Side effects of Tarot Reading

I converted to Christianity as a teenager. But the spiritual search continued. I practiced astral projection, became a skilled astrologer, and began to read tarot. I justified what I was doing as “service to others”, and felt superior to anyone who might judge me.

Some of you know from personal experience that Christians can fall into grievous error. The Apostle Paul knew what he was saying when he advised the brothers and sisters at Corinth, “let him that thinks he stands take heed lest he fall."¹ It’s easy to feel that as long as we avoid the sins of the “second table” - greed, adultery, murder, lust, etc., we’re doing all right. But are we? What about the first, second, third commandments?

Those commands of the “first table” of the law concern our relationship to the one true God. Throughout the Scriptures, our Lord warns the people called by His name that He will not tolerate “unapproved spirituality”.

“For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God…And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people. ²

If you doubt that God can be angry at professing Christians in the New Testament era, just read what he said to the churches in Revelation chapters 2 and 3.

Going after other gods

I converted to Christianity as a teenager. But the same spiritual search which led me to faith left me fascinated by the literature of Madame Blavatsky and others of the so-called Aquarian Age. Study led to the practice of astral projection, guided meditation, astrology, and, eventually tarot. (See: Why I stopped reading Tarot Cards.) I justified what I was doing as “service to others”, and felt superior to anyone who might judge me.

A Letter from Jill

In the years since I “went public” with my reasons for no longer reading Tarot Cards, Christians have consistently written me about their difficulties related to their relationship with the cards. This past week Jill (not her real name) sent this email and gave permission to post it:

Hi Alec (or whoever reads this). I just found your site and am happy I did. I have read tarot professionally for 20 years, I am 40. I still do. I recently converted back to Christianity and now am reading all the research I can this is how I found your website. I agree with everything you said. I am starting to see what you are saying. My questions, since I am still trying to get out of my occult involvement, can the demons of spirits that I know see may have been behind the readings cause havoc in my life? Or is it a curse from disobeying the Lord? Many of my family members and friends read cards and they all have very bad lives. I am even experiencing severe nightmares, panic attacks, OCD and I never have a sense of peace within. I also have strange health issues even though I am healthy.

I would love any insight on this.

Thank you,

Here is my answer. What would you have said?

Hi Jill,

Thank you for writing.

You raise really good questions. Different people will address them in various ways. It seems to me that the foundational issue is spiritual revelation. In other words - how do any of us know what God wants to communicate to us?

Now you and I answered this question based on our own hubris. We thought that we could divine secret truths through the cards. And maybe we could. But was God the source of this information?

Real Christianity has always taught that God has communicated with mankind through Moses and the prophets, Jesus himself while on earth, and then through the apostles who saw Jesus in the flesh. This includes the apostle Paul. These prophets and apostles were 100% accurate in what they communicated. God’s prophets are 100% accurate, or they are to be rejected and ignored as false prophets. After the first century, prophecy ended with the completion of the last books of God’s revelation, which are 1, 2, and 3rd John, and Revelation. From that time until now, orthodox Christian churches have known that God speaks to human beings only through the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, which are 100% true and accurate.

In terms of false prophecy and divination, under the Theocratic kingdom of Israel, you and I and everyone today who claims to speak words of the Lord would have been killed. So it is not a minor thing at all. Those civil laws of Israel are no longer to be enforced, thank God. But they teach many things about right and wrong behavior.

How can you get out of your occult involvement?

The most important step is to ensure you have been justified before God. The atonement of God - the sinless life, death, and resurrection of Jesus - the only fully God and fully human being - is sufficient to take away the sins of the world - which includes everything including false prophecy and tarot card reading. For your sins to be taken away, all that is required is for you to have sorrow for them, want deeply to turn away from them, and to believe that Christ’s righteousness will justify you - make you right with God.

Once this happens, God promises to remember your sins no more.

Now in terms of the suffering you and others you know have experienced, pain and misfortune is part of this life. Some or all of it may well be from occult involvement. Or not. But continuing to read cards is not something that will help you in any way, shape or form.

What will help is to build a regular time of Bible reading into your daily life. It’s better to read from each of the different types of books every day instead of completing one book before reading another. Grant Horner has a good Bible reading system (you can google it). There are others, too.

Finally, you mentioned curses. You don’t have to worry about curses. God promises to love his children and protect them. If you repent (desire to no longer sin e.g. read tarot cards) and believe in Christ’s atonement for you, and continue repenting and believing, then you can look forward to an eternity with God and an end to all suffering and death. “In this world ye shall have tribulation. But fear not, I have overcome the world,” said Jesus.

May God bless you and keep you, shine his face upon you, and give you peace. Alec