Modern-day inquisitions and witch hunts

I write the following as prompted by the Lord, keeping in mind the incredible damage the Inquisition once caused and the mass hysteria caused by the Salem witch hunts. For we need to be very careful in our age and time that we do not repackage the Inquisition and the witch hunts in some modern-day wrappings to address heresy and deception. Yet at the same time, I fear it is too late as wisdom and spiritual maturity have been cast out into the streets.

Hundreds of years ago, many people lived in fear because of the Inquisition, which was a powerful office set up within the Catholic Church to root out and punish heresy throughout Europe and the Americas. Beginning in the 12th century and continuing for hundreds of years, the Inquisition is infamous for the severity of its tortures and its persecution of Jews and Muslims. Its worst manifestation was in Spain, where the Spanish Inquisition was a dominant force for more than 200 years, resulting in somewhat (rough estimation) 32,000 executions.

It was an absolutely terrible time for so many people. Inquisitors would arrive in a town and announce their presence, giving citizens a chance to admit to heresy. Those who confessed received a punishment ranging from a pilgrimage to a whipping. Those accused of heresy were forced to testify. If the heretic did not confess, torture and execution were inescapable. Heretics weren’t allowed to face accusers, received no counsel, and were often victims of false accusations.

There was thus very little proof or evidence of real heresy. The Inquisitors were acting like gods, condemning anyone who did not ascribe the religion of the Catholic Church. Take note, this had nothing but nothing to do with God or His Truth. This had everything to do with man’s selfish needs and agendas, with religion, and with power. In practice, the Spanish Inquisition for example was nothing more than an attempt to consolidate power in the monarchy of the newly unified Spanish kingdom, but it achieved that end through infamously brutal methods. In Spain, torture became systemized and routinely used to elicit confessions. Sentencing of confessed heretics was done in a public event called the Auto-da-Fe. All heretics wore sackcloth with a single eyehole over their heads. Heretics who refused to confess were burned at the stake.

So why talk about the Inquisition? Well, let us first be brave enough to admit there is definitely heresy in churches these days, and when we talk about heresy, we talk about deception posing as the truth of God. False teachings and practices abound. Yes, there are definitely false doctrines, false prophecies and a lot of deceptive agendas posing great danger to believers, thus we live in perilous times. And yes, the church is struggling with idolatry as the apostasy intensifies. Jesus warned of the false prophets and the false christs (those who claim to be specially anointed). There is also plenty of Scripture as evidence that we need to rebuke, reproof and correct, but in the proper manner, in the right attitude, by the Spirit of God, and not to fuel selfish desires, agendas or motives.

During the Inquisitions, ACCUSATIONS, ALLEGATIONS AND RUMOURS were flying around. It fed the madness and was fuel for the devouring beasts called inquisitors. An accusation was many times enough for execution. A rumour was many times enough for an inquisitor to kick down your door. The Inquisition pretended to fight a holy cause, like the infamous yet bloody Crusades, but it was simply fighting evil with evil, sowing fear, and the intent was never to defend God’s Kingdom but the kingdom of man and the wickedness of man’s intent. Still today, ACCUSATIONS, ALLEGATIONS AND RUMOURS fly around regarding pastors, preachers and prophets. We vilify (to utter slanderous and abusive statements) those in the church on a daily basis as if we are inquisitors. We condemn, we ridicule, we accuse, and we spread rumours of terrible heresy. Yes, with our own words we burn people alive on the stake, simply because THEY DO NOT ALIGN WITH OUR POINTS OF VIEW.

Yes, we are called to expose heresy and false prophecies, BUT THEN IT IS DONE BY WEIGHING IT AGAINST THE WORD OF GOD, AND NOT THE WORD OF MAN, AND IT IS WEIGHED IN ACCORDANCE TO WHAT THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD SAYS AND NOT WHAT MANY SAYS IN THE FLESH. We are called to expose deception and false words and prophecies for they are dangerous for the father of lies – the devil – uses such fuel to devour, to consume and to destroy. But we need to walk very carefully to calling someone a heretic, a false prophet or a worker of Satan in the church. These are dangerous accusations, and they add to the fire of perilous times. We after all keep in mind that according to James 3 we so easily praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men. Unfounded and slanderous accusations and allegations can very easily act as a curse, for we condemn and rebuke without proof or God’s love.

So often these days I am seeing people and ministries being named and shamed. Some specifically target people in ministry and find all kinds of reasons to vilify them. As mentioned, we must expose heresy and apostasy, but we do so in the Spirit of God and God’s wisdom and love. If we start naming and shaming, nit-picking on errors, then we are in danger of acting not in the Spirit but in the flesh. And ultimately, this is happening a lot these days. If we operate in the flesh, we are not correcting or rebuking in love, but we become critical and judgemental. Whatever we do in the ministry and with God’s Kingdom, it must be done in the Spirit of God, therefore, to act by the fruits and the works of the Spirit.

If we fail to move in the Spirit by continuing to crucify people or ministry, then we simply become modern-day inquisitors! In the flesh, our motives for exposing heresy or apostasy become skewed and distorted. Nothing good comes from the operations of the flesh, certainly not life. Our motivation in the Spirit of God to correct, rebuke and reproof are to bring life, and not death. In such action, we glorify God. Hundreds of years ago the inquisitors failed to realise their actions were barbaric, selfish, and even wicked! They were spiritually blinded. Times have not changed, as modern-day inquisitors do not edify, uplift or exhort the Body of Christ, but rather sow discord, strife, dissension, division, fear, and anger.

We should after all not be in the game of naming and shaming just for the sake of naming and shaming. And we should be guarding against fighting supposed evil with evil. We should also guard against making allegations and accusations (and believing them), or believing rumours. Again, heresy, erroneous doctrines and false prophecies are dangerous to the Body of Christ, but a Christian discipline process is in place to deal with those who have fallen from grace and to even help those who are in the process of being deceived or deceiving others. God is after all a God of order. Church discipline is enacted for the good of the person (that they would change), the good of the Christian community (that people would not be harmed), and the good of the Christian witness (that non-Christians would not see Christianity as hypocrisy). Without church discipline, churches become places where hypocrites gather and abuse others in the name of God. Yes, this happened during the Inquisition. This is far from what Christ had in mind for the Christian community (John. 13:34-35).

Yes, there is witchcraft going on in the church. And plenty of it. Make no mistake about it. And some do so intentionally, and some are even oblivious to how the devil is toying with them. And yes there is divination, and all kinds of abominations, but we must be careful that we do not sow fear, and allow ourselves to begin branding people as heretics, or even witches. Very soon we will come up with our own strange ideas of testing someone to see if they are a witch or an occultist! Indeed, we have adopted our own brand of witch-hunting, branding people as occultists and witches in the church! If we fail to realise this, we are then in deep trouble, And many times it is based on our lack of spiritual knowledge and understanding! We have allowed ourselves to become susceptible to superstition, thus launching our witch hunts!

In such perilous times, we do not need the Lord’s guidance, wisdom and knowledge and understanding to navigate troubled waters. We are still called to be the light and salt of the world, and not fight evil with evil or add fire to the devil’s desire for destruction. Psalm 91 speaks of the Lord protecting His children from ‘the arrow that flies by day’, but many times the arrows come from the church, and it is shot without thought, discernment, love or wisdom.

How we need desperately spiritual maturity in the church because God is looking for a Bride without spot or wrinkle. This can only be achieved by addressing the blemishes and wrinkles in the authority and love of God and not by trying to burn the dress.