Ouija boards & tarot cards

[Giggly_Giraffe]

How do you explain to a tween that ouiji boards & tarot cards are against our faith?

 

[VeritasLuxMea]

I’m not sure I can answer that for you, but I would be a little concerned about the child’s education at that point.

Tarot cards and Ouija boards don’t do anything, and that should be enough of a reason to avoid them. Just superstitious games, that’s all.

 

[His_helpmeet]

Tarot cards and Ouija boards don’t do anything, and that should be enough of a reason to avoid them. Just superstitious games, that’s all.

This is not true. From what I understand, Ouija boards actually allow you to communicate with demons who would LOVE to get control of your life through a board. I would recommend that you find some books in the “Forbidden Doors” series for your tween. I read a couple of these books as a teen myself. They are about Christian teens attempting to circumvent the occult. While not specifically Catholic, I don’t feel a tween’s faith would be harmed by them as long as the tween has a thorough grounding in the Faith.

Moreover, the idea behind Ouija boards and tarot cards is that you’re trying to reveal “the future”. This implies a lack of trust in God and a lack of understanding of free will.

For more detailed information, I suggest you consult a Catholic priest.

 

[VeritasLuxMea]

This is not true. From what I understand, Ouija boards actually allow you to communicate with demons who would LOVE to get control of your life through a board.

That’s a pretty big claim, you realize. What is your evidence? It’s kind of important, because by assigning power to these objects you are making them more alluring. I say - it’s nonsense because it’s never been proven to be anything other than nonsense. So why waste your time?

 

[Fairwinds]

from the CCC

“2116 All forms of divination are to be rejected: recourse to Satan or demons, conjuring up the dead or other practices falsely supposed to “unveil” the future.48 Consulting horoscopes, astrology, palm reading, interpretation of omens and lots, the phenomena of clairvoyance, and recourse to mediums all conceal a desire for power over time, history, and, in the last analysis, other human beings, as well as a wish to conciliate hidden powers. They contradict the honor, respect, and loving fear that we owe to God alone.”

also stress that you might poke out an eye running with that pointy thing weegee boards use.

 

[EasterJoy]

I’m not sure I can answer that for you, but I would be a little concerned about the child’s education at that point.

Tarot cards and Ouija boards don’t do anything, and that should be enough of a reason to avoid them. Just superstitious games, that’s all.

I have had many priests tell me quite differently. Ask them about Ouija boards, and you can almost see the hair stand up on their necks.

Tweens need to know that there really are spiritual powers out there, but they are not at our beck and call. Why on earth would some spirit not under the direct control of God feel some desire to look out for us? They wouldn’t. The spirits under the direct control of God do not use tarot cards and Ouija boards to converse with us. That is why we don’t use occult means as we navigate the spiritual world…oh, and be very sure, we are in the spiritual world. We cannot be otherwise.

OP, tell your teens to imagine that they were navigating the physical world with no eyesight, no sense of touch or smell, and only the ability to hear sounds over 30 decibels and in the range of middle C to high C. Sure, you might just wander around aimlessly and run into nothing–maybe “nothing” will happen, if your guardians keep you steered away from running into anything–but what if they were to wander into some rough neighborhood? How would they have any idea that they were in such a place? What kind of danger would they be in? How easy would they be to deceive or use for someone else’s amusement? This is the exact situation of a human being trying to dabble in the spiritual world. That is why we confine ourselves to certain “spiritual walkways” that we can know are secure. That does not mean we are free of danger, but only that we are staying on the safest paths.

When God warns us away from the occult, it is like warning turtles to stay off of interstate freeways. Sure, maybe we can get on and off and never come to any harm, but we surely will not come to any good there. Of those who get close enough to the traffic to even be aware that it is there, too many get crunched. The prohibition is like that. It is for our own good, and we miss out on nothing that would profit us. Prayer is the ocean we belong in, and we ought to stay there.

 

[Medical_Student]

How do you explain to a tween that ouiji boards & tarot cards are against our faith?

Just tell them they are worthless…give them a science book. Help them prepare for their future careers. Watch a TED talk. Read something. Go to Mass.

Or just give them a book on exorcism…meddling with the supernatural can be a invitation to demons for possession.

If the kid doesn’t believe in the supernatural, then they’ve answered their own question. I was atheist in my teenage years. I thought “Wee-jee” boards and Tarot cards were just as fanatically ridiculous and idiotic as religion was. You may as well base your life off of the movement of stars, I mean who in their right mind would do that?..oh, wait…

Seriously though, tell them to study.

