Different forms of spiritualism
Other Snares of Satan
There are several other facts about spiritism and witchcraft which we need to understand, so we can warn our friends against them.
First, today there are a number of other types of witchcraft which are captivating large numbers of people. Let us briefly consider some of the leading ones.
Séances. Someone may tell you that something marvelous happened at a séance they attended. Here are some of the actual hoaxes that occur at those gatherings. But not everything done is fakery. You should not attend these gatherings, and you should warn others not to go!
The people are sitting in almost total darkness at séances because the lights are turned down and the windows are blacked out (“because the spirits like it that way” is the excuse given). The small audience is seated in a row facing the front. There is also a table in front, a chair for the medium, and space on both sides and behind him for his assistant to silently and unseen move around. That makes it easier to do special tricks to fool everyone.
The medium’s associate will dress in black from head to toe. Objects which are white or bright will suddenly appear, either on the table or will apparently float in space.
Each visitor is given a blank card to hand in, possibly with his name signed on it. These are placed on the table. Soon they disappear, or float off into space and suddenly disappear from view. Later cards containing messages written on them “from the spirits” float into view and are placed on the table.
A solid object (called an “apport”) suddenly appears in space, floating around. It is often a silver trumpet, which moves around and eventually disappears.
The table tilts. Harry Houdini said this was done by the medium lifting the table with a steel rod or hook under his sleeve or vest.
The table begins “rapping” because the medium taps the leg with the edge of his shoe, which has steel on it. Or wires from the bottom of a table leg lead to the next room, which controls an electric coil under the table top, making certain numbers of clicks. Trick photography produces photos of people who have died, but who now appear semi-transparent. Additional tricks could be mentioned.
Channeling. This is just a modern name for old-fashioned witchcraft. Séances may be held, or “readings” may be given, which predict events to occur that year. (Most of the “prophecies” are not fulfilled. But, by December, few recall what was predicted in January.)
Wicca. This is the modern name for witches and witchcraft. “Wicca” is an ancient word for “witch.” Females are called “witches,” and males are called “wizards” or “warlocks.”
The New Age movement. This, plus Wicca, communication with the dead, astrology, feminism, hippie counterculture, street drugs mixed with mysticism, world disarmament and hunger projects, secular humanism, and atheism.
Several famous books and movie stars helped to popularize this spiritist fad. Since the 1980s, it has entered the public schools, corporate training, and many churches. Political and military organizations encourage it. The UN became a major center for promoting it. The so-called “New Age” is supposed to bring in worldwide peace.
Yoga, especially, is used to supposedly help relax people and improve their health. Instead, the controlling spirit causes depression when the individual is not frequently engaged in yoga. More on yoga later.
Transcendentalism (TM). TM (also called Maharishi Technology and Unified Field) started in the 1960s, when the Beatles visited India and learned about yoga from a holy man, called Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. He later came to the United States and, selling his “training program,” became a multimillionaire.
TM is a combination of Hinduism and Raga Yoga. People pay money to learn how to do TM. It consists of being given a “personal mantra” (“sacred word”) to mindlessly repeat over and over again during a “meditation session” while the person is sitting cross-legged on the floor. The “mantra” is the Sanscrit (ancient Indian) word or phrase for one or two Hindu deities. (So, by repeating the mantra, the person is actually praying to a pagan god.)
According to Maharishi and others, the objective is to “come out of your personal nature,” “empty yourself of self,” unite with an impersonal god, and thus receive “enlightenment.” This will bring you under that god’s control and “make you his surrendered servant.” TM and other Eastern cults have brought a flood of Eastern occult thinking to the West.
Hinduism, Buddhism and Karma. The doctrine of reincarnation is crucial to this survey of Eastern occultism. It is a key teaching of Hinduism, and the basis of both Brahmanism and Buddhism. Reincarnation teaches that each new birth into the world is determined by the deeds of the previous life. This is karma. As a result, the soul which lives forever is, at death, continually reborn again—as a person or perhaps as an animal.
This doctrine of reincarnation and transmigration of souls was also found in Egypt and Persia before the time of Zoroaster. But it was derived from Indian sources. There are endless incarnations before all men return to the impersonal “World Soul,” and all evil is ended. Like all occult practices, karma is a way to ignore salvation through Christ, as well as a way to avoid responsibility and punishment for sin. Karma teaches that one life just keeps leading to the next one.
Buddhism and dharma. Buddha was born in 563 B.C. in Lumini near Nepal’s border with India. His Dharma(“way” or “doctrine”) was based on Hindu karma, but aimed at ending the cycle of suffering in successive transmigrations. Escape was said to be possible by reaching nirvana, a condition of infinite bliss likened to an extinguished flame (“nirvana” means “to blow out”); in other words, a mindless, thoughtless, nothingness kind of eternal existence.
Yoga. Yoga is an Indian ritual involving certain body positions, breathing patterns, looking steadily at a candle flame, etc.; and, during this “meditation,” one is either thinking of nothing or repeating a mantra (the name of the god to be worshiped), etc. This is supposed to unite the human soul in “total surrender” to the Supreme Spirit.
