Halloween, Fall Fellowship Festival, Trunk-Or-Treat, Harvest Hay Rides, Chick-Fil-A dress-up night… These are things the kiddos are gonna need costumes for. What’s better than Biblical Halloween costumes for kids?
If you’re brave or lighthearted enough to join the harmless fun of children’s Halloween costume gatherings AND put a Biblical spin on it, you’re definitely in the right place.
I’ve done some looking to find a few of the best Bible Halloween costumes for kids. For your convenience they’re all on Amazon and I’ve found the ones with the most/best reviews. All costumes here are age-appropriate and sacrilege free.
Serious discussion about Halloween’s alleged sinfulness won’t be found here since this page is all about dress-up for the kids. And if you’re an adult needing a grown-up Bible costume, I’ve got some suggestions for you as well!
Don’t take my sarcasm on this page too seriously: this was something I did for fun, and my comments on these costumes reflect that. I don’t mean to mock anything. 🙂
Shepherd
Several Biblical figures were shepherds, including Moses, Joseph, and David. Not only that, it was a common job for at least thousands of years and it’s an easily recognizable Biblical costume.
It’s able to be generic as “shepherd” or modified to imitate one of the above characters. Get a sling and some stones (or a harp) and then the costume is David, grab a multicolored throw and it’s Joseph, you get the picture.
The costume is simple enough that you might not even have to buy it. Chances are you could throw together something similar with some cut fabric and brownish sandals.
Just in case, though, here is the shepherd costume on Amazon (pictured above) with the highest amount of positive reviews.
Biblical Women
If the last one was for the boys, then this one is for the girls. It’s generic, too, so you could make it out to be just about any of many Biblical women such as Sarah, Ruth, or Mary.
The costume I link to below is more or less peasant rags, so wealthy or political figures (Esther, Deborah) won’t be accurate. Then again if you’re concerned about Biblical accuracy for a Halloween costume, you’re not going to be buying one but rather making your own. 😉
Also chances are you won’t find a “Biblical woman” costume. The one pictured is supposed to be the Virgin Mother Mary, which is really just a commoner outfit. Again, like above, this could be made with a length of rope and a repurposed bedsheet.
If you do need it, though, click here to go to this Mary costume.
Noah’s Animals
When looking for Bible Halloween costumes for kids, you will probably be thinking of costumes that are specifically made to be Biblical. It suddenly becomes easier to overlook regular Halloween costumes that could be made to have a Biblical twist.
And this is the case with Noah’s animals. You can turn any regular old animal costume into a Bible costume by saying you’re one of the animals that was on the Ark!
I find this to be a fun and humorous activity especially for families with lots of kids. Each person is a different animal, all bravely marching into the Ark to survive a long and tumultuous ordeal of a journey. The Ark, of course, being your minivan or SUV.
And I’m imagining that SUV decked out to look like the Ark. Suddenly, the father dressed as Noah pops out of the sun roof with a dove in hand. Is it safe now? Is there dry land? Can I get a break from these noisy, messy, child-animals?
Here is a list of animal costumes for kids on Amazon.
You might think this is one for the boys. But girls can be soldiers too, right? After all, women in Rome were considerably more equal to their male counterparts than in many other ancient cultures.
Besides, we’ve already established that historical accuracy is out the window in this category unless you’re making your own costume. What’s wrong with a gender bent costume, anyway?
When thinking of Biblical Halloween costumes, it might be easy to overlook the roman soldier. Yet the New Testament took place under the rule of a Caesar cult, and it would have been a common sight during those times.
The Apostle Paul, when talking about the “full armor of God” in Ephesians 6:10-20, was using the context of a Roman solder to describe his metaphor. Therefore this costume might not even be a roman soldier after all, but a Christian donning the armor of God. Corny? Nooooo, just fun!
This costume’s amazon product name says it’s a gladiator outfit… I understand why you would get them confused, but that is not a gladiator. It’s closer to a centurion. Whatever.
Monks & Nuns
Stereotypes of monks and nuns often include seclusion, celibacy, and submission to corrupt and abusive authority. However, these religious roles had and continue to have a large cultural, historical, and humanitarian impact across the world.
Yes, it gives off a Roman Catholic vibe and it’s not necessarily Biblical per se, but the image of religious dedication is still a respectable and fun costume. Remember that the reformer Martin Luther was once a lowly monk in a German monastery. Also… Mother Teresa was a nun! 🙂
These types of costumes are generic but very recognizable and not often seen in their traditional forms (most nuns on Halloween these days are either “naughty nuns” or undead ones). You could even make costumes of saints or other historical figures.
You can the monk costume here and the nun costume here, both for kids.
Angels
We’re going to have to have a discussion about Biblical accuracy here again. The modern depiction of angels in most media actually aren’t – you know what, never mind.
Let’s be honest: nobody actually knows what angels look like. They are described most often in the Bible with loose, idiomatic and metaphorical language or with very vague descriptions. At some point, though, people decided they have two wings and halos. Go figure.
Anyway, ditch the halo (I even saw one with a wand) and you’ll have a good-as-we-can get angel. There is even one for the boys (and girls) who don’t want to go with the whole “pretty and delicate” look: archangels!
This rougher, armored version of the angel is great for the more aggressive kid who still digs that divine look… click here for the archangel costume, and click here for the regular angel. Like the others, I’ve found the Amazon entries with the best reviews.
Just for Fun
It was good to take a brief break from some of my more serious writing to make a lighthearted post for fun here… Keep in mind that despite Halloween’s alleged occult origins, what it stands for today is more or less just another commercial excuse to dress up and have gatherings. Halloween is just a day out of the year after all, and you can use it for good or for bad. Dress up is dress up, after all.
That being said, this article was a bit more difficult than expected. I looked for historically accurate Bible costumes, trust me. But the fact is that pre-packaged Halloween costumes are too trite to be taken seriously.
Like I already said, having a good Bible costume is going to take a bit of time to create your own. For something like that, you’re going to have to check out theater costumes or get some cosplay advice.
Did you like my list of Biblical Halloween costumes for kids? Comment below to add your own suggestions or critique mine. Either way, thanks for checking it out!