Hope, Healing & Freedom Podcast: Episode 196
TRANSCRIPT
If you knew something was potentially harmful to you or your family, you would want to avoid that thing, wouldn’t you? Remember when your mom told you not to touch a hot stove, and you found out the hard way why she said that? Or when you were told not to stick things into the electric wall outlet, but you did it anyways and found out why she told you not to? Or am I the only one who did those things I was warned not to do and found out the hard way? In today’s podcast I am going to give a warning about some things that many people find harmless and explain why they might be opening you and your family up to the occult.
I’m Lee Whitman from Restoring the Foundations and I welcome you into this Hope Healing and Freedom podcast. I was in a conversation recently, and the question was asked what I thought of some very popular books and movies aimed at young people. I of course had to be honest and tell these people that I thought these books and movies are an introduction to the world of the occult. I will address the books and movies and tell why I feel this way in just a few minutes. This podcast is coming from my father’s heart as a warning to the Body of Christ. Many of the things I am going to talk about are seemingly innocent ways of introducing people to the world of the occult. They provide an opening that can be used by the enemy to gain influence in our lives.
First, I want to talk about what the occult and occult involvement is. Occult involvement refers to participation in hidden, mystical, or supernatural practices—such as witchcraft, divination, or spirit communication—that seek power outside of traditional Christian frameworks, often with the intent to gain forbidden knowledge, control, or self-empowerment. These activities are generally viewed by Christians as spiritual deception and dangerous, potentially leading to demonic influence, bondage, and separation from God. Many people are introduced to the occult through seemingly innocent means. I was introduced to the Ouija Board at a sleepover at the home of a deacon of our church. It was seen by those involved as simply a fun, innocent game. This game board, which was sold by the popular toy maker Parker Brothers / Hasbro, was a way of communicating with spirits to answer questions. Innocent fun, right? But it has been one of the most frequently used methods of gaining access or an opening to people’s lives for the occult.
The books I was asked about were the Harry Potter books and movies. I believe the Harry Potter books and movies are an introduction to children to the world of the occult. I am opposed to Harry Potter due to its portrayal of witchcraft, which contradicts biblical prohibitions against magic. My concerns include that it glamorizes occult practices, potentially acting as a gateway to real-world occultism for children, and presents disobedience as acceptable. The bible strictly prohibits sorcery, witchcraft, and divination, viewing the themes in Harry Potter as directly violating these prohibitions.
Harry Potter also glamorizes magic by framing magic, spells, and witchcraft as “good,” “cool,” and empowering. This series confuses children about biblical morality and introduces them to dangerous spiritual practices. I would argue that, regardless of the fictional intent, engaging with stories about witchcraft opens a “doorway” to spiritual corruption or makes children curious about real-world occult practices.
Another introduction to the occult for young people is a cartoon series called Anime. Anime is a style of animation originating from Japan, characterized by vibrant, stylized art, detailed characters, and diverse, often complex storylines. There are many things about Anime that are opposed to Biblical Christianity. Many anime feature Shinto or Buddhist elements, including polytheism, spirit worship, tarot cards, and magic, which conflict with Christian beliefs. Other troubling aspects of Anime are the following:
- Sexual Content (Ecchi/Hentai): The industry includes explicit pornography (“hentai”) and “fanservice”—lewd, unnecessary sexual innuendo—that can lead to temptation.
- Graphic Violence & Gore: Shows often contain extreme, excessive brutality that can desensitize viewers or violate the pursuit of pure, peaceful entertainment.
- Moral Relativism: Storylines may blur the lines between good and evil, promoting worldviews that disregard biblical commands or reframe demonic influence as harmless.
- Idolatry/Obsession: As with any hobby, investing excessive time and emotion into anime can turn it into an idol that replaces God in a person’s life.
- Anti-Christian Sentiment: Some anime portray religious figures or Christianity negatively, often depicting clergy as corrupt or using Christian aesthetics in blasphemous ways.
Another way that adults and children are introduced to the occult is through video games. The occult is a common theme in video games, ranging from symbolic easter eggs to core narratives involving ritualistic magic, demonic, and hidden traditions. These games frequently explore topics like paranormal phenomena, witchery, alchemy, and demonology. These games often call on occult themes and practices within the games in order for the participant to progress.
Video games have become a normal part of people’s lives with the introduction of the smartphone. Games used to require some type of game console in order to play. Now all you need is your smartphone to make access to these games available to everyone. I was sitting in church last week and the 35-year-old guy in front of me was playing a video game during the morning sermon. It was one thing for him to play the game during church, but his 13-year-old son was looking over his Dad’s shoulder watching him play.
