Vol. 9, No. 8, 1992

Articles on the Occult

by Leah Walker

For centuries the idea of a witch was someone who wore a black, pointy hat, rode a broomstick, and ate little children who came to nibble on the gingerbread house. Witches were both roasted and toasted as the perpetrators of all evil. "Boil, boil, toil and trouble" was expected of a witch without there ever being a thought that witches might actually mean to do good.

Modern witches have come out of the Occultic closet to discuss another side to their craft: the good side, the benevolent side, the white side.

Insisting that White Witchcraft is different from the Black Craft, White Witches have gone on the defense. One of them, Selena Fox, makes a distinction between the malevolent "black" craft and the benevolent "white" craft:

"Satanism is the opposite of witchcraft. We don't believe in evil practices, we abide by a love ethic. Harming any of Nature's creations is the last thing we'd ever do" (Selena Fox as quoted in New Age, The Occult and Lion Country, Nelson Price, p. 104-105)

Sybil Leek, best known for her position as a spokes-witch for the Time-Life Books series on the Occult, states:

"We of the Horsa Coven have a long history-both as a group and individually. Everyone is dedicated to witchcraft and the Old Religion, everyone has a flair for healing and we are all determined to use our powers for good and to deflect some of the evil which Black Magic tries to create throughout the world. If we can remain true to these basic ideals, so rooted in tradition, then we are doing our duty" (Sybil Leek, as quoted in The Anatomy of Witchcraft, Peter Haining, p.105, emphasis added)

The deception for those who practice White Witchcraft is not in their motives. Many who practice the White craft do so with the sincere hope of helping others. By flipping a motivational switch, they believe that their Occult practices are not only ethical, but even condoned in scripture!

One example of this misunderstanding is seen in the way some modern day witches (aka, Mediums) view the story of Endor as told in 1 Samuel 28. Credit is often given to the woman at Endor for having raised up the spirit of Samuel. This is simply not the case.

Some modern-day mediums decline to be called witches but prefer to be called channelers. According to author Jon Klimo, channeling is :

"Throughout history and among varied peoples, channels have been named according to what they do. Besides the term medium and the more recent channel, other names have included shaman, witch doctor, healer, and medicine man in native cultures. They also have been called fortune-tellers, oracles, seers, soothsayers, savants, and visionaries" (Channeling, p. 76).

Those who practice channeling may think they are getting a reincarnated being who ascended to a higher plane. They may even believe that they are not even close to practicing mediumship. They forget, however, that a person must die before he or she can reincarnate in to anything - even in to an ascended master.

Another Occult practice used by White Witches involves the art of healing through curative sorcery or white magic. Herbs and spells are used and nature is called upon for assistance. Often called Natural Magic or Natural Sorcery, many modern witches do not see anything wrong with this practice. Again, the focus is on motive rather than actual practice.

While Christians need to understand that most practicing witches (white or black) do not recognize a personal deity (such as God or Satan), White Witches do have some respect for the Bible - at least when it is useful to their belief structure.

One thing that Christians can do is to point out to the person involved in White Witchcraft that it is not their motive that is questionable, rather, their use of Occult techniques that are condemned by God.

Christians can also point out that the practices condemned in the Bible are not limited to spell-casting or mediumship but include a full range of techniques including:

Astrology - Is. 47:13

Charming - Deut. 18:11

Magic - Gen.41:8

Divination - Deut.18:14

Necromancy - Deut. 18:11

Soothsaying - Is.2:6

Witchcraft - Deut. 18:10

Wizardry - Deut. 18:11

White Witchcraft is only different from its black cousin because of motive. Unfortunately, God never addresses the issue of motive when condemning Occult practices. And those who practice witchcraft, regardless of motive, end up participating in one of the "works of the flesh" (Gal. 5:20)

White or Black - it does not really matter because the practices of both are wrong.