I got saved out of the New Age Movement. I knew lots of witches, still do. I figure it is my calling to continue to minister Christ to them, in the hopes they might one day be saved. Mind you, I don't really believe they have the power to do much!
Right after I was saved in the early 80's a movement like this came out in the church, condemning literally every secular children's book, and if you didn't hide and protect your kids from these demonic influences (including rock and roll) your children were going to hell.
I even had a friend take a sharp edge to the horn on a unicorn and scrape it off a t-shirt someone gave her daughter. I always remember the Irish Rover's Unicorn song, and how the unicorns wouldn't get on Noah's ark, so they don't exist today. But she was determined to keep her children from "evil." Did her kids grow up to be Christians, after all her hiding and protecting, including putting them in Christian schools? Nope. If you want to find evil, you will.
I am not a legalist, I love the Narnia stories. They are FILLED with scripture verses, maybe the only time many will hear those verses in non-Christian homes. The creation account of Narnia is worth the price of the whole series in the Last Battle. How Aslan just called things into existence and it follows the Biblical account, right up to a human naming the animals. And Jesus said that his house had many mansions, so who knows whether God has other universes or "multiverses"? Something to ask Christ after the Parousia.
As for Harry Potter, I let my daughter read them all. She didn't like the movies, since they weren't close enough to the originals. She could win a Harry Potter trivia contest any day of the week. So what happened to her spiritually? She never had a drink in her life. She got saved at age 19, through the ministry of a fellow figure skater. She married her first boyfriend, a Christian, and I am sure they were both pure on their wedding night. He is a doctor now, and she is a social worker. Not too shabby a life, and both following God!
So all these cries of gloom and doom are from people who:
1. Don't know what the occult is all about or maybe are afraid of it.
2. Are caught in legalism
3. Are missing the essential need for children to have imaginative outlets.
As a former teacher, I fear for these kids, who are deprived of the fun, imagination and creativity. I had a friend who did that to his children - they were not allowed to read any book except the Bible - one is an atheist, the other has no security in God, and hurts all the time about all they were not allowed to do as children. Not bad things, just normal kid things)
I fear for the church with all this rigid legalism. God has many ways of reaching our children and other people, too. There is no doubt there is evil in the world. Teach your children about the evil in humans, and the evil of true witchcraft and the occult.
But teach them about the love of God in Christ Jesus. That is what is going to draw them to God. I know it did for me. And don't make them feel different than other children, but not allowing them to be normal kids. I'm not saying do evil, letting them celebrate Hallowe'en or anything else truly occultic. But let them have fun, and use their imaginations.
