We were recently asked about the12th House in Astrology and why people believe it’s so special. Here are a few reasons why you shouldn’t believe anything you hear about the 12th House – or astrology, for that matter.
Just like everything else in astrology, the 12th House is a baseless construct that is said to be one of 12 hypothetical sections on a person’s natal or birth chart. This House supposedly rules our intuition, dreams, the subconscious, and our instincts.
As the AstrologyZone.com explains, “This is the house where we go to heal ourselves. It also rules self-sacrifice, inner suffering, limitations, and secret enemies. Lastly, this house rules charity, especially on a one-on-one basis.”
It adds that all large animals come under the domain of the twelfth house, which is ruled by “spiritual and self-sacrificing Neptune and by compassionate Pisces.”
The only problem with this rather fanciful explanation of the 12th house is that it’s based on pure bunk – as is all of astrology.
To make this explanation as simple as possible, it’s important to first come to understand what astrology is, and how the so-called “houses” fit into the picture.
For starters, astrology is not the same as astronomy. The latter is based in science and the former is a Babylonian occult art. It is believed to have originated with the Chaldeans who observed the orderly movement of the planets, assigned them godlike characteristics and powers, and eventually began to worship them as gods. Astrologers would then interpret the pattern of the planets as omens or signs of what was to come.
Astrologers believe that the location of planets in relation to the constellations of the zodiac have a particular influence on each person at the moment of their birth. By studying the stars and planets associated with a person’s birth date, which they do by creating a natal or birth chart, they believe they can predict characteristics of a person, his inclinations, relationships, and even the events likely to occur in a person’s life based upon the movement of the stars and planets.
However, when the basic tenets of astrology are viewed from the lens of real science, even the zodiac signs are incorrect. As Father Mitch Pacwa explains in his book, Catholics and the New Age, the actual zodiac is an imaginary circle around the ecliptic of the earth’s annual trip around the sun which astrologers divide into 12 equal sections of 30 degrees each. However, real science tells us that the actual degrees of the constellations range anywhere from 7.0 to 37.5.
What affect does this difference have on astrology?
“This unevenness means the month ascribed to each ‘sun sign’ in newspaper columns does not correspond to the easily verified scientific data about the real amount of time the sun lies within the constellations,” Father Pacwa writes. “Everyone’s astrological sign is different from the claims of the newspapers and books. This means that everyone needs to change the astrological sign under which he or she was born. Whatever date the newspaper gives for your sign, move it back one whole sign, because that, in fact, is your real sign.”
The 12 sections of a person’s birth chart that are known as the “houses” are allegedly based on the earth’s 24-hour rotation around its axis with each of the 12 houses representing two hours of the sun’s movement each day.
As astrologer Lisa Stardust explains to Allure, “The Houses in an astrology chart represent different facets of your life, based on the time and location of birth, and show the gifts or obstacles you will face in this lifetime.”
For example, the first house, which is the “house of self” or the ascendant, governs your self-image and sense of self. The second house is the “house of finance” and is all about money, wealth, and possession. The third house is the “house of communication” and rules how your express yourself.
On this site, the 12th House is described as ruling over our unconscious, our secrets, our past life, karma, the occult and paranormal energies. Because today’s culture is infatuated with eastern religions and their altered states and reincarnation, as well as the occult and everything paranormal, the Twelfth House is obviously popular.
The question we have to ask ourselves is this: If all of astrology is based on flawed information and fanciful constructs, what are the chances that these houses, if they even exist, have any impact at all upon your personality or your life?
The correct answer is nil.
In fact, all astrological predictions should be classified in the “bunk” category. If you need further convincing, consider the study conducted by The Astronomical Society of the Pacific. In this study, a French statistician named Michel Gauquelin sent a horoscope for one of the worst mass murderers in French history to 150 unsuspecting people who were asked how well it fit them. Believe it or not, 94 percent of the people said they recognized themselves in the description!
Bottom line, forget horoscopes, astrological houses, and natal charts. No matter how innocent they may appear, they’re a form of fortune-telling which is strictly forbidden.
Instead, take the advice John Paul II gave in an Angelus address in 1998: “If we want to give good direction to our life, we must learn to discern its plan, by reading the mysterious ‘road signs’ God puts in our daily history. For this purpose neither horoscopes nor fortune-telling is useful. What is needed is prayer, authentic prayer, which should always accompany a life decision made in conformity with God’s law.”
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