Witchcraft is a topic that is discussed several times throughout the bible, but mostly in the Old Testament. For most people, the sacred art consists of spells, potions, incantations and chants. Very few people fully understand the complete context of the practice of witchcraft, especially those who are familiar with the bible. For these people witchcraft is something that is practiced by a fringe group of weird New Agers, and they feel that it has nothing to do with modern Christianity.
It can be quite shocking to find out that a vast majority of people, who attend church on a regular basis, may be under the spell of witchcraft. The spiritual manipulation that happens on a daily basis within the church is at the core of the type of witchcraft mentioned in the bible. Many pastors today, are able to recite whatever scriptures they need to, in order to force their congregations to behave in the manner in which they want them to. In many cases this form of witchcraft is used to strike fear in the hearts of their parishioners, while encouraging them to dig deep within their pocketbooks for cash. The pastor controls the perspective of the truth, thus causing the congregation to constantly second-guess their personal discernments. The bible is used to create a truth that is far from the reality. There is nothing new about this practice; in fact, it's been going on since Constantine called for the creation of the bible. Prior to this event, all believers were allowed to search every scripture, and read whatever books they wanted to read. No human being was in control of what was considered to be Gods truth. After the creation of the bible, people were no longer allowed to read whatever books they wanted to, only the things authorized by the church. For those who did study and practice other forms of the faith, they were branded as heretics and called "Gnostics." The freedom to search for the truth on your own terms is the key to breaking the spell of the modern church. It is the personal pursuit of holiness that frees mankind, not the adherence to religious dogma.
The spell of witchcraft is so strong that it causes people to disown their children and turn their backs on their families. All of this is done for the sake of the religion. The religion has become their God, and not God Himself. A personal relationship with God is not acceptable, especially if God is telling you that your pastor is wrong. Such was true in my case. I was taught by a man who seemed to enjoy controlling my life. I was all but forced to disassociate myself from my family, and I was only allowed to read the books that he told me I could read. Of course things did not start out this way, but they slowly evolved into a submissive relationship over time. No one was allowed to question him on any of his teachings, no matter how far out they were. He would constantly misquote scripture; I assume that he didn't know that I knew better. He would also constantly profess that God was telling him things, and that he didn't have to believe you if he didn't want to. Whenever one of his students would read something that gave them insight on the truth of the situation, he would say that you had no business reading that, and that you had sinned against God. It didn't take me long to catch on to what he was doing, so I left him as soon as I could. I learned a lot from that situation, but the most important thing that I learned was to never let another individual come between me and my personal relationship with God.