St. Peter’s Halloween Warning: Abstain from the Table of Devils! By Dr Chapman Chen

Halloween stands on the eve of All Saints’ Day, a time traditionally meant to honour holy men and women who lived lives of compassion, purity, and faithfulness to God. Yet, in the modern world, Halloween has become a celebration of the grotesque: images of death, violence, fear, and—most disturbingly—feasts of dead flesh displayed as entertainment.

But the earliest Christian tradition offers a stark warning regarding such imagery and practice, especially when it concerns the eating of animals.

1. Peter the Apostle: “Do Not Taste Dead Flesh!”

In the Clementine Homilies, a very early Christian text rooted in the teachings of St. Peter himself, the Apostle insists that true discipleship requires compassion for all living beings. Peter proclaims that the Golden Rule is to “abstain from the table of devils, not to taste dead flesh” (Clementine Homilies 7.IV).  

Peter warns that those who consume the bodies of slaughtered animals invite dark spiritual influence: “Whoever eats flesh, eats the food of demons and becomes subject to them.” (Hom. 8.XX). To sit at a table filled with carcasses is, in Peter’s language, to dine under the influence of devils. By contrast, “refraining from the table of demons… you can escape everlasting punishment, and be constituted heirs of eternal blessings. (Hom. 9, XXIII).

2. God Detests the Killing of Animals

Peter further teaches that the God of Jesus Christ loathes animal sacrifice as well as the killing of animals:

But that He is not pleased with sacrifices, is shown by this, that those who lusted after flesh were slain as soon as they tasted it, and were consigned to a tomb, so that it was called the grave of lusts. He then who at the first was displeased with the slaughtering of animals, not wishing them to be slain, did not ordain sacrifices as desiring them; nor from the beginning did He require them. (Hom. 3.XLV) 

3. There Are False Things in the Bible per Jesus

Where the Scriptures appear to command sacrifice or flesh-eating, Peter explains, they reflect corruption and distortion: The Scriptures are “a mixture of truth with falsehood”(Hom. 3.L). In this vein, St. Peter recalls Jesus saying:-

“Wherefore ye do err, not knowing the true things of the Scriptures; and on this account you are ignorant of the power of God.”[Matt. 22:29] …it is manifest that there are false things in them…also… He [Jesus] said, “Be ye prudent money-changers,” it is because there are genuine and spurious words. And whereas He said, 'Wherefore do ye not perceive that which is reasonable in the Scriptures?” He makes the understanding of him stronger who voluntarily judges soundly. (Hom. 3.L).

Actually, Christ did not abolish the Law; He restored the original vegan version of it (Matthew 5:17) (cf. Akers 2020, 7). And the original Law of Eden was clear: No killing. No bloodshed. No consumption of flesh (Genesis 1:29).

4. Halloween and the Table of Death

Today, Halloween feasts often features tables decorated with bones and skulls (symbolic death), images of demons and infernal banquets, and actual meals made from the bodies of God’s innocent creatures.

The visual resemblance to “the table of devils” is not merely artistic—it reflects a spiritual reality. To celebrate death by eating death is to align oneself not with the saints, but with the powers of destruction.

5. All Saints’ Day Calls Us to Return to Compassion

All Saints’ Day invites us to imitate the saints who lived sacred compassion. Peter’s voice calls out across the centuries: Choose life. Reject the devouring of flesh. Return to the peace of Eden.

This is the true meaning of sanctity: not terror, not death, not blood—but compassion.

6. Conclusion

As Halloween approaches, let this be St. Peter’s warning to our generation:

To eat dead flesh is to feast with demons. To choose compassion is to dine with the saints.

In remembering All Saints’ Day, may we also remember the vegetarian apostle Peter, and Christ’s original Gospel of peace to all creatures.  #VeganChrist #VeganGod #VeganTheology #VeganChurch

Full Text: https://www.vegantheology.net/post/st-peter-s-halloween-warning-abstain-from-the-table-of-devils-by-dr-chapman-chen

Link to Clementine Homilies: https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0808.htm