The Present Resurgence of the Occult
There was an explosion of demonism during the First Advent the likes of which the world had never seen, and Scripture predicts the rise of the same in the face of the coming Second Advent. Most religious demonologist agree that there was a significant rise of demonism during WWII. The Washington Times published an article entitled “Catholic Bishops: More Exorcists Needed,” dated November 13, 2010, citing a shortage of priests who can perform the Rite of Exorcism. Dioceses nationwide have been relying solely on these specially trained clergy but have been overwhelmed with requests to evaluate claims. Bishop Thomas Paprocki feels that one of the reasons for this increase could be the “growing interest among Americans in exploring general spirituality… which has led more people to dabble in the occult.”
The Bible predicts religious apostasy of which is being fulfilled today throughout Christendom. A particularly ominous form of apostasy, however, is found during the last days - rapid rise of demonism Paul tells Timothy that, "in the latter times some shall depart from the faith giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils" (I Tim. 4:1). It was revealed to John that Satan would be worshipped on a global scale (Rev. 13: 4, 8). Prior to that culminating event, man will “worship demons and idols” (Rev.9:21) in tandem with the use of drugs. The word “sorceries” taken from this verse Greek word from which we actually transliterate our English word "pharmaceutical," and is most commonly understood to mean "magical incantations by the ritual use of drugs." I will be talking more about ritual drug use and altered states of consciousness in another writing.
Bishop Paprocki’s reasoning for the increased claims of possession is sound in regards to growing interest in spiritual exploration. I think this can be explained in terms of paradigm shifts. Today we live in a world much like the Israelites during the time of the Judges, to wit: "In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes" (Judges 21:13-25). No absolutes – just one’s own truth. Whereas the Enlightenment, led by intellectuals in 18th century Europe, liberated society from the “old order,” Postmodernity seeks to recover man’s meaning thereby delivering him from nihilism, which characterizes the modern age. Man had been reduced. Science left him cold and without transcendent meaning. Nihilism emptied human existence of essential value, comprehensive truth, meaning and purpose. The dismal reality of the materialistic or naturalistic worldview can be summed up in some important conclusions reached by Dr. Ed Murphy in his "Handbook for Spiritual Warfare":
- The universe is a cosmic accident that has no ultimate purpose.
- Human life is a biological accident that has no ultimate significance.
- Life ends forever at death for each individual life form.
- Mind has no separate existence or survival apart from brain.
In reaffirming the spiritual dimension, man borrowed the relativism found in eastern mystical traditions such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Taoism. As Monistic faiths, these religions teach that everything is part of one essence. They reject objective truth and rationality and hold that the physical world is nothing more than an illusion. Postmodernity holds realities to be plural and relative and especially holds true in regards to spirituality. Today spirituality means mystical experience - not external truth.
In 1967 the rock musical Hair exploded onto American cultural scene, challenging many of the norms held by Western society. A product of the counterculture, this hit musical production announced to the world that a new world order was coming. The Age of Aquarius would soon replace the Age of Pisces (era of Christianity, science and rationalism). This new gold age would be characterized by progress, unity, peace, occult knowledge and mysticism. Hair was not only a hit in American, but was extremely popular in Canada and Australia as well.
This shift came about as one of the results of the social revolution that swept Western Europe, New Zealand, Australia, and North America during the 1960s and early 1970s. Although there were counterculture currents that existed in the 1950s, the 1960s became identified with the rejection of conventional social norms of the 1950s. Counterculture youth rejected the values and cultural standards of their parents.
Repackaged occult and paganism make up the spirituality of this new age. This “New Spirituality,”as is now referred to, deifies the self while uprooting it from its proper mooring in the personal Creator and Redeemer of the universe. It is relativistic morally and unable to provide objective standards for human conduct. It denies the darker side of human nature and opts for utopianism. The influences of this new spirituality is now highly prevalent in the 21st century and are reflected in the arts, education, psychology, politics and religion.
The New Age Movement is often referred as a paradigm shift. New Age players believe that man is invested and divested with untapped powers and wisdom that can be realized if diligently and purposefully sought after. All world religious beliefs not founded on the absolute truth of Scripture have descended from Mystery Babylon that extends back to the Tower of Babel 4000 years ago. Self- exaltation has always been part of the mystery religions.
Traditional systems Eastern philosophy, occult and the mystical are patterned after the “Great Lie” of Genesis 3 and, as such, I collectively term these systems as the “ancient tradition.” All forms of occult philosophy are united around the central belief that the inner or real self of man is God - "You will be like God" (Gen. 3:5, RSV). In practicing any form of occult philosophy, one may eventually encounter spirit entities, masquerading as spirit guides, ascended masters or other highly evolved beings that dispense this very same satanic theology.
Postmodernism has provided fertile ground in which the New Age Movement has taken root and grown. Fernando Fraga in his article "Postmodernism and New Age: The Subtle Connections," links the two:
First, although each is anchored in its own worldview, they share an anti-rationalism that denies the relevance of teleological history and affirms the supremacy of the present. This “methodical irrationality” is, perhaps, the basis for other elements constituting the paradigms of Postmodernity and the New Age.
