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Christians, Beware
of the Occult Invasion
5. The
Charismatics,
"Signs and Wonders" and
"The Toronto Blessing"
“For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets,
and shall shew great signs and wonders: insomuch that,
if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.”
Matthew 24:24
The Pentecostal churches began with the Holiness Movement in the beginning of the 1900s. As Pentecostalism spread into the mainline denominations (Episcopalian, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Methodist, Roman Catholic) in the 1960s, it became known as the Charismatic Movement. The “Signs and Wonders” Movement began in the 1990s (including “the Toronto Blessing,” the Vineyard Churches, and the
Brownsville/ Pensacola Revival). The “Signs and Wonders” philosophy is that God’s power was manifest in the 20th century by the “first wave” (Pentecostalism), the “second wave” (Charismatic Movement) and the “third wave” (Vineyard Movement).
Pentecostal/Holiness Churches — The “First Wave”
Pentecostalism is the fastest growing segment of Christianity. “It is growing at a rate of 13 million a year, or 35,000 a day. With nearly a half billion adherents, it is, after Roman Catholicism, the largest Christian tradition.”
(Christian History, “The Rise of Pentecostalism,” Issue No. 58, Vol. XVII, no. 2, p. 3) The largest church in the world, the Yoi Do Full Gospel Church, is David Yonggi Cho’s Pentecostal church in Korea with a weekly attendance of 750,000 as of 1995
(Christianity in Crisis, p. 352). Two other Pentecostal churches in Buenos Aires have 150,000 weekly attendees. (ibid.
Christian History)
Pentecostalism has definite theological distinctions including speaking in tongues and healing. Some of the best known Pentecostal Denominations are: Church of God in Christ, International Church of the Foursquare Gospel Church of God, Church of God of Prophecy, Pentecostal Holiness Church, Fire-Baptized Holiness Church, Pentecostal Free-Will Baptist Church, The Assemblies of God, and The United Pentecostal Church.
Charismatic Movement — The “Second Wave”
In contrast to the Pentecostal Denomination, the Charismatic Movement has infiltrated almost every denomination and doctrinal persuasion. These persons, churches, and movements are generally part of institutions and denominations that did not originate out of the original Pentecostal movement. Charismatics believe that speaking in tongues is a gift of the Holy Spirit that should be manifested in the church today. “Slaying in the Spirit” became prominent among Charismatics in the 1960s.
(Christian Research Journal, Summer 1990, page 28.)
The “Signs and Wonders” Movement,
“The Toronto Blessing,” and The Brownsville/Pensacola Revival
— The “Third Wave”
“Signs and Wonders” Vineyard Movement
The Vineyard Movement began in 1982. From five churches in 1982 it has grown to approximately 450 churches in the U.S. and another 250 abroad, with an estimated 200,000 members.
The Vineyard Movement has infiltrated such evangelical seminaries as Dallas Theological Seminary, Trinity International University, Fuller Seminary, and Biola Seminary. The Vineyard Movement believes that only by their demonstrations of clairvoyance, casting out demons and powerful healings (“power evangelism”) will the gospel be heard. They also believe in Occult/New Age practices, such as aura reading and manipulation, the teaching of “inner healing,” astral projection, contact with familiar spirits, and psychological and occult methodologies.
“Inner healing” includes meditation, visualization and other psychic manipulations taken from writings of Agnes Sanford
(pantheist and “mother” of inner healing). Inner healing methods are rooted in psychic healing practices that are based on the belief in
“karma” (the unconscious memory or knowledge of, and attachment to, unfinished relationships, unfulfilled desires, and other incomplete cycles relating to alleged past lives and memories of childhood and the
womb).
A phenomenon that has swept through Vineyard churches is “holy laughter”—spontaneous, uncontrollable laughter erupting even during solemn ceremonies. “Holy laughter” first erupted in 1994 at the Toronto Airport Vineyard in Toronto, Canada, and is called the “Toronto Blessing.”
“The Toronto Blessing”
“The Toronto Blessing” occurred in the Vineyard denomination, with roots also in the Word of Faith and Latter Rains movements. On January 20, 1994, at a revival meeting held at a small church near Pearson International Airport in Toronto, physical manifestations were displayed. “Worshipers are overcome by laughing, weeping, groaning, shaking, falling and…noise-making…healings, …”
(Charisma, 2/95, pp 20-21)
By mid 1995 over 200,000 (some 10,000 of them clergy) from almost every country of the world came to Toronto to “soak” in the “presence of the Lord” and take “it” back home to churches all over the world. The impact of the “Toronto Blessing” has been especially felt in Great Britain where it is reported that it has touched every denomination in some way, with estimates reported that 2,500 to 4,000 churches have had similar meetings.
One vicar was forced to cancel an evening service of Holy Communion and remove chairs from the nave because so many in his congregation were lying on the floor after experiencing the “Toronto Blessing.” Observers have described scenes where worshippers collapsed en masse to the floor and burst out laughing during services. According to a report in a Church of England newspaper, a service at Holy Trinity ended in chaos as dozens of people burst into spontaneous laughter or tears, trembled and shook or fell to the floor.
