Strange images in church

Discussion in 'Religion Archives' started by Robban, Aug 11, 2003.

  1. Robban Registered Senior Member

    Messages:
    128
    Hello!

    Recently i visited a church i southern Sweden. The churchwas built in late 1800. On the windows was some images that I found remarkable:

    There was a very large pentagram in many windows.

    In one of the windows you can see this:

    A large character with a bulls head, horns included, is standing holding a book with a depiction of a "double" face of mother mary (I assume).

    The Bull-character has four arms and two legs and a pair of wings.

    It is surrounded by 10 small stars and one larger six-point star.

    A larger david-star is placed on the robe.

    The text is in modern swedish and says "Honour to the God in heaven and peace on earth.

    What I find interesting is the bull-figure. The bull-cult is pagan by all means I know. Baal was depicted with a bull, as was Marduk and at least one egyptian diety.

    What is this?

    I attached a photo...
     
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  3. Tiassa Let us not launch the boat ... Valued Senior Member

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    37,884
    Wild.

    Cool. Er ... um ...

    Okay ... I haven't a clue at present. I'm not up on Swedish symbolism in history.

    Do you recall the name of the church? Or at least the name of the town/municipality?

    Cattle cults run back beyond written history ... they've had varied interpretations. Can't say I've ever seen anything like this before, though.

    Thanks ... 'tis a mystery so far.

    :m:,
    Tiassa

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  5. everneo Re-searcher Registered Senior Member

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    "Ezechiel's vision of the Cherubim, which is practically the same in the tenth chapter as in the first, is one of the most difficult in Scripture, and has given rise to a multitude of explanations. The prophet first saw a luminous cloud coming from the north; from a distance it seemed a heavy cloud fringed with light and some intense brilliancy in the centre thereof, bright as gold, yet in perpetual motion as the flames of a fire. Within that heavenly fire he began gradually to distinguish four living beings with bodies as men, yet with four faces each: a human face in front, but an eagles face behind; a lion's face to the left and an ox's face to the right. Though approaching, yet their knees did not bend in their march, straight and stiff they remained; and for feet they had the hoofs of oxen, shod as it were with shining brass. They had four arms, two to each shoulder, and attached along each arm a wing. Of these four winged arms two were outstretched above, and two were let down and covered their bodies. These four living beings stood together, facing in four opposite directions, and between them were four great wheels, each wheel being double, so that it could roll forward or sideways. Thus this angelic chariot, in whatever of the four directions it moved, always presented the same aspect. "

    http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03646c.htm

    While catholics take seraphim and cherubim as spiritual beings in the upper choir of angels, some protestant scholars take them as symbolic representations.
     
    Last edited: Aug 11, 2003
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  7. Robban Registered Senior Member

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  8. perfectblue given a second chance Registered Senior Member

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    67
    Well, I just want to say that the star in a circle is a pentacle, not a pentagram. If it were a pentagram, it would be upside-down.
     
  9. Robban Registered Senior Member

    Messages:
    128
    hmm ok.

    A quick search on pentacle gives me loads of pagan believes (both ancient and new age) so the question remains.

    Doesn't it?
     
  10. MRC_Hans Skeptic Registered Senior Member

    Messages:
    835
    I'm sure you could find litterature about that church. On pagan sympols: Crisitianity has adopted a lot of pagan symbols, and vice versa.

    Hans
     
  11. Circe Registered Senior Member

    Messages:
    406
    Pentagram and pentacle are one and the same thing, meaning five-pointed star. A five pointed star that's not inverted is still a pentagram.
     
  12. Silivren Weird, yo Registered Senior Member

    Messages:
    33
    Well... I can answer about the pentagram. I don't know why it's in a christian church, since it is a pagan symbol, but as I see it the pentagram is either a symbol of protection or banishment... In a church, probably used against evil things.

    And... first post. Don't hurt me.

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  13. Judas Guest

    *damn the cake got burned in the micro wave*

    The bull might be a minotaurus?

    Robban , since we both are Scandinavians you should know
    that we have transferred alot of the norse symbols to the
    christian religion. It can mean anything.
     
  14. truth Registered Senior Member

    Messages:
    643
    I came across this link that talks extensively about the inverted stars and their origin. The main part of their use in the past and origin is mostly found on the last couple of pages.

    http://www.fairlds.org/pubs/Stars.pdf

    It appears that a French wannabe priest got defrocked in the 1800's because of dabbling in the occult and tried to make a jab at the Catholic church in about 1861. Originally, the pentagram was used in Christianity, it is in the Chartes Cathedral, it was in Constantine's royal seal, etc. The US Medal of Honor has it too.
     
  15. Robban Registered Senior Member

    Messages:
    128
    Yes norse symbols.. we have some but do we have them in the x-ian ideas? I guess to mean like the midsummer-erh-pole etc?

    The church (as usual) did slaugher the old belief quite hard. And this church was built in late 1800 so its bacicly a modern building.
     

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