This question was put forward by Simon in a comment on the ‘Ask James‘ page.
Simon: – James, is Satanism a problem in Malta? If so, what can be done to tackle it?
Me: – Hello Simon.
While I am of the impression that there is a presence of Satanism in Malta I am also of the impression that public opinion on the matter has been sculpted by a Roman Catholic manipulated media and is hence likely not as reliable as one would be led to believe.
For instance, the article carried on illum a month or so ago about “Satan” being born in Mater Dei hospital was an exercise in misinformation and sensationalism – the child was born to a Pagan mother who, as an individual of a different religion, refused access to the child for the clergy on-site. It naturally doesn’t help that Pagans are sometimes mistaken for Satanists if they aren’t too overly careful about blending into Catholic society.
There is also the misconception that every person who wears black and a few piercings, tattoos or trinkets is probably a Satanist, which again is taking public perception a lot further than the bounds of logic.
Is Satanism a problem in and of itself? It is, to the Roman Catholic institution, but Satanism is an anti-religion and is therefore itself a sect of Catholicism. What the Catholic institution should do therefore is ask itself this same question and look within for the answer.
My own stand on the matter is that an individual is entitled to believe, or not believe, whatever he or she wishes to – even in some divine fluffy dice in the sky, if they should wish to choose to. However I also am of the stand that religious freedom should begin and end with the individual and should not cross the threshold into state or active influence of the state as this is where there lies the greatest potential of subjugating minorities as the Catholic Church has done within Malta (Just one example in the form of a question: – should the academic future of a child be jeopardized by a compulsory religion exam should that child fail?).
In conclusion Satanism in and of itself is not the problem per se, it is the acts of Satanism that contradict the rights of others that are potentially the problem and this is where action should be aimed. Trying to raise the status of minority religions to the point of permitting non-socially invasive shrines is one thing that I would like to see done as I suspect that there do exist minorities whom are forced to the fringes of society in order to practice whatever legitimate worship that they would wish to practice.
I hope that that long-winded response sufficiently answers your question. :c)
Simon: – Thank you very much for your informed and detailed response. It has provided ample food for thought and given me some previously unconsidered perspective on the issue.
You’re welcome Simon and thank you for such an interesting question.
Tags: catholicism, misinformation, paganism, satanism
Entries (RSS)
Your blog is very interesting. May i write article for you, could you publish it here ? Please mail me
Its like you read my mind! You seem to know a lot about this, like you wrote the book in it or something.I think that you can do with some pics to drive the message home a bit, but instead of that, this is great blog.A fantastic read.I’ll definitely be back
I do know this isn’t precisely on subject, however i’ve a site utilizing the identical program as well and i get troubles with my feedback displaying. is there a setting i am missing? it’s doable you could help me out? thanx.
I loved as much as you will receive carried out right here.The sketch is tasteful, your authored material stylish.nonetheless, you command get got an impatience over that you wish be delivering the following.unwell unquestionably come further formerly again as exactly the same nearly a lot often inside case you shield this increase
Hi my friend! I wish to say that this article is amazing, nice written and include almost all important infos.I’d like to see more posts like this
Hello there, You have done an excellent job.I will definitely digg it and personally suggest to my friends.I am confident they’ll be benefited from this site
Thanks for that excellent facts!! Are you on twitter at all? Will give a twitter update through my account later :)
Thanks for your amazing advice!!! Are you on twitter by any chance? Can give you a twitter update from my account later :)
Thanks for that fantastic tips!!! Are you a member on twitter by any chance? Will give you a twitter update from my account right now :-)
Recently i came across your website and also have been reading along. I figured I’d depart my first remark. We don’t know what to say with the exception that I’ve loved reading. Good web. I will maintain visiting this site very often. Say thanks to for the publish and have a nice day time.
http://windowcleaners546.blog.com/2011/09/29/window-cleaning-suggestions-whatever-you-should-plan-window-cleaning-employment/ An attention-grabbing discussion is worth comment. I think that it’s best to write more on this topic, it may not be a taboo subject however typically persons are not sufficient to talk on such topics. To the next. Cheers
for yet an additional wonderful informative post, I’m a loyal reader to this weblog and I can’t stress enough how a lot valuable details I’ve learned from reading your content material. I really appreciate all the hard function you put into this excellent blog.