Following are phenomena that have been observed in the “Toronto” experience: shaking, jerking, loss of bodily strength,
heavy breathing, eyes fluttering, lips trembling, oil on the body, changes in skin color, weeping, laughing, “drunkenness,” staggering, travailing, dancing, falling, visions, hearing audibly into the spirit realm, inspired utterances—i.e. prophecy, tongues, interpretation—angelic visitations, and manifestations, jumping, violent rolling, screaming, wind, heat, electricity, coldness, nausea as discernment of evil, smelling or tasting good and evil presence, tingling, pain in body as discernment of illness, feeling heavy weight or lightness, trances, altered physical state while seeing into the spiritual world, inability to speak normally, disruption of natural realm, i.e., electrical circuits blown. [21]
Brownsville
Revival/Pensacola Blessing
On Father’s Day 1995, the Brownsville Assembly of God Church in Pensacola, Florida, received the “Holy Laughter” and “The Toronto Blessing” at their revival. Like Toronto, Brownsville is known for “carpet time” (being “slain in the spirit” which involves being bowled over by spirit power, lying in a daze on the ground, at times manifestations such as jerking, laughing, crying, speaking in tongues, barking like dogs, etc.)
“Slaying in the Spirit”
Slaying in the Spirit means to lightly touch the forehead of an individual with the first two fingers of the right hand and cause the individual to fall to the floor unharmed with the intention that he or she will receive a jolt of “holy spirit energy.” This is performed by an evangelist in a charismatic meeting designed to stir the emotions of the members. The individual falls backward in a prone position fully relaxed, instantaneously with the touch. Workers help to ease the slain individuals to the floor as they are touched one after another. They lie on the floor until normal consciousness returns. The purpose is to receive a physical healing or a change in attitude. Loud, rhythmic music, and emotional ploy, such as mantras, put the group in unison of thought preparing the group’s expectation and desire for the healings.
“We have seen all kinds of people here, Mormons, Baptists, Jews, Episcopal priests, Catholics, and Methodists.” (6/98,
The Remnant, p. 12)
Transferring the “Toronto Blessing”
The “spirit” is transferable by various techniques such as touch, repetition of words, or turning off the mind (meditation). The spirit of this revival is contained in one place—Brownsville. Therefore, in order to encounter that spirit, one must visit the “power center” where the spirit operates. Once one visits the power center and receives the spirit, one can take that spirit back to one’s own congregation and start another power center. Steve Hill claims “People from all over the world have been touched by God’s Spirit, either as they come worship with us, or as they visit others who have been here.” [16] It has been compared to a “spiritual virus,” spreading from men to men between towns and regions, as well as on a smaller scale in the midst of a meeting.
Transferring “Shaktipat”
Touching in order to impart a spirit is also a very common occultic practice. For instance, Swami Baba Muktananda imparted “guru’s grace” to followers through touching their foreheads. This is a “Kundalini yoga” technique called “shaktipat,” which produces various “physical and emotional awakenings” such as “laughing, roaring, barking, hissing, crying,
shaking, etc.” [18] Guru Shri Dhyanyogi Madhusudandasji, a Kundalini expert, says the following about
“shaktipat”:
“Another technique of great importance is Shaktipat, the transmission of energy. A powerful yogi can transmit energy to an aspirant and awaken the Kundalini [power in one’s body]. This is accomplished in one of four ways: by touch, gaze, sound or thought. The yogi may touch the disciple and transmit energy through physical contact, or gaze at the disciple and energy flows from the yogi’s eyes. The yogi may utter words which carry energy or, more subtly, energy can be transferred directly by the yogi’s thought or will.” [19]
Surprisingly, this occult transmission of power from the leader to the disciple, which is so popular in non-Christian religions, is emulated and embraced by many in the Christian community.
“The Mantra”
Another technique employed by Brownsville leaders to impart the spirit is the repetition of words. This causes a spirit to be passed from those who have it to those who want it. This is also a Hindu technique called “mantra.” According to
Harper’s Dictionary of
Hinduism, “The mantra is a formula comprising words and sounds which possess magical or divine power.” [20] A person simply repeats a word or phrase over and over to bring about a desired spiritual effect. This is very common in eastern religions and the New Age.
Additionally, any word will suffice as a mantra—even “Christian” words such as “Jesus” or “Lord.” One occultist, Michael Balarama of the Bhaktivedanta Meditation Society, advises the use of a number of mantras, saying, “You can choose one that appeals to you. They are all effective. The Vedas say there is no need of understanding the language of the mantra, nor is there any need of mental speculation, nor intellectual adjustment.” [23] Remarkably, two of the mantras recommended by Balarama are, “Lord Jesus have mercy upon us,” and “Hail Mary, mother of grace, blessed is thy name and the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.” [24] In order to conjure the magical effect of the mantra, even “Christian” words such as “More, Lord!,” “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus!” are used. Even occultists and pantheists use the name of Jesus as mantras, which does not make them “Christian.”
Have you heard of a preacher calling out “Jesus” and the audience responding “Jesus” over and over until “holy music” leads the congregation to empty their minds and succumb to an altered state of hypnotic meditation? The requiem is “Turn off your mind and let the Spirit do what He pleases!” [25]
A seeker is instructed to clear the mind in order to conjure the spirit, the mind being an enemy of true spirituality.
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