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New Age Spirituality and Deuteronomy 18: A Biblical Warning
By Doreen Virtue, author of “How to Avoid New Age & New Thought Deception” at https://a.co/d/0DDm3SQ
By examining the spiritual climate of New Age beliefs and practices, we see a sobering parallel to the ancient Canaanite religions that God so vehemently condemned through His prophets and Law. While the cultural forms have shifted and the language has changed, the essence of the practices remains startlingly similar. What the Israelites faced as a seductive spiritual counterfeit in the land of Canaan is repackaged in our present day, and God still calls us to remain discerning and uncompromising.
In Deuteronomy 18:9–14, God gave His people a clear and urgent warning as they prepared to enter the Promised Land. He commanded them to not imitate the detestable practices of the nations they were about to dispossess. The list of forbidden activities included child sacrifice, divination, fortune-telling, interpreting omens, sorcery, casting spells, mediumship, consulting the dead, and spiritism. These practices and the people who practice them are abominations to our holy God. He was not merely warning them of cultural difference but of spiritual corruption that invited judgment.
The Canaanites were deeply pagan, and their spirituality was pluralistic, sensual, and mystical. They worshiped a pantheon of deities including Baal, Asherah, and Molech, each representing different aspects of nature, fertility, power, and mystery. Their spiritual practices were experiential and emotional, often involving altered states of consciousness, ecstatic rituals, and occult communication with the unseen realm.
It doesn’t take much theological imagination to recognize these same elements embedded within the modern New Age movement. Though New Age spirituality cloaks itself in soft language such as mindfulness, energy healing, consciousness, intuition, and cosmic alignment, it is essentially a revival of the same ancient paganism that the Canaanites embraced and that the Lord abhorred. Modern New Agers don’t typically call upon Baal or Asherah by name; instead, they invoke spirit guides, ascended masters, the “universe,” or even angels. They even claim to follow Jesus, yet this is not the Jesus nor the angels of God’s Word, but rather deceptive spirits who disguise themselves as angels of light as warned in 2 Corinthians 11:14.
Let’s examine more closely some of the parallels between ancient Canaanite practices and the New Age movement:
- Divination and Fortune-Telling
Deuteronomy 18:10 forbids “one who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens.” In the Canaanite context, this would have included seeking guidance from the stars, consulting pagan priests for dreams and signs, and using objects like liver or animal entrails to discern the will of the gods. Today, we see the same heart of rebellion against God’s sovereign wisdom in the use of tarot cards, astrology, pendulums, oracle decks, and psychic readings. Whether through a horoscope app or a psychic on social media, the core issue remains unchanged: a rejection of the Lord’s authority and a refusal to seek Him for truth and direction.
- Mediumship and Necromancy
God’s Word speaks directly against “a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead” (Deuteronomy 18:11). This is precisely what New Agers attempt to do when they claim to contact deceased loved ones, channel spirits, or commune with so-called enlightened beings from other realms. These practices are forbidden entries into demonic deception. Isaiah 8:19 declares, “Should not a people inquire of their God? Should they inquire of the dead on behalf of the living?” The answer is a resounding no.
- Interpreting Omens and Signs
The Canaanites looked for signs in nature, patterns in birds, movements of stars, and coincidences in events, interpreting them as messages from the gods. Similarly, many New Agers are obsessed with synchronicities, numerology, moon phases, and cosmic energy alignments. They believe ‘the universe’ sends them personal messages through dreams, repeating numbers, feathers on the ground, or butterflies crossing their path. Rather than trusting in God’s written Word, they lean on personalized signs which, in reality, often lead them deeper into superstition and spiritual delusion.
- Polytheism and Pantheism
The New Age movement, like Canaanite religion, is not monotheistic. New Agers may claim to believe in “God,” but it’s not the God of the Bible. Their concept of divinity is fluid, often impersonal, and merges elements of pantheism (God is all) and panentheism (God is in all). This worldview leads naturally to the veneration of nature, energy, and the self. The Canaanites bowed to Baal for rain, Asherah for fertility, and Molech for power; modern spiritual seekers look to crystals for protection, chakras for healing, plant medicine for enlightenment, and meditation for divine union with the “higher self.”
- Child Sacrifice and the Culture of Death
Although modern society recoils at the idea of literal child sacrifice as the Canaanites offered their infants to Molech by fire, we would be blind not to recognize the parallels in today’s culture. New Age philosophies, intertwined with secular humanism and radical individualism, have supported ideologies that devalue human life under the guise of personal empowerment and freedom. The abortion industry, while not openly religious, often operates within a worldview that denies the sanctity of life and elevates self-determination above God’s design. In ancient times, children were sacrificed for economic gain, protection, and prosperity which are tragically similar to those claimed today.
- A Spirit of Rebellion and Counterfeit Light
At the core of Canaanite religion, and at the heart of the New Age, lies a spirit of rebellion against God’s exclusive truth. Both systems appeal to human pride, promising secret knowledge, personal empowerment, and spiritual enlightenment apart from submission to the one true God. The serpent’s original lie in the Garden: “you will be like God” (Genesis 3:5) echoes loudly in both the rituals of Canaan and the meditations of modern mystics. Their fascination with the supernatural is untethered from Scripture, and their hunger for personal power makes them believe that they don’t need anyone including God.
God hasn’t changed and He still calls His people to come out from among them and be separate (2 Corinthians 6:17). He still detests sorcery and false worship, and He still offers mercy and deliverance to all who repent and turn to Him through His Son, Jesus Christ.
The New Age isn’t new. It’s the ancient rebellion of humans dressed in modern robes. It’s a spiritual counterfeit rooted in the same demonic systems that plagued Israel and provoked God’s judgment upon the nations.
God commanded the Israelites not to tolerate these practices among them because He knew the cost: spiritual compromise, judgment, and separation from His presence. As Christians today, we mustn’t dismiss the New Age as fringe or irrelevant. The enemy would love for us to downplay and dismiss the spiritual dangers and darkness of New Age deception.
Conclusion
Yes, New Agers are spiritual descendants of the Canaanites – not by bloodline, but by allegiance. The same ancient enemy of truth is behind both systems, using the same tools of deception to turn hearts away from the living God. Praise the Lord that the same Gospel that saved the Apostle Paul from his zealous self-righteousness and that delivered the Ephesians from sorcery and idolatry, can also redeem the modern spiritual seeker. Let us pray, proclaim the Gospel, and persevere in the truth, remembering that Jesus Christ is the only way, the only truth, and the only life.
