Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday are behind us. Three down, two to go. I hope your week has been, and will continue to be, a smooth succession of falling dominoes.
I read with some surprise that the founders of Black Lives Matterᴛᴍ (BLM) consider their enterprise “a spiritual movement” at its core. My surprise became shock when I learned that their spiritual core is not a form of conventional religion, but a form of witchcraft.
The action, what many would call a protest, began like a religious ceremony. Melina Abdullah, chair of the Department of Pan-African Studies at California State University, Los Angeles, and co-founder of BLM-LA, opened the event explaining that while the movement is a social justice movement, it is first and foremost a spiritual movement.
She led the group in a ritual: the reciting of names of those taken by state violence before their time—ancestors now being called back to animate their own justice:
“George Floyd. Asé. Philandro Castille. Asé. Andrew Joseph. Asé. Michael Brown. Asé. Erika Garner. Asé. Harriet Tubman. Asé. Malcom X. Asé. Martin Luther King. Asé.”
As each name is recited, Dr. Abdullah poured libations on the ground as the group of over 100 chanted “Asé,” a Yoruba term often used by practitioners of Ifa, a faith and divination system that originated in West Africa, in return. This ritual, Dr. Abdullah explained, is a form of worship (bold emphasis added).
What this describes are practices of the occult. A libation is a liquid sacrifice. To whom are the sacrifices offered? Abdullah and BLM founder Patrice Cullors, explained the meaning of the practice (with my emphasis):
Abdullah and Cullors touched on the practice of calling out the names of the victims that they advocate for in protests and demonstrations. It’s kind of a way to invoke their spirits, Abdullah said.
Uplifting the names of victims goes beyond creating hashtags, Cullors said.
“It is literally almost resurrecting a spirit so they can work through us to get the work that we need to get done,” she said.
By highlighting their names, Cullors said she feels “personally connected and responsible and accountable to them, both from a deeply political place but also from a deeply spiritual place.”
In another article,
Abdullah explained that when they “say the names,” they “invoke that spirit, and then those spirits actually become present with you.”
“Maybe I’m sharing too much,” she said, “but we become very intimate with the spirits that we call on regularly” (my emphasis).
What we have here are “trained Marxists” who conjure up spirits to help them destroy Western civilization, which developed under the influence of Christianity. This helps explain the deeply disturbing expressions of hatred and destructive behavior that characterize BLM, including the disruption of “the Western-prescribed nuclear-family-structure requirement,” the end of capitalism, and the “abolition of the United States as we know it.”
Scripture tells us that we inhabit a world that is physical, yes, but one that is also spiritual. We’re told that there are “spiritual forces of evil” which rule this world and against which Christians must fight.
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
— Ephesians 6:12
The Bible teaches that these worldly powers are demonic and led by Satan. But these disembodied entities aren’t the only spiritual beings. Humans are spiritual beings, too.
“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
— 1 Thessalonians 5:23
In our Postmodern culture, people pass through life without giving the spirit world a second thought, mostly because they don’t believe there is one. And those who do seem to largely embrace a spirituality that is convenient and fits their lifestyle. According to Tom Gilson,
Satan, the enemy of our souls, is content with any sort of supposedly superior spirituality taking the place of Christ in our lives. He’s just as happy with bland, unthinking, unreflective, Christ-ignoring civil religion as he is with fiery, unthinking, Christ-denying irreligion. He only hates it when men, women, and children love the Lord their God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength.
It would be a mistake to dismiss BLM as a passing fad or a tantrum that will eventually tire itself out. It’s the ideological child of atheist Karl Marx; it’s funded by the likes of George Soros and dozens of corporations from around the world; it has 15 chapters in the U.S., others in Canada, Australia, and Europe; it has captured the imagination of thousands of activists; and it has momentum. On top of all that, it is calling on demons to help it succeed.
Christians must resist the urge to join that demonic movement.
Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?
— 1 Corinthians 6:14-15
Instead, we must pray that BLM’s leaders and followers are released from spiritual blindness; that God would push back the forces of darkness; and that, if called on, we are ready to fight the encroaching tyranny to preserve our freedom.
_______________________________
A Personal Note
I write five days a week on personal time because it’s one way I can contribute to strengthening the resolve of Christians, conservatives and other like-minded compatriots in the face of unprecedented division in our country. I would like to eventually do more. If you like what you’re reading and think others would benefit from it, please consider regularly sharing and commenting on my posts. Also invite your friends to subscribe. They can do that right on the home page. Thanks for reading! — Dave
Image: “Witches Sabbath” by Jacques de Gheyn II. Late-16th / early-17th century. Public Domain.
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” — Ephesians 6:12
Wait a minute. Is this the same Paul who told us:
“…there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God” — Romans 13:1 ???
Thank you for today’s belly laugh! 😉
I wondered if I’d hear from you on this one, Jim. The obvious difference between the two passages is that one refers to the non-flesh and blood authorities, while the other refers to the government authorities. Should be obvious from the context, no? Glad you got a laugh out of it, though. Thanks for reading!
Well… if that’s the case, then John 1:3 is wrong? “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” At some point did god/Jesus/holy spirit create angels and demons? If not, who did?
Absolutely John 1:3 is correct. Paul says in Colossians 1:16 “For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.” Angels are included in the “things in heaven” and “invisible” “thrones or powers or rulers or authorities.” God created angels sometime before he created the rest of the known world/universe because Job 38:7 says that when God created the heavens and the earth, “all the angels shouted for joy.” They were there at the beginning. Our understanding is that demons are fallen angels who sinned against God (see 2 Pet. 2:4 and Jude 6), with Satan/Lucifer being their leader.