Second, both share a certain pseudo-religious appeal. The truth, ever so light, of the New Age is a perfect ally of postmodern ethics, which are ever so weak. This new spirituality of our times offers to its adherents the security of religion and the freedom of Postmodernity. The potent combination of the two rejects all past legacies and all normative value systems. Without any pretension of permanency, they lose themselves in all cultures, sowing distrust
toward anything that is basic and fundamental in human life. This distrust is perceived politically and socially as a strong predominance of dissent, that replaces the previous modern consensus. A society governed by dissent is quickly made chaotic and insecure. If anything goes, what then is fair? What is ethical? What is normative?
Third, there is the nexus of humanism and religion. The New Age and Postmodernism offer a humanistic vision of truth and life that takes into account all religious and cultural thinking in order to achieve a universal harmony. While it has no use for the Christian command to view life from the perspective of a universal controversy and seek the higher ground of a redemptive lifestyle, the New Age does not hesitate to quote the Bible, use biblical illustrations, and in some contexts seems almost Christian. It also does not hesitate to tap concepts from other religions that help in its search for universal appeal and its religious offer of inner peace.
Fourth, New Age, functioning in a world of Postmodernity, ceaselessly works toward a consensus whose base is distinctly permissive and whose contents definitely point toward the deification of humanity, the sanctity of nature, and the eternal survival of the soul. Thus it can be characterized as a utopia of the present—an aspiration that modern humanity has not achieved, but would like to. This glorification of the human, so central to the New Age, completes the circle initiated by naturalism and secularism, whose roots go back to the Renaissance and the post-medieval world.
Fifth, both Postmodernity and the New Age wander between the agnostic heritage of the atheist and the neopantheistic preoccupation of the Eastern mystic. It is agnostic because it possesses a religious glaze of tolerance that is founded in indifference toward true Christian experience; it is pantheistic because it finds the sacred in a deification of humanity and nature. Both postures are intermingled, and in that mystic mixture, the New Age adherents seem to find their fulfillment. The values of Postmodernity are anchored in an absolute immanence. This postmodern version of agnosticism attempts to replace that failure of knowledge of the divine with a search of what is holy in itself: “You will be as God,” said the serpent in the Garden of Eden, and Postmodernity and the New Age seem to say, “You are the god.”
As New Agers and others engage in the occult practice of “turning in”‖ contact with the demonic is inevitable. This present day revival of evil supernaturalism has provided us undeniable evidence of the occult having pervaded every aspect of society. Nat Freedland, American Journalist, observed, researched and reported this phenomenon during the late 1960’s. Convinced of the occult’s power, Freedman was eventually drawn into it. He published his findings in his "The Occult Explosion," that there is a widespread revival of paganism and occultism is taking place just as the Bible predicted. This is an ominous sign of the immanent appearance of the Antichrist. Exorcists have a full plate and, by all accounts, indeed, more are needed.
The Bible predicts religious apostasy of which is being fulfilled today throughout Christendom. A particularly ominous form of apostasy, however, is found during the last days - rapid rise of demonism Paul tells Timothy that, "in the latter times some shall depart from the faith giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils" (I Tim. 4:1). It was revealed to John that Satan would be worshipped on a global scale (Rev. 13: 4, 8). Prior to that culminating event, man will “worship demons and idols” (Rev.9:21) in tandem with the use of drugs. The word “sorceries” taken from this verse Greek word from which we actually transliterate our English word "pharmaceutical," and is most commonly understood to mean "magical incantations by the ritual use of drugs." I will be talking more about ritual drug use and altered states of consciousness in another writing.
Bishop Paprocki’s reasoning for the increased claims of possession is sound in regards to growing interest in spiritual exploration. I think this can be explained in terms of paradigm shifts. Today we live in a world much like the Israelites during the time of the Judges, to wit: "In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes" (Judges 21:13-25). No absolutes – just one’s own truth. Whereas the Enlightenment, led by intellectuals in 18th century Europe, liberated society from the “old order,” Postmodernity seeks to recover man’s meaning thereby delivering him from nihilism, which characterizes the modern age. Man had been reduced. Science left him cold and without transcendent meaning. Nihilism emptied human existence of essential value, comprehensive truth, meaning and purpose. The dismal reality of the materialistic or naturalistic worldview can be summed up in some important conclusions reached by Dr. Ed Murphy in his "Handbook for Spiritual Warfare":
- The universe is a cosmic accident that has no ultimate purpose.
- Human life is a biological accident that has no ultimate significance.
- Life ends forever at death for each individual life form.
- Mind has no separate existence or survival apart from brain.
In reaffirming the spiritual dimension, man borrowed the relativism found in eastern mystical traditions such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Taoism. As Monistic faiths, these religions teach that everything is part of one essence. They reject objective truth and rationality and hold that the physical world is nothing more than an illusion. Postmodernity holds realities to be plural and relative and especially holds true in regards to spirituality. Today spirituality means mystical experience - not external truth.
