Defending the Faith Against False Belief Systems

Among many, the ideologies of new age, new thought, and even the occult evoke associations of mental health and body-spirit integration. They’re seen as methods leading to being “in tune” with the earth or the universe. Many recognize the level of spiritualism associated with the ideologies but deem them good or helpful; to others, they’re harmless. This perception is far from the truth. The truth is that each of these spiritual movements serve to idolize the self and mask harmful practices that endanger the health of the soul. To correct our understandings and protect ourselves from the realities behind these popular false belief systems, we must first define their ideas, recognize their appeals to our human nature, and ultimately choose to hold firm to the defenses provided by the one, true God, entrusted to His Church.

The New Age blends beliefs centered on self, perception, and experience, falsely claiming that mental, emotional, and physical practices lead to spiritual enlightenment. It promotes human evolution toward enhanced abilities without acknowledging a personal God and is fundamentally rooted in pride and self-deification, violating the first commandment.

New Thought is a spiritual movement that emerged in the 19th century in the United States, centered around the belief in the transformative power of the mind. It teaches that thoughts and mental states have a direct influence on physical health, material success, and overall life circumstances. New Thought principles emphasize the idea that individuals can harness positive thinking, affirmations, and a belief in divine energy or universal laws to achieve personal well-being and success.

The occult is a belief system focused on uncovering hidden knowledge and wielding concealed power through ritualistic practices often fueled by Satanic signs and wonders. It involves both “light occult” (deceptive, surface-level allure) and “dark occult” (the hidden, sinister reality).

Though it may not be visible on the surface, each of these ideologies and the practices associated with them distort traditional Catholic teachings in some way. Unless ones eyes are open to the spiritual realities at play, they won’t recognize these distortions as the deceitful and false doctrines that they are. St. Paul refers to these as “the flaming missiles of the wicked one” (Eph. 6:16).

There are some major modern ideas that appeal to the religiously disaffiliated. These false beliefs, often promoted by the new age, new thought, and occult movements, distract a person from the truth of Christ, and draw them into spiritual delusion and destruction.

These major ideological, “spiritual” traps are:

• Harnessing Occult Power: The belief that a person can channel and harness hidden power through practices involving invocation (to call in) and evocation (to call forth), that will assist a person in the world in a beneficial way (and with no negative spiritual consequences).
  
  
• Impersonal God: The belief that God is an impersonal, generic force, resulting in a belief that God has no ability or desire to have a relationship with mankind in any way.
  
  
• Self-Deification: The belief that a person can achieve spiritual enlightenment through mental and physical practices, leading them to a higher, god-like spiritual status.

Can you hear the serpent from the Garden narrating these false views and promises?

The truth concerning these ideologies are:

• Harnessing Occult Power: The truth is—this power is demonic in nature and leads to the soul’s imprisonment and eventual destruction.
  
  
• Impersonal God: The truth is—God is personal and very real. Jesus is the exact living image of the unseen God, and He came down from Heaven, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to ransom us from our sins, establish us as righteous (a task only He could accomplish), and He calls each and every one us into a very real, tangible, and personal communion with Him through the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. He will come again (parousia) to judge the living and the dead and to establish His eternal Kingdom for those who love Him.
  
  
• Self-Deification: The truth is—our souls are only saved through the Blood of Christ. It is Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension that delivers us from spiritual bondage and leads us to eternal life. We are not God, but submit to God by loving Him with all our hearts, souls, and minds. By yielding to the sacraments that God gave us, we are transformed by His grace, and it is our delight to surrender and submit to the Lord, to stay to the end and so be saved.

These three pillars of our faith in Jesus Christ are paramount in keeping our souls safely tethered to truth and protected against spiritual damage caused by false teachings.

• Sacred Scripture: The written Word of God, profitable for “teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16-17).
  
  
• Sacred Tradition: Church doctrine, liturgy, and life comes together as a living transmission of the Gospel, handled down through the apostles and teaches all generations everything that the Church believes.
  
  
• The Magisterium: This is the teaching authority of the Catholic Church, which includes the pope and bishops. They interpret Scripture and Tradition to ensure faithfulness to Jesus Christ’ teachings.

Walking away from religion entirely sets a person on a path to attempting to discover for themselves what spirituality means. As St. Paul foretold:

For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. (2 Tim. 4:3-4)

Unfortunately, many Americans are turning away from religion and sound doctrine to suit their own desires.

• 28% of Americans have no religious affiliation whatsoever, and either claim to be atheistic, agnostic, or believe nothing in particular.
• 22% of Americans consider themselves spiritual but not religious.

When a person rejects the authority of the Church and chooses another path based on their desires and personal human understandings, they subject themselves to the dangers of self-idolizing ideologies, such as those listed here. So why do so many reject the safety of the Lord’s protection in favor of this path?

Deeply wired inside of each of us is an intrinsic yearning to seek and know God. We are religious creatures, whether we choose to acknowledge it or not. As the Catechism states:

The desire for God is written in the human heart, because man is created by God and for God; and God never ceases to draw man to Himself. Only in God will he find the truth and happiness he never stops searching for. (CCC 27)

This deeply ingrained disposition sometimes leads us to search for spiritual truths in the wrong places. Those who fall into new age or occult practices are following their desire to unearth spiritual realities, but in a way that leads their souls into the dangerous entrapments of the devil.

Thankfully, there is also a right path offered to us. We have a personal God of infinite mercy, who calls us to Him. As the Catechism confirms:

God calls each one by name. Everyone’s prayer is a personal relationship with God. But the grace of the kingdom is “the union of the entire holy and royal Trinity… with the whole human spirit.” Thus, the life of prayer is the habit of being in the presence of the thrice-holy God and in communion with him. This communion of life is always possible because, through Baptism, we have already been united with Christ. (CCC 2567)

God is our protector. God is for Whom we were made. In His arms and Church, we find safety.

We are all made to seek and know God, yet so many (dare I say, all of us, in certain ways) look for Him in the wrong places. Many unknowingly seek Him in new age and occult practices and end up tethered to the Evil One. Therefore, it’s important to know what these false belief systems teach, what their ideas look like around us and those we love. Then, we must make the conscious decision to cling all the more tightly to our loving God through prayer and the sacraments.

Editor’s Note: The author’s book Freedom From Darkness: A Roadmap to Deliverance from Spiritual Bondage and the Occult highlights personal testimonies, practical steps for deliverance, and the powerful role of the Church in combating evil. It can be ordered from Sophia Institute Press.

And, if you enjoyed this article, feel free to check out this author’s previous articles:“Spiritual But Not Religious: A Closer Look at Women’s Predominance in This Movement” and “How I Learned Tarot is a Trap”

Photo by Sarah Brown on Unsplash