Pentagram-A Christian symbol?

Question

Why do most christians don't believe that the pentagram(not the inverted one) is a christian symbol?It represents the five wounds of Christ.The pentagram was used as a Christian symbol for the five senses,[10] and if the letters S, A, L, V, and S are inscribed in the points, it can be taken as a symbol of health (from Latin salus).[citation needed]

Medieval Christians believed it to symbolise the five wounds of Christ. The pentagram was believed to protect against witches and demons.[11]

The pentagram figured in a heavily symbolic Arthurian romance[11]: it appears on the shield of Sir Gawain in the 14th century poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. As the poet explains, the five points of the star each have five meanings: they represent the five senses, the five fingers, the five wounds of Christ,[12] the five joys that Mary had of Jesus (the Annunciation, the Nativity, the Resurrection, the Ascension, and the Assumption), and the five virtues of knighthood which Gawain hopes to embody: noble generosity, fellowship, purity, courtesy, and compassion.

Probably due to misinterpretation of symbols used by ceremonial magicians, it later became associated with Satanism and subsequently rejected by most of Christianity sometime in the twentieth century.[11]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has traditionally used pentagrams and five-pointed stars in Temple architecture, particularly the Nauvoo Illinois Temple[13] and the Salt Lake Temple. These symbols derived from traditional morning star pentagrams that are no longer commonly used in mainstream Christianity

Answer 1

Written by the Apostle Paul and relevant to your question:

From 1 Corinthians 2:2. "For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified."

Everything else counts for naught, so we ought not to waste any energy on such things as symbols.

From Romans 14:14-17,21: "... there is nothing unclean of itself; but to him whio considers anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. Yet if your brother is grieved because of your food [i.e., food sacrificed to idols], you are no longer walking in love. Do not destroy with your food the one for whom Christ died. Therefore do not let your good be spoken of as evil; for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. It is good neither to eat meat nor drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles or is offended or is made weak."

He is not talking about vegetarianism. The teaching here is that a Christian should avoid partaking in anything that might offend the conscience of his brother or sister in Christ. That would include a pentagram.

Medieval Christians, like Christians today, can be mistaken in their understanding and practices. Any who believed that a pentagram could provide protection was engaging in idolatry, which the Bible says is "an abomination to the Lord."

Blessings.

Answer 2

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Answer 3

Also known as the knot of truth, it was rejected because it was, like the cross, a pre-Christian symbol. The cross caught on as the symbol of sacrifice, while the pentacle, just didn't catch on. It is believed that that was due the the Christians never being able to divorce the symbol it's older meaning. Other such symbols, like depicting god as having three faces or the apostles as animals also lost popularity because they looked too Pagan. Remember, Christianity was once the new kid in town and it took them a while to develop a way of doing things that was their own. They borrowed and tried on all kinds of things. Not everything worked. It's hard to build a religion from the ground up and it didn't happen in a vacuum. But ultimately the reason the cross stayed and the pentacle did not is the same reason its Istanbul not Constantinople; People just liked it better that way.

Answer 4

The inverted pentagram was actually used as a primative Christian symbol for Jesus Christ. The inverted Pentegram was referred to as "the Morning Star" (as was Jesus). I don't have a citation for this, I just remember learning this in Catechesis as a kid (Its like Primary for Catholic kids). This was explained as the reason why there are often times found inverted pentagrams in a circle fashioned above the Virgin's head (kind of like a halo). I was taught as a kid that the pentegram was "satanized" sometime during the 18th or 19th century in France.

It's kid of silly how some people are finding "truth" in patterns, numerology, and/or symbols these days. A symbol functions only as what emotions it evokes from the viewer. Take the swastika as an example. In Hindi culture (and I believe in Hopi Indian culture) this was a sign of peace. In this generation we gaze upon a swastika with emotions FAR REMOVED from that of peace thanks to the Nazionalisch Party of Germany adopting it as their logo but 60 years ago.

Answer 5

the penatgram was around long before christianity was ,however throughout the years it has become symbols for many things.like many people have already said it represents the head,arms, and legs of man.it represents earth, air, water,fire and spirit when used in the pagan relegions i.e. wicca.

when th pentagram is upright with the point at the top it is mainly used for banishing and when it is turned the other way it is used for invoking.

in modern times today it seems to me that many christians link it with satanism,inverted or otherwise, however that isnt the case.its usage in this day and age is mostly with paganism and more specifically wicca

Answer 6

The Pentacle is not a Christians symbol. It is a symbol that some Pagans (particularly Wiccans and Witches) use. The 5 points of the star stand for earth, fire, air, water, and spirit. The circle around it signifies Rebirth, or the circle of life.

Satanists also use it too, but I don't know what significance it is to them.

Answer 7

Sorry, but the pentagram pre-dates Christianity by quite a bit. Was it ever used by Christians? Yes at several different times and in many different contexts. But that does not make it a "christian" symbol. It is a pagan symbol that was "borrowed" just like most of Christianity.

Answer 8

This belief comes from the use of the symbol first by ceremonial magicians (many of whom-earlier-were Christian by the way). And in modern times its use by some Pagans has made Christians actually begin to not only disapprove of its use but to fear it.

The fact is the symbolism is often shared by many different faiths and cultures. It seems silly to fear the pentacle just because others use it too.

Answer 9

Pagans used it (They Pre-date Christ! NOT in the 50's!) the Jews used it in their beliefs calling it the Star of David, and Christians used it! As for having any theologic ties, every has at one time or another claimed the pentagram as a part of their religion, so why worry about it!

Answer 10

Sweetie, you notice how the wikipedia article you posted has [citation needed] on it? That means what the person wrote has nothing to back it up, and they could be making it up for all we know.

Besides, the pentagram is far more used in the pagan religions that Christianity, and it more commonly represents spirit, air, water, earth, and fire. It's like us pagans telling you that the crucifix is a predominantly pagan symbol.