 

[Deus_tecum]

Kids are fascinated by the supernatural, and too few parents teach them the supernatural aspects of Christian faith. This is why occult themed TV shows are so popular. Even Catholic schools are screwed up. My little nephew when in 2nd grade made a drawing in school that depicted a man with a gun shooting at a bloodthirsty zombie. He was made to erase the gun, which of course leaves the hapless man at the mercy of the zombie.

 

[LaSainte]

Show her the Exorcist. If that doesn’t scare the cr*p out of her and make her never want to touch a ouija board, nothing will.

 

[KendraDZ1902]

Tarot cards and Ouija boards don’t do anything, and that should be enough of a reason to avoid them. Just superstitious games, that’s all.

I don’t know about tarot cards, but I have had bad things happened to me after messing with a Ouija board.

I was in high school and some friends and I went to a grave yard. Me and another girl didn’t believe it was real so one guy said that he was going to a random grave and to ask the board what year the person died. We did and went to find him. The date was correct and me and the girl wanted to leave pronto. We were teased and they continued to play. It started to get freaky and all of us got scared. When we got in the car to leave, every street light we passed in the grave yard went out. Like when a light blows out. For weeks after that I would hear my name being called and I thought several times that someone was in my house when I was alone. My bed would shake at night. My mother didn’t believe me and thought I was taking drugs until one night the bed was shaking so bad that it was bouncing off the floor. I screamed and my mom came in there. It stopped and we prayed and prayed and prayed that night. That night was my last encounter. When my step sister became old enough to be curious about the Ouija board, I was adamant about her NOT messing with it, ever.

 

[Steveabrous]

I personally have had experience with both.

First of all anyone who thinks ouija boards and tarot cards do nothing is making something very harmful seem like harmless play.
As was pointed out the ccc says,as well I have heard many preists and demonologis’s on EWTN say, that these things are doorways for demons. And I believe it.

My sister got a ouija board for her birthday once. We played with it a little then we wanted to get rid of it. But couldn’t find it. We even moved to a different house and still couldn’t find it to get rid of it. We packed everything up and never saw it. (we planned to throw it out)

A few years later in the new house (we also never saw it while unpacking), when I was a tween, My mother and I decided we wanted to play with it( this was before we converted to Catholicism). It was in a closet plain as day. A closet we had been in many times and didn’t notice it. We played with it and asked who it served, it spelled out “Satan” so we put it up. Later we decided to get rid of it, but again couldn’t find it.
This went on for a few years, when we wanted to play with it it would be in that same spot plain as day, but when we wanted to get rid of it it was nowhere to be found.

Finally one day I said aloud “I want to play with the ouija board.” there it was in the closet. I grabbed it, poured holy water on it, and threw it out.

As far as tarot cards- I played with them for a while. All I can say is I got highly addicted to wanting to know the future and spent a lot of money on psychics as a result of buying those tarot cards. I finally threw them out and left my future to God.

 

[EasterJoy]

I personally have had experience with both.

First of all anyone who thinks ouija boards and tarot cards do nothing is making something very harmful seem like harmless play.
As was pointed out the ccc says,as well I have heard many preists and demonologis’s on EWTN say, that these things are doorways for demons. And I believe it.

My sister got a ouija board for her birthday once. We played with it a little then we wanted to get rid of it. But couldn’t find it. We even moved to a different house and still couldn’t find it to get rid of it. We packed everything up and never saw it. (we planned to throw it out)

A few years later in the new house (we also never saw it while unpacking), when I was a tween, My mother and I decided we wanted to play with it( this was before we converted to Catholicism). It was in a closet plain as day. A closet we had been in many times and didn’t notice it. We played with it and asked who it served, it spelled out “Satan” so we put it up. Later we decided to get rid of it, but again couldn’t find it.
This went on for a few years, when we wanted to play with it it would be in that same spot plain as day, but when we wanted to get rid of it it was nowhere to be found.

Finally one day I said aloud “I want to play with the ouija board.” there it was in the closet. I grabbed it, poured holy water on it, and threw it out.

As far as tarot cards- I played with them for a while. All I can say is I got highly addicted to wanting to know the future and spent a lot of money on psychics as a result of buying those tarot cards. I finally threw them out and left my future to God.

From what I gather, your experience is not without precedent. These things happen. Not always, but they do happen. Spiritual powers are nothing to mess with.

 

[VeritasLuxMea]

From what I gather, your experience is not without precedent. These things happen. Not always, but they do happen. Spiritual powers are nothing to mess with.

I think I’ll start a new thread on this, so as not to derail this one any further.

