Soul Man, and Swivel Eyed Nutjob.

Here's something from wikipedia that caught my eye (my emphasis):

All Saints' Day (All Hallows Day) became fixed on November 1 in 835, and All Souls' Day on November 2, circa 998. On All Souls' Eve, families stayed up late, and little "soul cakes" were eaten by everyone. At the stroke of midnight there was solemn silence among households, which had candles burning in every room to guide the souls back to visit their earthly homes, and a glass of wine on the table to refresh them. The tradition continued in areas of northern England as late as the 1930s, with children going from door-to-door "souling" (i.e., singing songs) for cakes or money. The English Reformation in the 16th century de-emphasised holidays like All Hallows Day or All Souls Day and their associated eve.

I grew up in the North of England, and I used to do that.  Didn't call it souling right enough, but the kids where I grew up used to go from house to house on Halloween and sing songs for sweets or cakes.  Seems a somehow nicer tradition than the Yank import of trick or treating.  Mind you, the way I sing I expect that the neighbours would have preferred a firework through the letter box.  

Its somehow reassuring that I was part of such an ancient tradition, saddening that I seem to have been the last generation to do it (pretty sure it's stopped where I grew up) and slightly eerie that what seemed like fun for sweets, where the worst part was getting hot inside a plastic ghoul mask, was the remnant of a blurring of the walls between living and dead.  

Meanwhile, while looking for an article about the superposition of Christian meaning onto ancient festivals of one kind or another, I came across this marvellous article.  Its a treat.  It starts of relatively soberly, pointing out that Christmas has no more to do with Jesus H Christ than it does with the family Ness, but then it proposes banning Christmas.  A bit harsh, and I think it focuses too much on fertile crescent religions, rather than Northern European ones, but fair enough if you are a real Puritan.   

It goes on.  Easter is the work of Ishtar and ancient Babylonian false messiahs (it doesn't seem to have occurred to the author that the replication of the young-god-dead-on-a-tree-and-resurrected meme might have some some significance), Halloween (oh yes) is for SATANISTS and WITCHES and is the same festival where DRUIDS used to perform human sacrifices on the LIVING ROCK of STONE 'ENGE!  The writer then descends in comedy gold, sorry, total swivel eyed lunacy, by claiming the Bilderberg group (BONG!) sacrifice humans (BONG!) in a wicker animal (Edward Woodward BONG!) at Bohemian Grove. (TRIPLE BONG ROLLOVER!)

God, I love the internet.