Which religions prohibit the celebration of holidays such as Halloween?

Arpeggionist

Jews don't celebrate Christmas or saint's days, or Ramadan or really any other non-Jewish holidays. We've already got our calendar and simply don't need the extra days to celebrate cultures not our own. (Though the state of Israel does allow for Chirstians of every denomonation to celebrate Christmas and Easter, they are not national holidays here.) [Oct 27 04 4:52 AM] Arpeggionist writes: Jews don't celebrate Halloween on the grounds that it is not a Jewish holiday. We do not, however, have any religious or theological or moral problems with anyone else celebrating it. Oct 26 04, 2:17 PM

Stew54

Well many Muslims, some Jews and some evangelical Christians object to the celebration of Halloween on the grounds that it is associated with the practices of Paganism. Many people take a more pragmatic view however, on the basis that there are no real religious overtones to the way Halloween is celebrated, with trick-or-treat calls and ghost-themed parties. Wiccans do have a celebration that more or less coincides with Halloween (Samhain) but they would hardly mark something as significant to them as the end of their religious year in such a frivolous way. Whatever its origins might have been modern Halloween is really a secular custom, but that isn't enough to save it from the condemnation of the strictly observant members of many faiths. You can find a selection of different representative views here: http://www.religioustolerance.org/hallo_re.htm Oct 26 04, 3:05 PM

gmackematix

The Russian Orthodox Church isn't keen on it: http://www.willamette.edu/wits/llc/worldnews/xnov03a/russia.html Oct 26 04, 6:36 PM