The devil is everywhere you look

To the editor:

As many of you remember from the 1980s, I used to give talks and presentations around the Bronx to school parent associations and community groups about the dangers of heavy metal music and its connections to satanism.

As a result, I was affectionately given the title of “mayor,” which I relish, and brings a smile to my face.

Many of you have been asking me recently for advice and information about some form of the occult — especially witchcraft, more commonly known nowadays as “Wicca.”

Witchcraft and its benign-sounding counterpart Wicca have been made popular and appealing by mainstream movies and television shows which portray the “craft” as adventurous and exciting, but in an alluring and spooky kind of way.

“It’s just harmless fun,” is the popular claim of its adherents.

But let me state witchcraft is not the same as satanism. Yet, they are both part of the “occult,” which in my opinion, is a word that is much overused. Still, there are many similarities to them. Most notably, their founder is the devil.

I know many would vehemently protest this. They’re welcome to do so. But I am only stating what I believe to be true. Not all religions or spiritual practices originate from God. There is a being known as Satan (or Lucifer), as the Bible makes abundantly clear. He is an arch-deceiver.

Writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the apostle Paul warns, “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” In the same letter, Paul describes the devil as the “prince of the power of the air,” while the Lord Jesus himself calls Satan the “prince of this world.”

Likewise, Scriptures such as Acts 26:18 show Satan as having “power” and authority, but with only a limited amount of it. Yet, whatever power he does possess, it is deadly.

Ultimately, Satan seeks to keep people from receiving a correct knowledge of God. He tries to keep them from believing the gospel account that Jesus died for our sins, was buried in a tomb, and was resurrected on the third day.

The devil, in his hatred for God and his creation, tries to lead people astray and thereby keep them from recognizing Jesus as the one who desires to be their savior. The devil’s end goal is to lead them into hell.

This is serious.

Many a hungry soul and many an innocently curious person has been lured into things like witchcraft and Wicca. While some of this magic actually seems to work, it is only because of demonic entities who are in operation behind the scenes. It’s nothing but devilish deception that’s meant to put the practitioner in bondage.

I pray people will see witchcraft and Wicca for what it is. It’s a deadly poison. But Jesus loves these precious souls and he longs for them to come to him. He can offer far more than the occult with all its confusion, and the seemingly endless need of having to cast spells, do rituals, and partake in sorceries.

Richard Marias

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