The things we don’t need

IT ALMOST SEEMS that one cannot turn on the TV these days without seeing a commercial for one of the psychic phone lines. The TV announcer promises that you can speak to an actual psychic who will tell you all about your future. Even if one does not believe in these things, it is tempting to give a call just for one’s amusement, just to hear what the psychic has to say. Besides, who knows if the psychic might not give one a bit of information, one insight that might be helpful.
This is much the same thing that happens when one reads the newspaper in the morning. One turns to the comic page and sees the horoscopes. Once again, it is tempting to read one’s horoscope, not necessarily to find out what will happen that day, but, we tell ourselves, simply for amusement. What is wrong with this, especially if we really don’t believe any of it? How does any of this have anything to do with our faith?

The origin of horoscopesof horoscopes

Reading one’s horoscope

Ultimately, reading our horoscope is a subtle form of pagan worship. It is a statement that we believe that the stars control our lives. Furthermore, no matter how much we protest that we do not really pay attention to what we have read, there is bound to be a bit of residue from what we have read that sticks in the back of our minds. it enters into our subconscious, and it affects the way we act throughout the day. We might not even consciously remember what we have read; but that information is still there and it is bound to play some role in what we choose to do and not to do.
But why is it that there seem to be certain attributes for people with a particular horoscope sign? Why is it that someone born as an Aries is different from someone who is a Sagittarius? These attributes might be explained in many ways. One possible explanation has to do with one’s earliest life experiences. We know that much of a person’s personality is formed in the early years of one’s childhood. Is it possible that much of what we identify as the attributes of a person’s horoscope sign has something to do with the fact that the person was born in the winter or the summer and the early months of one’s childhood were spent inside or outside? There are many possible explanations for these things.
But if we begin to look to the stars for the answers in our lives, then we are making a choice. We cannot have it both ways: either God is the centre of our lives or something else, like the stars, is the centre.

The temptation of horoscopes

Psychics

What about asking for a reading from psychics? Some of what they say is uncanny; they seem to know things that no one else knows. When we talk about psychics, we really have to consider two categories of psychics. the first are the absolute frauds. Many of the psychic phone lines, for example, have scripts that the so-called psychic uses when someone calls. The answers tend to be so generic that they fit almost any situation. they offer nothing but bunk.
Likewise, when one uses a ouija board, many people unconsciously push the marker in the direction that they secretly want. it is not that a spirit is pushing the marker, but that we are doing it without even realising it.

Yet, it is possible that some psychics do contact spirits and that some spirits act through ouija boards. We do not know everything about these things, and it is possible that some spirits do communicate in these ways. In this case, the question is not whether these are spirits, but rather whether they are spirits that we should be contacting.
From the earliest days of our Judeo-Christian tradition, there has been a constant prohibition against seeking interviews with spirits other than the spirit of the Living God. In the Old Testament, we hear that is was absolutely forbidden to call upon the spirits of the dead. In the New Testament, there are some passages which say that these spirits are evil, while other passages deny that the spirits even exist. There is no clear answer. Yet, all of scripture is clear that we should never seek comfort from any other spirit other than the Holy Spirit. Whether these other spirits are bogus spirits or whether they really exist, they are not our spirits. The Holy Spirit is our spirit, for the Holy Spirit has chosen us and we have chosen the Holy Spirit. We cannot have it both ways. We cannot claim to be Christian and still participate in pagan forms of idolatry. We have to choose and live by the consequences of our choices.

Crystal and the New Age

What has been said about horoscopes, psychics and ouija boards can also be said about many of the aspects of New Age religion that have surfaced in recent years. There is no question that we can learn something positive from the New Age fad. New Age practices often remind us that there is a sense of the sacred in our life. They remind us that we have to seek the sacred. We have to look for signs of the presence of the holy in our lives. but instead of crystals, we should seek signs that speak to us of our God. Our symbols are the cross, holy water, scripture, etc. These are the things which are symbols of our commitment to the Lord.
Once again, it is all a question of control. There are so many things that bother us that we are often tempted to look for that magic fix which will make everything all right. If we only find a crystal or go to the right mountain or learn the right incantation, then everything will be all right. but in all of this we are making choices, and choosing for one thing such as crystals means choosing against God.
This is not to say that symbols cannot be Christianised. The Christmas tree, for example, was originally a pagan symbol which German Christians Christianised to help remind them that Christ alone is the source of everlasting life (the evergreen is a symbol of everlasting life). It is all a question of motivation and making Christ the centre of our lives.

The role of prayer

Even thing which are very positive can be used in an inappropriate manner. Jesus speaks of those who say prayers like the pagans do, repeating words and phrases in order to try to control God. Some people are always looking for the right prayer or the right novena that will make everything all right. Prayer is communication in which one places one’s trust in the other. our prayers do not control God’s actions, they do not force God to do something. They allow God to be a part of our lives. They place in God’s hands those things which are beyond our control. They are an act of trust.
The answer to our difficulties is not found in any of these things which we do not need; it is found in the Good News that god loves us always, everywhere, in every situation. We do not know where life will lead us, but we do know Who will accompany us along the way.