Glossary - exWitch Australia (formerly 'Born Again Pagan')

CHANNELING

The High priestess of the 'Circle of the Mystic Moon' shown 'Channeling' the Goddess Artemis (Diana) during a ritual in the Coven's Temple Sanctuary (2001)

The High Priestess of the
'Circle of the Mystic Moon' shown 'Channeling' the Goddess Artemis (Diana) during a ritual in the Coven's Temple Sanctuary (2001)

A medium through which information is perceived from a source usually believed to be other than the personal conscious self. Throughout the ages these other sources' identities have ranged from demons, Satan, Guardian Spirit and Guardian Angels, extra-terrestrials, spirits of the dead, a Higher Self to the Divine. Channeling is practiced in a disassociated or altered states of consciousness. Most, if not all, of the information received through channeling is of a religious nature. This is especially true in the current New Age movement.

A Historic Perspective:

The desire and need to communicate with supernatural identities is as old as humanity itself. Revered individuals such as priests, wise women, shamans, oracles, and others did so in prehistoric and primitive cultures. They sought help from non-worldly beings and delivered it to the populace.

Communicating with the gods in a trance was highly developed among the priestly class of ancient Egypt. The Greeks had their oracles. The early Chinese, Tibetans, Japanese, Indians, Assyrians, and Celts channeled discarnate spirits or deities.

There are various forms through which information has been received that have been labeled channeling such as divination and healing performed by wizards, wise women, witches, soothsayers, and the like; and possession where the entity gains control of the individual. Such incidences frequently occurred during the Middle Ages and were usually considered demonic. It is argued that possession is not channeling since it is involuntary.

Two noted incidences of channeling are Nostradamus and Madame Helena P. Blavatsky, founder of the Theosophical Society.

After the decline of Spiritualism in the 20th century channeling did not regain its popularity in the West until the late 1960s and early 1970s when Jane Roberts began publishing her Seth books. She started the resurgence of channeling of higher entities rather than spirits of the dead. Such luminaries have included Jach Pursel (Lazaris), J Z Knight (Ramtha), Pat Rodegast (Emmanuel), Elizabeth Clare Prophet (Saint Germain), as well as others. Interest in channeling also was spurred by actress Shirley MacLaine, whose spiritual journey was aided by the California channeler Kevin Ryerson, in the 1980s.

Undoubtedly they have been frauds in channeling as there were in Spiritualism.

By the 1990s the explosive popularity of the phenomena seemed to have run it course, but the serious believers remained.

Methods:

There are various methods or forms of channeling. When remembered that channeling occurs in a disassociated or altered state of consciousness it is not surprising that it is claimed that the phenomena can be both spontaneous and induced. Some channelers suddenly enter a trance state and begin channeling, while others lose consciousness. While in these states many channelers learn to control the sessions where certain information is received.

Channeling is said to be induced by many methods including meditation, Prayer, self-hypnosis, fasting, dancing, chanting, breathing techniques, smoking herbs, or taking hallucinogenic drugs.

Mental channeling is meditation of thoughts, words, images, and emotions, and is accomplished through various ways. When in a complete trance the channeler's personality is displaced, and another entity or personality takes temporary possession, using a voice and gestures different from those of the channeler.

Sometimes this is called "direct-voice mediumship". The channeler is completely unaware of what is said and done during the session and has no awareness of it when regaining consciousness from the trance. Jane Roberts' channeling of Seth was of this type. Also, mental channeling can be done in a light trance or disassociated state, in which the channeler is partially or totally aware of the process. The channeler's voice may or may not change; he or she may communicate through automatic writing, a planchette, Ouija board, or similar device. Mental channeling is also accomplished through sleep and dreams.

Physical channeling involves physical effects, such as psychic or spiritual healing, Psychokinesis, and materialization. Its popularity reigned during the early days of Spiritualism when spectacular physical effects such as apports, ectoplasm, and levitation among other things occurred.

In the most liberal interpretation channeling can include the processes of imagination, Intuition, Inspiration, and premonition.

A Biblical Perspective:

Scripture speaks REPEATEDLY of good and bad angels moving about unseen (Daniel 10:1-21), but also as interacting with living people at different times, even to the point of evil spirits actual possessing people (dwelling within them and controlling them... see Mark 5:1-20, for example). Good angels, on occasion, appear to people as well (Acts 5:17-20; 12:3-11). The four Gospels and the Book of Acts are filled with many incidents of demon possession and of good angels appearing and aiding believers. Angels, both good and bad, can cause unusual natural and supernatural phenomenon (Job 1-2, Revelation 7:1; 8:5; 15:1; 16).

