On Witchcraft and Occult Practices {Shan’s notes}

Written By Meg Grace

Shan shares her notes behind the Conversation episode on Witchcraft.

Ephesians 5:11

"Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them. It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret.” 

Luke 12:2-3

"Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.”

Different types of Modern-Day Witchcraft

Modern day Occult practices are rooted in the same occult worship that’s origin is found in the Book of Genesis before and after the flood.

Modern day witchcraft is rooted back to 1 Enoch - The Occult—Witchcraft – Idolatry – All deeply connected.

Appalachia Folk Magic, Granny Witches

These practices of witchery are heavy on superstition, heavy on  the curses, heavy on the signs, and the twisting of spiritual gifts. A combination of folk magic, faith healing, and superstitions, granny magic was often the only source of aid for people in remote, isolated regions. As European settlers arrived in the colonies during the 18th century, they brought with them the traditional folk magic and healing modalities of their home countries.

Appalachian folk magic, also known as root work, granny magic, and witchcraft, has many origins, including: 

  • Native American. The Cherokee and Choctaw were the first to combine Appalachian nature and spiritual ritual. 

  • European. Scottish, Irish, and English settlers brought their traditional folk healing practices to Appalachia. 

  • German. The Pennsylvania Dutch, or Germans, also shared their wisdom about rituals and natural remedies. 

  • African. Enslaved men and women brought their traditions to the region or found their own way there. Birthing Hoodoo, for example.

Appalachian folk magic is a combination of these traditions and is a central part of the Appalachian people's spirituality and worldview. 

Appalachian folk magic is grounded in the plants and animals of the mountains, and is often used for healing, home remedies, spells, and energy work and this was also then rolled into Biblical beliefs and created a deep level of syncretism. 

Black Magic

– Haitian Voodoo- Satanism  -- Syncretism with Halloween ….Heavy on the sacrifices 

Syncretism – The amalgamation or attempted amalgamation of different religions, cultures, or schools of thought. Amalgamation meaning the merging and unification of different religions that on their own do not align.  

New Age Movement

Heavy on worship of self and objects – Yoga- is a Hindu practice of spiritual worship…It means To Yoke- Unite or to join. It is not a practice of YHWH. We are never as Believers in Him commanded to do this… its purpose is for the worship of Hindu Gods… Horoscopes -- Astrology- crystals etc. worshiping the item instead of the creator. 

Channeling – Reiki – Healing practices that are not rooted in Christ – HE is the ultimate Healer… Idolatry at the very least because it is going outside of YHWH to achieve something. Get healing, answers, whatever.

Ouija Boards -- Seances – Medium – Psychics -- Horoscopes…  All evil in origin…

Halloween Syncretism

 Satanism - Witches - High Holy Days - Sacrifice is  high on this day. Not only does crime spike upwards of almost 20% higher on Halloween night… Homeless shelters see a notable drop after Halloween. 

Sacrifice rituals take place not only in the US but all over the world. I do not want this to get too dark so I will refrain from going any further. But just as human sacrifice took place in the OT it is still taking place today… Always on Halloween. Research the origin. 

The Gifts of Holy Spirit

We are spiritual beings!! We do possess spiritual abilities. and through Holy Spirit we are gifted spiritual gifts… Having a supernatural experience isn’t always evil. God is Spirit and we are told by Jesus that we must “worship Him in Spirit and in Truth” (John 4:24). So, we know that supernatural and spiritual experiences and capabilities are able to be experienced through Holy Spirit… 

Throughout scripture we see God come to His people through visions to convey messages, to speak with His children, to provide guidance, commands, etc. In the OT Ezekiel received most of His prophecies through Visions from the Lord. 

Abraham, Samuel, Daniel, Ananias, Cornelius, Peter, The Apostle Paul – ALL experienced supernatural, spiritual experiences where they had visions. Visions are a biblical concept… a way for YHWH to reveal and make himself known to His children—to reveal or make known information to His children, to warn His children, to show and reveal His glory…. 

Spiritual capabilities and gifts are very real – However, what determines if they are evil is their origin... and that is not hard to determine…. If you are in your Bibles, because then you know what scripture says. 

Joel 2:28 “And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.”

Acts 2:17 “And it will be in the last days, says God, that I will pour out my Spirit on all people; then your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams.”

For example… If someone is having a vision and the Lord is the provider... He will first make it clear…. 

·      He will be at the center of it! 

·      It will reveal HIS power His glory HIS HOLINESS!!

·      HE will be the source from which the vision is coming... and it will be evident in the information that is being conveyed and received… 

·      It will also not contradict His Word, but it will align perfectly with it!

·      It will not place the one experiencing the visions at the forefront, but it will put the emphasis on YHWH

This is important for us to know so we will be aware if there is a contradiction. He will be at the center of it! It will reveal HIS power His glory!! I can absolutely promise you that visions that are coming from other entities, or spirits, and supernatural experiences that are evil in origin will NOT put the focus on YHWH’s glory and goodness. It will not bring us closer to YHWH. They will be the opposite… For everything that YHWH has created, for every way that He interacts with His Creation, there is a counterfeit, a fraudulent imitation… 

YHWH Creates…. Satan Counterfeits… Knowing the difference requires discernment that can only come from Holy Spirit and relationship with Him. SO READ HIS WORD!  

