Halloween Celebrations on Sunday? Cities Nationwide Speak Out

Is it wrong to trick or treat on Sunday, considered a religious day by some churches? While news broadcasts nationwide have attempted to arrange door-to-door trick or treating on Saturday, individuals are refusing, citing freedom of choice.

For as long as I can remember, whenever Halloween fell on a Sunday there was never any question about whether or not it would be celebrated on that day or the previous. In my small hometown, and in every other town for that matter, everybody turned on their porch lights and handed out candy on Saturday. It was believed that celebrating Halloween on the Sabbath day was nothing short of sacrilegious. Today, things have changed.

According to the three major broadcast stations in the greater Tulsa area, cities A, B, and C would be hosting trick-or-treat on Saturday, while businesses or others who chose to do so individually would be doing so on Sunday. These broadcasts were an attempt to keep Halloween-related confusion to a minimum. With this in mind, we dressed up our kids and headed out Saturday evening, October 30th, for trick or treating. Sadly, we found that nobody, and I do mean nobody, was handing out candy today. Our children were deeply disappointed, to say the least.

We called the police departments of Tulsa, Sperry, Skiatook, and Owasso Oklahoma. At each location we were told, "Yes, it (trick-or-treat) was supposed to be tonight (Saturday), but people are manning up about religious issues. They are saying that it doesn't matter if Halloween falls on a Sunday, they are going to go with the traditions of trick-or-treat, spook houses, scary decorations, or whatever no matter what."

As we drove around, trying to find places that were having Halloween on Saturday, we were dismayed to find none. Many houses had Halloween decorations, lighting, or yard decor on display, but none were handing out candy.

We spoke to a few different individuals in Owasso and Sperry as well as the neighbors. Some people were dismayed by how many people were willing to celebrate Halloween on Sunday, while others didn't think it was a big deal.

"I could really care less either way," said Tony, our neighbor. "I mean, its about candy and fun. That can happen any day of the week."

"I don't know what to say," said the dispatcher of one of the towns we called. "Well, I take that back. I know what I want to say, but I can't let my opinions be heard. I am surprised. I can say that much."

Returning home to a quiet house and disappointed children, I did a quick search online for what other cities do when Halloween falls on a Sunday. What I found was a mixed bag of opinions. While many cities in the Bible belt (primary southern states and central US) will not celebrate Halloween on Sunday, other cities have forgotten any religious connotations and continued with tradition as always. A heated debate is circling the online community today, including such locations as CNN (http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2010/10/28/trick-or-treating-debate-saturday-or-sunday/), major city newspapers (http://www.gosanangelo.com/news/2010/oct/30/trick-or-treat-conundrum-stirs-commenters/), major television broadcasting syndications nationwide (http://www.news4jax.com/family/25540934/detail.html), and countless others.

The biggest argument in favor of trick or treating on Saturday, as it seems, stems from the notion that Sunday is a religious (and holy) day for many faiths. Second, parents state that there is great concern for keeping children up well past their bed times while stuffing them with candy on a school night. Finally, working adults say that they'd rather not worry about their little ones or stay up late themselves because they have to go to work on Monday morning.

Those who favor trick or treating on Sunday say that the traditions should be followed on Halloween, not on some made-up day. Likewise, parents who wish to trick or treat on Sunday say that they plan to have their children home and in bed at a reasonable hour, while the consumption of candy will be limited.

While I wouldn't say that our family is exceedingly religious, per se, we do hold to strong traditional values regarding the celebration of Halloween on Sunday - we feel it is wrong. Our children will not be trick-or-treating tomorrow night, regardless of how many tears are shed or how far their little faces may droop.

Then again, perhaps we won't have to worry about it in the future anyway. Our daughter made a clear and decisive statement this evening about Halloween. "Mom, I don't think I want to trick or treat anymore. People's decorations are just too gross and disgusting. I don't want to see dead people and cut up bloody body parts just to get candy. I'd rather not do it at all."

For a 9 year old, these are strong statements. As the old saying goes, "Out of the mouth of babes, the truth is revealed."