Dear Julia,

I am hunting for advice on my psychic gifts as relate to my Christian beliefs. Do you know of any books that address this subject? I am very worried that these gifts are not from God. I hear voices and music at night. When I meet someone, I can often sense what they may have done in life that was evil. I know things that are going to happen before they do. I can sense spirits and have other psychic abilities as well. When I was little, I had an imaginary friend whose name was Kathy and she was so real to me. I just want to know that I'm not crazy and that there is nothing evil going on.

-Margo

Dear Margo,

There are probably as many views regarding how psychic ability fits into Christianity as there are Christian churches. Some churches warn that all psychic work is dangerous and evil, while others praise and seek to cultivate abilities like prophecy and healing. How individual Christians feel about psychic ability is therefore highly dependent on the church they happen to attend.

In order to erase your fears and doubts about your psychic ability and where it comes from, it's important to understand the origins of the idea that psychic experiences are the work of the devil. With this in mind, I'm going to go back to a time when psychic ability was considered a divine gift and walk forward from there.

Back in the days before Christianity, survival was tricky and people lived much closer to the earth. Intuition played a much bigger role in people's lives because their very survival depended on their instincts. People who were in tune with the forces of nature and could predict when the best time for planting or the best place for hunting might be were highly prized by their communities. All over the world, they became the shamans, priests, wise people, leaders and advisors folks relied on whenever they were faced with tricky problems or uncertainty. These psychics were often the most valued and respected members of their communities.

Then an ancient Egyptian pharaoh (Amenhotep IV) renounced the multitude of nature gods that were worshiped everywhere and proclaimed that there was only one God – the Sun God Aten. When he died, everyone went back to the old ways except a group of slaves who had been heavily influenced by Amenhotep: the Israelites. This is when the idea that everyone must worship the same one God began. This intolerance for other beliefs spread to the Christians and the Muslims and throughout the Western world.

In Ancient Greece and Rome, the Sun God and other planetary deities had been worshiped for centuries. Christianity was initially illegal and Christians were persecuted, then Constantine legalized Christianity and converted to it himself, after which it was illegal to practice anything BUT Christianity. At this point, it became frowned upon to go to astrologers or do anything associated with the old ways.

Hundreds of years after the death of Christ, some priests and monks got together to create the New Testament. Christianity developed and was forcefully spread by the Roman Empire. As it spread, it naturally clashed with the beliefs people had held for centuries. In an effort to gain more control, early Christian leaders began to demonize the beliefs and practices of the pagans. The old Horned God became the devil. Old rituals – those that weren't incorporated into the Church as their own – became heresy and justification for the torture and murder of millions of people by the Church. Old temples were destroyed and the land stolen in order to build churches.

Please don't misunderstand me: I'm not saying anything against Jesus Christ. I'm just suggesting that you would be wise to separate the ideas you've received from organizations that have murdered and profited in Christ's name from Christ's true teachings. It is fallible human beings who have suggested that psychic ability is evil – not Jesus.

If you're relying on the Bible for direction, it's important to remember that it wasn't written by Jesus or even anyone who personally knew Jesus. It has also been tampered with repeatedly over the centuries to suit the political aims of power-hungry human beings. Even if you're determined to interpret the Bible literally, you have to admit that it's full of contradictory messages, not to mention stories about God sending people visions in dreams, divine healings, prophecies, spirit communication and other psychic events.

For example, the Bible has many passages that clearly suggest that psychic abilities are divine gifts, such as:

Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same spirit, to another faith by the same spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 1 Corinthians 12:7-10

It's true that there are other passages that contradict this message, which means we have to use our heads, question the reliability of the Bible given its many authors, and listen to our own hearts to determine what feels right and true. I believe this is what Jesus Himself taught us to do.

Which brings me to my final point: In trying to determine what is right, which should we strive to emulate, the Bible or Jesus? Jesus himself was a gnostic, prophet, healer and gifted psychic. He listened within for the voice of God to guide him. He questioned the existing religious traditions of his time and showed us all how to seek the truth in our own hearts. If all psychic work is of the devil, how do we explain Jesus' own psychic works and nature?

Further, Jesus told us, Truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do. Jesus taught that each one of us is capable of doing the wonderful things He did, such as prophesy the future, heal the sick and hear the voice of God within our own hearts. Jesus taught that we could be as he was and do the works he did if only we would think as he thought, trust as he trusted, and pray as he prayed. When a Church condemns or denies psychic work in general, is it not rejecting Jesus' own works and his teaching that each one of us is capable of following in his psychic footsteps?

As for books on this subject, you might begin with books by Tiffany Snow, such as Psychic Gifts in the Christian Life: Tools to Connect. There is also a book entitled Psychic and Paranormal Phenomena in the Bible by Ted Martin. Studying the life and teachings of Edgar Cayce may also lead you to new understanding of all the good that can come from working with your God-given psychic gifts.

Finally, I encourage you stop focusing on and fearing evil, but instead to give your attention to all that is loving and beautiful, for this is the surest way to make sure that all you do and experience is in harmony with the Divine.