Spiritual gifts from YHWH honor HIM! Spiritual counterfeits from Satan separate us from YHWH and do not align with His Word! 

When people claim to be mediums… They are claiming to be able to have the ability to speak to the dead. 

  •  Leviticus 19:31: "Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God". 

  • Deuteronomy 18:10-11: Condemns necromancy or consulting the dead. 

  • Isaiah 19:3: Condemns communication with the dead. 

Good as well as rotten fruit are identifiable. See Galatians 5:16-26 for more on this. 

So clearly, we can see that when people say they are spiritual gifted in this way, with the ability to speak to the dead… they are being deceived. Scripture makes it clear that we are not to summon those that have passed in order to communicate with them… and because this has become such a wildly accepted practice… I do believe Satan has used this to his advantage… and more often than not… These mediums. are not speaking with the actual individuals who have passed but they are speaking with Demons. 

We do see in 1 Samuel Chapter 28 where a witch does summon Samuel’s Spirit … and it doesn’t end well. 

“Any type of witchery, any type of sorcery, and type of divination, is evil in origin because at its root it is trying to fulfill the desire to be God and do things that only He can do. It is wanting to have a level of power and authority that is not gifted to us through Holy Spirit. It is tapping into things that we are not meant to tap into. It is relying on other entities that are already separated from YHWH to provide supernatural power and abilities. It is placing oneself in the position of not having to rely on or trust in God.”

My Personal Story

The paternal side of my family is from Appalachia – and my maternal side is Pennsylvania Dutch…  I believe that this is why I had the experience I had as a young girl. I am generationally connected to a lot of the stuff we discussed in our witchcraft episode. 

I was very drawn to witchcraft when I was younger…  It was like there was an energy that was pulling me into it… And now knowing what I know, would equate that as a connection because of generational curses. 

This is one reason of many, why I specifically Thank God for “keeping a tight grip on me” because His grip was so much stronger, than that pull. Praise Him! 

When I was a little girl… Like 5/6 years old… I would tell people I was a witch… I was obsessed with witches… witch hats…  dressing like a witch… being perceived as a witch… the idea of casting spells… By the time I was 12, In middle school… and these were the hardest years for me. I was SO tormented… I was still obsessed witches, especially movies about witches. This was around the kickoff of the internet. Around 1998…  We had a computer at home, and I was able to access the world wide web, and I started researching witchcraft… I printed out a ton of information I had found … I was really diving deep …  Now mind you… I also have always had a very real awareness of the spiritual realm. From the time I was a very little girl. I also believe 100% in God… and I pray and feel connected to him… But I was also trying to fill in a ton of gaps and find my way spiritually, with very little sound biblical guidance and I was led down some dark paths. I was thinking that maybe the answer to understanding the spiritual realm better was to really tap into my spiritual side and thought that meant I needed to practice witchcraft. So grateful to God for putting the kibosh on that….  That previous Christmas I had asked my parents for a cedar chest… and so I started to put all this stuff I had printed in that chest, along with other stuff like candles… and dried herbs and flowers… and things I thought would be useful for spells…. Then… I got sick with some sort of virus. I can still remember lying in bed, sick, and having this realization that I was sick because I was dabbling in witchcraft. I was 100% sure that the sickness I was experiencing was a warning that what I was dabbling in was NOT GOOD and against God. I felt Fear of the Lord and knew He wanted me to get rid of it immediately. I did not want to do anything that would separate me from Him. I knew I had to stop this quest I was on, that it would lead nowhere good and knew if it sucked me in that was it. I remember feeling the urgency when the Fear of the Lord washed over me…. I immediately got up... gathered all the crap out of my chest… and took it outside to the trash bins… I didn’t even want any of it in the house anymore… and from that point on… I had such a deep awareness that ALL types of witchcraft. anything that fell under that umbrellas was EVIL in origin even if it was packaged up to look like something that could be helpful or good. 

I never had any intention of being some awful, evil, black magic witch. The things I was looking into and researching… the spells and such would all fall under the umbrellas of what is considered to be white magic… But I want to be very clear…. ANY type of witchery... any type of sorcery... and type of divination… is evil in origin because at its root it is trying to fulfill the desire to be God and do things that only He can do. It is wanting to have a level of power and authority that is not gifted to us through Holy Spirit. It is tapping into things that we are not meant to tap into. It is relying on other entities that are already separated from YHWH to provide supernatural power and abilities… It is placing oneself in the position of not having to rely on or trust in God…. It should be avoided at all cost. I learned this at 12 years old and I am so grateful YHWH chose me to be HIS, so the darkness was not able to prevail over me. 

Meg Grace
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