the old folks, like me, will show up, but I can’t imagine anyone with kids saying, “Sorry, guys, we can’t go trick-or-treating because we have to be at shul.” Talk about the kind of thing that’ll turn a kid off! Candy overrules all.
But that’s fine. I’ll be there after missing last week for a trip. I’ll continue my learning, deepen my worship, and increase my bonds with the community. These are the reasons why I started this journey. Not to figure out how to exclude myself from the world, but to position my beliefs and identity within the world as it exists. And that includes holidays that Jewish people do not traditionally observe as part of the faith.
And who knows? Maybe there’ll be a little candy at the oneg. Hmm…