DURHAM, N.C. - Each year, a debate surfaces among Christians over whether Halloween is a satanic holiday or merely a secular one. Churches have the resources to find middle ground and ‘out-narrate' a negative perception of Halloween with the tradition of All Saints, says a professor at Duke University Divinity School.

Jo Bailey Wells, who was ordained in the first wave of women priests in the Church of England, says it is a mistake to underestimate how serious the forces of darkness and chaos are, yet equally misguided to dwell on them.

"Halloween comes from 'All Hallows' E'en (Eve),' the Christian festival commemorating All Saints or those who have died and gone ahead of us into the heavenly realms. Remembering the dead opens the door to those who choose to focus on the unsettled souls, the bodies that do not rest in peace -- thus the interest in ghosts, witchcraft and the forces of darkness," she says.

Wells notes that churches typically face challenges in engaging with the contemporary popularity of Halloween. She points to constructive ways some churches mark the holiday by offering an All Hallows Eve party for children that celebrates the communion of saints or by hosting a performance of one of the great requiems.

"There are those who choose to see the 'costume and candy' as harmless, who may be in danger of not taking the spiritual realm seriously enough," she says. "Then there are those who take it so seriously that there is a danger their very abhorrence is counterproductive, drawing more attention to it by their negativity than Christmas or Easter might get in the positive direction."