“What is the fastest growing religion in the United States? If you said Christianity, you would be way off. If you said Islam, you are much closer to a correct answer. Islam is the fastest growing major religion in the United States. But there is a faith that is growing even faster than Islam. It is called Wicca, and it is currently growing at an astounding pace. A report released in 2014 by the Pew Research Center estimated 730,000 Americans associate with pagan or Wiccan faith. The conditions fueling interest in witchcraft have grown rapidly since 2014.” Can it be that belief in Satanism is the fastest growing “religion” in the United States? Why?
There was an insightful article entitled “Witches: They’re Here for a Spell” written by Stephen Knapp in the October 2022 Serenity Magazine. Note some of the stats he gives. “In 1990, the country contained about 8,000 self-identified Wiccans. Today, those practicing Wicca number as least 400,000, and probably a lot more.” Another source says, “It has been estimated that the number of Americans that are Wiccans is doubling every 30 months, and at this point there are more than 200,000 registered witches and approximately 8 million unregistered practitioners of Wicca. And it is important to remember that Wicca is just one form of witchcraft. There are many other ‘darker’ forms of witchcraft that are also experiencing tremendous growth.”
Knapp goes on to say, “And Wicca is only one ingredient in the modern witch’s brew known as Neo-Paganism, a broad umbrella encompassing dozens of mystical faiths including Roman Paganism, Hellenic Paganism, Druidism, Heathenry and Voodoo. These days, something like 1.5 million American embrace some branch of Neo-Paganism. Even so, the Neo-Pagen (sic) movement’s progress was slow until the dawn of the New Millenium (sic) or, more specifically, the rise of the Millennials (the generation typically being defined as people born from 1981 to 1996) who were raised on ideology-rich diet of ecological adoration and individual empowerment.”
Reasons for Growth
Covid
“Already flourishing, witchcraft’s after burners kicked in three years ago when COVID-19 ignited our ongoing spell of national anxiety. It’s axiomatic among sociologists that when traditional institutions fail, people seek comfort in non-traditional ones” (Knapp).
Social-Media
Websites and all forms of social media are exploding with forms of Satanism. Some have become big money-makers for these witches. For a good price they will put a hex on your enemy or a blessing on what you wish.
Need for Guidance
As self-sufficient as men and women like to think they are, deep down there is the realization that humanity is not sufficient. Therefore, nearly all people seek a higher power. There has never been found a civilization that did not worship some supreme being. All civilizations realize their inadequacy and search for help.
Departure from God and His Authority
This nation has been getting farther and farther away from God and the power of His guidance. For several generations, people have failed to turn to the Bible for guidance. Our founding fathers built this nation on God and the principles He gave in the Bible. The older generations knew that the guidance for all lives was the Bible. The younger generation doesn’t know enough about the Bible to recognize its authority. We have taken Bible reading and prayer out of our schools. More and more modern-day “Christian” denominations have departed farther and farther from the Bible. Sermons are no longer filled with scriptures, but some story that intents to make the listener “feel good.” It is even hard to get a Bible class started in some churches. All this has led the younger generation to not know that true guidance can be found in the Bible.
It's no wonder that people are leaving “Christian” denominations so fast. They didn’t find anything in the “church” that they couldn’t find in the world. Because of the amazing beauty and intricacy of nature they have caused people to look to “mother-earth” as their inspiration and guidance.
Rebellion Against Authority
In the 1960s people in this country lost faith in our government and began to rebel against its authority. That led to rebellion against all authority from the home to the education system. But, that soon led them to being like a ship without a rudder in the stormy sea of life. That caused people to see, “There is a need for something or someone, to guide us through the unknown.” The government has failed them. Individuals have failed them. Their church has failed them and so Satanism, with his so-called power has become their authority.
God and Witchcraft
Because God loves us so much and knows what is best for us, He becomes jealous when we seek to follow another “god” (Exodus 20:5). In the Old Testament, God condemned witchcraft and those who sought spiritual guidance from anything other than Himself. “You shall not allow a sorceress to live” (Exodus 22:18). “There shall not be found among you anyone…who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer” (Deuteronomy 18:10). In the New Testament God said, “Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are…sorcery…I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:19-21).
Lessons to Be Learned
People See the Need for Guidance
There would be no need for Satanism or any other medium to look into the future if an individual could guide himself or herself. Generally speaking, at some point in an individual’s life, he or she realizes the truth that Jeremiah gave, “I know, O LORD, that a man’s way is not in himself, nor is it in a man who walks to direct his steps” (10:23).
Opportunity for the Christian Light to Shine
The darker the world gets, the brighter the Christian light shines. Diamonds are displayed on a dark backdrop to make them look brighter. The darker our world, the brighter Christ and Christianity shine. May those of us who believe in God’s guidance through the Bible, let it be known! Let’s speak up! Let’s defend God and His word. Let’s show the world by our lives and our words, there is a better way. Satan has never done anything good for mankind. “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow” (James 1:17). “Seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence” (2 Peter 1:3). Let’s point people to the Almighty God who can give truthful and exact guidance and show that Satan and his angels are destined for hell (Matthew 25:41).
— Wayne Burger