On the Supernatural: Can We Call It Something Else?

My earliest memory of a “witch” is of a pretty young lady named Samantha making magical things happen by twitching her nose with a quirky sound effect. It was the 1964 sitcom, “Bewitched.” We watched the reruns over and over. Another childhood memory is of the cackling crone in the Bugs Bunny cartoons, who left hair pins in her wake whenever she ran. I later learned she also had a name: Witch Hazel.

And who in my generation could forget “I’m melting… melting!” in the Wizard of Oz?

At some point during these screen experiences in my young life, a parent—probably my mother—remarked along the lines of, “That’s not what real witches are like!”

There was some conversation, probably. I learned a couple of things: (a) Witches are or have been real, and (b) popular cultural views on them are not correct. To broaden that a bit, (a) some features of occult are or have been real and (b) popular cultural views on them are mostly not even trying to be accurate.

These two truths remain important in our day, as increasing numbers of people see themselves as “spiritual but not religious.” There is a resurgent (not new) interest in the supernatural and, with it, an openness to ideas of power and information from outside of the realm of the five senses.

Christians have two ditches to avoid. We could be too unconcerned about popular interest in the supernatural and occult. Alternatively, we could be reactionary or superstitious and fail to appreciate that, for many, movement toward the supernatural is progress. They are abandoning the even more pernicious belief that material reality is all there is.

Reality is, after all, deeply and genuinely supernatural as well as natural.

As for superstition, it’s really just another species of cultural compromise. Superstition derives from popular perceptions and stories passed on across generations, not from Scripture. So, whether we undiscerningly say, “It’s all harmless,” or superstitiously say, “It’s all pure evil,” we are caving to culture and not thinking biblically.

To help us think biblically, I recently recommended taking a look at systematic theologies. Next, I’d like to consider the first of three questions.

What is the supernatural? (and is it bad?)

Before we can think biblically about witches, sorcerers, magic, fortune-telling, demons, rituals, and the like, we need to grasp a biblical view of the whole of reality.

Colossians 1

For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. (Col 1.16)

Everything that is not God was originally made by Him and was “very good” (Gen 1.31). And the “all things” God made included the “visible” (ὁρατὰ, horata) and the “invisible” (ἀόρατα, ahorata).

Colossians 1.15 (the previous verse) and Romans 1.20 tie in the incarnation and all of creation as part of God’s plan to use horata to help us know aspects of the ahorata.

Reality, then, is made up of both the visible and invisible and both of these aspects are good, and part of God’s design.

2 Corinthians 4

Beyond Colossians 1, other passages help us re-frame what we think of as the natural and the supernatural:

…Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. ¹⁷ For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, ¹⁸ as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. (2 Co 4.16–18, emphasis added)

Here, we have “things that are seen” (the βλεπόμενα, blepomena) and “things that are unseen” (μὴ βλεπόμενα, me blepomena) in a way that parallels the horata and ahorata of Colossians 1.16. But there’s more. The seen and unseen are aligned with “transient” (πρόσκαιρα, proskaira) and “eternal” (αἰώνια, aionia).

There are at least two rich and wonderful studies here. We’ll have to summarize:

• The “seen” and “transient” things here are not precisely the same as the “visible” in Colossians 1.16. Scripture indicates that eternity will continue to include visible creation, in the new heaven and earth (2 Pet 3.10-12, Rev 21.1-4). Paul speaks here of the “seen” in our current experience—a subset of the horata of creation, the part that is going to be replaced.
• The unseen things, though they seem less real to is, are actually more substantial. They are fundamentally more enduring (“eternal”).
• We’re supposed to have the supernatural, the unseen, on our minds all the time as Christians. It’s a vital feature of the Christian way of life, “as we look … to the things that are unseen” and “do not lose heart” (2 Cor 4.16)!

Ephesians 6

A third passage gives us another contrasting pair, and in this study, concludes our look at biblical language as a corrective for our view of reality.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. ¹³ Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. (Eph 6.12–13, emphasis added)

This passage is different from the others in several ways. The context is a struggle between opposing forces, not just two aspects of created reality. Also, we have a list of terms, not just a contrasting pair.

There is still a contrasting pair, though. I lean toward the view (with Clinton Arnold and others) that “spiritual forces” is a category, summarizing the list of enemies:

The fourth and final expression Paul uses in this series, “evil spiritual beings” (τὰ πνευματικὰ τῆς πονηρίας), should be understood as a comprehensive designation for all classes of hostile spirits. The phrase can also be translated “the spirit-forces of evil.” (Clinton E. Arnold, Ephesians. Zondervan, 2010)

What’s clear enough in this passage, especially comparing Colossians 1 and 2 Corinthians 4, is that “flesh and blood” and “spiritual forces” are different aspects of reality. What’s also clear here is that “flesh and blood” are not what’s at war with the “spiritual” in the world. Rather, it is “we” who “wrestle,” and the target is not pneumatika (spiritual things) in general but pneumatika tes ponerias (spiritual things of evil).

Some Conclusions

The Bible doesn’t talk about reality in terms of “natural” and “supernatural.” What it does do is declare that creation includes the visible and invisible, seen and unseen, transitory and eternal, physical (“flesh and blood”) and spiritual.

Further, we’re taught by Scripture that these two contrasting aspects of reality were both made by God, are both good, and are not inherently in opposition to each other. They are a contrasting but harmonious pair.

As we evaluate human behaviors and cultural patterns that relate in various ways to “the supernatural,” we should consider sticking to biblical language. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with the term “supernatural” (or “occult,” which I hope to get into more later), but we’re more likely to think in biblical categories if we—at least as an exercise—stick to biblical terms. What if there is no “natural” or “supernatural,” but only the horata and the ahaorata, the visible and the invisible?