Page 87 - The 'X' Chronicles Newspaper - August/September 2017

Things Everyone Gets Wrong About Satan 87

Things Everyone Gets the supreme sacrifice that Christ had already another misconception about Satan’s role in
made, Peter requested that he be crucified Hell; according to popular belief, it’s Satan that
Wrong About Satan upside-down. The upside-down cross then barters for souls and banishes them to Hell for

became a symbol of humility, worn by those eternal punishment. In this same part of
who, in the same spirit of Peter, wish to pay Revelation (and in Matthew 25:46), it’s also said
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respect to the sacrifice made by Christ. that because of the bestowing of free will on
That’s why it’s on the back of the Pope’s mankind, it’s not Satan that’s stealing souls and
chair: The man acting as Pope steps into the turning them evil; evil is a choice made by each
But as for the depiction of the goat, that’s been
shoes first worn by St. Peter, and the symbol of person. It’s also said that God will punish all
traced back to the writings of Eliphas Levi, the cross has also been passed down. It’s been those who turn to evil in the same way—
about 600 years after the Templars had their run- suggested that the presence of the cross on the including Satan himself.
in with the Pope. Levi gave the goat-headed
back of the Pope’s chair suggests that he’s
creature the name Baphomet, harkening back to
actually in league with Satan himself, but it Satan Doesn’t Live In Hell . . . He Lives
a ram-headed Egyptian god named Banedbjedet.
seems like a pretty unlikely (and rather obvious) In Turkey
The image of the goat within the pentagram then
way of showing it.
came from the adoption of the image of the Goat
For some, the upside-down cross has
of Mendes, which was associated with another One of the most universally accepted facts about
been moved into the territory of fashion, with
ram-headed Egyptian god, Amon. Today, the jewelry-makers selling not only crosses facing Satan—that he rules over all the demons in
link between the Satanic goat and the Devil is in both directions, but also sideways. Hell—is also one of the most incorrect.
complete with the trademark of the image by the According to the Bible, Satan doesn’t rule in
Hell and doesn’t live there, either. He lives on
Church of Satan.
His Demons Aren’t That Bad Earth, walking among us and tempting us to
commit sins and turn to his side.
Christians Didn’t Get Satan From Pan
… according to The Goetia: The Lesser Key of The Book of Revelation goes a step
King Solomon, an anonymously written farther and names the ancient Turkish city of
There seems to be an obvious connection to be grimoire. The story says that King Solomon was
drawn between Pan, the goat-legged satyr, and once the most wise of all kings and could speak Pergamum as the “Throne of Satan.”
Specifically, it’s thought that it was a literal
the habit early Christians had of adopting others’
with man, beast, demon, and angel alike. throne, with the temple once known as the Great
deities and then assigning them less-than-
Solomon’s temple was built only with the Altar of Zeus repurposed as the Devil’s throne.
favorable roles. This leads us to another
assistance of demons, particularly one named The prophet John says: “To the angel of the
misconceptions about Satan: The Devil was not
Asmodeus. While Solomon’s demons had a church in Pergamum write: I know your works,
originally associated with Pan, but Christ was.
handful of the traditional characteristics we and where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is.
Pan, the son of the god Hermes, was one
associate with them—tendencies to trick, lie, And you hold fast to my name, and did not deny
of a handful of figures in the pastoral pantheon and manipulate—they’re not the mindless, my faith even in the days in which Antipas was
in Greece. They were worshiped by farmers and mind-controlled troublemakers we usually think
shepherds, many of whom would pray to Pan to of now. They definitely weren’t little, red, fork- my faithful martyr, who was killed among you,
where Satan dwells.” In the context of the time,
watch over their flocks, and he was often called
tailed monsters. As far back as the 16th century, a throne is much more than just a chair—it’s a
on protect sheep from vicious wolf attacks.
writers were compiling lists of demons and how home.
Sounding familiar? Christianity’s patron saint of
to summon and control them. John’s words to the people of Pergamum
