» Fortune telling » Why you can’t tell fortunes and go to fortune tellers
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Magic helps you find out your future. But many believe that one should not guess and go to fortune-tellers, and the very desire to see the future has consequences. Let's look at this controversial issue.
Why you can’t tell fortunes and go to fortune tellers
Is it possible to tell fortunes on Christmastide and Christmas?
Priest John Zakharov, rector of the Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary at the Russian Children's Clinical Hospital
— Why are modern people still attracted to fortune telling at Christmas and Christmas time?
Because we, modern people (I also count myself among them), do not understand the joy of church life. It is mysterious to us and we try to open the door to this world, but not with humility, not with faith in God, but with some incomprehensible instrument. Therefore, if there is a period that the church distinguishes in a special way, for example, Christmastide, it means that something special needs to be done at this time. It seems to me that, on the one hand, this is simply a lack of understanding and ignorance of church life, and on the other, a desire to be involved in the mystery. Man is a creature that cannot live only in this world, on the plane of life, without love, without joy, so he tries to get this joy in semi-pagan ways.
- Why can’t you guess? Is it dangerous?
A person, instead of discovering the joy of spiritual life, begins to drown out the voice of the Christian soul within himself and feed it with all sorts of garbage instead of drinking the living water of church sacraments.
— After all, all of our Russian classical literature is mostly imbued with Orthodoxy. And from our school curriculum we remember fortune telling as a tradition...
Our literature says a lot of things, including things that are not always decent to talk about. Not everything that the classics talked about is an example to follow. I am more than sure that the writers in this way tried to expose the ignorance of our people.
What Scripture Says
The Bible strongly condemns the practice of any form of occultism and witchcraft; magicians and fortune-tellers are called accomplices of the dark world. Holy Scripture repeatedly calls their practice an “abomination” and warns Orthodox Christians against turning to mediums for advice.
“To ask for help and seek counsel,” the Bible says, “is necessary from the Lord God.” In addition, those who profess a pagan religion face severe punishment. An example is given of Canaan - the Promised Land - an ancient state whose inhabitants were mired in occult practices, which led to their downfall.
The Bible uses the word “fornication” to describe the verbal fornication of false prophecies, which become the cause of both personal disasters and many historical dramas.
“Do not cast spells and do not guess,” said the Lord, “and to those who suggest turning to whisperers and sorcerers, answer: shouldn’t a truly believing people turn to God.” The Bible is categorical towards sorcerers of any rank: “Have no mercy on sorcerers.”
Is it possible for pregnant women to tell fortunes?
Archpriest Alexy Spassky, rector of the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God “Merciful” at the Morozov Children’s Hospital in Moscow
Let's start with the fact that no one knows the future except God, who exists outside the categories of time. And since a person is free, he creates his own future, it is impossible to know what he will do in a given situation. So the question arises: why guess at all? A completely pointless activity.
Therefore, all other questions related to the time of fortune-telling (Lent or Christmastide), with the state of the fortune-teller (sick or pregnant) lose their meaning, since fortune-telling is, in principle, not allowed in our Church.
Pregnant women, of course, are a special category, especially when the mother is expecting a child for the first time, and even more so if she has no confidence in the future, if there is no loving spouse nearby (this happens nowadays, unfortunately, more and more often). Let's try to figure out why they turn to sorcerers, what questions might concern them? If you are wondering who will be born, a boy or a girl, now there are modern ultrasound methods and you can quite easily find out who is expecting birth. Perhaps the anxiety is associated with fear of childbirth - for your life and for the health of the child. But even in this situation, it is worth listening more to yourself, to the recommendations of doctors and praying to God for the safe birth of the child. You should not participate in dark rituals.
The bright and joyful days of Christmastide are much closer in content and depth to the state of a pregnant woman. We rejoice at the Nativity of Christ, the Baptism of the Lord, the memory of St. Basil the Great, the holidays, when we can attend more services, do more good deeds - this is a festive and joyful time that should not be overshadowed by fortune telling. Because in actions aimed at fortune-telling there is no joy and celebration, they are dark and gloomy. In paganism, much of this ritual is associated with the sacrifice of animals, which rather causes rejection and disgust.