As with other occult practices, the spirit controlling the person actually produces within him a state of depression or a physical problem, when it is not engaged in. But while it is done regularly, the depression lifts and the body seems to feel better.
A major text on Yoga states, “The aim of all yoga is realization of the Absolute Brahman.” Hindu belief teaches that Brahmam is the master god, present in all things (pantheism); yet it is always unknowable. His manifestation to men is through the Hindu god, Shiva (or Siva), the god of destruction. In other words, because you have placed yourself under the power of an evil spirit, either you submit to Brahmam, or Shiva will destroy you.
There are four forms of Yoga, one of which is Hatha Yoga, the practice most familiar to the general public. It is divided into eight stages: Body purification, postures, mudras (other postures), breath control, stilling the mind, concentration, mediation, and union with god (Shiva).
Body purification (kriyas) involves belching air, vomiting water, swallowing a 15-foot-long cloth or running a string up the nose, through the nasal cavity and out of the mouth. Most people who begin yoga assume that the positions are mere techniques to calm the body and improve physical fitness. But each one has occult relations. For example, the postures (asanas) are practiced by facing the rising sun and repeating the twelve Sanskrit names of the Lord Sun.
Information on Yoga has been given here in more detail, since so many are becoming involved in it and do not realize how terrible it is—until it becomes difficult for them to escape.
Taoism. Lao-tse (Lao Tzu) lived in South China in 604 B.C. He invented Taoism (pronounced, dow’-ism), which includes the concept of yin (evil, femininity) and yang (good, masculinity)—two opposing forces in everything. People must solve the problem by balancing both in everything they do. In this way, they live in harmony with theTao.
As with other heathen concepts, there is no need to accept Christ, obey the Creator God, or put away sin. Just try to live a regular, somewhat civilized life. The movie, Star Wars, was based on the Taoist concept of ch’i, which is “the Force” that provides you with energy to keep pushing forward and getting what you want. The Martial Arts (Jujitsu, Karate, etc.) are based on Taoism and teach training in how to use force.
Satanism. This is the direct worship of Satan himself. People have been murdered during special worship rituals. It was very secretive in past ages, until popularized, beginning in 1966, by Anton Szandor La Vey in San Francisco. Founding the “First Church of Satan,” he wrote a book, starred in a Hollywood movie (in which he played the role of the devil), and published a monthly newsletter. La Vey’s church had a membership of thousands. As with other spiritualists, he came to a miserable end and is now dead. All types of nudism and sexual activity are used as part of the “worship service.”
Psychics. So-called “psychics” are people who claim to receive messages from the spirit world, and are thus able to make predictions about coming events. At the beginning of each year, leading psychics often publish lists of events which will occur during the next 12 months. By December, people have forgotten the list and do not notice that only a few events (which were very likely to occur) actually happened. This fact has been documented by their critics.
Here are several examples of the failure of their predictions: Charles Laughead predicted, in early 1954, that the world would end on December 21, 1954, and a few would be rescued by space ships. Jeane Dixon, the most famous 20th century psychic, said (in her first book) a child born in the Middle East on February 5, 1962, would become a “great force” about 1980; and his power would grow until 1999, when he would bring peace to the entire planet. In her second book, she said he would instead be the anti-Christ. In her third book, she said a nuclear holocaust would occur in 1999. Here are some of her other predictions: World War III would begin in 1954 and Castro would be overthrown in the 1970s.
Edgar Cayce, the other leading psychic, predicted that California would fall into the Pacific Ocean in the early 1970s. Their demons, in whom they trusted, had lied to them.
Hypnotism. Hypnotism requires a complete unconditional submission of the will of one person to another. This is dangerous! Whenever one mind controls another, Satan controls both of them. Hypnotism (hypnosis, “spirit healing,” “magnetic healing”) is important in modern spiritualism and is used by many “faith healers.” It also tends to weaken the willpower, and makes it easier for that person to be hypnotized again later by anyone.
The so-called healer’s “energy” or “vital curative force” is received by him “from doctors in the spirit world, because he is a medium” (R.S. Waldorf, “Spiritual Healing,” Centennial Book, p. 204). Modern hypnotism began about 1775 with Friedrich A. Mesmer, an Austrian physician. But Egyptian, Chaldean, and Hindu conjurers and sorcerers had long before produced the same results. Harry Edwards, a British healer, claimed thousands of cures. InInto the Unknown, he frankly states, “We couldn’t work without the spirits . . It is all by the power of the spirits that these changes take place” (p. 127). Do not go to hypnotists or “Christian healers” for help with your physical or emotional problems!
Autohypnosis (hynotizing one’s self) is also dangerous. When a person does this to himself, sometimes it comes on unexpectedly later. He may have used it to go to sleep at night,—and then later he suddenly falls asleep while driving down the highway!
