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The vicar in the village tells you that the dead that remain in the earth are those condemned to hell. Some people say that the dead riders are wreathed in flames, and their saddles are red-hot iron. Those people say that if you do get any power from the riders, it’s the power of hell and devils.
Witches and Witchcraft: The First Person Executed in the Colonies. State of Connecticut Judicial Branch Law Library Services. Christianity’s pagan roots run deep. Growing up in the Pentecostal Church, one hears that any other religion outside of Pentecostalism are made up of people who are going to Hell. At least this is what is taught in many of the Assemblies of God churches. Catholics? Going to Hell. Methodists? Going to Hell. Why is this when Pentecostals are doing the same things and using much of the same symbols as the other branches of Christianity? They don’t realize they too carry on pagan traditions of the past, as well as engage in “occult” or “esoteric” practices of which we will examine here. Healing by the Laying on of Hands and ReikiThen too we have this Jesus dude who really upended everything. In talking about the life and time of Jesus, it appeared that he had the ability to produce loaves and fishes and change water into wine. To the Pagan mind, this was certainly the actions of a well-practiced magician. Again this made Christianity more palatable. Nonetheless, well into the Middle Ages, you find frustrated clerics speaking of how people might bow their heads at a church doorway and then solute the sun thereafter! Going one step further there are numerous instances in the Bible and historical writings that feel YHWH was a reformed Sun God. Psalm 84:11, for example, says “For the Lord God is a sun and shield.” Jesus also declared in John 8:12 that “I am the light of the world.” Jesus’s story looks very similar to that of dying and rising gods in Paganism (Attis, Tammuz, Osiris) as well bearing influences by the Mithra Cult, which was flourishing in the 2nd and 3rd century CE. December 25 did not become Jesus’ birthday until the 5th century. Before that, the Romans named it after their Sun God, Sol Invictus. What is this term, Christo-Pagan or Christian-Pagan? Isn’t it a contradiction? Well, the truth is: your ancestors were probably Christo-Pagans. In Europe the historical Dual Faith period lasted from approximately 450 AD to 1100 AD, some say it began with Christianity itself. Indeed, Christianity has undeniable pagan roots. Wicca is a very beautiful religion that speaks to many people, so some Christians try to blend Christianity and Wicca together. This is mostly done with either one of two ways; (1) equating the Virgin Mary with Wicca's "Goddess" and Jesus with Wicca's "God", (2) equating the Holy Spirit with Wicca's "Goddess" and considering Christianity's "God" and Wicca's "God" to be one and the same. There are those who claim these are just different names for the same God, but if we look at the Hebrew people who came before Christ, we see they were nomadic, polytheistic tribes. They had multiple gods, though there were some who tried to eradicate the multiples to focus on the one “true god”. For example, Moses presents the Ten Commandments to his Hebrew tribe stating there’s only one true God and that they should have “no other gods before him”. Moses’ tribe was actively worshiping a golden calf (strangely) referred to as “El”. But, to the point, the commandment actually admits there are other “gods. The Cult of Ashtart
In addition to the literature cited under articles DIVINATION and MAGIC (which see), the following worlds may be mentioned (the books on witchcraft proper are simply innumerable): And then there were Augustine and Thomas Aquinas.. The latter wrote in his Summa that the birth of a woman was an “accidens in utero”” , i.e. an unfortunate malformation in her womb, almost like a talidomide baby in the old days.. This is not something I had ever heard of and I have only done some brief digging but, here are my (protestant) 2 cents. The publication of “Malleus Maleficarum”—written by two well-respected German Dominicans in 1486—likely spurred witch mania to go viral. The book, usually translated as “The Hammer of Witches,” was essentially a guide on how to identify, hunt and interrogate witches. We don’t need to fear Satan’s power, but we should respect it and stay away from it. First John 4:4 says, “Greater is He who is in you, than he who is in the world.” Satan can create much havoc, harm, and destruction, even in the lives of believers (1 Thessalonians 2:18; Job 1:12–18; 1 Corinthians 5:5). However, if we belong to the Lord Jesus Christ, there is no power that can ultimately defeat us (Isaiah 54:17). We are overcomers (1 John 5:4) as we “put on the whole armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes” (Ephesians 6:11). When we give our lives to Christ, we must repent. This repentance should include renouncing any involvement with witchcraft, following the example of the early believers in Acts 19:19.
Is there Such a Thing as a Christian Witch?
Christian Wicca is a blend of Christianity and Wicca. It is very important to note that Wicca and Witchcraft are not the same thing. Wicca is a religion, witchcraft is not. Christian Witches are very different from Christian Wiccans (although some of their beliefs may overlap sometimes). At the heart of witchcraft is the desire to know the future and control events that are not ours to control. Those abilities belong only to the Lord. This desire has its roots in Satan's first temptation to Eve: 'You can be like God' ( Genesis 3:5)," the ministry explained. How about Holy Water? Holy Water is water that has been blessed by a priest or official of the Church. Why is water a part of Christian practice, since nature is often condemned by the Church? Water is one of the basic natural elements that was worshiped in pre-Christian pagan times. Pagans believed that water had a “cleansing” power, not just physically but mentally and spiritually. They would “cleanse” themselves in sacred springs, rivers, and wells. A satirical article (supposedly written by Benjamin Franklin) about a witch trial in New Jersey was published in 1730 in the Pennsylvania Gazette. It brought to light the ridiculousness of some witchcraft accusations. It wasn’t long before witch mania died down in the New World and laws were passed to help protect people from being wrongly accused and convicted. Book of Shadows
Basically, a person who came out of another faith may still find that the foundations of that faith stir their soul. Or, sometimes a person in Neo-Paganism hooks up with ecclesiastical Christians and finds something there that resonates in their spirit. While the idea of Christian Witches may be highly debated in the Craft, it is real and viable to the practitioner. And honestly, considering all the flavors of magic, this lands firmly in the column of possibility. The Historical Mix Early witches were people who practiced witchcraft, using magic spells and calling upon spirits for help or to bring about change. Most witches were thought to be pagans doing the Devil’s work. Many, however, were simply natural healers or so-called “wise women” whose choice of profession was misunderstood. A large majority of the Neo-Pagan population were not born into magic or the Craft. They were Catholic, Jewish, Pentecostal, Baptist… and so the list goes on. At one point in our upbringing, we began to question the parameters of our belief systems, which is how we land in an alternative belief system. Wicca and Paganism vs. Witchcraft And what about the Holy Trinity? As a child, it never made sense to me that three gods could be one god. I was told it was an abstract concept and I would understand one day when I grew up. Well, I’m an adult and now I see that multiple gods is multiple gods on any level. When the Council of Nicaea convened in AD 325, one of the main issues they were to decide upon was whether Christ was God and how they would instill belief in him as God. After some dispute, they settled on calling Christ the “son of God” and other writers outside of the Holy Bible made mention of the “Holy Trinity” being made up of Father God, the Son of God (Jesus), and the Holy Ghost (Spirit). THREE gods. Shekinah as the Holy SpiritThe verb "bewitch" occurs in Acts 8:9,11 the King James Version (of Simon Magus bewitching the people) and in Galatians 3:1 ("O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you?"). In the first context the Greek verb is existemi, which is properly rendered by the Revisers "amazed"; in 3:13 the passive of the same verb is translated "he was amazed" (the King James Version "He wondered"). In Galatians 3:1, the verb is baskaubaino, which is used of a blinding effect of the evil eye and has perhaps an occult reference, but it has nothing whatever to do with "witch" or "witchcraft."
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