Have a spooktastic October 31st by celebrating Halloween with your friends and family. Celebrating this day doesn’t only mean going out to trick-or-treat, or wearing your most creative Halloween costume. It’s a day to gather friends and family, and bond with them.
You see, Halloween originated from the ancient Celtic festival, called Samhain. People believed that the souls return to visit their homes on this day. The modern practices we do now, like wearing costumes, came from old traditions of wearing masks for the spirits to not recognize the living, and light bonfires to ward off evil spirits.
During the 8th century, Pope Gregory III declared November 1 as All Saint’s Day to honor the saints, and supplant the Pagan holiday with a Christian observance. The evening before All Saints’ Day became a holy (or hallowed) eve, and thus Halloween. As Christians, Halloween serves as a way to bring people to our doorsteps, so we can talk to them and share our faith.
To help you celebrate the day, we have prepared different Christian Halloween ideas for you to use below.
Christian Halloween Costume Ideas
Halloween is a special day to teach kids about the Bible through their costumes. To give you a few ideas, we have ten Christian Halloween costumes you may want to dress your kids.
Noah’s Ark Animals
We all know the story of Noah. He built a large ark, as God commanded, and saved mankind and all land animals from extinction. God instructed him to take a pair of each land animal to join him in the ark. Due to his obedience and faithfulness, God promised him that He will never flood the Earth again.
Noah’s ark animals are a beautiful way to show your kids the lesson of the story. If your household is filled with children, perhaps you can have them wear animal costumes, such as giraffes, cows, or zebras, while you dress up as Noah’s ark or Noah himself!
You can also create a DIY by picking a shirt or jumper in the same color as the animal you chose, and craft headbands to distinguish the animal.
The Three Wise Men
The Three Wise Men were a group of scholars who traveled to Jesus after His birth to give him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Dressing up as the Three Wise Men needs to be colorful and elaborate, so prepare colorful tunics for your kids to wear. Just be sure to find some gold, frankincense, and myrrh to complete the ensemble.
Adam and Eve
Adam and Eve were the first man and woman in the story of Genesis. They were made in the image and likeness of God. However, due to disobeying God and giving into temptation, they were banished from the Garden of Eden. However, Adam and Eve represent the love of God for us. He created us in His image and likeness, and clothed us even when we disobeyed him.
Your kids will learn that, despite them giving in to sin, God still loves them and wants them to repent. So, to clothe your kids with Adam and Eve, you can let them wear a nude jumpsuit with oversized green leaves for the girl’s chest and on their hips. You can also let them wear a leafy crown. It would also be nice to add some props, such as a rubber snake or an apple.
The Twelve Disciples of Christ
The twelve apostles were Jesus’ closest followers, and became the primary teachers of the Gospel. They spread the Word of God, and proclaimed His teachings. They were also Jesus’ closest companions during Jesus’ Ministry.
For the disciple’s costume, your children should wear a white or beige long-sleeved gown. They can also wear a plain long-sleeved shirt or a white pajama dress. Then, wear a brown caftan over the robe, and tie a belt made of rope around the caftan. Also, don’t forget to wear a head covering. You can make this by using a fabric to wrap around your child’s head, and tie a rope to secure the head covering.
David the Shepherd Costume
The Bible mentioned shepherds a couple of times. It is only fitting that you let your kids wear one, particularly David. Before David became a king, he was a young shepherd and musician. David was well-known for killing the giant Goliath. He then became king after Saul and his son Jonathan died.
To create the look, you can buy a shepherd’s costume online or stitch your own robes. As for the cane, you can use a newspaper and paint to create one. To complete the look, you can buy a sheep stuffed toy and a mustache for the face. Kids will definitely love this look because they can embody the humility and care given by shepherds to their sheeps.
Virgin Mary
Mary, the mother of Jesus, was conceived without sin, and she conceived Jesus through the Holy Spirit. She is known for her humility and obedience to the message of God.
Going as the Virgin Mary will help your kids learn to be obedient to the teachings of God, and to show kindness to everyone.
To create the Virgin Mary look, you can let your little girl wear a white dress robe underneath and place a blue cape on her shoulders. Place a small veil on her head, and tie her hips with a blue bow. You may let her wear simple white sandals, and carry a baby on a bundle in her arm.
Roman Centurion and Soldiers
A Centurion is an officer and commander of a centuria, which is the smallest unit of a Roman legion. We read about them throughout the New Testament, like when they captured Jesus, so Peter cut off one of their ears. But, Jesus didn’t want violence, so he miraculously healed the soldier’s ear.
For the costume, your child can wear a linen undershirt and a tunic, and an armor on top. You can create a DIY armor using cardboard. Also, don’t forget the sandals and sword to complete the look.
Moses
Moses was known from delivering the Israelites from Egyptian slavery. He was also known for being close to God. Considering that the job God gave him was difficult, he never ever tried to hide his emotions and talked to God often. They spent 40 days together on top of Mount Sinai where God created the Ten Commandments.
Your child can wear a brown long-sleeved robe with a rope belt. Have them wear a fake wig and gray beard. Add two cutout plaques for the Ten Commandments from a cardboard or styrofoam.
Guardian Angel
Kids love it when they get to play the guardian angel. Have them wear white angel robes and angel wings on their back. You can create a golden halo on their head, and a golden belt on their waist. To complete the look, you can let them wear golden crisscross sandals.
Queen Esther
Esther was a Jewish woman who became wife of Xerxes I, king of the Persian Empire. She was known for saving her people from destruction when Haman, the king’s highest official, suggested killing all of the Jews. Esther urged all of the Jews to fast and pray for deliverance while she went to the King, and revealed her Jewish heritage and the plan to have her and her people killed.
