Does anyone other than Christians even believe in witchcraft?
That's kind of like saying a Satanist isn't Christian, right? I mean the character of Satan is drawn from the same stories, so if you don't believe those stories, then you wouldn't believe in any Satan. Therefore, Satanism is just another Christian denomination.
I seriously thought all of the witchcraft talk among Christian sects (accelerated by Harry Potter movies) was one big joke on the world. I thought there was NO way they could be serious.
Using your logic, convoluted as it is, all are actually Jews since the bible and the Koran all take from it and move on from it. Basically we are all Jews. That makes you a bigot and anti-Semite.
Yes, several other groups do. "Magic" is common on Earth. Well, it isn't..but belief in it is. Witchcraft isn't limited to Satanism at ALL. This post and the quite-similar one you made before this show you know very little about the occult or "alternative religious beliefs". No big deal, but ..well, you can see the responses you're getting here.
Actress Fairuza Balk( "The Craft") is a Wiccan I think, and actually owns a ritual supply shop. Last year the GOP in either NJ or NY ran an actual pagan("Asatru") in a small, local race. Some feminists are linked to "witchcraft" by way of Goddess religions..you can see the connection I'm sure.
Now I remember a crack PJ O'Rourke made about experiences in the sixties..you were "there" if you ever had a girlfriend who said "I think I might be a witch", Hathaway!
Witches do not believe in a single god. However the witch fable is generally a creation of Christians to justify their destruction. Christian have also had holy wars, heretics and other methods of justifying their actions. Satan was created to be the ultimate enemy by the Christian religions.
However every other religion has it's fables or moral tales to keep the followers in line. Fear is the tool that gives them all control.
Two different religions. Christians believe in the Creator God.
Witchcraft comes from Wiccan and they believe in a completely
different God and Goddess. Many high school kids dabble in
strange and different religions, different and deviate sexual
practices, tattoos, and piercings as they want to taste whatever
is out there. Eventually, most grow up and denounce those
things (O'Donnel happens to be one of those).
Stewart is showing videos of O'Donnell when she was in high school. Would you like to have that done to you 20 years later on national television? Be honest now.
She said she went on a date and ended up having a picnic at a Satanist altar completely without her knowledge. She said some of her acquaintances dabbled in Wicca but she never joined a coven. Now how did we get from there to here?
Witchcraft is an interesting dynamic among the Christian religion. It was wildly popular to hunt witches during the dark ages, even all the way up to the 19Th century in some places. It probably had mostly to do with people wanting to get rid of old ladies who were a drain on their families (when your children were starving, you were probably resentful of your old aunt who never married, is too old to work, and expects you to feed her).
Although don't tell the inquisition that you're accusing your spinster aunt of being a witch. The Catholic Church officially denies the existence of witchcraft and would have arrested YOU for spreading heresy! There isn't a single major Christian institution that I know of that acknowledges the existence of any power other than that of God's.
Satanism comes in several varieties but most interestingly is that the most well known type of Satanism is LaVeyan Satanism, which is atheist in practice and uses Satan for purely symbolic purposes.
First of all there is some misunderstanding of Wicca. Wicca does NOT equal witchcraft! "The craft" doesn't have a monopoly on the word witchcraft. Yes when one says witchcraft they might be referring to Wicca but there are more religions than Wicca that can use the words witchcraft, magic, witch etc. A Satanist uses these words as well, and we have just as much of a right to use them as a Wiccan does.
As far as the actual question goes, no Satanism is NOT a Christian denomination. There are lots of different types of Satanism. I hate to simplify it this much but the two main categories are Atheistic and Theistic. Atheistic Satanism or LaVey Satanism is a religion that focuses on the self. It is usually considered to be a type of humanistic philosophy. LaVey Satanists don't believe in god or the devil or any Christian stories for that matter. Theistic Satanism has many types but they always involve some sort of god or spirit going by the names, Satan, Lucifer, Set, Enki etc. Theistic Satanism is often misunderstood. Theistic Satanism does not equal devil worship as the ask er implies. Satan is viewed as a spirit or god outside and independent of the Christian religion. For example, The Temple of Set worships the Egyptian god Set. The ask er is describing devil worship. Devil worship does not exist. There are a few organizations out there that claim to practice actual devil worship. After further examination these so called devil worship organizations are superficial at best.
Does anyone other than Christians even believe in witchcraft?