Astrology. Along with witchcraft books and games, the most widespread interest in the occult today is astrology. It is based on the supposed 12 “houses” of the Zodiac. A person’s “Sun-sign” is said to be the Zodiac sign (Pisces, Libra, Aries, etc.) the sun was passing through at the moment of a person’s birth. In other words, astrological “signs” are supposedly based upon the time of your birth, in relation to the position of the planets, stars, sun, and moon at that time. It is claimed that “the position of the Sun in the Zodiac at the time of your birth determines the vital energy released by that planet and affects the cells of your brain and body” (Anthony Norvell, Astrology, Your Wheel of Fortune, pp. 2-3). Looking to the stars for guidance is condemned in the Bible (Deut. 4:19; 17:2-5).
“For most adherents of astrology, it is enough that it satisfies them. There is a fascination with the power, without a suspicion as to the nature of that power.”—Charles Strohmer (former astrologer), What Your Horoscope Doesn’t Tell You, p. 42. Many researchers tell us that astrology has always been connected to spirits through its contact with supernatural spirit beings who were held to be “gods” (Franz Cumont, Astrology and Religion Among the Greeks and Romans; K.C. Tunnicliffe, Aztec Astrology; Colin Wilson, The Occult).
This foolish theory is the means by which those who make “horoscopes” (“charts”) for individuals, and publish them in newspapers, make a lot of money. Here are several flaws in the theory: (1) Twins are born at the same time and in the same place; yet they encounter very different experiences in life. (2) The Earth has an uneven wobble as it spins on its axis. As a result, there has been a shift in the Zodiac to about a month later than centuries earlier, when the present chart theories were formulated. For example, the constellation of Virgo is now in the sign of Scorpio. (3) A new book by an astrologer (Astrology Fourteen) stated that there are actually 14 constellations in the Zodiac, instead of 12. (4) Those born north of the Arctic Circle have no horoscope; yet events regularly happen to them, as to everyone else. (5) In Alaska, Norway, Finland, Greenland, etc., the Zodiac stars only appear for a few months each year. During that time, according to the theory, the stars cannot be “influencing” them. (6) Astrologers claim there are only seven planets, when actually there are nine (if Pluto is considered a planet). (7) There are billions of objects in the sky; why are only the sun, moon, seven planets, and a small band of stars used as guides to predict events? (8) The predictions of astrologers usually fail unless so generally stated that they can be interpreted both ways. (Example: Jeane Dixon predicted that Jackie Kennedy would not remarry,—yet Kennedy then remarried a Greek ship owner, Aristotle Onassis, a few days after that prediction was announced.) (9) All the horoscopes for a person will be different. The daily horoscopes published by various astrologers in newspapers will be entire different from one another. A person can go to two different astrologers for charts, and each will be different than the other. (10) Astrology is based on the theory that the planets revolve around the Earth. This “geocentric theory” was disproved by Copernicus and Galileo over four centuries ago. (11) One’s hereditary patterns are actually fixed at the moment of conception; yet astrologers date their charts from the moment of birth. But the moment of conception cannot be determined. (12) Actual scientific studies of people reveal absolutely no similarities of traits or events occurring in the lives of people with certain ‘signs.’ Dozens of such studies have been done. (13) Repeated studies of astrologers’ predictions have been made—and the failure rate is astoundingly high. For example, from January 1974 to March 1979, astronomers Culver and Ianna examined over 3,000 published predictions in five astrology magazines and two leading newspaper astrologers. The total number of predictions was over 3,000, and the failure rate was over 95%!
Astrology is a worship of nature, instead of nature’s God. It leads people to depend on their astrologer for help, instead of praying to God for help and guidance.
Fortune-telling. Fortune-telling is also known as divination; and the one practicing it is a diviner.
The diviner makes use of various props to receive his supernatural knowledge, including palmistry (“reading” the lines on the hand), cartomancy (tarot cards), mirror mantic (crystal balls or rock crystals), teacup reading (tea leaves in the bottom of cup).
Although some think it is always a complete hoax, yet evil angels are present. This is shown by the effect they exert on the lives of the fortune-tellers themselves. Kurt Koch, in his book, Between Christ and Satan, says that those “diviners” frequently reveal instability, violent tempers, addictions, vices, cursing, nervous disturbances, psychopathic symptoms, paralysis, and other emotional and mental illnesses (see pp. 49-50). In the Bible, God speaks about true and false predictions of the future. Does it turn out to be true? (Deut. 18:20-22; 13:1-5; Eze. 13:3, 6-9). Does it agree with what the Bible teaches? (2 Tim. 3:16-17). God condemns them (Deut. 18:20-22; Lev. 20:6, 27).
Ouija boards. Pronounced “wee-jee” boards, these should be totally avoided! Two people, sitting opposite one another, place their fingertips on the board—and then it moves by itself back and forth above letters, spelling out something! Evil spirits guide the information which is given. This fact of supernatural guidance has been proven by a number of scientific experiments. In addition, many cases are reported of spirit “possession” after using them. Even though they are sold in toy shops,—Ouija boards are not playthings! (A similar equally occult device is “spirit writing,” which uses similar equipment.)
