I suppose it’s a nice thought, but I can tell you that I very much doubt that I would have paused long over such a thing. My six brothers and sisters spent our time sorting and trading candy.

The first time I saw a Chick tract I was in college and, never having been around evangelicals, I found them oddly fascinating – were there really people who believed these bizarre things about Catholics? Made my faith seem much more edgy and exciting. It would be difficult to imagine a less effective way of spreading the Gospel than these things. But they were kind of fun.

On a winter’s evening, one can still hear old tales told in village pubs of the fairies or “Little People”; tales of bewitchings, changelings and murrain in the flocks. And I have heard such tales interrupted, by those who consider any mention of “na Sithein” as unchancy.

On Hallowe’en, Hallow fires are still lit and“samhnag” or lighted lanterns, often hollowed-out neeps (turnips) put in windows and over the doors of byres and granaries.

But still: kids do not want to get tracts of any sort at Halloween. It’s counterproductive.

And they rightfully react badly to Chick tracts. Those things are horrible!