Witchcraft Casts an Ever-Widening Spell on Millennials

If you’ve noticed an increase in references to witches and mysticism lately, that’s not just because Halloween is approaching. Surveys, social media sites and product branding indicate an increase in people who practice or are interested in witchcraft. Trend-spotters say millennials—especially young women—are drawn to Wicca, astrology and new-age spirituality.

About 1 to 1.5 million Americans label themselves Wiccan or pagan, according to a 2014 report by the Pew Research Center. That’s more than the membership of some mainstream Christian denominations in the United States.

The rise in witchcraft is likely more than a trend, according to Carolyn Elliott, founder of Witch magazine. “We are in the midst of a beautiful, occult, witch renaissance,” she says. Her comment appears to be in line with the ever-increasing reach of the occult into the general population. In a series of three surveys conducted from 1990 to 2008, Trinity College watched Wicca rise from 8,000 practitioners to 340,000 over the course of those years. Now, as Pew reported in 2014, that number has risen to as many as 1.5 million. Read More

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As Halloween approaches, the annual debate among American Christians over whether they should observe Halloween is once more going into full gear. While Halloween,  Hallow Even, or All Hallows' Eve, is observed on the eve of the ancient Celtic festival of Samain, they are not the same festival. "Hallow" is an archaic word for saint or holy person. In Australia, Canada, England, New Zealand, and the United States a number of churches are named All Hallows Church or the Church of All Hallows. While a number of practices associated with Samain have migrated to Halloween, this fact is not sufficient reason for Christians not to observe All Hallows' Eve. Indeed it is fitting for Christians to gather to remember the faithful who have gone before them on All Hallows' Eve and to celebrate their lives with a candle light service and various festivities.

For those who may be interested in learning more about how today's occult practitioners are appealing to Millennials, I have included a link to an article "7 Traits of Magical People" on the Rebelle Society: Creatively Maladjusted website.