Dowsing. Dowsing (water witching) is the search for, and location of, underground springs and other objects beneath the ground by the use of a divining rod. This is a V-shaped wooden branch or piece of wire from 6-18 inches in length used by a dowser. A “force” is supposed to suddenly come up into the rod, causing it to snap downward. Actual tests by researchers with many dowsers have shown that they are not able to locate buried glass bottles containing water (M. Christopher, ESP, Seers and Psychics, p. 140).
Yet, at the same time, there are individuals who are able to locate water, even using maps from distant locations (using a pendulum; see below). A spiritist contact is believed to be involved here. For some dowsers, the tree branch in their hands will dip the number of feet that the water is below ground. Those particular spirits are measuring in feet; if they were in Europe, they would use the metric scale! This shows the working of an active spirit intelligence. Stay away from all forms of spirit contact, including dowsing.
Dowsing may be mentioned in the Bible: “My people ask counsel at their stocks [sticks], and their staff [stick] declareth unto them: for the spirit of whoredoms hath caused them to err, and they have gone a-whoring from under their God.”—Hosea 4:12.
Pendulum. The pendulum is a small stone or piece of metal suspended on a string. It is used for several different supernatural functions: (1) Water witching and using maps, as mentioned above under Dowsing. (2) Deciding which herb should be used in healing, or the location of disease in the body, or how many tablets to take at a given meal. (3) It is even used to “purify” food before it is eaten!
The suspended weight is held over a map, or the food, or a person lying horizontally. —And then, in a certain area, the “pendulum” will begin swinging back and forth, circling clockwise, or counterclockwise. Obviously, we have here the very same spiritist principle used in the Ouija board! Both involve a movement beyond human control.
“She carefully lifted the pendulum over the sick neighbor and began to divine for the proper herb to be used for healing. If the pendulum swung clockwise, licorice root should be used, and if it swung counterclockwise, gooseberry bark would be the treatment of choice” (Warren Peters, M.D., Mystical Medicine, p. 31). This is attributed to powers within the person himself, or to “force fields,” or to “mind over matter,” etc. But spiritist activity is the real cause.
Peters also tells of a Christian family that began to rely on the pendulum for every minor decision in the home. Then one day, the father discovered the truth while driving to work:
“I felt like singing of God’s love, so that’s what I did . . [He began singing Christian hymns] . . As I was driving along, singing of God’s love, the thought occurred to me to try using the pendulum while singing. I picked it up, held it over my hand, but it did not move. Next I held it over my lunch, still nothing—dead as a doornail. Needless to say, I was shaken, and very scared . . I had my answer! I felt as if a weight had been lifted from me. I took my pendulum and threw the thing as far into the woods as I could. I’ve not picked one up since. I thank God every day for His protection and deliverance from the power of Satan.”—Ibid., p. 37.
Rock music. The present author has written a complete low-cost book on the deadly effects of rock music on both those who perform it and those who listen to it. (you can order it here.) Demons guide, not only in the message of the lyrics but also, the type of beat and wildness of the music.
“One of the most uncanny stories I have ever heard was related to me by a close friend of mine who works among the hippies. For several weeks he dealt with a sixteen-year-old boy who, by his own admission, communed with evil spirits.
“One day, the boy asked my friend to turn on the radio to a rock and roll station. As they listened, this teenager would relate the words to the songs he had never heard before, just prior to the time the singer on the recording would sing them. When asked how he could do this, the boy replied that the same demon spirits that he was acquainted with had inspired the songs. Also, he explained that while on acid trips he could hear demons sing some of the very songs he would later hear recorded by psychedelic rock groups.
“Many ‘heavy’ rock groups write their songs while under the influence of drugs. Some of them admit to receiving the inspiration for songs from a power that seems to control them. In 1968, Ginger Baker, the drummer of The Cream, was interviewed concerning his emotional feelings while he performed. He replied, ‘It happens to us quite often: It feels as though I’m not playing my instrument. Something else is playing it and that same thing is playing all three of our instruments (referring to the rest of the group). That’s what I mean when I say, it’s frightening sometimes. Maybe we’ll all play the same phrase out of nowhere. It happens very often with us.’ ”—L. E. Tucker, Satanic Spectacular, pp. 12-13.
Evil video games. Millions of kids formerly interested only in video games are now reading, thanks to the unprecedented popularity of the Harry Potter books. This is because both are so much alike—in evil, violence, spiritist influence, murder, and death. The games prepare children for spiritism, crime, street drugs, and violence. Those games prepared millions for the Potter books.
On-line gaming has increased by 50%. The number of 2-17 year olds that play on-line has increased to 92%. Worldwide sales of video games have reached $20 billion dollars a year. Yet research shows that less than 5% of parents know the content of the video games in their own homes. There are no laws regulating who can buy a video game. Many video games instruct the player to kill, run someone over with a car, shoot someone, and mangle the victim. Video games are addictive and can control a person’s life. Sorcery, witchcraft, satanism, and magic play a vital part in many of the games. Do you want your child to play at being a witch, sorcerer, gangster, or rapist?
