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LDNCatholic
Guest
I’d like to note that I’m not judging everyone who follows these faiths, just giving my opinion and noting my observations. Some people are truly sincere in their faith, some are not.
- Status
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Mortis
Guest
No I have hear that about that problem before as well, it is a shame but you shouldn’t think badly of all those that follow norse paganism, there are people who will stand against people who try to enforce white power.
Teenage girls will find if they talk to a mature wiccan that magic cannot be used as a quick fix all the time, but it can be a great help with certain problems.
I didn’t think you were judging, its true there are those who think they can connect paganism with charmed or harry potter but they are very wrong. And as I said there is a problem in norse paganism with people thinking it’ll help their white power idiocy, but they’re just fools who don’t represent what the beliefs stand for
Teenage girls will find if they talk to a mature wiccan that magic cannot be used as a quick fix all the time, but it can be a great help with certain problems.
I didn’t think you were judging, its true there are those who think they can connect paganism with charmed or harry potter but they are very wrong. And as I said there is a problem in norse paganism with people thinking it’ll help their white power idiocy, but they’re just fools who don’t represent what the beliefs stand for
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LDNCatholic
Guest
Agreed and I acknowledge that they are usually white power/neo nazi before finding a religion that they feel mirrors their views, but the danger is still there and it goes largely unacknowledged because everyone has a set idea of neo paganism as a fuzzy wuzzy love religion where everybody is nice and kind and nobody does anything wrong.*
My main point however is that the original religions themselves died out long ago, so anything set up in this day and age, is at absolute best, imitation (sincerest form of flattery
) of a past tradition, and at worst an outright lie or a cult which is used to further the motives of less than honourable (sometimes delusional) people.*EDIT: Just to add that I don’t think badly of pagans for this. I dislike the religion, I have no qualms with the people.
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Mortis
Guest
The fuzzy wuzzy love thing comes from wicca being popular, I think, shame some of the others arent brought forward more.
Well when it comes to Asatru (the reconstruction of norse paganism) you can’t have things the way they used to be because times have moved on lol I can’t sacrifice my enemies anymore after all (shame) but their are things from the old religion that are still encouraged, like the sense of honour amongst families and strength and courage etc.
And thank you for not thinking badly of pagans as a people
Well when it comes to Asatru (the reconstruction of norse paganism) you can’t have things the way they used to be because times have moved on lol I can’t sacrifice my enemies anymore after all (shame
) but their are things from the old religion that are still encouraged, like the sense of honour amongst families and strength and courage etc.And thank you for not thinking badly of pagans as a people
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LDNCatholic
Guest
If I did, I’d be no different to the people who hate others while pretending to be Vikings would I? Thank you for calling it a reconstruction and not trying to get everyone to believe its a secret unbroken lineage.And thank you for not thinking badly of pagans as a people
Apologies if I came across as insulting, sometimes I’m a little over zealous.
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Mortis
Guest
Well pretending to be viking doesn’t have to be all bad. I wouldn’t mind getting some of my friends together and try to recreate an old viking feast lol But it is a reconstruction, one for the modern day, with certain new rules, any one who thinks they can use it to try and bring back the days of vikings is being a little bit silly lol
it’s alright no hard feelings
thought you came off as being mostly quite fair
it’s alright no hard feelings
thought you came off as being mostly quite fair
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Aime
Guest
reading thw writings of non pagans, persecutors of pagans, is hardly good research of what a pagan is.
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Aime
Guest
The inverted pentacle means spirit within me and refers to our inner self, our soul. The upright pentacle refers to the spirit outside me, such as gods, angels, guides, ghosts etc.
Unfortunately there are cults and groups which use the inverted pentacle as satanic meaning, but i do not call these people pagan, i call them rebelious christians
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PaganSpirt
Guest
I’d love to take this opportunity to defend myself.