Scripture repeatedly shows that demons know things that the people around them are apparently unaware (Acts 16:16-18; Luke 4:41). Because these evil angels have been around a long time, they would know facts that those living limited life spans would not. Because Satan has access to God's throne at the present (Job 1-2), the demons may also be allowed to know some specific events that pertain to the future... but this is speculation on my part.

Scripture speaks repeatedly of Satan being the father of lies and a deceiver (John 8:44; 2 Thessalonians 2:9) and that he also can disguise himself as an angel of light. Likewise, those who follow him, whether human or otherwise, do the same (2 Corinthians 11:13-15).

Satan and demons have great power (compared to humans) (again see Mark 5:1-20; Acts 19:13-16), even to the point where Michael the archangel trusts only in God's power when dealing with Satan (Jude 1:9). But Satan's power is nothing compared to God's (Acts 19:11-12; Mark 5:1-20, etc.) and God is actually able to use Satan's evil intent to bring about His good purposes (1 Corinthians 5:5; 2 Corinthians 12:7).

God commands us to have NOTHING to do with anything that smacks of the occult or involvement with the spirit world through the use of mediums, seances, Ouija boards, horoscopes, tarot cards, channeling, etc. He considers all of these an abomination (Deuteronomy 18:9-12; Isaiah 8:19-20; Galatians 5:20; Revelation 21:8). And those who involve themselves in such invite disaster (Acts 19:13-16).

The occult offers us every opportunity to turn away from our Creator. We are seduced by other gods that come to us from the heavenlies as we seek to divine our future. The occult claims to offer us hope, but it can only deliver our souls to be burned. It claims to decode the mysteries of the cosmos, yet the Creator has done so in his Word. The occult utilizes various methods and devices to inform the novice; the Lord offers the believer the Scriptures for instruction and a relationship to cement his future.

The occult attempts to displace the true God of the universe with the false gods of the ancients. The Christian stands as the only sentinel to call forth the deception of the occult in another's life. We must stand and rightly speak God's truth into each soul and thereby become a missionary of hope, rather than a deceiver of demonic spirits.

The main source of release from the power of Satan is through salvation through the believing of the gospel of Jesus Christ (Acts 19:18; 26:16-18). And if one will not believe the Word of God, there is no other source of the truth they will believe, even if it came from one who rose from the dead (Luke 16:31).

If one attempts to get rid of Satan and his evil angels's involvement in his life without this, it is futile, as one merely leaves an empty dwelling place for even worse demons to return to in the future (Luke 11:24-26). But when a person comes to Christ for the forgiveness of their sin through His shed blood, the Holy Spirit comes to abide and remain until the day of redemption (Ephesians 4:30). The other main weapon would be simple prayer in total dependence upon God, even as Michael the archangel exemplified in Jude 1:9.

In view of the MULTITUDE of passages dealing with involvement of the unseen demonic world with the present world in contrast with the TWO recorded incidents involving interaction between the living and those who have died, and considering that the dead cannot visit the living without permission and that permission is not lightly given (Luke 16:27-31), it would seem best to understand ghosts, hauntings, 'spirit helpers,' voices at seances, etc (besides those which are the mere illusions created by charlatans) as the work of demons. Sometimes these demons may have no intent to conceal their nature, and at other times they may seek to deceive by appearing as human spirits in order to generate credibility for the lies they seek to spread and the confusion they seek to cause.

Again, God states it is foolish to try to consult the dead on behalf of the living or to consult with those who say they have an inside track on the future when instead one can actually consult with the wisdom of the living God (Isaiah 8:19-20). And if God considered the occult practices of contacting the spirit world for wisdom or guidance for the future an abomination worthy of judgment in Moses time (Deuteronomy 18:9-12), the God who does not change considers it so today (Malachi 3:6; Hebrews 1:12) and those who ignore this do so to their own hurt. Lastly, again, the largest weapon in God's arsenal for freeing people from Satan's kingdom is the Good News of Jesus Christ.

PLEASE NOTE:
One of the major problems with 'defining' Paganism and/or its beliefs and practices is that it is an 'organic' movement, in that it is undergoing constant change and re-evaluation from within, and as such any 'one-size-fits-all' approach to understanding Paganism will be found wanting.

Due to the very 'organic' nature of Paganism, and the many differing Paths and Traditions within it, in many cases no one definition may be universally accepted by all Pagans. Therefore, where such cases of possible conflicting and/or contradictory meanings of certain terms occur I have endevoured to give not only the generally accepted meaning, but also any major 'variations' in belief and/or practice.

Christians who believe this difference in meaning of certain key terms, beliefs and practices to be unique to Paganism need to remember that such conflicts also arise within the Body of Christ - the Church. Take for instance the differing practices amongst Christians concerning Baptism and the different attitudes towards women in the clergy.

- Jean-Luc