The fact is that this desire to “know the future” is used by demons - fallen spirits who, wanting to destroy a person, mislead him and deceive him. Through fortune telling, they tell a person what they need for their purposes, trying to destroy the one who begins to believe their answers to fortune telling. Therefore, if a person takes these predictions seriously, then he may get into trouble. If he considers it a kind of fun, does not attach any meaning, then in modern society such entertainment seems to be a more or less harmless matter. Although, of course, there is a difference between reading an astrological forecast in the newspaper out of nothing to do and special actions aimed at fortune-telling, which are directly prohibited for Christians as an appeal to dark forces.
The purpose of evil in this world is one - to destroy a person’s soul, regardless of whether he is baptized or not. Of course, the baptized are protected by the grace of God from this destruction, but all people, especially those who are not enlightened by the light of the Gospel, are defenseless in this “game of fortune-telling”, like blind kittens. Even those who do not recognize any prohibitions, for whom there are no authorities. The sad consequences of spiritual mistakes are felt by everyone. But the one who promised in baptism to live according to the commandments of God, of course, is more guilty of violating them than the one who does not yet know God.
Psychologists' opinion
According to psychotherapists, fortune telling is a method of programming fate. Experts believe that it is harmful and has a number of dangers for humans:
- The presence of an internal conflict - people turn to magicians and fortune-tellers with such a problem, but as a result it is not solved, but hides deeper;
- Infantility - all predictions are perceived as signs of fate. The person no longer tries to save and correct the situation.
The subconscious mind undergoes its own programming, thoughts influence the behavior of the individual. The harm of fortune telling lies in the formation and development of obsessive fears.
Is it possible to guess in a post?
Vladimir Strelov, rector of the College of Biblical Foundations for Preparation for Church Ministries “Heritage”
Fortune telling is an attempt to know the future. Why do we need it? To know how to act and not get into a difficult situation. A person is driven by fear, he wants to protect himself.
But the meaning of fasting is to get closer to God. Everything that is needed will be revealed by Him Himself. And He is the Father, He Himself will protect us from what can harm our eternal soul. Here fears go away, trust and joy appear. It often happened that it was during prayer, while reading Scripture, or from the words of a priest in confession or a sermon that a person received insight into how to live further. God does not leave any person without guidance. But when we are distracted (our normal state), we simply cannot hear anything.
It is important to look for answers to your questions, and not in roundabout ways, with fortune telling and flirting with dark forces. Let's turn to the Gospel: what sets Jesus Christ apart from his contemporaries? He constantly seeks opportunities to be with God, but does not demonstrate his religiosity ostentatiously. He will not impose God on His disciples. To receive the most famous prayer, the Lord's Prayer, students will have to ask the Teacher. It sounds like this:
Our Father who art in heaven! Hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. (Matt. 6:9-13)
Not petitions and requests come first, but glorifying God and wishes for His Kingdom to finally come. The word Father is used to address God. Not the Creator, not the Lord and Master, but the Father. In the second part of the prayer, God is presented as caring, loving and forgiving, keeping from temptation and delivering from evil. Such a God can not only be feared, but also loved.
Christ establishes only one ritual - the fraternal meal, which will then become the focus of the life of the Church. It is otherwise called the Lord's Supper, or Eucharist, which translated from Greek means “thanksgiving.” Participating in such a meal is a real celebration of gratitude and joy of being together. This is precisely the meaning and purpose of fasting, and not fortune telling.
According to Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh, fasting should be a time for a person to limit himself in everything that is not essential and necessary. And we do this in order to force ourselves to stand in the face of the only true values, our own conscience, human truth and God’s truth. And besides this, our restriction of ourselves in everything unnecessary should bring benefit and joy to other people. Fasting is a time of gathering oneself and drawing closer to God.
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Paths of Redemption
When realizing the Sinful path, a period of searching for a solution begins; a person can redeem his soul in the church.
The sin of fortune telling can be forgiven through sincere repentance; it must be verbal, mental and spiritual.
a baptized person should go to confession to the priest, tell him everything, without hiding any nuances.
When coming to the temple, you need to:
- leave candles for the repose of the souls of your family and friends, order a memorial service;
- after 9 days, repeat the lighting of the candles, but for the health of all relatives, acquaintances and friends;
- after a week, leave a candle for your own health;
- collect sacred water and bring it home, drink a couple of sips for 40 days and wash your face to remove traces of fortune telling.
After repentance, penance may be imposed on the sinner. At the same time, it is recommended to fast, read prayers every day, a person rethinks the years he has lived, frees himself from shackles, and communicates more with the Almighty. Sin is forgiven to the repentant.
