WitchCraft and The Bible

1. WitchCraft and The Bible What does the bible really say

2. Common Definitions • A woman of such incredible beauty that she bewitches men. • An old woman, often portrayed with an evil appearance; sometimes called a "hag." • A follower of Religious Satanism who either worships Satan or recognizes Satan as a virile pre-Christian, pagan concept. They may perform evil magic, but only against their enemies. • A person devoted to evil sorcery: using rituals, spoken curses, etc to injure or kill others.

3. Common Defintions Part II • A Wiccan; a follower of a modern religion that was reconstructed partly from an ancient religion of the Celts. Wiccans are prohibited from harming others. • In Africa, a native healer who practices alternative, holistic medicine and may engage in evil sorcery. • In TV programs like Bewitched, a person, usually a woman, who was born with supernatural abilities and is capable of performing miracles by waving a wand, wiggling a nose, etc. 

4. Exodus 22:18 • American Standard Version "Thou shalt not suffer a sorceress to live." • The Answer: Put to death any woman who does evil magic. • Amplified Bible: You shall not allow a woman to live who practices sorcery. • King James Version: Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. • Living Bible: A sorceress shall be put to death. • New American Standard Bible: You shall not let a sorceress live • Exo 22:18 En trollkvinna skall du icke låta leva. • Sorcery, Magic: The art or science of putting into action the power of spirits; or the science of producing wonderful effects by the aid of superhuman beings, or of departed spirits; sorcery; enchantment

5. Deuteronomy 18:10-11 • American Standard Version: There shall not be found with thee any one...that useth divination, one that practiseth augury, or an enchanter, or a sorcerer, | or a charmer, or a consulter with a familiar spirit, or a wizard, or a necromancer. • Amplified Bible: There shall not be found among you anyone who... uses divination or is a soothsayer or an augur or a sorcerer, | or a charmer, or a medium or a wizard or a necromancer • New American Standard Bible: There shall not be found among you... one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens or a sorcerer, | or one who casts a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. • eu 18:10 Hos dig må icke finnas någon som låter sin son eller dotter gå genom eld, eller som befattar sig med trolldom eller teckentydning eller svartkonst eller häxeri, • Deu 18:11 ingen som förehar besvärjelsekonster, ingen som frågar andar, eller som är en spåman, eller som söker råd hos de döda.

6. Hebrew words • yid'oni: knowers; wizards; persons who make contact with spirits who are not of God. (Some Wiccans have engaged in spiritism and have attempted to contact the dead. However, this is not necessarily an integral part of the Wiccan religion) • sho'el 'ov: making forbidden contact with the dead. (Ditto) • qosem q'samim: predicting the future by using lots or a similar system. (Many Wiccans as well as Christians sometimes use tarot cards, runes, scrying etc. to foretell the future, but this is not an integral part of the Wiccan religion) • m'onen: predicting the future by interpreting signs in nature

7. Hebrew words continued • m'nachesh an enchanter (perhaps a snake charmer, because "nachash" means snake. We have never heard of Wiccan snake charmers) • chover chavar: use of knot-tying to perform magic. (Wiccans sometimes engage in knot-tying, but only for positive healing magic. Again, it is a practice that some engage in and is not an integral part of their religion) • m'khaseph: an evil sorcerer (as in Exodus 22:18); a person using spoken spells to harm others. (Wiccans do not engage in this activity; they are specifically prohibited from doing so by their Wiccan Rede.) • doresh 'el hametim: a person who makes contact with the dead - probably by another method than sho'el 'ov. (Again, there are some Wiccans who engage in spiritism, but it is not necessarily an integral part of their religion).

