Conservative Christian Beliefs About the Occult

http://www.religioustolerance.org/occult2.htm

There is no consensus on the nature of the Occult:

Some people (particularly individuals involved in occultic activities) look upon the Occult as fascinating, harmless, mysterious, spiritual and a source of knowledge and healing power.

Others (particularly conservative Christians) see it as being profoundly evil, criminal, destructive, life threatening, and Satanic. It is a word that generates horror and revulsion.
Although it is common for people to differ in their religious views, it is rare to have a disparity as extreme as this.

Many Evangelicals and Fundamentalist Christians define the Occult as including an enormous range of practices. We have seen references to:

Religions & Spiritual Movements:
American Meditation Society
Anthroposophical Society
Baha'i Faith
Ceremonial Magick. This includes the use of rituals, spells, chants to change the material world.
Children of God (Family of Love)
Christian Science: An established Christian denomination centered in Boston MA.
A Course in Miracles
Eckankar: A religious and spiritual path, sometimes called the Religion of the Light and Sound of God.
Gothic Satanism: This is a non-existent, anti-Christian faith whose members were believed to engage in cannibalism, human sacrifice, etc. It is an imaginary faith created during the latter Middle Ages. It justified the extensive Witch burnings and hangings of the 15th to 18th centuries.
Hinduism: The third largest of the world's great religions.
Hindu sects of various types, such as Hare Krishna.
Jehovah's Witnesses (a.k.a. Watchtower Society, WTS)
Kabala
Macumba: This is a syncretistic religion combining elements of Roman Catholicism and African native religions. It is similar to Vodun.
Mormonism (a.k.a. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
New Age: This is a system of thought including belief in monism, pantheism, reincarnation, personal transformation, spirit guides, etc. Includes practices such as channeling, use of crystals, meditation, etc.
Palo Mayombe
Rastafarianism
Rosicrucianism: An ancient syncretistic religion dating back to the 17th century.
Santeria: A Caribbean religion which combines Roman Catholicism and African native beliefs.
Satanic Ritual Abuse: The abuse and murder of children by Satanists during rituals. This appears to be a non-existent phenomenon.
Satanism: A modern religion based on a pre-Christian concept of Satan, who is recognized either as a principle or as a supernatural being.
Church of Scientology: A religious movement based on the writings of L R Hubbard.
Self-Realization Fellowship
Spiritualists National Movement, and other branches of Spiritualism/Spiritism.
Shamanism
Theosophy: A religious group whose beliefs are largely based on the writings of Helena Blavatsky.
Transcendental Meditation
UFO cults: Groups who believe that extra-terrestrial beings are attempting to communicate with us and lead humans to a higher plane of understanding.
Unification Church: An established Christian denomination originating in Korea.
Vedanta Society
Vodun: A syncretistic Caribbean religion which combines Roman Catholicism and African native beliefs.
Voodoo: A non-existent religion from the Caribbean invented for Hollywood horror movies).
Wicca: A Neo-Pagan earth-based religion similar to Native American spirituality. It is sometimes called "White Witchcraft" by the public.
Zen Buddhism

Divination Techniques -- methods of foretelling the future:
Astrology
Biorhythm
Crystal divination
I Ching
Palm Reading
Rune casting
Tarot Card Reading 5
Tea Cup Reading
Games
Adult games (e.g. Ouija Boards).
Children's TV programs and cartoons (e.g. She-ra).
Children's toys (e.g. Smurfs).
Fantasy role-playing games (e.g. Dungeons and Dragons)

Medical and therapeutic techniques:
Aura reading
Various holistic medical processes
Hypnotism
Iridology (diagnosis from study of the iris)
Reflexology (diagnosis from manipulation of the foot)
Visualization techniques (a.k.a. guided imagery)
Other Activities
Educational courses - a range of modern methods of teaching
Fire walking (bare-foot walking on a bed of glowing coals).
Heavy metal rock music.
Holistic Health Practices (healing by acupuncture, flower remedies, homeopathy, etc.)
The Masonic Lodge (or similar men's fraternal organizations).
Meditation.
Reading novels by specific authors (e.g. Carlos Casteneda).
Yoga and other exercise techniques.

Impact of Occultic activities:

Many conservative Christians believe that if a person engages in occult experiences, then "points of contact or entanglement with demonic entities" will occur, and "malevolent spiritual entities" (demons) can infiltrate their mind and body. They become demon possessed.

Many Evangelical Christian authors often visualize the opening of occultic "doorways" through which malevolent forces have a "legal right" to infiltrate the person's home and cause serious spiritual problems. These demons can become attached to the person's location and can cause inter-generational infestation over a period of decades or even centuries.

These views correspond closely to 1st and 2nd century CE beliefs in possession by demons and evil spirits. They have been abandoned by most psychiatrists, psychologists and other mental health professionals for centuries. Within the professional therapeutic communities, such beliefs now appear to be confined to a small minority of mental health professionals who are Roman Catholics or conservative Protestants.

Rex W. Rosenberg, a conservative Christian clinical psychologist who has specialized in Multiple Personality Disorder, believes that such infiltration can lead to what he calls "demonically-mediated dissociation" (DMD). This is one form of a mental disorder that others call Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD) or Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). 1,2 All forms of MPD and DID are now recognized by almost all therapists as iatrogenic (physician created) disorders that no not occur in nature.