Who are mediums?
Mediums are the link between the world of the living and the dead. Their abilities include direct communication with the deceased by infusing themselves with the spirit of a dead person, or contact with him at a distance. There are several types of such contacts:
- Mental mediumship is connecting with a spirit using the power of thought at a distance.
- Speech mediumship is the process of obtaining information through the voice of spirits or demons emanating from an object.
- Physical mediumship is the ability to obtain information directly by moving a spirit into and out of one’s body.
- Photographic mediumship - when it is possible to extract information from a photograph.
For the presented types of contacts listed above, a spiritualistic session is carried out, allowing the connection and communication of the guide - the medium with the summoned spirit, to whom you can directly ask questions of interest.
Can baptized people go to fortune tellers?
A baptized person, cleansed of sins, after the sacred sacrament becomes a member of the Church of Christ and gains the protection of God. By coming to the fortune teller, he deviates from the foundations of the church. Forecasters foresee the future by entering the spiritual world and, perhaps, can see the truth, or can convey the information that the spirits themselves program for the future. It is believed that fortune tellers, magicians, and sorcerers acquire their gift by signing an agreement with the devil himself, and by joining the services of fortune tellers, a baptized person turns away from religion and true beliefs.
Why you shouldn't be afraid
Archpriest Dimitry Klimov
Archpriest Dimitry Klimov:
There is such an anecdote: A patient comes to a doctor and says: “Doctor, am I going to die?” The doctor answers: “But what?!”
Once, back in the late 90s, a boy who was escorted to the war in Chechnya came to me for confession. He went to a fortune teller, who told him: “They won’t kill you, but they will wound you in the arm.” I, of course, consoled him, but, in principle, he was happy with such a “soft” prognosis.
And then I figured out what options for the development of this story could be next. If this boy had been killed, no one would have bothered to investigate further, go to a fortune teller: “How is it possible, you said they were wounded, but they killed him?!” If the boy had not been killed or even wounded, then, if anything, the fortune teller had guessed right - he would not have been killed. Third option: wounded, but not in the arm. Again, I almost got it right. And if, God forbid, he really gets wounded in the arm, then the fortune teller will be declared a prophetess and glorified.
That is, this is a win-win lottery that can simply be called gypsy. Gypsies and fortune tellers know various methods of deception, and use them mainly for mercantile purposes. The worst thing is that these charlatans often profit from the misfortune of others. How many times have I had to perform a funeral service for cancer patients who, in desperation, found some kind of medicine on the Internet, paid a lot of money for a bottle of an unknown liquid, which in fact turned out to be almost tea or herbal infusion, and thought that this would save them. And there are many such examples.
But even if you believe the fortune teller, there is no need to be afraid. If a person truly realized and mourned his sin, and did not simply state the fact of its commission, his repentance will have creative power. God can change a lot, and not only in a person. We say: after confession, sins are blotted out. And indeed the Lord, as it were, erases sins from the book of a person’s life. At the same time, He erases them not only for the future, but erases them in the past itself. And, accordingly, the consequences of sin change and disappear. That is, if a person repented and God blotted out his past sins, then the consequences of these sins are blotted out from the person’s life.
If, after repenting, a person is still afraid, this indicates his insufficient faith that God forgives and protects. And then the priest needs to give this person some kind of reasonable but effective penance. If there is no confirmation in faith, there is no trust in the will of God and in God, then a person needs to read the Gospel for a month, for example. After this penance, a person’s faith will be strengthened, he will understand that repentance cleanses and doubt less that he has broken the ties with the devil.
Why is fortune telling considered a sin?
It should immediately be noted that any fortune telling is considered sinful in official monotheistic religions. But first of all, fortune-telling that predicts future events is considered sinful. To bring the future into our world, i.e. what should be known (and known) to God alone, the fortuneteller resorts to the help of otherworldly forces. Simply put, demons.
As you know, demons use every opportunity to harm man, God’s beloved creation. Therefore, when a person listens to a fortune teller, he is listening to a demon, according to the official position of the church.
The fortuneteller and the one who goes to the fortuneteller fall away from God, because they cease to believe and trust him, and become obsessed with pride..
As you know, pride is the worst of sins . A person begins to consider himself equal to God (if he knows what only He knows) and finds himself completely in the power of Satan.
