Modern Paganism and Witchcraft

“As Christianity has been declining in the United States paganism has been growing by leaps and bounds.”

Once I was visiting with a young woman whom I had lost contact with for several years. As we caught up about her family, work and faith she announced, “I’m a pagan.” It surprised me. However, after some reading, I came to realize that she is not alone by any means. Interest in paganism has increased over 185% since 1990. As Christianity has been declining in the United States and Europe for several decades, atheism, agnosticism, paganism and occultism has been growing by leaps and bounds. (Image by iStock)

Modern paganism is a broad term that includes many forms of spiritual-type rituals, practices or traditions such as Wicca, Druidity, astrology, tarot cards and more. According to the Pagan Federation, a pagan is “a follower of a polytheistic or pantheistic nature-worshipping religion.” In simple terms, it is someone who believes in many gods and goddesses and deification of nature. There are a number of distinctions like nature worship, rituals, spells, magic, the use of witchcraft and exploring the supernatural.

Every October, many pagans celebrate one of their most sacred events – Samhain. When Americans are trick-or-treating on Halloween, pagans honor the dead through various rituals believing the supernatural veil that divides this world and the next can be crossed.

Paganism reveals a spiritual searching that has been common to the human race for centuries. Many have travelled the path seeking rest for their souls through the supernatural only to find emptiness at each turn. Why does it elude them? Because of its deceptive nature, believing that satisfying one’s own impulses and desires is the highest good. Because of the illusion that god is in everything, and everything is god. For thousands of years, humanity has been tempted by the lures of paganism, as it appeals to the exaltation of mankind’s own passions. Yet, the truth has been revealed to each one of us.

The Scriptures say, “For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools.” (Romans 1:19-22)

The truth is, there is only one true God in all the universe. And He has revealed Himself to us through His divine Son, Jesus. He sent Him to us from heaven, to show who He is. Then Jesus went to the cross, to suffer, die and rise again, that we might be set free from the evil in our own hearts. And as we trust in Christ alone and walk faithfully with Him, when we face death, we will cross from the physical into the eternal and live forever in the presence of the Lord God.

Only Jesus can satisfy the longing of the soul. When He gave His life as a sacrifice on a cross then rose again from the dead, He ended the need for a man-made system of spiritual rituals.

Once a man was in a desperate place when he pleaded, “…what must I do to be saved?” which was followed by a simple answer, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household” (Acts 16:30-31). No longer do we need to bear the burden of trying to do or say the right things to find rest for our soul. We just need simple faith combined with surrender wholly to Christ. We need to yield our allegiance to Him, who is Lord of all creation.

A prayer for you - Lord God, I pray you will bring people to turn from the worship of nature, communicating with spirits and using spells and magic to fulfill their desires, and toward you. Let them see that rituals and other forms of pagan practices will end only in their futility. May they call upon you and receive eternal life through Christ. In Jesus’ name. Amen.