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The Daily Mail wrote that the Vatican claims that Halloween is evil and dangerous for young people and there are more animal sacrifices, desecrations of cemeteries and thefts of sacred bones happening.

The Catholic Church has called for Halloween to be scrapped and replaced with 'Holyween' - a night in which children would attend prayer vigils and dress up as saints.

The Vatican's first official conference of exorcists warned of a danger to young people at Halloween when there is an increase in occult activity.

Father Aldo Buonaiuto, of the International Association of Exorcists, says:

'Many say Halloween is a simple carnival, but in fact there is nothing innocent or fun about it - it is the antechamber to something much more dangerous. There are always more evil rituals, animal sacrifices, desecrations of cemeteries and thefts of sacred bones at the time of the 31 October. Participating in Halloween is 'like an initiation into the occult',

So, Do more "animal sacrifices, desecrations of cemeteries and thefts of sacred bones" happen at Halloween?

Note: I updated the original question to make it on-topic based on this Meta discussion. Thanks for the help and suggestions.

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  • Some of what Father Buonaiuto wrote about it is [here](http://www.unitalsissroma.it/media/halloween-la-parola-allesperto-don-aldo-buonaiuto/). – ChrisW Nov 02 '14 at 09:55
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    Are you asking whether the alleged rituals are evil? Whether there is a larger number of such rituals on 31 October? Whether young people become involved in such rituals "because of" the way in which young people celebrate Halloween? Whether something is "evil and dangerous" might be just a matter of opinion. Would it be better for you to instead identify a specific claim, i.e. a specific sentence in the text you reference, and ask whether that sentence is true? – ChrisW Nov 02 '14 at 15:17
  • This question appears to be off-topic because it could only be answered with opinion and not validated by any scientific test – matt_black Nov 02 '14 at 15:31
  • @ChrisW: I'm trying the understand what the danger i? How can I word it better? Any suggestions? – ermanen Nov 02 '14 at 15:52
  • @matt_black: I didn't get you. Does every claim need to be proved with a scientific test? I don't know how science can be included in this question. I'm looking for a proof about what makes Halloween dangerous? For example, are people hurt in rituals that they talk about? – ermanen Nov 02 '14 at 15:55
  • @ChrisW: I updated the question. Is it on-topic now? I'm open to suggestions to keep it on-topic. – ermanen Nov 02 '14 at 16:08
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    I already tried to update and clarify the question before it was put on hold. Why is it put on hold after I updated and after I asked for suggestions to word it better? – ermanen Nov 02 '14 at 17:04
  • `I'm trying the understand what the danger is?` Well the Daily Mail article says, "From here the door to the devil can be opened." That is the danger. The Italian article I quoted says, `I ragazzi ei giovani sono i più esposti a causa di incontri “festaioli” che in certi casi possono diventare vere e proprie trappole infernali.` i.e. that children and youth are the most exposed/vulnerable because they meet "festivalers" who in some cases can become true and proper infernal traps. Read the Italian article: IMO it makes sense, if you're accustomed to interpreting/understanding Catholic doctrine. – ChrisW Nov 02 '14 at 18:29
  • @ChrisW: I think there are some religious metaphors but also a real danger. Maybe some kind of harm. There might be investigations about this. – ermanen Nov 02 '14 at 19:52
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    @ermanen It isn't that we have to have a scientific test as such just some hope of having reliable evidence that reasonable people might agree on. The alleged harms here are not even widely believed by the religious. So how could we check, in a way that rational people would agree, that harm is possible. I'd say it might be a good topic of discussion on a religion site, but not here where we want proofs not based on authority or dogma. – matt_black Nov 02 '14 at 21:30
  • @matt_black: The topic is in the realm of religion but the proof as an answer may not be. Actually that's what I'm looking for. It might be a police investigation about these rituals or something like that. – ermanen Nov 02 '14 at 21:43
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    @ermanen then you need to rephrase your question more precisely. A vague question cannot be precisely answered. For instance, you may want to ask: are more tombs being desecrated on Halloween then on other days of the year? Or, is there an increase in admittance to hospitals during Halloween due to people cutting their veins? Those are precise question to which a precise answer can be given. Saying "is Halloween harmful?" is vague, unless you define what harmful is. Is sacrificing a puppy during a Halloween party more dangerous than driving after taking drugs on the 23rd of April? Subjective.. – nico Nov 03 '14 at 09:13
  • @nico Asking about "admittance to hospitals during Halloween due to people cutting their veins" wouldn't be on-topic, IMO, because that's not a "notable claim" that is supported/made by the reference (i.e. Father Buonaiuto did not IMO claim that that increase exists). – ChrisW Nov 03 '14 at 10:42
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    On a side note, while it's not a spiritual danger, there's decent evidence that [Halloween is dangerous due to children getting hit by cars](http://www.multivu.com/mnr/56790-state-farm-halloween-pedestrian-child-safety). The combination of dark streets, low-visibility costumes, increased foot traffic, and reduced vision (those plastic masks!) has been analyzed as up to doubling the number of pedestrian deaths. – Sean Duggan Nov 03 '14 at 14:12
  • @ChrisW it was just an example of something that is testable. I would still consider it on-topic in the sense that "evil rituals" is so vague that can be interpreted just in any way one wants. – nico Nov 03 '14 at 16:40

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