shepherds, Saint Bartholomy, even shares an
Precisely when The Goetia: The Lesser are an expression of gratitude for their faith
island shrine with him. According to one rarely
Key of King Solomon was first organized is while one of their own suffered one of the many
repeated part of the story about the birth of
unknown, although parts of it echo through horrible deaths inflicted upon the martyrs.
Christ, when the Christians’ Good Shepherd was earlier works. The book is said to contain all the Pergamum was home to the Asklepion, one of
born, a voice was heard by a shipmaster named information you need to summon 72 demons,
Thamus, instructing him to recite, “Magnus Pan the same demons that Solomon used to build his the most successful hospitals of the day, built in
honor of the healing god Asklepios. Those who
mortuus est,” (“The great Pan is dead!”) when
temple. were ill would take a sleeping potion and spend
spreading the word of the birth of Jesus Christ.
While we might usually think of demons the night surrounded by snakes said to bring
Why did the image of Pan switch sides?
being summoned into the world to quite literally them dreams from Asklepios. Once the dreams
The church might have approved of Pan’s image
unleash hell, they’re not that one-dimensional. were interpreted by their doctors, they could be
as a shepherd, but they certainly didn’t approve
The 10th demon, Buer, teaches his summoners cured. Once Christianity came to the city, the
of his other role as a fertility god. While the
the healing properties of plants and herbs, gives priests that were doing the interpreting pleaded
parallels between Pan and Christ survived as far good familiars, and can heal “distempers.” with the city officials to run the Christians out of
along as Milton’s Paradise Lost, the church soon Eligos, the 15th demon spirit, appears as a town—they were interfering with their spirits
decided that the lusty satyr was more in line with knight and can see the future and reveal secrets. and the presence of their gods. One of the most
the sexual morals of the Devil than of Christ.
Naberius can give the gift of rhetoric and restore vocal, a man named Antipas, was instructed to
lost position and honors. See? They’re not so forsake his Christian ways and swear allegiance
The Upside-Down Cross Is A bad. to Rome. He refused and was burned alive in the
Respectful Symbol brass bull on the top of the Altar of Zeus.
Satan Is Not Destined To Rule In Hell But that’s absolutely not the end of the
One of the most prevailant assumptions— story. In the mid-19th century, a German
especially in movies like The Omen and in the Call him the Prince of Hell or the Prince of engineer named Carl Humann visited the ruined
death metal world—is that the upside-down Darkness, and the job is clear. When it comes to city. He petitioned the respective governments
cross is one of Satan’s symbols. This assumption the place where Satan’s going to spend eternity, to excavate the city and remove and take what
is based in the idea that it’s a reversal of Christ’s it’s clearly Hell . . . right? According to Paul in artifacts he could back to Germany. The
ultimate sacrifice, but that’s only half true. Hebrews 2:14, Christ will “destroy” Satan. That Pergamon Museum opened in 1930. Its center
The upside-down cross is traditionally doesn’t mean killing him though—the word attraction was the reassembled Great Altar of
viewed as not only a Christian symbol, but as used is “katargeo,” which means defeating or Zeus. Several years later, Albert Speer would
one of humility. As the story goes—and it’s a putting someone away. Hell isn’t the domain of look to the altar for inspiration to create an eerie
story that can be traced back to some of the Satan. It’s his prison, where the Bible says he’ll parallel. Adolf Hitler wanted him to design
earliest Christian writings of men like St. be tortured just like all the others who have parade grounds, and Speer took the altar and
Clement of Rome, St. Ignatius of Antioch, and turned away from God. recreated it on a massive scale. He replaced the
Eusebius of Caesarea—St. Peter was crucified Revelation 20:10 also supports this bronze bull in which Antipas had been martyred
in Rome by the order of Emperor Nero, who was interpretation. According to this verse, Satan’s with Hitler’s podium, where he would stand to
making a stand against the then-burgeoning destiny has already been decided, and it’s being announce the Nuremberg Laws. []
religion of Christianity. Not wanting to dishonor cast into Hell’s lake of fire. This blurs into