From the early 1980s, down to the present time, Dungeons & Dragons has been the largest electronic witchcraft game. It is the best example and largest seller among witchcraft-type games. It is just what the title declares it to be—a horrid collection of atrocities, done for the fun of it.
As of 2006, Dungeons & Dragons remains the best-known and best-selling role-playing game (RPG), with an estimated 20 million people having played the game and more than U.S. $1 billion in book and equipment sales. (“Role-playing games” involve actually becoming part of the game and interacting in it with others. The player becomes this other person!) Dungeons & Dragons has also produced other D&D-branded products.
A 1990 survey conducted in the United States, Australia, and Canada estimated that at least 7.5 million people engaged in RPGs (role-playing games) at least once a month in those three countries. A 2000 survey by the RPG company, “Wizards of the Coast,” estimated that approximately 5.5 million Americans play RPGs regularly. Additionally, there are numerous RPG conventions and gatherings held throughout English-speaking nations. There are also sizeable RPG communities in France, Germany, Spain and Italy, among others.
Unlike on-line computer games, RPGs require a close level of face-to-face social interaction. They are usually played in an isolated area, typically a room at a private residence, marked off from the outside world with paraphernalia unique to the subculture of gamers and involving a great deal of jargon and symbols that have meaning only to those who are part of the group. Players actively work to create marked “liminal spaces” in which they can shake off their mainstream socio-cultural identity and adopt symbols and images deemed inimicable to the mainstream cultural construction of the self, but which form their own unique anti-structure in opposition to the mainstream socio-cultural order. Fully 35% of men and 20% of women choose to play characters of the other gender, and 60% prefer to play nonhuman characters.
These games blur the boundaries between reality and fantasy, leading people to engage in street drugs, immoral or anti-social activities, perversion, paganism, and satanism.
The moral panic that started in the 1980s in the United States (and to a lesser extent in Australia and France) directed against RPGs, especially Dungeons and Dragons, originated in the media response to the suicides of the 16-year-old college sophomore James Egbert III, in August 1980, and the 16-year-old high school student Irving Bink Pulling in June 1982.
Patricia Pulling, mother of Irving Bink Pulling, attempted to sue TSR, the manufacturer of Dungeons and Dragons, for the death of her son. The case was thrown out of court in 1984. She then partnered with Illinois psychiatrist Thomas Radecki, director of the National Coalition on Television Violence (NCTV), to form a new organization with close links to several fundamentalist Christian bodies called Bothered About Dungeons and Dragons(B.A.D.D.). Pulling linked her belief, that there was satanic influence behind RPGs, to three other threats: Heavy Metal music, the pagan revival, and the satanic ritual abuse. Here is Pulling’s description of the content and effects of Dungeons and Dragons:
“A fantasy role-playing game which uses demonology, witchcraft, voodoo, murder, rape, blasphemy, suicide, assassination, insanity, sex perversion, homosexuality, prostitution, satanic type rituals, gambling, barbarism, cannibalism, sadism, desecration, demon summoning, necromantics, divination and other teachings.
“There have been a number of deaths nationwide, where games like Dungeons and Dragons were either the decisive factor in adolescent suicide and murder or played a major factor in the violent behavior of such tragedies. Since role-playing is typically used for behavior modification, it resulted in violent actions and increased homicide and suicide rates in adolescents.”
Comic books and movies. A large number of so-called “comic” books are filled with demonology concepts.
Comic books gained early popularity in the 1930s, originally as funny cartoon strips in the newspaper for the whole family. Soon though, came the comic book, beginning with Superman and Batman, targeted in particular for youth.
The comic book’s first step up was to television. TV drama (such as X-Men, SpiderMan, and Batman) made from comic books became popular in the 1970s-1980s. Then came movies of Superman and later Batman, SpiderMan, X-Men, The Incredible Hulk, etc.
In many comics, the violence and blatant sexual advances rival that of infamous video games like Grand Theft Auto and the Resident Evil Series. Frequently, practices connected to the occult are presented; whereas others dabble in homosexuality and drug abuse. Who do you want teaching your kids about those things, you or the comic book?
Fairy tales. Many Christian parents have legitimate questions about letting their children read books about fairies, witches, goblins, hobbits, and magic. Should we read and condone writings that elevate supernatural powers which the Bible condemns?
Although it is true that some of these books depict battles by good forces against evil (while even worse books, such as the Harry Potter Series, praise everything evil)—yet the truth is that reading books or seeing movies which portray the a “better type of witchcraft”—prepare the mind to enjoy the worse kind later. These “better other worldly books,” such as C. S. Lewis’ Narnia, J.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, and Frank Baum’s Wizard of Oz introduce all ages who devour them to crave still more unreal, unnatural, exciting things later on. Fairy tales (even the “best kind”) unfit the mind for Bible study, a desire for godly living, and a close walk with Christ.