While searching Yahoo I found this page in the results and I didn’t think it fit
I and my pals were looking at the nice tips and hints from the blog then unexpectedly developed an awful suspicion I had not expressed respect to the website owner for those secrets. Most of the boys are already as a consequence excited to read through them and already have really been having fun with these things. Appreciate your turning out to be well thoughtful and then for figuring out some cool guides most people are really wanting to understand about. Our honest regret for not saying thanks to you earlier.
great put up, very informative. I ponder why the other experts of this sector don’t notice this. You must continue your writing. I’m sure, you have a great readers’ base already!
I do not even know how I ended up here, but I thought this post was great. I do not know who you are but certainly you’re going to a famous blogger if you are not already ;) Cheers!
of course like your website but you need to take a look at the spelling on quite a few of your posts. A number of them are rife with spelling problems and I in finding it very bothersome to tell the truth on the other hand I will surely come again again.
Just wanna remark which you have a quite good web web site , I like the layout it really stands out.
Great write-up, I¡¦m regular visitor of one¡¦s web site, maintain up the excellent operate, and It is going to be a regular visitor for a long time.
A good blog always comes-up with new and exciting information and while reading I have feel that this blog has really all those qualities that qualify a blog to be a good one.
great info, tnx ;d
It’s really a cool and useful piece of info. I am happy that you just shared this helpful info with us. Please keep us up to date like this. Thanks for sharing.
Howdy! Someone in my Facebook group shared this website with us so I came to look it over. I’m definitely loving the information. I’m book-marking and will be tweeting this to my followers! Outstanding blog and outstanding style and design.
Thanks for the posting. My partner and i have constantly seen that the majority of people are eager to lose weight simply because they wish to look slim plus attractive. However, they do not continually realize that there are many benefits so that you can losing weight as well. Doctors declare that obese people come across a variety of ailments that can be perfectely attributed to their excess weight. The great news is that people that are overweight in addition to suffering from diverse diseases can reduce the severity of their illnesses through losing weight. You are able to see a progressive but noticeable improvement in health when even a bit of a amount of losing weight is achieved.
Wonderful work! This is the type of information that should be shared around the internet. Shame on Google for not positioning this post higher! Come on over and visit my website . Thanks =)
Hey there would you mind sharing which blog platform you’re working with? I’m planning to start my own blog in the near future but I’m having a difficult time selecting between BlogEngine/WordPress/B2evolution and Drupal. The reason I ask is because your design seems different then most blogs and I’m looking for something unique. P.S My apologies for getting off-topic but I had to ask!
Most of whatever you say happens to be supprisingly precise and that makes me wonder the reason why I had not looked at this in this light previously. This particular piece really did turn the light on for me personally as far as this particular subject matter goes. However there is just one position I am not really too comfy with and while I try to reconcile that with the actual central theme of your position, let me see just what the rest of your subscribers have to point out.Well done.
whoah this weblog is wonderful i like studying your posts. Stay up the great work! You realize, lots of people are hunting round for this info, you could help them greatly.
You really make it seem so easy with your presentation but I find this topic to be actually something which I think I would never understand. It seems too complicated and extremely broad for me. I am looking forward for your next post, I’ll try to get the hang of it!
It is indeed my belief that mesothelioma is most dangerous cancer. It’s got unusual attributes. The more I really look at it the more I am assured it does not work like a real solid tissues cancer. When mesothelioma is really a rogue virus-like infection, so there is the possibility of developing a vaccine and also offering vaccination to asbestos subjected people who are at high risk connected with developing potential asbestos linked malignancies. Thanks for sharing your ideas on this important ailment.