I am a Pagan. I am 20 years old, I became Pagan when I was 12. The reason? I didn’t know about it before then. There aren’t many people who do know about it as children. The way you learn about a religion is by your parents teaching it to you. When I was 12, I was looking up witchcraft in the library and came across a book, so yes I guess technically, I ‘found’ Paganism. However, I know a number of Christians who also ‘found’ christianity as teenagers. Does that mean they’re any less christian than those who were raised with it?? I started studying when I was 12, which is relatively early for Pagans, because of the lack of people being raised Pagan by parents. Although, obviously, now there is an increasing number of young Pagans emerging as hereditary ones- ie. their parents taught it to them. I intend to raise my children as Pagan, just as I am sure many of you Catholics intend to raise your children catholic. So my children will not ‘find’ it as teens, as they will know about it long before then- something I never did.
I did not come across it because of Buffy or anything like that. I’ve never actually seen an episode of Buffy in my life. Yes, I watched Sabrina the Teenage Witch when I was little but was under no impression that it was real and I certainly didn’t equate it to Paganism when I learnt what Paganism was. Charmed I started watching around age 11 but again, no link to Paganism really. It has some Wiccan roots, but it’s not what drew me to Paganism. What did is the fact that as far it has a clean history, it’s about nature and peace, and harming none. It speaks to ideas I already had- such as about the sacred feminine- and nature. I love nature, I always have and always will. Nature to me means calm and peace and serenity. My idea of worship has always been going out into nature and being with the plants and animals and so Paganism pretty much was what I already believed.
I have a number of Pagan friends but we do not all believe the same thing. One is more science based- he likes the energy component of Paganism and likes to link it all to science. I don’t really connect with his path but it’s his choice so I’m not going to try and tell him he’s wrong. One calls himself a hedgewitch- he loves working with herbs (all legal of course), plants, and connecting with otherworlds. I also don’t connect with his path but he is allowed his own beliefs. I have another friend who calls herself an Atheist Witch- she connects with Paganism but doesn’t believe in divine personifications. Again, not my path but all good for her. We work together as best we can and we don’t preach to each other. This is another thing i LOVE about Paganism. We don’t preach. We don’t convert. If people want to become Pagans, they do it by their own choice. I will never try to convert anybody. I will definitely help people who are interested and want to know more but I will never force my beliefs onto somebody else. I don’t care if other people don’t believe the same thing as me- I don’t need other people to confirm them to know that they are real. They are real to me and that’s all that matters.
The pentacle is a five pointed star with a circle around it. I’m not sure where it originates but many Pagans do use it to identify themselves. I prefer the triquatra- this is the necklace I wear. The reason is because it reflects a lot of things in a lot of cultures and religions: to me, it means the Triple Goddess (Maiden, Mother, Crone), but to some christians it means the holy trinity, and to other religions and cultures it means completely different things. I don’t wear my pentacle because of the negative connotations people think it carries and the discrimination I encounter because of it. I wear my triquatra because it reflects me but it also shows that I am not going to discriminate against other religions and cultures. I walk around with a multi-symbol on my neck because I believe in religious freedom.
Furthermore, people who wear the inverted pentagram and call themselves Satanists are not Pagan. I do not believe in Satan or hell. Those things are part of christianity. Satanism is, at its basis, a form of christianity because they are using the christian belief system to define themselves and their religion.
Also- a note about the person who cast that spell and said you were going to die. That person is not a Pagan. They may call themself such but they are not. Anybody who does that will not be accepted by the Pagan community. I am very sorry that happened to you and if I ever met this person, I would sit them down and have a good talk to them about the Wiccan rede and what it all really means.
I am a Pagan. I am 20 years old, I became Pagan when I was 12. The reason? I didn’t know about it before then. There aren’t many people who do know about it as children. The way you learn about a religion is by your parents teaching it to you. When I was 12, I was looking up witchcraft in the library and came across a book, so yes I guess technically, I ‘found’ Paganism. However, I know a number of Christians who also ‘found’ christianity as teenagers. Does that mean they’re any less christian than those who were raised with it?? I started studying when I was 12, which is relatively early for Pagans, because of the lack of people being raised Pagan by parents. Although, obviously, now there is an increasing number of young Pagans emerging as hereditary ones- ie. their parents taught it to them. I intend to raise my children as Pagan, just as I am sure many of you Catholics intend to raise your children catholic. So my children will not ‘find’ it as teens, as they will know about it long before then- something I never did.