One Catholic writer said this about the fairy tale books of C. S. Lewis (another Catholic):
“Almost everyone knows of C. S. Lewis. Many people have read his books, and a large number of Catholics recommend and approve of him as one of the ‘greatest Christian writers of our time.’ The truth is Lewis opposed Christianity, dismissed truth as having any value, and lied openly concerning essential Christian doctrines. Yet Lewis does this so skillfully that few notice.”—Vincent P. Lewis, The Real C.S. Lewis.
How can C.S. Lewis’ fairy-tale books, totally unrelated to everyday reality, be called “Christian”?
“The movie of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, like the original book, is a fantasy in which four English children, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy, find their way through a large wardrobe into Narnia, a world ruled by an evil White Witch, where it is always winter and never Christmas. With the help of some talking animals, especially a huge lion called Aslan, the Witch is eventually defeated, and spring returns to Narnia, where the four children become kings and queens.”—The New York Review of Books, February 9, 2006.
Yet many church members and their pastors excuse such reading matter as “Christian allegories.” The book, summarized above, cannot possibly be said to have anything to do with Christianity. C. S. Lewis, himself, told everyone who asked him that his books were not Christian allegories; they were just fairy-tale fiction, which he enjoyed writing.
C. S. Lewis always claimed that The Chronicles of Narnia were not allegorical. “You are mistaken when you think that everything in the books ‘represents’ something in the world,” he wrote to a group of school children. “Things do that in The Pilgrim’s Progress, but I’m not writing that way.”—Alison Laurie, The Passion of C. S. Lewis.
Regarding J. R. Tolkein, we are told:
“J. R. Tolkien once described his epic masterpiece, The Lord of the Rings, as ‘a fundamentally religious and Catholic work.’ Yet nowhere in its pages is there any mention of religion, let alone of the Catholic Church, Christ, or even God. Tolkien’s hobbits have no religious practices or cult; of prayer, sacrifice, or corporate worship there is no sign.
“To make matters more difficult, Tolkien was equally emphatic that The Lord of the Rings is not to be understood allegorically. In fact, Tolkien was famously hostile to allegory in general . . How then can The Lord of the Rings be in any sense described as a fundamentally Catholic work, or even a religious one?”—Steven D. Greydanus, Faith and Fantasy, p. 8.
Halloween. Here are two quotations to thoughtfully compare:
“The day witches celebrate above all others is October 31, which is Allhallows’ Eve, or Halloween. It is believed that on this night Satan and his witches have their greatest power.”—Josh McDowell and Don Stewart, Understanding the Occult, p. 176.
“Halloween, you’d not be surprised to know, is my favorite holiday.”—J.K. Rowling, TIME magazine, Oct. 30, 2000.
The origin of Halloween goes back 2,000 years before the days of Christianity to a practice of the ancient druids in Britain, France, Germany and the Celtic countries. The celebration honored their god Samhain, lord of the dead. The Celtic people considered November 1st to be the day of death. It was the end of autumn and the beginning of winter. The time of falling leaves seemed an appropriate time to celebrate death. Halloween was to them a celebration honoring the god of the dead.
The druids believe that, especially on this one night, the spirits of the dead returned to their former home to visit the living,—who must provide food for them or the evil spirits would do all types of terrible things to the people. This legend has come down to our own time. In order to be as much like witches as possible, children dress like them and then go from door to door demanding candy. Not in the slightest degree should we honor, much less celebrate, any day dedicated the witchcraft and evil spirits.
UFOs. There is a great fascination with “unidentified flying objects.” People, tired of their humdrum lives, are thrilled at the opportunity to think that alien creatures visit us from time to time in flying saucers. Surveys indicate that about 55% of Americans believe in the reality of UFOs.
There is an ever-increasing number of man-made objects in the atmosphere above us, such as weather balloons, planes, or reflected light from satellites. Because the Space Station, for example, is quite large, when orbiting overhead a little after sunset, it is remarkably brilliant and can easily be seen.
Our only safety is in clinging to the Bible and its clear teachings. Otherwise we will be swept by one or another of the many deceptions which Satan is using to engross the minds of millions, so they will not desire to live godly lives through faith in Christ.
Parapsychology. Before concluding this chapter, mention should be made of parapsychology. This is the supposedly “scientific” study of various forms of witchcraft and séances. University professors and their graduate students seek to “investigate” these things—but, finding that a supernatural power is involved, they frequently are themselves captured by it. This is another area which should be totally avoided.
Research work in the field of parapsychology is now part of the curriculum in a number of universities. J.B. Rhine, of Duke University, claims that their research will eventually place spiritist phenomena on a “sound scientific basis.”
“Certain scientists are now working upon a new field of research, to harness supersonic rays, by means of which it is hoped to establish electronic communication with the spirit world . . It is believed that, in the same way as Morse telegraphy evolved into radio speech and television pictures, in the future it should be possible for everyone to hear and see those on the Other Side, and even to obtain panoramic pictures of the spirit world.”—George C. Harrop, In Search of the Hereafter, p. 213.
Men and women are ever-looking everywhere except the right place—the Bible—for the help they so desperately need.
Evolutionary theory. Charles Darwin is the individual considered to have been most responsible for introducing the modern theory of evolution. Yet few are acquainted with his life story or realize that it was after being initiated into demonology that the theory of “natural selection” gradually formed in his mind, which would become the basis of the modern theory of evolution.
Here is additional information on a little-known portion of Charles Darwin’s life. The first quotation is from the present author’s book, Evolution Handbook. (See back page for further information on this book).
“Charles Darwin (1809-1882) was born into wealth and able to have a life of ease. He took two years of medical school at Edinburgh University, and then dropped out. It was the only scientific training he ever received. Because he spent the time in bars with his friends, he barely passed his courses. Darwin had no particular purpose in life, and his father planned to get him into a nicely paid job as an Anglican minister. Darwin did not object.
“But an influential relative got him a position as the unpaid “naturalist” on a ship planning to sail around the world, the Beagle. The voyage lasted from December 1831 to October 1836.”—Vance Ferrell, Evolution Handbook, p. 25.
With absolutely no plans for what he should do in life, young Darwin had only recently turned 24 when he stepped on board that ship. He thought it would be five years of fun, seeing the world. But it turned out to be an astounding learning experience for him. After initially becoming interested in collecting specimens,—Darwin was initiated into spiritualism during his repeated inland trips in South America. Robert Fitz Roy, the ship’s captain, would drop him off at various ports and young Darwin would spend weeks on journeys into the interior, watching the natives and learning from them.
“It is of interest that, after engaging in spiritism, certain men in history have been seized with a deep hatred of God and have then been guided to devise evil teachings that have destroyed large numbers of people, while others have engaged in warfare which have annihilated millions. In connection with this, we think of such known spiritists as Sigmund Freud and Adolf Hitler. It is not commonly known that Charles Darwin, while a naturalist aboard the Beagle, was initiated into witchcraft in South America by nationals. During horseback travels into the interior, he took part in their ceremonies and, as a result, something happened to him. Upon his return to England, although his health was strangely weakened, he spent the rest of his life working on theories to destroy faith in the Creator.”—Ibid., pp. 25-26.
While in South America, Darwin spent a total of several months with natives—constantly learning from them, eating as they did, and doing what they did.
“While the ship pursued its task, Darwin often disembarked for weeks or months at a time . . Wherever he went, his perceptive eye scanned the jumble of nature’s phenomena and seized on that which gave meaning to the rest . . The study of human nature—whether seen in the behavior of a savage tribesman or glimpsed in the recesses of his own heart—also came within his purview.”—Allen Villiers, “In the Wake of Darwin’s Beagle,” National Geographic, December 1969, p. 453.
“After an excursion to Tierra del Fuego, she [the ship, Beagle] returned north for seven more months in 1833. During both periods Darwin explored ashore, making discovery after discovery. For weeks at a time he trekked on horseback, through the forests of Brazil and over the wide pampas of the Argentine, living with gauchos, roughing it with his saddle for a pillow and sheepskin saddle blanket for a bed.”—Ibid., p. 467.
Because the chart room on the ship, where Darwin stayed, was small and crowded, when at sea he ate meals with Captain Fitz Roy, who was a godly Christian. In later years, the captain mentioned that, although energetic, the young man did not seem a bit skeptical of religion at first. But, by the time the Beagle had left South America in September 1835, Darwin seemed to have become a changed man. Something had happened to his thinking since the ship made its first port of call on that continent in December 1831.
After spending some time with the natives at Tierra del Fuego, the Beagle journeyed to Argentina, where from August 11 to 17, 1833, Darwin traveled on horseback in the back country. Arriving at Montevideo, he made a round-trip by horseback from November 14 to 28. From September 27 to October 2, he journeyed again on horseback, returning by boat down the river.
“He braved all dangers in quest of knowledge, journeying hundreds of miles with a few gauchos. He traveled from the mouth of the Rio Negro north to Bahia Blanca, and thence another 400 miles to Buenos Aires, sleeping under the stars, eating whatever game the gauchos could bag . .
“From Buenos Aires he rode horseback 300 miles northwest over dangerous roads to Santa Fe, on an arm of the Parana, returning by boat downriver.”—Ibid., p. 473.
On June 11, 1834, the Beagle entered the Pacific Ocean. Several times when the ship landed at various ports in Chile, Darwin would go ashore for more trips: April 18 to May 8, 1834 traveling on the Santa Cruz River by boat, with frequent stops to learn native lore from indigenous peoples. March 18 to April 10, 1835 was spent inland, during which time he left Valparaiso and crossed the Andes by mule. Returning to that port city, he headed north by horseback to Copiapo (April 27 to June 22).
