This year, on Tuesday 31st October, as an alternative to celebrating Halloween, we hosted a ‘Superhero Party’ for children aged 5-11. This was a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the light that Jesus brings into the darkness, and to teach the children that we do not need to be afraid of darkness or evil, as Jesus has conquered it all!
The children came to the party dressed as their favourite heroes, there were some outstanding costumes, including a Spider-Man with real webs, a very green and mean Hulk, and a knight in shining armour! Some even attended as their favourite sporty heroes (which was slightly stretching the theme but was very impressive).
We began the evening with some silly games which included Robot Skittles, Pin the Logo on Iron Man, Splat the Rat, Apple Bobbing, Sweets Hoopla, Guess the Sweets in the Jar, and many more! We also did craft, making a lollipop stick superhero, to remind us that Jesus is the best hero of all time. We then had a short talk, where we looked at John 8:12, where Jesus says: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12)
We looked at a pumpkin and saw how we are a bit like pumpkins. Not because we are orange, or round, or have a knobbly bit on our heads, but because on the outside we can look shiny and smiley, but on the inside, we are full of mess. But we saw that when we turn to Jesus, he brings light into our lives, and he has defeated darkness and evil. We don’t need to fear the darkness, evil, or even the devil. Jesus has beaten them all and we can trust in him as our hero!
Ester Schoeman writes about the Superhero Party and Halloween from her perspective as a parent.
As a mum who has chosen not to celebrate Halloween, it was so lovely to have an alternative to offer my 10-year-old son. He was invited to go ‘trick-or-treating’ with his friends, and although he understands that we don’t celebrate Halloween and the reasons why, the prospect of missing out on dressing up and getting lots of sweets was devastating if he just had to just stay at home.
Firstly, as we were leaving the house to go to church, the ‘trick-or-treating’ had already started in our neighbourhood. Two boys came running up the driveway as we were getting into the car and there was a bewildered look in their eyes. It might be from the sugar rush from the sweets, but I got an eerie feeling stirring in my tummy.
Secondly, the next morning at school drop-off I noticed several children who looked tired and miserable. I asked one of Caden’s friends why, and the reply was because of ‘trick-of-treating’ the night before. The striking part for me was the contrast between the happiness on Caden’s face after the party compared to the incidents I witnessed. I think as a society, we give in to what our children WANT instead of standing firm to give them what they NEED.
At first, I didn’t have a strong opinion regarding Halloween, but we made a choice not to celebrate it. Over time I have had confirmation that for us, this is the correct choice. There is nothing about Halloween that glorifies God, however it can be a gateway to the occult for children with a fascination of spiritual entities. Something that seems innocent now could have long lasting effects on the minds of impressionable children.