Crystals, Cards, and the Cross

Why Catholics don't mess with them!

Photo by Blake Alexander on Unsplash

Let’s just admit it up front:
At some point in your life, you’ve probably raised an eyebrow when someone said they “charged their crystals under the full moon.” Or maybe you’ve walked past a store with a sign that read “Psychic Readings, Walk-Ins Welcome” and wondered who actually goes in.

Maybe you’ve heard friends joke about “bad energy” or talk seriously about how a certain stone helps them focus, relax, or attract love. You might’ve seen a TikTok where someone pulls a tarot card, lights a candle, and starts talking about your destiny.

It’s funny at first. Quirky. Even a little fascinating.
But beneath the surface, there’s something far more serious going on.

The Hunger Behind the Hype

Here’s the thing: People are hungry.
They’re not wrong to want something more. They sense, often without realizing it, that this world isn’t all there is. That something sacred is calling to them. That life has deeper meaning than the material world offers.

That hunger is not the problem.
In fact, it’s a grace.

The problem comes when that spiritual hunger is misdirected toward things that can’t satisfy—and worse, things that can harm.

The Church doesn’t fear the supernatural. In fact, we embrace it. We believe in angels and miracles, healing, prophecy, and sacramental grace. But we also believe that not everything “spiritual” is holy. There’s a real enemy, and he doesn’t need your permission to start whispering. He just needs your curiosity. And that’s the problem!

The Lie of Power Without Relationship

One of the oldest lies in the book—literally—was whispered in a garden: “You will be like God.”

That’s the root of all occult practices: the pursuit of knowledge, insight, or power without depending on God.
It’s not about relationship—it’s about control.

The Church has always warned that the occult isn’t just superstition—it’s spiritually dangerous. The Catechism of the Catholic Church makes it clear:

“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. 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... They contradict the honor, respect, and loving fear that we owe to God alone.”
— CCC 2116

In short: When you dabble in tarot, astrology, crystals, or channeling energy—you’re not playing with neutral tools. You’re stepping into spiritual territory where God has told us not to go.

Why?

Because something is there.

And it’s not what you think.

Even if you think you are savvy with the Tarot cards, or find the Ouija board sensitive to hand vibrations and subconscious thoughts. The enemy doesn’t come through the cards and or your crystal ball; but he does take advantage of your openness to a dark spiritual world, and comes through your invitation to explore.

The Occult Is Real—But So Is Grace

This is not about fearmongering. It’s about truth.

Many people—especially the young—turn to these things innocently or even playfully. They don’t think of it as “dark” or “evil.” They’re not sacrificing goats in their backyard. They’re just trying to “find peace,” “cleanse their space,” or “get in tune with the universe.”

But here’s the reality:
The enemy is smart. He doesn’t show up in ways that look scary. He shows up wrapped in beauty, curiosity, and spiritual buzzwords.

Exorcists and deliverance ministers report again and again: people don’t end up tormented because they hated God. Many of them just opened a door they didn’t know was dangerous.

That’s why the Church doesn’t say, “Try not to go too far.”
It says: Don’t go there at all.

God’s Power Is Not a Parlor Trick

The Christian life isn’t about getting spiritual power on our terms. It’s about trusting the God who is power, and entering into loving communion with Him.

The Cross is not a magical symbol—it’s a rescue mission.
The sacraments aren’t rituals to control God—they’re the places where He offers Himself to us.

God isn’t a force to manipulate.
He’s a Father who loves.
And He’s given us everything we need to live fully alive in Him—without candles, cards, or quartz.

If You’ve Been There, Come Home

If you’ve dabbled in these things, you’re not beyond hope. You don’t need to carry shame. But you do need to walk away—and walk into the arms of Christ.

Go to Confession. Renounce anything that’s not from God.
If something feels like it might be a spiritual problem, don’t carry it alone. Talk to a priest. Ask for prayer. The Church has seen it all, and the Lord’s mercy is deeper than anything you’ve stepped into.

You were never made for magic.
You were made for love.
Real, divine, healing love.

And it’s not hidden in a card.
It’s hanging from a Cross, arms wide open.