大象传媒

A reflection and prayer to start the day with the Revd Dr Mark Clavier, canon theologian for the Diocese of Swansea and Brecon.

Good morning. Most listeners will know that Halloween is a much bigger holiday in the States than here. Tonight, throughout America, streets will be heaving with children and even some grownups dressed in outlandish fancy dress. It鈥檚 one of the few occasions when most Americans walk rather than drive, and so it鈥檚 a day when many chat with neighbours they otherwise hardly ever see. There鈥檚 nothing remotely like it here in Britain.

What I enjoyed about Halloween, when I used to take my son trick-or-treating, was the chance to get to know my neighbours better. I forged some local friendships as we chaperoned our kids up and down the streets in our neighbourhoods. This wasn鈥檛 peculiar to me; it鈥檚 a common feature of Halloween in America.

What I didn鈥檛 appreciate at the time is the irony of this phenomenon. On a night when people wear masks, we spend time unmasking the fascinating personalities of our neighbours. We unmask them by chatting with each other while our children are trick-or-treating. One of the most heart-felt conversations I had with a man on my street was when he was disconcertingly dressed like Dolly Parton. That conversation brought knowledge, and that knowledge allowed us to be better and more attentive neighbours. You might say, therefore, that Halloween strangely provides Americans with a reminder that we can鈥檛 honestly love those around us unless we first get to know them. I suspect that鈥檚 a lesson we can learn here, even if we don鈥檛 do much to celebrate Halloween.

Let us pray.
God of love, to whom no secrets of our hearts are hidden; Give us the confidence to unmask ourselves to those around us and to be active in getting to know our neighbours so that with such knowledge we may learn to love them as ourselves. Amen.