 

[Kelfa28]

Show her the Exorcist. If that doesn’t scare the cr*p out of her and make her never want to touch a ouija board, nothing will.

The movie paranormal activity is a good one too (the first one). Not as scary as The Exorcist but it goes directly into the use of these items.

The demons are in the house…but nothing really starts to happen until they use a Ouija board to open the door and invite them in.

I had a Ouija board growing up. We used it from time to time and didn’t really know what it could do. We didn’t have any personal “experiences” with it but I had heard many stories from other people who did.
None of it was verifiable.

Not that I believe that it doesn’t have potential…I do believe it can be a doorway to welcome demons into your household. I would never welcome one inside my house.

 

[EasterJoy]

I think I’ll start a new thread on this, so as not to derail this one any further.

Oh, when it comes to explaining why to avoid Ouija boards, I think the experiences of steady people are very much on-topic. That’s what makes the hair stand up on the necks of those priests…that is, these stories don’t just come from the-hysterical-friend-of-an-hysterical-friend, like stories of saying the “Bloody Mary” rhyme into a mirror or some slumber-party nonsense like that. Very reliable people, people not given to drama, tell just this kind of a story from their own personal knowledge.

 

[VeritasLuxMea]

Oh, when it comes to explaining why to avoid Ouija boards, I think the experiences of steady people are very much on-topic. .

I agree with you that Ouija boards and the Tarot should be avoided completely, just for different reasons. I don’t think that those reasons are relevant, as the OP has specifically asked for faith-based reasons, that’s why I said that I’ll make a new thread.

 

[EasterJoy]

I agree with you that Ouija boards and the Tarot should be avoided completely, just for different reasons. I don’t think that those reasons are relevant, as the OP has specifically asked for faith-based reasons, that’s why I said that I’ll make a new thread.

The faith-based reasons always have a practical reason behind them. Tweens very often bridle at rules that do not have a practical underpinning, and by that time they are old enough to start being told what the practical underpinning is. Tell a six-year-old about the kinds of things that can go on with Ouija boards, and you can give them nightmares!! They aren’t very good at risk assessment at that younger age.

 

[LaSainte]

I had some creepy experiences with a ouija board. We were playing it at a slumber party and we each thought the other was moving the planchette, so we decided to ask it questions neither of us could possibly know. We turned the only clock in the room over and would randomly ask it the time, which of course it got right every time. Then we decided to ask it a girl’s brother’s middle name (the girl was at the party but in the other room). It said “Ryan”. Well, Ryan was his first name, so we asked again. Ryan. Ok, this wasn’t working, so we went and asked the friend what Ryan’s middle name was. “Actually, it’s Ryan”, she said. “His first name is Robert, after my Dad. We just call him Ryan to tell them apart.” We asked where the spirit was and it said “HELL”.

My grandmother was also told that she would lose her job and where to go to look for another job. Those predictions came true.

So yeah, I’d stay away for sure.

I remember reading a book a long time ago called “Ouija: The Most Dangerous Game”. It told stories about people being possessed and physically beaten and even raped by demons because they had left the door open through the ouija board. I doubt it was a Catholic text a d may not be appropriate for teens. It may have also taught you how to play “safely” but I can’t remember.

 

[Steveabrous]

I agree with you that Ouija boards and the Tarot should be avoided completely, just for different reasons. I don’t think that those reasons are relevant, as the OP has specifically asked for faith-based reasons, that’s why I said that I’ll make a new thread.

You don’t think warning someone of the dangers through personal experience is relevant?

 

[EasterJoy]

I had some creepy experiences with a ouija board. We were playing it at a slumber party and we each thought the other was moving the planchette, so we decided to ask it questions neither of us could possibly know. We turned the only clock in the room over and would randomly ask it the time, which of course it got right every time. Then we decided to ask it a girl’s brother’s middle name (the girl was at the party but in the other room). It said “Ryan”. Well, Ryan was his first name, so we asked again. Ryan. Ok, this wasn’t working, so we went and asked the friend what Ryan’s middle name was. “Actually, it’s Ryan”, she said. “His first name is Robert, after my Dad. We just call him Ryan to tell them apart.” We asked where the spirit was and it said “HELL”.

My grandmother was also told that she would lose her job and where to go to look for another job. Those predictions came true.

So yeah, I’d stay away for sure.

I remember reading a book a long time ago called “Ouija: The Most Dangerous Game”. It told stories about people being possessed and physically beaten and even raped by demons because they had left the door open through the ouija board. I doubt it was a Catholic text a d may not be appropriate for teens. It may have also taught you how to play “safely” but I can’t remember.

Turtles using an interstate highway…