Some Of My Christian Friends Think Hypnosis Is Evil - But Why?

June 3, 2008

I am a Christian, with a background of Nursing for most of my adult life and now working in partnership with a Clinical Hypnotherapist Adam Eason selling a large range of self-hypnosis products.

This is the backdrop to this article which I have been intending to write for some time. I have finally been nudged into action by seeing this web page. Readers are asked to comment on this question -

“What does the bible say about hypnosis? My sister is involved in this and I’m not sure what to tell her when she talks to me about it. I don’t think it’s right but can’t find anything to support my answers.”

I must say that there are a huge range of answers and pleased to see many totally sensible and informed answers - however there are several negative responses and I personally know people with similar views. Here are a couple of typical answers from that blog.

“I know that the Bible tells to be sober minded and watchful for we do not know when the master cometh. Hypnosis is an alterted state of conscousness so that it is not ’sober minded’. In fact it would be considered worse than drunk or on a drug because you do not remember anything after hypnotized and are completely unaware and subject to your environment when under its influence.”

OR - how about this response.

“Please tell your sister that is demonic, no matter how medical it looks. We should never allow someone to take control of our minds like that it’s dangerous, and puts a person in a helpless ,vulnable condition for demons to enter. Only God should take over our minds”

Take control of our minds - What utter uninformed nonsense. I wonder if this person knows the first darned thing about the subject.

Thank goodness though that there were many comments - indeed some from Christian hypnotherapists - making it clear that it is not about mind control.

Here are a couple:

“NOT TRUE. The hypnotist does NOT have control of you, they CAN NOT make you do any thing you wouldn’t normally do. Naturally we enter that state many times during every day. All I see here is ignorance. God doesn’t administer meds, so is that wrong too? God doesn’t fix broken bodies that cant conceive , so is IVF a sin too? We are given tools to HELP OURSELVES and so long as they are used for good not evil then there is no sin. In my mind, NOT helping yourself to become a better person is a sin.”

and another

“I am a Christian hypnotherapist. Hypnosis is a naturally occurring state, commonly experienced on a daily basis when we lose awareness of surrounding distractions. We all enter the hypnotic state just before we fall asleep at night, & again just before awakening in the morning. Other forms of hypnosis include daydreaming, becoming engrossed in a book, movie, or sport. While in hypnosis, the subconscious mind will not allow a person to do or say anything against their moral or ethical beliefs.”

The problem is that these perceptions are there partly as a result of the way hypnosis is written about in the media and most of the journalistic comment is based on opinions formed from watching stage hypnotists in action. You are given the illusion by watching people acting abnormally on stage that the hypnotist does have control of their minds. Not true in fact - but that is another discussion.

Clinical hypnotherapists do have a problem explaining all this and most of them have an explanatory section on their websites.

Adam is no exception.

Listen to Adam Eason’s
Introduction to Hypnosis

Hypnosis is very different to what you may have learned from the TV it really can’t make you do anything you don’t want to. Hear me dispel some of the myths and misconceptions surrounding hypnosis and explain the phenomena of stage hypnosis

I have plenty more to say on this topic as I don’t want to continue to be on the defensive about it. I want a reference point that I can just send any of the vocal critics of my work.

(Continued…..)

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