Today, Halloween is the night before All Hallows, All Saints, or All Souls Day observed as a religious festival on November 1. As a religious celebration, Catholics, Lutherans and Episcopalians observe this day in order to recognize all the Heaven's saints, whether or not their name is known. This celebration previously was observed solemnly with the expectation that all Catholics will attend a Mass. ? Ancient Romans observed a celebration known as Feralia. The intent of this celebration was to provide peace and rest to all the departed souls. Celebrants sacrificed in honor for the dead, remembered them in prayers and even left gifts to the dead. The celebration occurred on February 21, rather than on October 31. February 21 is the end of the Roman lunar year. In rule of Pope Boniface IV, All Saints Day, observed on May 13, was named to replace the earlier pagan celebration of the dead. Pope Gregory III is responsible for setting the date on November 1. As is the case with several religious holidays, the religious celebrations were overlaid upon the pagan history in order to make the church more popular with the new converts to Christianity. ? In Ireland, the Halloween festival was called La Samon, or the Feast of the Sun. The Scots celebrated Hallows Eve and the Welsh called the celebration Nos Galen-gaeof or the Night of the Winter Calends. There are both religious and pagan ties signaling the end of harvest season and settling into winter. There are references in the Celtic celebrations to the increased activity by faeries. Most ties to the current celebrations come from religious beliefs and rites from both the Druids and the Christians who followed. Like so many other festivals that have both religious and pagan connections, Halloween is a mix of many different and sometimes contradictory customs. The Druidic religious festivals had many different forms, depending upon the national group performing the rites. There are some who recognize the Druidic history, but are less certain that it is a religious ritual in the celebration of Halloween. ? The American version of this celebration originated not in the Catholic Church religious celebration, but in the fire festival of the Druids in Scotland, Ireland and Wales. This Celtic celebration is known as Samhain. In the United States, there are ties to many of the pagan rituals, but fewer religious celebrations remain except among the most conservative Catholics and related churches. The celebration in the United States focused on playing tricks on neighbors and friends. Children were given more freedom to perform acts that would have been frowned upon during the rest of the year. Today, Halloween is as much a celebration for adult fun and games as for children's parties. Halloween is both a scary season and a fun season for children and adults alike. This is the result of so many different customs and observances in combination and in the history of the festival. At the same time as there is a focus of costume parties and taking on another image for the day, there is also a increase in the dark side of entertainment, including horror and occult movies and books. | 
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