How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
Jesus' message is one of peace … of nonviolence… of love. This was the message Silas had been taught from the beginning, and the message he held in his heart. And yet this was the message the enemies of Christ now threatened to destroy. Those who threaten God with force will be met with force. Immovable and steadfast. (5.27)
Only religion can be used to reconcile two opposite and opposing viewpoints. Jesus promotes love and peace, but God's enemies will be smited with all the fury in heaven. See what we mean? It's like saying, "Hey, I'm totally a vegan, but I eat bacon because it's delicious."
Quote #2
Nowadays, the term pagan had become almost synonymous with devil worship—a gross misconception. The word's roots actually reached back to the Latin paganus, meaning country-dwellers. "Pagans" were literally unindoctrinated country-folk who clung to the old, rural religions of Nature worship. In fact, so strong was the Church's fear of those who lived in the rural villes that the once innocuous word for "villager"—villain—came to mean a wicked soul. (6.40)
The Church had to find some way of gaining authority (way back when it didn't have much of its own), and one way to do that was to make all the other religions seem illegitimate. It's almost the same concept of The Emperor's New Clothes—you don't want to be the one they call "pagan" like those backwards, country-dwellers. So, you become a Christian instead.
Quote #3
"Symbols are very resilient, but the pentacle was altered by the early Roman Catholic Church. As part of the Vatican's campaign to eradicate pagan religions and convert the masses to Christianity, the Church launched a smear campaign against the pagan gods and goddesses, recasting their divine symbols as evil."
"Go on"
"This is very common in times of turmoil," Langdon continued. "A newly emerging power will take over the existing symbols and degrade them over time in an attempt to erase their meaning. In the battle between the pagan symbols and Christian symbols, the pagans lost; Poseidon's trident became the devil's pitchfork, the wise crone's pointed hat became the symbol of a witch, and Venus's pentacle became a sign of the devil." (6.52-54)
This is also another clever trick for making an opposing viewpoint seem wrong or evil; something as innocent as wearing a pointed hat (which, let's face it, can be quite the stylish accessory) become worthy of inflicting pariah status. This is Langdon's bread and butter, and we have a feeling that he could've gone on a lot longer on the subject of symbols and their strategic vilification.