Yoga is another introduction to the occult world. Yoga originated in ancient Eastern traditions, with postures designed as prayers or worship to Hindu deities, specifically Shiva. This conflicts with the Christian Commandment against worshipping other gods. While Christianity focuses on surrender to God, yoga often emphasizes finding the “divine” within oneself (self-realization) or achieving enlightenment (samadhi). Christians will often try to justify participation in Yoga as a good healthy exercise. Some will say that if you leave out the Hindu aspects of Yoga, you can cleanse it from its Hindu religion and it is an acceptable form of exercise for a Christian. Many will play Christian music while doing Yoga and believe they are not participating in the Hindu religion. A friend of ours who has been a missionary in Hindu countries says that every yoga position is an act of worship to the Hindu gods. By submitting yourself to these positions, even if you play Christian music during your workout, it is still worshipping other gods.
Many movies are an introduction to the occult. We went to see a very Christian movie not long ago, and prior to the movie beginning they played five or six movie trailers of upcoming movies. Every single one of the movies they were advertising were saturated with the occult. I have heard Christian friends of ours say things like, “these movies are just harmless fun.” The problem is they are not harmless. Everything that you allow into your mind has an effect on you. The introduction of the occult themes into your life opens you up to the demonic to use that opening as a landing strip for the demonic oppression. Lest you think I am overreacting, ask yourself this? Why are there so many movies and tv shows containing occult material today if it is not a systematic attempt by Satan and the demonic world to gain access to people’s lives. You may have heard the story of the frog in the pot of water before. If you throw a frog into a pot of hot water the frog will simply jump out of the hot water. But if you put a frog in a pot of cool water and slowly turn up the heat, the frog will not see the danger coming and it will be boiled to death. That is what is happening to our world. The temperature of the demonic is being slowly turned up so that we the church accept it and we are being in some ways boiled to death. Much of what is on TV is the same way. The shows on TV are bringing the demonic into our homes and because it is difficult to find a show that does not contain blatantly sinful or occultic behavior, we end up watching them and allowing those images and ideas into our minds.
Many people enjoy horror movies. I believe horror movies are an opening to the occult. They are designed to instill fear into the viewer that can then open them up to a spirit of fear. I know by saying all of this I am going to either get some critical feedback, or some will quit listening to our podcasts altogether. I am willing to take that risk because we are living in a day and time when we need to see the dangers that are coming at us so that we can avoid them. I personally find it concerning that believers in Jesus enjoy watching gory movies, movies that depict random and unnecessary death. We are encouraged to turn away from evil, not embrace it and find it entertaining.
Horoscopes are another way people are introduced to the occult. Many people read them because they are a fun distraction. A horoscope is an astrological chart or diagram showing the position of the sun, moon, planets, and zodiac signs at a specific moment, such as a person’s birth. They are used to predict future events or analyze personality. From a Christian perspective, horoscopes are dangerous because they promote idolatry, divining the future through creation rather than trusting God. They undermine free will and personal responsibility, fostering spiritual deception, and they substitute divine guidance with demonic influence. Horoscopes encourage looking to the stars for guidance instead of to God. Relying on horoscopes shifts trust away from God and replaces His plans with false predictions.
Other activities that open the door to the occult are things like tarot cards. Tarot cards are a deck of cards used for divination, self-reflection, and spiritual guidance. Many people will visit a fortune teller and have their tarot cards read to get direction for their life or to gain insight into their lives. It is often seen as a harmless and even fun activity. In the mid 1800’s tarot cards were linked with Egyptian mysteries, shifting their purpose to divination.
Another way to open the door to the occult is through pornography. Yes, I know that pornography is a sin all by itself, but what many don’t know is that much pornography is bathed in the occult. Pornography acts as a gateway to demonic influence or oppression. Pornography is a tool used by other spirits to normalize perversion and distort the human image, often making it a form of idolatry. Pornography does not just open someone to sexual spirits, but because of the occult background of the pornography industry, it opens people up to many other occult spirits as well.
My purpose for today’s podcast is to warn us of the potential influence of the occult. Remember that the occult is often very hidden, so we don’t always see it with our physical eyes. We can see something as an innocent book or movie, yet in reality it is an opening to us and our family to the occult. Cindi was reading a book recently and the main character was going to visit a medium in order to solve a mystery. Cindi had to quit reading that book because she didn’t want to open herself to the occult influence. We have the incredible power of the Holy Spirit living within us to help us discern good from evil. I would ask that you consider what is in this podcast and ask God if there are any changes you need to make in your life in order to stay free from these influences.
PRAYER
Father God, we desperately need You. We live in a world that is saturated with the occult. It is so hard for us to know what is good and what is evil because we are like the frog being boiled to death in the pot. Would You help us know if there are any changes we need to make in our lifestyle or activities in order to keep away from the influence of the occult. And if we are actively involved in any of these occult activities, would You give us the courage to get rid of them.
My friends, if you have been involved in any of these activities, you may need help breaking the hold they have on your life. Please go to our website at restoringthefoundations.org and click on the Get Ministry tab at the top of the page. There you will find a directory of highly trained RTF ministers in your area who can help you find the freedom Jesus came to give you.