More pastors encouraging churches to use Halloween as opportunity to engage with others

Each year at this time, many Christians wrestle with whether and how to celebrate Halloween.

More than seven in 10 pastors encourage church members to invite friends or neighbors to church events on or near Halloween, such as a fall festival, trunk-or-treat or judgment house, according to a Lifeway Research study. Nearly 60 percent say they want church members to build relationships with neighbors who trick-or-treat. One-third of pastors encourage church members to hand out gospel tracts to trick-or-treaters.

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“Few pastors simply ignore the fact that so many Americans participate in Halloween celebrations,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research. “Most pastors focus on the social nature of these celebrations, encouraging their congregations to engage with others outside their church.”

Compared to 2016, pastors are more likely to seek to influence their church members’ engagement in Halloween festivities this year. The largest increase is in handing out gospel tracts. Whereas 26 percent of pastors encouraged their church members to hand out gospel tracts to trick-or-treaters in 2016, 34 percent are doing so this year.

However, while some pastors are more likely to encourage their churches to engage in Halloween this year, others are more likely to encourage church members to avoid the holiday completely. While 8 percent of pastors encouraged their church members to avoid Halloween in 2016, 13 percent are doing the same this year. No matter their take on Halloween, pastors are holding to their stances more firmly and are more likely to vocalize those ideas for their congregations.

“Whether it comes from a desire to reconnect with their community after the pandemic prevented much of this or from deepened convictions about the holiday itself, pastors appear more resolute in their convictions around Halloween,” McConnell said.

This year, even more pastors are viewing Halloween as an opportunity to engage neighbors in at least some capacity. Younger pastors are more likely to encourage their congregations to engage in Halloween by inviting friends and neighbors to church events or by building relationships with neighbors who trick-or-treat. Pastors ages 18-44 and 45-54 are among the most likely to encourage members to build relationships with neighbors (66 percent and 63 percent, respectively) and to invite neighbors to church events (78 percent and 79 percent, respectively).

“The majority of even the smallest churches offer church events this time of year and encourage their members to invite people from the community,” McConnell said. “In a society that is increasingly distant and divided, most pastors see opportunities within the interactions that take place around Halloween.”

–Alan Goforth | Metro Voice News