Dear Chas:

The Screwtape Letters may have been written in the 1940s but it is perfectly applicable today.

Our culture has an obsession with the Culture of Death. We see this in Halloween costumes that depict monsters, demons, ax murderers, another horrific images. We also see this in the popularity of movies, such as Halloween, Friday the 13th, etc.

In the 1980s and 90s a video series called Faces of Death was very popular. These videos depicted actual death of various kinds, including human sacrifice and actual executions.

There is a fascination with death. It is understandable that we have great curiosity about death since it is the great unknown and an experience we will all share.

Obsession with death, whether it be the "goth" movement, the vampire followers, ghost busting shows and, exorcism shows and movies, or any other morbid fad that has come to our culture, is not healthy psychologically or spiritually.

When we open our minds to this horrific, morbid, and evil imagery we run the risk, and are open to, Satan shifting our imaginations like wheat.

St. Paul teaches us:

(Php 4:8)  Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

St. Ignatius of Loyola in his Constitutions wisely teaches:

All should take care to guard with great diligence the gates of their senses (especially the eyes, ears, and tongue) from all disorder, to preserve themselves in peace and true humility of their souls, and to give an indication of it by silence when it should be kept and, when they must speak, by the discretion and edification of their words, the modesty of their countenance, the maturity of their walk, and all their movements, without giving any sign of impatience or pride.

When parents allow their children to watch these sorts of TV shows or movies, or video games with occult the themes or with violent themes, they are permitting their children to be poisoned. No parent would allow their child to drink poison, so why do they allow their children to consume a poison of the mind that can corrupt, cause psychological damage, and more importantly, cause spiritual damage that can open up their children to the diabolical.

In my opinion parents are committing an act of child abuse who allow their children to watch movies like Halloween, Friday the 13th, The Exorcist, all of these ghost investigation shows, and other movies of that genre.  This also includes occultic games and activities such as the Ouija board, the pendulum, tarot cards, the I Ching, astrology.

I can't tell you how many clients I have had in which part of their problem with demonization began with, or was made worse by, their participation in these occult games, and ideas, and movies, and TV shows.

To to answer your question, yes, these sorts of things is what C. S. Lewis was warning about.

Teenagers are able to understand how being around people or activities that are wrong can influence them to join in. For example, if the teenager hangs a friend who constantly uses profane language it is likely that he will also use profane language at least in front of his friend.

If we allow these horrific images into our mind those images can influence us to develop a greater curiosity about occult things or about death. This is in addition to the possibility of demonic harassment. If one is to play in Satan's sandbox he will get Satan's sand in his shoes. It is not possible to avoid this if a person is to flirt with the dark side.

Flirting with the occult, demons, witchcraft, astrology, Ouija boards, and all the rest including movies and TV shows about the subjects is asking for trouble.

Why fill-up our minds with sewage. If a teenager can understand that then maybe there's hope. Teenagers and adults alike need to understand that every game, TV show, movie, book, music, video game, and other such things contain a message. The question is what message do they convey. That message morally neutral, morally uplifting and instructive, or morally corrupt and evil. All of this media can be classified under one of those three possibilities.

As for teenagers, I haven't even seen a teenager in years, so I am not necessarily the best source of advice and want to say to teenagers. I would suppose that one should tell the truth, let the teenagers know the consequences of their actions, the possibilities that may affect them if they indulge in these activities.

Teenagers being teenagers they may not listen, or care, and go their merry way thinking there can be no negative effects of these sorts of media and activities. They are wrong. Thus, we must pray for our teenagers and for the parents of those teenagers. Parents must have the courage to teach their teenagers rightly. Just as a parent teaches her child not to stick their finger in a light socket it is even more important that those parents teach their kids not to put their finger in a light socket of the occult, with its images, with its ideas, and the media that seeks to exploit our curiosity and morbid fascination.

God Bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary