One winter day, my friends and I ran around the entire parameter of a neighborhood house. We bounded around the final corner as fast as our 10-year-old legs would take us. I came around last, running into a huge German Shepherd and his food. Though tied to a running wire, the dog lunged after me sinking his claws sunk into the back of my coat and dragging me to the ground. I still remember vividly the sounds of his growling as he sank his teeth and claws into me over and over again. Somehow, I pulled myself out from under him and managed to escape running to my mother across the street. I may have suffered severe injuries or even death if I had not been wearing a big, fluffy winter coat which encompassed me like a huge marshmallow. I was blessed that day!
St. Padre Pio described the devil as a rabid dog tied to a chain, and as long as we don’t put ourselves in his striking distance, he cannot harm us. Unfortunately, many people unintentionally and unknowingly put themselves in his striking distance by participating in occult practices like; Astrology, Tarot Cards, psychics, Ouija Boards, seances, Palm Readers, and more.
Astrology and Horoscopes proven False!
God doesn’t put restrictions on us because He wants to chain us down, but because He knows that these practices can be harmful to our souls and can open up doors from the other side that are best left shut. Moreover, God wants us to trust Him. He can reveal the future to us anytime, but if He does not, He desires for us to trust Him like a good parent and does not want us to seek alternate ways of acquiring knowledge of the future (i.e. palm readers, horoscopes, tarot cards, fortunetellers, etc). After all, God is lovingly tuned in to our lives. he knows what we need, and He desires to love us, lead us, provide for us, and to have a deep personal relationship with us. But, we must trust Him alone and not put stock in any medium which attempts to foretell the future.
What you Need to Know
Horoscope, palm readers, psychics, and tarot card readings are almost always fraudulent. This has been proven time and again. What follows are the facts that most people have probably not heard, and that Astrologers will not tell you:
#1. Studies reveal that practitioners who read horoscopes for a living cannot pick out their own reading when placed in the midst of other readings.
#2. If you send a horoscope to ten different astrologers, it will be interpreted ten different ways.
#3. Studies found that, out of 3,000 horoscope predictions, only about 10% proved true. That is 1 out of 10 odds!
#4. Studies also have clearly demonstrated that people take what they want from the readings, reliable or not. They often read into the horoscopes and tarot cards falsely and take from them only what seems true. This was demonstrated by a French researcher who offered a free horoscope reading in a newspaper. Over 150 people took the test unaware of the study. Of the people who responded, 94% said that they recognized themselves in the horoscope description, and 90% of their family and friends agreed. What they didn’t know is that everyone received the same horoscope reading… the horoscope of Dr. Marcel, one of the most notorious mass murderers in all of French history.
Tarot Cards and Psychic Readings:
Tarot card readings and psychics are also almost always fraudulent as well. It’s a money-making gimmick and/or a participation in the devil’s domain. Matthew Arnold, a former tarot card reader, discusses his work and how he perfected the art of ripping people off and of telling them what they wanted to hear. He states, “You learn to use the person’s name, and flattery; you manipulate the conversation to make them agree with the reading as it progresses. But, most of all, I learned to bombard my clients with conflicting information. Now, they’re so busy making connections, that afterwards they’re only able to remember what applied to them, and really not only my words, so much as the connections that they had made in their own minds which makes it seem even more accurate” (CD: Overcoming the New Age Movement)
With that being said, there are a rare few astrologers or psychics who are truly clairvoyant, meaning that they can see and know things that cannot not known. Their powers are never from God though but always from the Devil. Fr. Gabriel Amorth, the chief exorcist of Rome and the authority on this topic; he has performed over 70,000 exorcisms, and he warns against these dark gifts; “Particular sensibilities tend to go hand in hand with evil disturbances, for instance, predicting the future; intimate knowledge of the presence of evil forces or of unusual powers in some individuals; most of all hearing voices and seeing visions” (An Exorcist Tells His Story, 112).
Matthew Arnold also adds; “If some so-called gift directly opposes Scripture and the Catechism, do you really think that all such gifts are from God? Counterfeit spiritual powers are not gifts. They always carry a price and possibly even the loss of heaven.”
What the Bible Says:
The Bible, in no uncertain terms, condemns divination, consulting spirits, contact with the dead, trying to reveal and control the future, and more; “There shall not be found among you anyone… who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD, and because of these abominations, the LORD your God drives them out from before you (Deuteronomy 18:10-12; emphasis added). (Also see Leviticus 19:31; Isaiah 47:12-15, and the official Catechism of the Catholic Church paragraph 2116.
More Dangers of the Occult:
Other practices and dangers of the occult include conjuring up and contacting the dead through séances, spiritism, spirit guides, Reiki, or Ouija boards, etc. As we have seen, God has commanded all Christians to stay far away from all of these practices. God loves us immensely and knows that they are dangerous to our souls. They can open us up to demonic influence and even demonic possession, such as, in the movie The Exorcist.
Most people don’t realize that the popular movie “The Exorcist,” was based on a true story of a boy who got possessed by playing with a Ouija board. Though Hollywood changed some facts in the movie, as they always do, it was nonetheless based on a true story. As one would imagine, the process to exorcise the demons took a long time. There are many stories of people being attacked by demons because they played with a Ouija Board, went to a séance, or participated in some other occult practice, deliberately or innocently. Professional exorcists confirm this.
Many people enter the realm of the occult and the demonic unknowingly. Let us take the Ouija board, for example. The game itself is only plastic and cardboard. However, playing the game and contacting spirits creates a danger by opening up demonic realms which should be left closed. Someone may fancy themselves to be speaking to their dead aunt, their grandmother, or their friend, but people who die go immediately to heaven, hell, or Purgatory and would not be speaking to them. Remember, the Bible says that the devil is the “father of lies,” and so are his minions who seek the eternal damnation of our souls. These spirits of the devil will reveal to individuals what they desire to hear to ensnare them.
In his book, An Exorcist Tells His Story, Fr. Amorth also warns us of the dangers; “There are no good spirits other than angels; there are no evil spirits other than demons.” He goes onto remind us that the church teaches, “The souls of those who die go immediately to heaven or to hell or to purgatory. The souls of the dead present during séances or the souls of the dead who are present in living bodies to torture them are none other than demons … It may happen that these spirits – who are always and only demons will possess some of those who participate in the séance. The Church has always condemned séances and participation in them. We never learn anything useful by consulting Satan” (Pgs. 30, 149).
As a former séance practitioner, Moriah Noonan warns, “People often came to our séances in order to contact their loved ones who had passed away. That is not what they saw. The truth is that they called upon demons without knowing it. The demons would play whatever roles they were asked to – relatives, spirit guides, familiar people” (Ransomed from Darkness, Pg. 45-46)
This holds true for all forms of divination and occult practice! It is all dangerous territory, and as Christians, we must not dabble in the occult, even in curiosity. If we have in the past, going to Reconciliation and confessing our sins is a powerful remedy, a beautiful way to be cleansed and start over! You may be surprised to know dear reader that deep Satanists and Witches have given up that satanic life, returned to the Lord Jesus and have found mercy, love, light and freedom. If they can find the Light of the World, anyone can. Perfect happiness is found in God alone,so stay close to Him!
