Professor Parke Kunkle of the Minnesota Planetarium Society caused an uproar earlier this year by suggesting in a Minneapolis newspaper interview that shifts in the Earth’s orbit meant stars no longer aligned the same as when the zodiac calendar originated centuries earlier.
Thousands of angry and panic-stricken horoscope followers took to Facebook, fearful that their sign might change under a redesigned system.
Horrorscopes (as I like to call them) indeed have a grip on many people. According to a 2009 Pew Forum poll, 1 in 4 Americans – including 1 in 3 adults under age 30 – claims to believe in astrology. The overall figure represents more than 1 in 5 people who call themselves Christians who follow the charts.
For decades, horrorscopes have been a part of many daily newspapers. In recent years, numerous entertainment and women’s magazines have joined the club and provide guidance according to the “stars”. According to the Pew poll, 28 percent of women take horrorscopes seriously compared with 21 percent of men. The internet is rife with advice sites devoted to astrology, with some around the clock hotlines charging nearly $20.00 per minute.
In a brilliant marketing plot, multiple astrological websites are wrapped in a cloak of spiritual lingo, with catchwords such as “truth”, “wisdom” and “prayer”, and even expressions like “God bless you” sprinkled throughout. As a result, many people think these “how-to-tips” must be okay because they appear to be spiritual.
People are disillusioned and afraid in these times of great uncertainty, so they search for ways to feel more comfortable and to relieve the stress and anxiety of the future. Searching for answers to life’s dilemmas increases in the middle of economic upheavals or in the aftermath of natural disasters – and we have seen both globally in recent months.
Syracuse University Professor Robert Thompson in a recent interview said that millions of people dabble in astrology out of curiosity, although hardcore followers are fewer in number. “Most people do not have a deep-seated belief that where Mercury is relative to Mars at a given time is really going to determine whether they are going to find love or get a better job. Yet there is a substantial amount of people for whom this is an important part of their lives on how they should behave.”
Movies like “Harry Potter” and television programs like “The X Files” and “Medium” have presented the inexplicable as something interesting and fun. But the Bible warms against any fascination with psychics, clairvoyants, soothsayers, fortune-tellers, stargazers, sorcerers, or palm readers. Many passages of Scripture denounce occult practices that seek guidance or knowledge through sources other than the God of the Bible. The Word of God is definitive: The practice of astrology and other mystic activities is wrong and dangerous.
Astronomy is a science, while astrology is a religion! It makes no sense for a Christian to look to astrology to try to make sense of their lives. Astrology presents the idea that there is a system- based on the sun and planets- to try to make sense of the chaos around us. It is foolishness and without any basis in truth to believe such. The line between the paranormal and the supernatural becomes blurred to the undiscerning.
One of the dangers in checking one’s horrorscope just for amusement is that one might be swayed by its message. Particularly vulnerable are those who are facing a terrible illness, or who have been very unsuccessful in find love, or those who desperately need better employment.
The greatest problem with checking ones horrorscope is that those who do are not yielding to the will of God. By seeking someone who supposedly can foretell the future, those who desire comfort to placate fears about the future are relying on a false hope. In any season of life where we feel like we cannot manage what is going to come tomorrow, we are tempted to find a means of manipulation. To go to someone else to try to control events for us displays a lack of trust in God and the understanding that He will work for our benefit.
Certainly it is part of human nature to want to know if what we are doing in life is valuable and whether our time on earth is making a difference. Most of us want to know the future and are looking for help. When people do not have rock solid faith in God that gives them meaning, they search somewhere else.
Astrology is a false view of spirituality. Those who consult psychics or horrorscopes frequently are trying to fill a spiritual vacuum. But rather than providing a meaningful relationship with God, a psychic reading gives a client a good feeling catharsis that eases stress. Visits with a psychic promote no change in behavior, which is a huge contrast to Jesus’ teaching of daily sacrifice and accountability.
Not everything that appears spiritual is from God. Spirits must be tested to ensure that the supernatural is in line with Scripture and that the message leads to Christ. Many who look to astrology for guidance accept the advice as truth, but it has no substance. I sincerely believe that demonic powers are behind these occult practices!
Remember, when we are going through a divorce, when someone in our lives has died, when we have lost our job and have no funds in our savings account, only faith in God will sustain us! Be careful not to be misled by “another gospel” that is truly no Gospel at all.
