The Pagans for Life Logo

If you're not already active within the pro-life movement and/or paganism, you might be curious about the meaning behind our symbol. Here's some brief information about the symbols in our logo.
precious feet

The "Precious Feet"

Many pro-lifers wear a small pin showing the actual size and shape of a 10 week old fetus's feet. It has become an international symbol of the pro-life movement because it offers a dramatic, tangible reminder that even at a stage where the fetus is tiny, s/he is well-developed enough to have perfectly formed feet (as well as fingers with fingerprints).

The "Precious Feet" pins were inspired by the below photograph. It's an actual 10 week old fetus being held in a physician's hand. The original image came from a pathologist named Dr. Russell Sacco.

feet of a 10 week old

Sadly, not every woman contemplating abortion is given enough information on fetal development. One woman reports the following incident relating to this picture inspired her to become pro-life:

"[T]here was a to-do on the news over a billboard some pro life group had errected. It showed the famous photo of the adult hand holding the aborted fetus so just his tiny feet show. The billboard said, 'Aborted: 10 weeks into life.' The local news station interviewed the head of the largest abortion clinic in the area. She said, 'We've been getting hundreds of angry calls from women wanting to know why they weren't given this information before their abortions. We want that billboard down!'"
pentacle

The Pentacle

The pentacle is a five pointed star drawn with a single line, but it is far more meaningful than its simple design might suggest. It is a very common symbol of paganism. Many pagans wear some form of pentacle to identify their spirituality. The five points frequently represent the elements and the spirit dominating the material world. Although it's not universal, most pagans identify the points with the elements in the following order (working clockwise from the top): Spirit, Water, Fire, Earth, and Air.

The pentacle has long been regarded as a powerful symbol of safety and protection (thus, it's a doubly appropriate symbol for those of us who are both pagan and wish to see mothers and unborn children alike protected from the violence of abortion). It is also known as "The Star of Life" because five-fold symmetries are so prevalent in living organisms. The circle around the star represents eternity, completeness, and a connection with the universe as a whole. Some also believe that the circle, by enclosing the star, concentrates and increases the protective power of the pentacle.

The pentacle is not a sign of "evil" or devil worship, as some people mistakenly believe. The confusion about the symbol's meaning may come from the fact that Satanists have adopted the use of an inverted pentacle (one point facing down and two points facing up) in their ceremonies. The inverted pentacle is avoided by many pagans because of this association. However, the pentacle has never in itself meant evil or Satanism. In fact, in ancient times, the pentagram was used by various groups...including early Christians, for whom it symbolized truth and the five wounds of the crucified Christ (one in each palm/wrist, one on each ankle and those made by the crown of thorns).

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