Healing or Harm? Unmasking the Occult Roots of Crystal Healing

By Teresa Yanaros

What is the Occult?

For us as Catholics to effectively stand firm against the occult, we must first know the definition of occultism, and then understand which foundational beliefs lead into occult practices. 

The word occult originates from the Latin word occultus, meaning “hidden” or “concealed.” The occult is a classification of spiritual arts and practices focused on uncovering hidden knowledge and wielding concealed power through rituals often fueled by Satanic signs and wonders. The occult is a deceptive system that draws people into delusion, destruction, away from God. This system involves both the light occult (the deceptive, surface-level allure) and the dark occult (the hidden, sinister spiritual reality).

More specifically, occult arts are the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination through the appeal to harness occult power and produce works to be appreciated primarily for their displays of mental, physical, emotional, and/or spiritual power. Harnessing occult power is done through either invocation (to call in) or evocation (to call forth) of evil spirits, whether the person knows this is what they are doing or not.

Belief in Crystal Healing: A Doorway to the Occult

The belief that crystals can be used for healing or protection is rooted in the occult.

Quick disclaimer: Crystals themselves are not occultic, nor is owning a crystal, but if a person uses a crystal with the intention to call forth some kind of effect or power, this is witchcraft and occultic in nature.

If a person entertains the belief that a crystal can heal them or protect them, this is magical thinking and superstition at a base level, but also presents the near occasion of the sin of pride and can easily lead into occult practices. The common occult belief is that a crystal holds a piezoelectric charge, and when physically close to a person can balance out electromagnetic currents in the body to produce healing effects. While this is commonly classified as pseudoscience, let’s entertain this line of belief for a second to show where it can lead. 

Curiosity is always the first component that leads toward occult practices. Let’s say a person is curious to investigate the validity of the claim that crystals can heal. They purchase a crystal and start to carry it in their pocket, testing to see if this claim will actually produce healing results. At this point, the person is engaging in witchcraft. Let me break this down. 

Witchcraft is the attempt to control, manipulate, or generate a desired result through invocation or evocation, and a ritualistic practice. Carrying a crystal with the intention to heal oneself is the attempt to control healing through invoking (calling in) healing through the ritualistic act of carrying the crystal. The crystal becomes an idol seen as a tool to generate a desired response by inadequate means (superstition). That inadequate means must then be filled by either human imagination or demonic influence. 

At this point, the person is now searching for some sign that would prove up the practice of seeking healing through crystals. The seeking of a sign to validate an act of witchcraft is commonly referred to as looking for synchronicities or proof of manifestation. Let’s say that the person feels better the next day, having nothing to do with the crystal, but they interpret the situation as being related to the crystal’s power. They now believe that crystals can heal. This belief leads them to seek more occult practices to incorporate into their way of life. Demons can also fuel signs and wonders (2 Thessalonians) to draw people further away from God and deeper into the occult. 

The core problem with occult beliefs and practices is that they provide an alternative path toward healing, knowledge, and power, but lead toward distortions of the mind, and destruction of the soul. These beliefs and practices lead a person to lock their eyes upon that which is perishing and spiritually dead and offer the lie that occult practices offer something of value. Instead, they cause a person to focus on pride and idolatry and take their eyes off that which is eternal and ever-lasting, Christ. True healing and knowledge come from the Lord and cannot be stolen by seeking power through occult practices.

When a person gets locked into these beliefs, they have effectively exchanged the truth of God for a lie. 

“They exchanged the truth of God for a lie and revered and worshiped the creature rather than the creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.” – Romans 1:25

The light occult aspect of crystal healing is the lie that a person can evoke healing through physical objects. The dark occulted reality is that this belief and practice is idolatry and denies the truth that it is God who heals. God is sovereign, and healing cannot be stolen from him through occult practices. 

How to Stand Firm Against Occult Deception

The belief in using crystals for healing is rooted in occult traditions that contradict Catholic teaching. Most importantly, this belief opens doors that draw a person deeper into spiritual bondage and away from Christ. Even though believing in crystals for healing might seem harmless or even helpful on the surface, it distracts a person from placing their full trust in God. This occult belief instead places trust upon the self and forces that are outside of God’s divine authority.

If you are becoming curious about occult beliefs or practices, I would encourage the following:

• Reflect on healing in Christ. At times in our lives, we will undergo suffering. Looking to the sufferings of Christ and seeking to conform ourselves to him through our suffering helps us to lock our eyes on him during times of struggle and pain.
• Reflect on the lives of the saints. To anchor to faith, resilience, and surrender to God’s will, read about the lives of St. Therese of Lisieux or Padre Pio, who both found peace in times of suffering.
• Lean into the sacraments. The sacraments offer us true spiritual healing and help us to lock our eyes upon Jesus Christ. Choose to intentionally place Jesus as the center of your life by celebrating the ways that God gave us to conform our lives, body, mind, and soul to Him.
• Pray. I call witchcraft “anti-prayer” because it seeks to steal from God instead of aligning our hearts and minds with his will. God has a will and purpose for your life which is divinely ordained. You don’t have to wrestle him for what he has in store for you. Prayer quiets the soul through deep surrender to God, who loves you and gave himself for you!

Photo: Photonblast, Unsplash, PD-US

Editor’s Note: 

The author’s book Freedom From Darkness: A Roadmap to Deliverance from Spiritual Bondage and the Occult highlights personal testimonies, practical steps for deliverance, and the powerful role of the Church in combating evil. It can be ordered from Sophia Institute Press. 

Author Bio: Teresa Yanaros

Teresa Yanaros, a degreed journalist and devout Catholic, is dedicated to addressing the growing trend of disaffiliation with religion, where many turn to ‘spiritual but not religious’ ideologies, leading to New Age and occult practices. Earlier in her career, Yanaros was a successful author and speaker, exploring modern American spiritualism and attempting to reconcile it with Christianity before experiencing a radical deliverance from occult deception. Now, she coaches ex-New Agers returning to Christ and provides Catholics with the tools to resist cultural traps. Through her growing ministry of online resources, classes, YouTube, and her blog Spirit Sanctified, Yanaros helps Christians stand firm against deception. In her book Freedom from Darkness, she offers a practical roadmap that explains how people become ensnared in the occult and provides a path to freedom through repentance, conversion, and the sacraments.