![]() ![]() In contrast, the supernatural powers ascribed to black cats were sometimes viewed positively for example, sailors considering a " ship's cat" would want a black one because it would bring good luck. ![]() In the present day many Westerners, including Christian clergy, have black cats as pets, and very few people attach superstitions to them anymore. There is no evidence from England of regular large-scale massacres of "Satanic" cats, or of burning them in midsummer bonfires, as sometimes occurred elsewhere in Europe. These superstitions led people to kill black cats. The Pilgrims viewed the black cat as a companion, or a familiar to witches, who were said to "use black cats as an integral part of their craft". They also brought a deepening suspicion of anything deemed of Satan and were deeply suspicious of other Christians, including those of the Catholic, Quaker, Anglican and Baptist denominations. When the Pilgrims arrived at Plymouth Rock, they brought with them a devout faith in the Bible. ![]() The black cat in folklore has been able to change into human shape to act as a spy or courier for witches or demons. Most of Europe considers the black cat a symbol of bad luck, particularly if one walks across the path in front of a person, which is believed to be an omen of misfortune and death. In most Western cultures, black cats have typically been looked upon as a symbol of evil omens, specifically being suspected of being the familiars of witches, or actually shape-shifting witches themselves. Superstition, prejudice, bringer of good or bad luck Black cat with long hairīlack cats are often a symbol of Halloween or witchcraft. Furthermore, it is believed that a lady who owns a black cat will have many suitors. It was also believed that if a black cat walks onto a ship and then walks off it, the ship is doomed to sink on its next trip. This tradition was reversed at sea where 18th century pirates came to believe that a black cat would bring bad luck if it walks towards someone, and good luck if it walks away from someone. One tradition states that if a black cat walks towards someone, it is said to bring good fortune, but if it walks away, it takes the good luck with it. The mix of positive and negative associations in Great Britain may have given rise to the later belief that black cats were omens of both good and bad luck. In England, as with other Germanic cultures, some areas would associate black cats with witches and bad luck. In Scottish mythology, a fairy known as the Cat sìth takes the form of a black cat, while in Welsh mythology the monstrous Cath Palug grew from a black kitten. However, both the Gaels and Celtic Britons had traditions of feral and sometimes malevolent black cats.
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