8. Galatians 5:19-20 • American Standard Version: fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, sorcery"..." • Amplified Bible: "immorality, impurity, indecency, idolatry, sorcery • New International Version: "sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft,..." • Gal 5:19 Men köttets gärningar äro uppenbara: de äro otukt, orenhet, lösaktighet, • Gal 5:20 avgudadyrkan, trolldom, ovänskap, kiv, avund, vrede, genstridighet, tvedräkt, partisöndring, • Gal 5:21 missunnsamhet, mord, dryckenskap, vilt leverne och annat sådant, varom jag säger eder i förväg, såsom jag redan förut har sagt, att de som göra sådant, de skola icke få Guds rike till arvedel.

9. Magicians are blinded • And when they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they found a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet whose name was Bar-Jesus, who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence.  This man summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God.  But Elymas the magician (for thus his name is translated) was opposing them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.  But Saul, who was also known as Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, fixed his gaze upon him.  And he said, "You who are full of all deceit and fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease to make crooked the straight ways of the Lord?  And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and not see the sun for a time."  And immediately a mist and a darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking those who would lead him by the hand.  Then the proconsul believed when he saw what happened, being amazed at the teaching of the Lord. Acts 13 6-12

10. Questions • They may argue that sorcery is black magic used for evil, and that they practice white magic, magic for good.  • Response:  The Bible makes no distinction between good or bad magic or sorcery.  All sorcery comes from the same source and is abhorred by God.  • Many non-Christians see the return of Christ as a horrible thing.  Witches will scoff at this saying "Our Goddess isn't some spiteful deity that will one day wipe out the Earth.  She loves us enough to let us do what we want and make our own choices".    • Response:  Love implies a relationship.  If the goddess is in us, if the goddess is us, and is the earth, trees and that rock over there, it is impossible to have a relationship with her and it is impossible to be loved by her.  God can be separate from you and be closer than anything else.  The holy spirit can be in you, yet you are not God.  It is this separateness that allows Christ to strengthen us.  We are weak, but through Him we have strength.

11. Question Part II • Pagans believe there is no absolute truth, therefore, there is no right and wrong.    • Response:  This is immediately a contradictory statement because people who believe in an absolute truth such as the Bible must then be wrong.  The pagan will admit they believe Christians are wrong, forgetting they don't believe in a right way or a wrong way.  • Witches believe in endless reincarnation and Karma that is passed on from life to life as you struggle to reach enlightenment.    • Response:  There is no Choice in Paganism.  No matter what you do or what you believe, your life is heading toward the same truth, the same goddess.  This goddess offers no end to the wheel of life cycles and has nothing more to offer you than a broken record and eternal punishment for past mistakes.  Jesus offers so much more.  He loved us so much that He died on the cross so that we can spend eternity in heaven.  He gave us choice.  The choice to choose Him or not to choose to be with Him.  Jesus does not demand that we spend life after life trying to improve our karma,

12. Questions Part III • For many Pagans the Christian belief in hell is a major obstacle.  They see Christians as Cruel and heartless for believing that humans would go to hell for not believing in Christ.  This usually comes from an incomplete understanding of what hell is and the free will that God gave us to choose our future.  • Response:  First of all, Hell was created for the devil and his angels.  (Matthew 25:41, 2 Peter 2:4).  The devil is a sinner and has sinned from the beginning (I John 3:8).  So, hell is a place for sin and death. • Pagans will also argue that no one would choose hell, so it is only because of a lack of knowledge that they would go there and that is unfair.  • Response:  Throughout our society we see many people make bad choices with severe consequences and they were fully aware of their actions. .  It all comes back to choice and freedom

13. Finally • The Blending of Witchcraft has effected society in that we can not see it as it is • There are no boundaries in Wicca, but there are in the bible. • You are Lord of your destiny but natural influences will affect your fate • Wicca: no adequate explanation for creation or afterlife, but in Christianity there is • Wicca: mother is creator and sustainer. • Christianity: Christ is creator and sustainer • Ty i honom skapades allt i himmelen och på jorden, synligt såväl som osynligt, både tronänglar och herrar och furstar och väldigheter i andevärlden. Alltsammans har blivit skapat genom honom och till honom.