Somebody essentially help to make critically articles I’d state. This is the very first time I frequented your web page and up to now? I amazed with the analysis you made to create this actual post incredible. Wonderful activity!
Spectators heckle player…Southern Miss band members are a bunch of idiots!!! That’s why K-state is still in the game.
Never eat at a restaurant whose last name is ‘Factory’.
Wow! Thank you! I permanently wanted to write on my site something like that. Can I include a portion of your post to my site?
Do you mind if I quote a couple of your articles as long as I provide credit and sources back to your website? My website is in the very same area of interest as yours and my users would genuinely benefit from some of the information you present here. Please let me know if this okay with you. Thanks!
Throughout the awesome pattern of things you’ll secure an A+ just for effort and hard work. Exactly where you misplaced me personally was first on all the specifics. As as the maxim goes, the devil is in the details… And it could not be more accurate in this article. Having said that, permit me reveal to you what exactly did deliver the results. The writing is definitely rather persuasive which is probably why I am taking an effort in order to comment. I do not make it a regular habit of doing that. Secondly, even though I can easily notice the jumps in logic you come up with, I am not certain of how you seem to connect your ideas that produce the final result. For now I shall yield to your issue however wish in the future you actually connect the facts better.
What’s Taking place i am new to this, I stumbled upon this I have found It positively useful and it has helped me out loads. I’m hoping to give a contribution & help other users like its aided me. Great job.
I’ve learn a few excellent stuff here. Certainly worth bookmarking for revisiting. I wonder how so much effort you put to make any such excellent informative site.
Along with the whole thing that appears to be building within this area, a significant percentage of perspectives are actually fairly stimulating. Even so, I beg your pardon, but I can not give credence to your whole plan, all be it exhilarating none the less. It appears to me that your opinions are generally not completely rationalized and in fact you are generally your self not really entirely confident of your argument. In any event I did appreciate looking at it.
I needed to thank you for this excellent read!! I certainly loved every bit of it. I have you book-marked to check out new stuff you post…
Thanks a lot for your post. I want to comment that the expense of car insurance differs from one scheme to another, given that there are so many different issues which contribute to the overall cost. By way of example, the model and make of the vehicle will have a huge bearing on the price. A reliable aged family car will have an inexpensive premium over a flashy fancy car.
India was the best nation and really deserved their win, can’t wait for the next cricket world cup.
some truly interesting points you have written.
I want to start a website. It will be asking for money only to fund the seminars associated with holding meetings for the clients and for mailouts. How should I go about setting that up?.
Once I initially commented I clicked the -Notify me when new feedback are added- checkbox and now each time a remark is added I get 4 emails with the identical comment. Is there any approach you can take away me from that service? Thanks!
I’m impressed, I need to say. Actually rarely do I encounter a weblog that’s each educative and entertaining, and let me let you know, you could have hit the nail on the head. Your concept is outstanding; the issue is something that not enough people are speaking intelligently about. I’m very blissful that I stumbled across this in my search for one thing regarding this.
Hi there! Would you mind if I share your blog with my zynga group? There’s a lot of folks that I think would really appreciate your content. Please let me know. Thanks
You put together some great posts on here. I’ve bookmarked this, and definitely will come back to see what you’ve written again.
Almost 40 of the strong population are affected by tinnitus. For all-around one particular on 100, it are already a strong quite serious long-term problem. Most individuals at permanent tinnitus understand t cope by using my private problem. For some people, tinnitustinnitustinnitus perform lead capital t troubles which include depression plus sleep disorders.
I’m not great with html, but I think there’s a simple way to add a byline to the beginning of my blog posts under the title. Is there anywhere I can find a step-by-step guide on how to do this?. The blog is set up on WordPress, and is using the pilcrow theme – I hope this helps?.