Misconceptions About the Pentacle
Date: Monday, September 10th, 2007 (CST )
Topic: Mysticism & the Occult
 Many confused people identify the Pentacle with Satanism. The numerous Pagan faiths and Satanism do use the Pentacle as a symbol, however Satanism inverses the position of the symbol. This may not seem significant to a Christian; however, consider what the Nazi adoption of the Hindu Swastika did for the perception of that symbol.
More to the point, the Satanic adoption of the Pentacle is the fault of the Christians. You see, the Pentacle also was once a Christian symbol.
In the early era of Christianity, it was common practice for the Church to adopt (or 'baptize') Pagan symbols, so that new converts might be allowed to keep their totems, holidays, and practices as members of the new religion.
For example,
take the Christmas Tree (were there pines in Bethlehem?), May Day, and
even Christmas Day itself (the Bible tells us that Jesus was born in
the Spring, but late December celebrates the return of the Sun/Son). So
too was it with the Pentacle. It was decreed by the Church that it
should come to represent the five wounds of Christ.
Later, in the middle ages,
many Popes began to break from the old ways, considering some certain
items of Pagan origin to be unclean. The term Satanic comes from
S'atan, Arabic for 'enemy of God'. Arabic itself was considered an
'unclean' language, so was used to describe items and practices
affiliated with what the Popes believed to be artifacts of
anti-Christian sentiment. Thus 'Satanic', in this sense, means 'banned
from the Church'.
In this way, the Church
literally handed the Pentacle off to the Satanists, who, through
history, have generally held that the Church has a kernel of truth
beneath the dogma of control and deciet, but have the concept of
divinity backwards, and are worshiping the wrong entity. So, to put
things in perspective, it is the Satanic use of the pentacle that has
its roots in the ancient Pagan faiths, from which the Church adopted
the symbol to begin with, not the other way around.
People, and their symbols,
beliefs, and ways of worship, were assimilated into the growing
Christian faith, then cut loose a few centuries later. Satanism began,
among other reasons, because of this early schism. Certain ideas were
cast out of the faith, and their adherents along with them. Pagan ->
Christian -> Satanic.
However, it should be
noted, in all fairness, that the chief difference between Satanism and
Christianity today (for the most part) is that Christians believe Jesus
should be worshiped, while Satanists believe that Jesus should be
followed ('You cannot walk along beside Me if you won't rise up from
your knees'). In this, Satanists could be considered more Christian
than the Christians. They exhibit the traits of tolerance, forgiveness,
and love for mankind - all of Jesus's core messages. The Church, they
argue, is the opposite, full of 'unforgivable sin' and damnation for
independent thought.
Satanism is largely a
return to Paganism, but filtered through the Church. Neo-Paganism, the
modern Pagan movement, seeks to reclaim that which came before the
Church started the whole mess to begin with.
Wicca, as a specific branch
of Paganism, draws its roots from the Celtic faith. Wicca, as many
know, means 'Wise One' in the ancient tongue, and has nothing to do
with other European beliefs any more than the followers of Thor could
be considered Islamic.
Wicca's origins come from
the era just after the arrival of the Christian 'Missionaries', who
slaughtered the Celtic Druids (some say the massacre was because the
Christians couldn't win a civilized debate against them). Left without
their spiritual guides, the Celts turned to the next best resource; the
tribe Wise Ones, who understood many of the Druidic ways, and served as
best they could. This coincides with the modern divide in Wicca: not
all Wise Ones agreed on the methods and reasons for various ceremonies
and holidays, which evolved into a metaphoric chasm in the root belief
behind those things.
In the modern day, most
Wiccans believe that each of the faith's myriad paths all go to the
same place, so to speak. The differences between invoking the Elements,
the Four Winds, or even the Lords of the Fae, are superficial. The
thinking is that all magick draws on the same fundamental Source, no
matter what it is called, and the form of practice is merely a matter
of personal preference.
So, in the end, Wicca and
Satanism share one item above all in common: they are both a result of
sinful acts of the Christian Church, in its refusal to embrace the Word
of the one they call 'Savior', and exhibit the love of all mankind he
was best known for. It was this ignorant intolerance that directly led
to the formation of both faiths, in their modern forms, who, in the
ultimate irony, now embrace those very qualities that Jesus preached,
and his own Church lacks.
In the end, the greatest
commonality between them isn't the shared use of the Pentacle, but is
something absolutely banned from the Christian Church: these faiths
actually follow in Christ's footsteps.
Copyright: Associated Content
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