Evil spirits will be driven out of the holiday – Kommersant Izhevsk
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In Izhevsk, at school No. 16, instead of Halloween, they decided to hold a Pumpkin Rescue. School officials say the holiday is “much kinder” and hope it will become a tradition. The city education department explained that there were no orders to cancel Halloween. In the local diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church, the replacement of the holiday is considered unsuccessful, since in Christianity the Pumpkin Salvation does not exist, and the event itself does not belong to either church or folk traditions.
In the capital of Udmurtia, at school No. 16, instead of Halloween, which is celebrated on October 31, they decided to hold a Pumpkin Rescue. Information about this appeared on the official page of the educational institution in “In contact with”. “A cheerful and kind folk holiday, the idea of which has been in the air for a long time and was discussed by people on social networks. In some places it has been celebrated for many years, but in others it has not been heard yet,” the message states. The holiday regulations say that students from grades 1 to 11 can come in costumes that match the theme, in orange, black or red. At the same time, it is prohibited to wear masquerade costumes of evil spirits, use makeup and sporty clothing. The holiday itself will take place on October 27, and students will enjoy games, fortune telling, and master classes. Students are also asked to bring pumpkins.
“It’s no secret that many teenagers love Halloween. And I really want the traditions of other countries not to become a cult for the younger generation, when we have enough of our own wonderful holidays. We set out to look for a similar tradition in our country and came across Pumpkin Rescue, which is in no way inferior to the famous Halloween. Yes, it has a similar color scheme; the symbol of the holiday is also a pumpkin. But, unlike Halloween, this holiday is much kinder, and there is already enough cruelty in the modern world. We hope that this day will be fun and will become a wonderful annual tradition,” commented Yulia Sablina, deputy director for educational work at school No. 16.
The education department of the Izhevsk administration noted that there were no bans on Halloween or other recommendations. “There have been no federal recommendations regarding these activities. The calendar of extracurricular activities of schools includes calendar holidays that are popular in our country,” the municipality said.
Deputy Chairman of the State Council of Udmurtia, Chairman of the Standing Committee on Science and Education Tatyana Ishmatova also told Kommersant-Udmurtia that there were no bans on Halloween, but this topic had previously been discussed more than once on public platforms. “Both the Orthodox Church and many public figures advocated for the ban. But since this holiday is not legally enshrined in Russia in any way, therefore, we cannot abolish or prohibit it by law either,” explained Mrs. Ishmatova. She also added that she has a “definitely negative” attitude towards Halloween, and in their family children are always prohibited from participating in it. “I have my own belief that this is not at all the holiday that is needed to educate a new generation. As a religious and believing person, I am against this holiday. We need to pay attention to the good things we have and offer an interesting alternative,” said Tatyana Ishmatova.
At the same time, before introducing a new alternative holiday, an expert opinion is needed, Ms. Ishmatova emphasized. “Before declaring that this (Pumpkin Salvation – Kommersant-Udmurtia) is a Slavic folk holiday, you need to have an expert opinion, a background that it really is so. Otherwise, we can spawn a huge number of ideas and initiatives. If there really is such a holiday, which has a traditional basis, and the school is ready to do this as an alternative, so that children consciously understand that they are not going to Halloween, but to a pumpkin festival, then it’s possible,” commented Tatyana Ishmatova.
The Izhevsk and Udmurt diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church explained to Kommersant-Udmurtia that the word “Savior” means “Savior” and refers to Jesus Christ.
“In the church tradition, there is a celebration of three spas: the honey spas, which refers to the removal of the Venerable Trees of the Cross of the Lord, the apple spas, which refers to the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord, and the nut spas, which refers to the celebration of the Image of Jesus Christ Not Made by Hands. There is no pumpkin savior in Russian Christian customs. And, accordingly, on this day the Orthodox Church does not celebrate the Lord’s holidays,” commented the press secretary of the Metropolitan of Izhevsk and Udmurtia, priest Ilya Medvedev.
The church also noted that the school’s stated materials about the upcoming event talk about fortune telling and other elements of the celebration that have nothing to do with the Christian way of life. “As I understand it, this is an attempt to replace Halloween, to create an alternative to the Western holiday, but, unfortunately, we can assume that the meaning and content of the event has not been fully thought out by the organizers. I repeat that the holiday has no folk or church grounds,” concluded Ilya Medvedev.
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