In 1967 the rock musical Hair exploded onto American cultural scene, challenging many of the norms held by Western society. A product of the counterculture, this hit musical production announced to the world that a new world order was coming. The Age of Aquarius would soon replace the Age of Pisces (era of Christianity, science and rationalism). This new gold age would be characterized by progress, unity, peace, occult knowledge and mysticism. Hair was not only a hit in American, but was extremely popular in Canada and Australia as well.
This shift came about as one of the results of the social revolution that swept Western Europe, New Zealand, Australia, and North America during the 1960s and early 1970s. Although there were counterculture currents that existed in the 1950s, the 1960s became identified with the rejection of conventional social norms of the 1950s. Counterculture youth rejected the values and cultural standards of their parents.
Repackaged occult and paganism make up the spirituality of this new age. This “New Spirituality,”as is now referred to, deifies the self while uprooting it from its proper mooring in the personal Creator and Redeemer of the universe. It is relativistic morally and unable to provide objective standards for human conduct. It denies the darker side of human nature and opts for utopianism. The influences of this new spirituality is now highly prevalent in the 21st century and are reflected in the arts, education, psychology, politics and religion.
The New Age Movement is often referred as a paradigm shift. New Age players believe that man is invested and divested with untapped powers and wisdom that can be realized if diligently and purposefully sought after. All world religious beliefs not founded on the absolute truth of Scripture have descended from Mystery Babylon that extends back to the Tower of Babel 4000 years ago. Self- exaltation has always been part of the mystery religions.
Traditional systems Eastern philosophy, occult and the mystical are patterned after the “Great Lie” of Genesis 3 and, as such, I collectively term these systems as the “ancient tradition.” All forms of occult philosophy are united around the central belief that the inner or real self of man is God - "You will be like God" (Gen. 3:5, RSV). In practicing any form of occult philosophy, one may eventually encounter spirit entities, masquerading as spirit guides, ascended masters or other highly evolved beings that dispense this very same satanic theology.
Postmodernism has provided fertile ground in which the New Age Movement has taken root and grown. Fernando Fraga in his article "Postmodernism and New Age: The Subtle Connections," links the two:
First, although each is anchored in its own worldview, they share an anti-rationalism that denies the relevance of teleological history and affirms the supremacy of the present. This “methodical irrationality” is, perhaps, the basis for other elements constituting the paradigms of Postmodernity and the New Age.
Second, both share a certain pseudo-religious appeal. The truth, ever so light, of the New Age is a perfect ally of postmodern ethics, which are ever so weak. This new spirituality of our times offers to its adherents the security of religion and the freedom of Postmodernity. The potent combination of the two rejects all past legacies and all normative value systems. Without any pretension of permanency, they lose themselves in all cultures, sowing distrust
toward anything that is basic and fundamental in human life. This distrust is perceived politically and socially as a strong predominance of dissent, that replaces the previous modern consensus. A society governed by dissent is quickly made chaotic and insecure. If anything goes, what then is fair? What is ethical? What is normative?
Third, there is the nexus of humanism and religion. The New Age and Postmodernism offer a humanistic vision of truth and life that takes into account all religious and cultural thinking in order to achieve a universal harmony. While it has no use for the Christian command to view life from the perspective of a universal controversy and seek the higher ground of a redemptive lifestyle, the New Age does not hesitate to quote the Bible, use biblical illustrations, and in some contexts seems almost Christian. It also does not hesitate to tap concepts from other religions that help in its search for universal appeal and its religious offer of inner peace.
Fourth, New Age, functioning in a world of Postmodernity, ceaselessly works toward a consensus whose base is distinctly permissive and whose contents definitely point toward the deification of humanity, the sanctity of nature, and the eternal survival of the soul. Thus it can be characterized as a utopia of the present—an aspiration that modern humanity has not achieved, but would like to. This glorification of the human, so central to the New Age, completes the circle initiated by naturalism and secularism, whose roots go back to the Renaissance and the post-medieval world.
Fifth, both Postmodernity and the New Age wander between the agnostic heritage of the atheist and the neopantheistic preoccupation of the Eastern mystic. It is agnostic because it possesses a religious glaze of tolerance that is founded in indifference toward true Christian experience; it is pantheistic because it finds the sacred in a deification of humanity and nature. Both postures are intermingled, and in that mystic mixture, the New Age adherents seem to find their fulfillment. The values of Postmodernity are anchored in an absolute immanence. This postmodern version of agnosticism attempts to replace that failure of knowledge of the divine with a search of what is holy in itself: “You will be as God,” said the serpent in the Garden of Eden, and Postmodernity and the New Age seem to say, “You are the god.”
As New Agers and others engage in the occult practice of “turning in”‖ contact with the demonic is inevitable. This present day revival of evil supernaturalism has provided us undeniable evidence of the occult having pervaded every aspect of society. Nat Freedland, American Journalist, observed, researched and reported this phenomenon during the late 1960’s. Convinced of the occult’s power, Freedman was eventually drawn into it. He published his findings in his "The Occult Explosion," that there is a widespread revival of paganism and occultism is taking place just as the Bible predicted. This is an ominous sign of the immanent appearance of the Antichrist. Exorcists have a full plate and, by all accounts, indeed, more are needed.