“In March 1835, Darwin crossed the Andes from Santiago, Chile, to Mendoza in Argentina by way of Portillo Pass [altitude of 12,572 ft.], returning by the Uspallata. His companions were two Chilean guides, his transport 10 mules. The journey across the Andes and back took 24 days.”—Ibid., p. 475.
“Back from his Andean journeys, Darwin met the Beagle briefly at Valparaiso on April 23, 1835, and returned promptly ashore to travel overland through central Chile to Copiapo, to rejoin the ship there. He had traveled the hard way, camping in the open.”—Ibid., p. 477.
In early September 1835, now back on the Beagle, the ship headed northwest to the Galapagos Islands, arriving on September 15. In the course of his repeated contacts with natives, studying their cultures, collecting artifacts, and taking part in their spiritist trances, Charles Darwin became gripped with a new sense of purpose for his life: to find evidence to disprove the existence of God.
“After leaving South America, Darwin was on the Galapagos Islands for a few days. While there, he saw some finches which had blown in from South America and adapted to their environment, producing several subspecies. He was certain that this showed cross-species evolution (change into new species). But they were still finches. This theory about the finches was the primary evidence of evolution he brought back with him to England.
“Darwin, knowing nothing about the practicalities of genetics, then married his first cousin, which resulted in all seven of his children having physical or mental disorders. (One girl died after birth, another at 10. His oldest daughter had a prolonged breakdown at 15. Three of his children became semi-invalids, and his last son was born mentally retarded and died 19 months after birth.)
“His book, Origin of the Species, was first published in November 1859. The full title, On the Origin of the Species by Means of Natural Selection or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life, reveals the viciousness of the underlying concept; this concept led directly to two of the worst wars in the history of mankind.
“In his book, Darwin reasoned from theory to facts, and provided little evidence for what he had to say. Modern evolutionists are ashamed of the book, with its ridiculous arguments.”—Evolution Handbook, p. 26.
Darwin stole his theory of “natural selection, based on survival of the fittest,” from Alfred Russell Wallace, who devised the theory after becoming a spiritist while living with natives during a naturalist trip to the interior of Southeast Asia. Here is the background of this:
“Alfred Russell Wallace (1823-1913) is considered to be the man who developed the theory which Darwin published. Wallace was deeply involved in spiritism at the time he formulated the theory in his Ternate Paper, which Darwin, with the help of two friends (Charles Lyell and Joseph Hooker), pirated and published under his own name. Darwin, a wealthy man, thus obtained the royalties which belonged to Wallace, a poverty-ridden theorist. In 1980, Arnold C. Brackman, in his book, A Delicate Arrangement, established that Darwin plagiarized Wallace’s material. It was arranged that a paper by Darwin would be read to the Royal Society in London, while Wallace’s was held back until later. Priorities for the ideas thus having been taken care of, Darwin set to work to prepare his book.
“In 1875, Wallace came out openly for spiritism and Marxism, another stepchild of Darwinism. This was Wallace’s theory: Species have changed in the past, by which one species descended from another in a manner that we cannot prove today. That is exactly what modern evolution teaches. Yet it has no more evidence supporting the theory than Wallace had in 1858, when he devised the theory while in a malarial fever.
“In February 1858, while in a delirious fever on the island of Ternate in the Moluccas, Wallace conceived the idea, ‘survival of the fittest,’ as being the method by which species change. But the concept proves nothing. The fittest; which one is that? It is the one that survived longest. Which one survives longest? The fittest. This is reasoning in a circle. The phrase says nothing about the evolutionary process, much less proving it.
“In the first edition of his book, Darwin regarded ‘natural selection’ and ‘survival of the fittest’ as different concepts. By the sixth edition of his Origin of the Species, he thought they meant the same thing, but that ‘survival of the fittest’ was the more accurate. In a still later book (Descent of Man, 1871), Darwin ultimately abandoned “natural selection” as a hopeless mechanism and returned to Lamarckism. Even Darwin recognized the theory was falling to pieces. The supporting evidence just was not there.”—Ibid., pp. 24-25.
Lamarckism, which Darwin later returned to, is rejected by every modern scientist and was disproved in 1891.
Lamarkism. “An important 19th-century error was the theory of Jean-Baptiste Lamarck (1744-1829, later called ‘Lamarckism.’ It is the theory of inheritance of acquired characteristics, and was solidly disproved by August Weismann in 1891, when he cut the tails off 19 successive generations of rats—and their offspring continued to grow tails! Later still, when the inheritance of characteristics was found to depend on the DNA genetic coding and not habits or environmental circumstances, the reason why Lamarckism could not work was then understood.
“Lamarckism teaches that one animal grew an organ for some reason—or no reason at all,—and then passed that organ on to the next generation, which was stuck with it.”—Ibid., p. 297.
—So now you know the story behind the beginning of modern evolutionary theory. It was given to Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace by demons, after they were initiated into witchcraft by local natives. It seemed fitting that this present book, on the effects of witchcraft on our world today should include this information about the origin of the downward trend in morality—which, among other things, has resulted in society’s current craze to investigate witchcraft.
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