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This coming Sunday is Halloween. If you prefer to honour the Christian influence on the event, feel free to use the name All Hallows' Eve. Depending on your upbringing you may not be aware that in many Church contexts Halloween is the source of significant controversy.

Many believe that Halloween has its first roots in a pagan Celtic harvest festival ritual called Samhain. Those who marked this ritual felt that the space between the living and the dead was the "thinnest" on this date. Later, by the church, this day was marked as All Hallows' Eve – the day before All Saints Day. Some believe All Hallows' Eve coopted elements (including the date) of Samhain. Other historians believe that it was completely unrelated and was originally a Christian holiday. This disagreement has led to some very different opinions among Christians and churches about participation in Halloween festivities.

Rather than weighing in on that debate, for which there is no clear answer, I'd like to pose a question. It's largely the same question I suggested on Sunday morning that we could ask to help guide us in how to act in any given situation.

How can I best act with love toward others on Halloween?

How might we best participate in our world, our community, our neighbourhood on Sunday evening to show and share the sacrificial love of Jesus with others? How could we best show them love in a way that they may be open to receiving it? How could we put love on display during one of the few nights of the year (especially of the last 19 months!) when families will emerge from their homes to engage with each other?

I don't have an answer for what that could and should look like for you in your neighbourhood. But that's a question I want to be wrestling with myself and I encourage you to wrestle with, too. We may be limited in what we can offer – limited by our own capacity this year; limited by health restrictions; limited by the neighbourhood we live in. All of these factors will have an impact on how we best show love. But even in acknowledging our limitations, we can still come back to the essential question, "How can I best act with love this Halloween?"

I pray that we will listen to the Spirit's guidance (in a way that is free of guilt or comparison to others) for what we are each able to do to love our neighbours this coming Sunday night.

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