The King was angered, and he ordered Haman to be hung on the gallows. The Jews were granted protection throughout the land, and the people celebrated God’s deliverance. This story teaches kids of Esther’s bravery by risking her life to serve God and save her people. Have your kids embody Queen Esther’s bravery by dressing them up like her.
To go as Queen Esther for Halloween, you can wear an elegant flowing purple or teal dress, and pair it with jeweled statement earrings and a jeweled collared necklace.
Christian Halloween Theme Ideas
Do you want to decorate your home based on the different stories in the Bible? Fret not, because we have fun Christian Halloween theme ideas for you!
Team David vs Team Goliath
Have a fun and challenging sports party, and categorize the participants into Team David or Team Goliath. We all know the story of how David defeated Goliath. In this party, we’re going to put it to the test on who will truly win.
Prepare different games, such as quizzes, relays, and obstacle races. Whoever gets the most points will be the winner.
Jesus is my Superhero
One of the fun Christian Halloween theme ideas to do is to incorporate superheroes with Bible stories in this “Jesus is My Superhero” themed party. This theme can be a great way to tell your kids how Jesus is just like the superheroes they watch and read, only better! Talk about the superhero-like characters and their stories in the Bible, like David, Esther, Samson, and many others! It would be even better to dress like them, too!
Decorate your space with photos of superheroes, Jesus, and Bible heroes as well! You can also transform your place like a superhero movie setting. With this theme, you can have kids prepare skits from the Bible where Jesus saved His people, or play trivia games about superhero moments in the Bible.
King Solomon
King Solomon was the wisest man who has ever lived. He was famous for the Hebrew story the Judgment of Solomon where two women claim to be the mother of a child. The story is well-known for so many generations, which is why it would be a good party theme for your Halloween.
You can decorate your home as colorful and luxurious as King Solomon’s palace, and wear colorful tunics. Hand out scroll type of invitations, create a mini-throne room, hang peacock feathers as fans, and serve meals in gold colored bowls.
Since Solomon is known as the wisest man on Earth, you can create fun mind games, based on Bible stories, to play.
Birth of Jesus Christ
Everyone knows the story of the Birth of Jesus Christ. To relive the story, you can decorate your home with simple wheat and wood. Let your guests wear shepherd outfits, and create life-size animals to complete the decor. You can assign someone to be the angel, the Three Kings, St. Joseph, and the Virgin Mary. Don’t forget to hang the star on the front door to guide your guests in.
For this theme, gather your guests in one area, and have them bring a photo of themselves when they were babies. Tell your birth story, the origin of your name, and the lessons you learned throughout the years. You can have one facilitator summarize all the stories, and relate it to Jesus.
Another fun game you can play is to pin all baby photos on the wall, and identify who it belongs to.
The Creation Story
The creation story is one of our favorites because it depicts how God created everything. It’s a beautiful story to tell both kids and adults. So, decorate your home into your own Garden of Eden, where you can hang fake (or real, if you’re a plantie!) leaves on the wall, hang a photo of nature or sea, and serve refreshing drinks. You can add a background music of the birds chirping, too, and invite guests to wear simple clothing.
The Story of Moses
Decorate your home with Egyptian texts on the walls, and the Ten Commandments on the other room to depict the story of Moses. You can have your guests wear ancient Egyptian clothing and Israelite clothing, too. It’s best to create two stone tablets, containing the Ten Commandments, and mount it on a table. Also, discuss the story and lessons for each commandment with your kids through a mini-play.
Bible Character Costume Party
You can just have a general costume party where guests can arrive in different Bible characters. Decorate your place with different scenes from the Bible, and hand out Bible quotes as souvenirs. You can also prepare dishes from the Bible, or have the guests bring their own meal to be shared with others.
Christian Halloween Activities
You can’t have a Halloween party without games! Games keep your guests alive and pumped up. We’ve listed five fun games and activities you can do. We have also listed some more Halloween activity ideas in our previous article.
Candy Bible Verse Game
This is a super sweet and fun activity. Give each participant a piece of long bond paper, cards with Bible verses written on it, a box of different candies and chocolates, and tape.
The participants will have to match the candy underneath the corresponding verse. You can download the printables of this game from DaniellesPlace for your Christian Halloween party.
Treat and Preach
Treat and Preach is one of the most fun Christian Halloween activity ideas for the family. Retell a short Bible story to the trick-or-treaters, and dress up as the story’s characters. After telling the story, give them treats, which best represent the story. This is a fun roleplay game for the kids, and it will help them know more about the stories in the Bible.
If you want this to be more of a collaborative activity, invite your neighbors to do the same, and delegate stories and candies for each household.
Decorate Cookies
It wouldn’t be a sweetastic Halloween party without some sweets! Have your kids line up on the dining table, and give each a plain cookie. Let them design their own cookies based on your Halloween theme. They can create angels, infant Jesus, or a star. It’s up to them to let their creativity flow.
Reverse Treating, No Trick
This is a super fun and generous way of spending Halloween. What you and your kids will do is to pack bags full of treats, and deliver it to houses. They would all be surprised that you showed at their doorsteps, not to trick them, but to give them a treat. You can add Bible quotes on their bags, too, and give them a hug.
Sheep Scavenger Hunt
For the sheep scavenger hunt, the goal is to look for the sheeps around your home. Scatter lots of sheeps around your home, but the aim is to find the gold-colored sheep. Whoever gets five of these wins the game.
Conclusion
You can still celebrate and participate in the Halloween spirit without dishonoring God or compromising your beliefs. Halloween is a good and fun avenue to introduce and retell Bible stories to kids, and we hope these Christian Halloween ideas can make the holiday even more enjoyable.
This Hallow’s Eve, enjoy the celebration with your kids and fellow Christians!
