It is my understanding that the Roman Catholic church created this rumor that those who wear the symbol of protection and the elements (pentacle/pentagram) worship the devil. It was created to frighten and confuse Christians/Catholics. The rumor was created for control and out of ignorance. There is no devil in the Wiccan faith. Please...educate yourselves...we are no longer in the dark ages!
2007-07-25 05:40:36 · 13 answers · asked by butterflimoon 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
New Catholic, This symbol and one other has been in my family for well beyond your 60's. The Wiccans have always been there, but forced into hiding because of persecution. I meant no disrespect to you, sir; however, it is thoughts such as yours-ignorance and lack of true understanding that brought about fear of us. Do you assume that all who wear this symbol devil worshipers? Have you forgotten that the Wiccan faith has been around (and growing) before Christain faith? We do not war with those we do not agree with...accept differences and be well.
2007-07-25 06:08:53 · update #1
Exactly, I would also like to add that the pentagram is not the only thing that has suffered this fate. Take a look at the holidays. They have been converted to Christian... Christmas, Easter, ect ect. Even the image of the devil himself comes from the pagan god Pan. When Christianity was on the rise the figured that the best way to get the Pagans to convert was by turning their gods into the Devil and adopting some of their rituals (christmas trees ect) as their own.
I hate to point this out because I really agree with your question but Wicca is a New religion based on an old faith. Wicca itself has not been around since before Christianity. However paganism in general has. Earth based religion has but not Wicca as it is today.
2007-07-25 06:00:53 · answer #1 · answered by peace_by_moonlight 4 · 3⤊ 0⤋
The way I try to explain this is to tell them about the inverted pentagram. This is a symbol used by some Satan worshippers because it represents the opposite of it's true meaning. That is why they invert it.
It would be like claiming that the crucifix is a satanic symbol because an inverted cross is sometimes used as a symbol of Satanism. It is the SAME thing.
People have "borrowed" Pagan symbols for their own purposes for years. For example the swastika. This was an Asatrua symbol of peace and love until Hitler "borrowed" it and now it is seen as a symbol for racism.
Another example is the Triquetra. This was the symbol of Goddess Trinity, maiden, mother and death crone. It was "borrowed" by the Christians and is now used to symbolize their trinity of father, son, holy spirit. The Pagans are attempting to take back these symbols, or at least some of them, but the "New Meanings" assigned to them still place a shadow over their true symbolism.
Blessed Be!
2007-07-25 07:23:58 · answer #2 · answered by PaganPixiePrincessVT 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
The pentagram is used as a symbol of protection. Also, it's five points symbolise fire, water, earth, air, and spirit. There are other things to the pentagram such as it is also a symbol of balance between the four elements and of the soul or mind. There is wayyy more but I don't feel like typing out ten pages of history and backround.
I am a Christian/Spiritualist because I'm borderline Wiccain but I follow my own beliefs and worship only my God and Jesus Christ. I was never ignorant to another because of religion and took the time to educate myself about different religions such as Wicca and Judaism. I wanted to understand other people's beliefs so I did educate myself and still do today. The Christians that prosecute others because of their Gods/Goddess' give Christians like me a bad name!
To me, I always thought that you should learn both sides before you go and make harsh judgements and remarks about other people's beliefs.
(I own a fire talisman myself....Shhhh! Don't tell!)
2007-07-25 08:31:16 · answer #3 · answered by David 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
There is no devil in any pagan faith whether you are wiccan or a witch (not all witches are wiccan just like not all pagans are witches). The symbol has been around for centuries and you are correct in the history. It represents elements and connections, just like it was easy to influence the celts with Christianity because we have always had a triple goddess so thinking of a trinity was not a stretch.
2007-07-25 06:15:52 · answer #4 · answered by ambr95012 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Symbol's meanings change with time. The cross use to be a symbol of something good but now it is a symbol of oppression to me. It has been shoved in my face so much in the last few years that I see it now as one of hate, oppression and violence. It takes people to give symbols meaning and Christianity is well on it's way to making the cross a bad thing. So we are on the way to showing the pentagram for the wonderful symbol it is. Take heart my friend.
2007-07-25 06:27:10 · answer #5 · answered by Praire Crone 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I agree with you. The pentagram only in recent history has acquired this false connotation of evil/devil. It has been used by many as a symbol of good including Christians, Jews and apparently, other groups.
2007-07-25 06:54:17 · answer #6 · answered by Someone who cares 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Oh sweetie, if only we truly weren't in the dark ages any more. If people stopped telling me the pentagram was of the devil, then they might actually have to stop accusing me of worshipping him. Then, they would have to admit that my beliefs aren't all that dangerous. Then, chaos would ensue.
Even better, how many people realize the swastika, when the arms are turned the other way, is actually a symbol of protection?
2007-07-25 05:45:24 · answer #7 · answered by mikalina 4 · 2⤊ 1⤋
To the above, there were alot of Wiccans around 40 years ago, but they were VERY careful not to let others know...LOL. As to the question, you are talking about a church that is about as non-christian as one can get...remember the catholics were the source of the Inquisition...French Catholics burned or tortured to death over 100,000 people whose sole offense was to be protestant...many religions, as do I, consider the catholic church to be the 'Whore of Babylon' that is spoken of in the Bible...by their fruits, ye shall know them!
2007-07-25 05:53:30 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
No symbol ever conceived has any inherent meaning on its own. The meaning is in the mind of the entity that uses it. For example - the 5-pointed star (whether right side up, upside down, within or without a circle,etc.) has had and continues to represent many things to many people.
For a thorough and detailed history of the 5-pointed star symbol, please see this link:
http://freemasonry.bcy.ca/anti-masonry/pentagram.html
Historically, it is exclusive to no particular group, sect, religion, non-religion, etc.
It is not the symbol that matters, it's what you do 'with' it.
2007-07-25 06:06:15 · answer #9 · answered by MarkS 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋
There were VERY few Wiccan's around 40 years ago, never saw any.
There were Devil worshipers, and they used the pentagram as their symbol.
So put blame where it is due, not with the Catholic Church, but with the true Devil Worshipers in the 1960's and 1970's.
And yes, I was there and saw it myself.
Educate yourself! There used to be Devil worshipers, could it just be new packaging? I would investigate if I were you.
Peace be with you!
2007-07-25 05:48:02 · answer #10 · answered by C 7 · 0⤊ 5⤋