I did not come across it because of Buffy or anything like that. I’ve never actually seen an episode of Buffy in my life. Yes, I watched Sabrina the Teenage Witch when I was little but was under no impression that it was real and I certainly didn’t equate it to Paganism when I learnt what Paganism was. Charmed I started watching around age 11 but again, no link to Paganism really. It has some Wiccan roots, but it’s not what drew me to Paganism. What did is the fact that as far it has a clean history, it’s about nature and peace, and harming none. It speaks to ideas I already had- such as about the sacred feminine- and nature. I love nature, I always have and always will. Nature to me means calm and peace and serenity. My idea of worship has always been going out into nature and being with the plants and animals and so Paganism pretty much was what I already believed.
I have a number of Pagan friends but we do not all believe the same thing. One is more science based- he likes the energy component of Paganism and likes to link it all to science. I don’t really connect with his path but it’s his choice so I’m not going to try and tell him he’s wrong. One calls himself a hedgewitch- he loves working with herbs (all legal of course), plants, and connecting with otherworlds. I also don’t connect with his path but he is allowed his own beliefs. I have another friend who calls herself an Atheist Witch- she connects with Paganism but doesn’t believe in divine personifications. Again, not my path but all good for her. We work together as best we can and we don’t preach to each other. This is another thing i LOVE about Paganism. We don’t preach. We don’t convert. If people want to become Pagans, they do it by their own choice. I will never try to convert anybody. I will definitely help people who are interested and want to know more but I will never force my beliefs onto somebody else. I don’t care if other people don’t believe the same thing as me- I don’t need other people to confirm them to know that they are real. They are real to me and that’s all that matters.
The pentacle is a five pointed star with a circle around it. I’m not sure where it originates but many Pagans do use it to identify themselves. I prefer the triquatra- this is the necklace I wear. The reason is because it reflects a lot of things in a lot of cultures and religions: to me, it means the Triple Goddess (Maiden, Mother, Crone), but to some christians it means the holy trinity, and to other religions and cultures it means completely different things. I don’t wear my pentacle because of the negative connotations people think it carries and the discrimination I encounter because of it. I wear my triquatra because it reflects me but it also shows that I am not going to discriminate against other religions and cultures. I walk around with a multi-symbol on my neck because I believe in religious freedom.
Furthermore, people who wear the inverted pentagram and call themselves Satanists are not Pagan. I do not believe in Satan or hell. Those things are part of christianity. Satanism is, at its basis, a form of christianity because they are using the christian belief system to define themselves and their religion.
Also- a note about the person who cast that spell and said you were going to die. That person is not a Pagan. They may call themself such but they are not. Anybody who does that will not be accepted by the Pagan community. I am very sorry that happened to you and if I ever met this person, I would sit them down and have a good talk to them about the Wiccan rede and what it all really means.
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Publisher
Guest
The “inverted pentacle” is an invention of popular myth and Hollywood.
The inverted pentacle is also the symbol of second degree Gardnerian and Alexandrian Wicca. It is not “satanic”…all though self professed Satanists do use it…along with the “inverted cross”.
An inverted pentacle represents spirit(bottom point) balancing the elements(four upper points)…the Wiccan pentacle represents spirit(uppermost point) rulling over the elements(four lower points) or spirit finding expression in the elements.
The pentacle is an ancient symbol dating from Sumeria I believe…also the pentacle was used in Christian church buildings and other “religious” applications by Christians.
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LDNCatholic
Guest
Pagan magic was strong enough to resurrect a thread that had been dead for two years it seems.
Welcome to CAF Aime and PaganSpirit. If you would like to discuss your beliefs further it might be an idea to start a thread on them.
God bless.
Welcome to CAF Aime and PaganSpirit. If you would like to discuss your beliefs further it might be an idea to start a thread on them.
God bless.
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LDNCatholic
Guest
As I said. Satanists (although for some bizarre reason I had been calling them ‘‘satanics’’ in this thread)
use it, I also admitted I had no idea of it’s historical significance, thank you for the interesting information.- Status