In modern society, various methods have been adopted to find out your fate or to acquire any earthly goods. Fortune telling is one of the most popular mystical acts. The Orthodox Church cannot but pay attention to such a practice. Christianity has its own position regarding such actions.
The Orthodox Church has never recognized fortune-telling as a useful way to obtain certain knowledge or to achieve any earthly blessings. Usually fortune-telling, there is also the practice of fortune telling in order to find out the name of the spouse (s) or to get any other information. In folk tradition, there are many different forms of fortune telling. For example, on cards, by hand, using a photograph or other objects. The people even have a tradition of fortune telling at Christmas time (days dedicated to the feast of the Nativity of Christ). All these practices provoke a negative attitude from the Church.
Orthodoxy classifies fortune-telling as mysterious and mystical. Christianity claims that in fortune-telling a person manifests his free will in turning to demonic forces. According to the teaching of Christianity, this cannot have a beneficial effect on the human soul, therefore the practice of divination is forbidden by the Church.
Christianity teaches that it is not entirely useful for a person to know his future, as this can harm the desire for moral perfection of the individual. The appeal to the dark forces of the world cannot cause positive feedback from the Church. Even comic fortune telling, according to the recommendations of the Church, should not take place in the life of a Christian.
Sometimes divinatory ritual parties mention the names of God or saints. The Church considers this blasphemous, because there is nothing in common between light and darkness. Expressions in spells and fortune-telling, raising a person’s mind to Christian personalities, in fact, have nothing to do with the Orthodox practice of prayer to saints.
The church relates all fortune-telling to witchcraft and a certain form of magic, so the Christian should try to be choosy in those actions that are offered in various literature or advised by people.
