Altered States and Ancient Sorcery
Anxiety. Depression. PTSD. Bipolar Disorder. These are just a few of the mental health issues affecting people in America today. Between 2019-2023 the U.S. saw an increase of almost 40% in the number of mental health diagnoses according to a white paper published by FAIR Health, Inc. In 2024, roughly 61.5 million Americans, almost one in four - 23.4%, suffered from a mental illness. Among Young Adults (ages 18-25), that number jumps to 33.2%. These numbers suggest that America is facing more than a mental health challenge – it is facing a full-blown crisis.
America’s Mental Health Crisis
If you were trying to solve a major problem like this, what would you do? Assuming most of you are Christians like me, the instinctive solution is to draw near to Jesus! Pray, fast, study Scripture, speak with your pastor, and become more involved with your local church. Likewise, you might also suggest speaking with a Christian Counselor who can offer professional help that is Biblically informed. Perhaps you’d encourage things like pursuing healthy lifestyles through good nutrition and regular exercise. Or maybe would suggest people struggling with mental health connect with others who overcame similar struggles. But let me ask you this, would you ever consider recommending psychedelic drugs like LSD, Magic Mushrooms, or Ayahuasca to those suffering from mental illness as the answer to their problems?
Though such an idea might sound surprising, even crazy, turning to psychedelic drugs to treat mental illnesses is gaining traction. Just this past April, President Trump signed an executive order focused on accelerating research to assess the therapeutic benefits of psychedelic drugs for serious mental illnesses. This doesn’t mean that psychedelics have been legalized or approval has been given for their general medicinal use. It does mean that serious thought and research is moving forward which could potentially open the door to psychedelic drugs being viewed as a valid and permissible form of medicinal treatment in the future, much the same way that marijuana has been legalized for therapeutic use in many states.
Understanding Psychedelics
So, what exactly is a “psychedelic” drug, how do they differ from other drugs, and why should we be concerned about an issue like this? Unlike drugs that primarily affect energy levels or relaxation, psychedelic substances are especially known for triggering hallucinations and altering a person’s perception of reality. They can induce profound changes in consciousness, affecting the way individuals think, feel, and experience the world around them. Some of the best-known examples include psilocybin (magic mushrooms), LSD, MDMA (ecstasy), and ayahuasca, a psychoactive drink historically used by indigenous cultures in the Amazon. These powerful substances carry significant risks for those who use them.
Because of their ability to induce a change in a person’s perception and mind, the chances of experiencing negative psychological reactions such as fear, dread, panic, and impaired judgment are high. Furthermore, because of their ability to cause hallucinations, there could be unpredictable effects as impaired individuals respond to things that aren’t real at all. This is precisely why these kinds of drugs were made illegal in the U.S. in 1970 when the Controlled Substances Act was signed into law. With the enactment of this federal law, psychedelic drugs were classified as “Schedule 1” substances deemed as having too great a potential for substance abuse and lacking any accepted benefits for medical use. Since then, these drugs have remained illegal in our nation, which is what makes their reevaluation for medicinal use so provocative.
The Aaron Rodgers Example
Despite the countless known risks, there are those who still advocate for the acceptance and tout the benefits of psychedelics. One notable example is 2020 and 2021 NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers. On multiple occasions, Rodgers publicly admitted to consuming ayahuasca during a trip to South America just prior to his successful back-to-back football seasons. During a podcast in 2022, Rodgers praised this psychedelic for helping him learn how to unconditionally love himself which in turn brought enhanced mental health and improved performance on the field. In describing his experience with the drug, Rodgers stated, “It’s only in that unconditional self-love, that then I’m able to truly be able to unconditionally love others” and “I really feel like that experience paved the way for me to have the best season of my career.”
Wow. Unconditional love and a pathway for success being credited to a drug that created a life-changing experience for Rodgers...I can’t think of a clearer example of something that counterfeits the genuine unconditional love of God and the true transformational experience found through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
The fact is that only God’s love is truly unconditional. It cannot be earned, achieved through performance, or discovered through mind-altering experiences. God is the source of love (1 Jn. 4:8), and He showed its fullest expression by giving His only Son, Jesus, so that people could be reconciled to Him (Jn. 3:16; 2 Co. 5:18-19). Christ gave His life for those who were still in rebellion against Him (Ro. 5:8). When a person receives God’s gift of love through faith in Jesus, that moment brings real transformation: they are rescued from spiritual death and born again into new life (Ep. 2:4-5).
As beings created in the image of God, there exists within the heart of every individual an innate desire for healing, freedom, and meaning that ultimately comes from a relationship with the One who created them. The unfortunate reality though, is without a personal relationship with Jesus, those desires will never find true fulfillment, creating a void that people often try to fill with anything that promises relief. Psychedelic drugs merely present a false solution to problems like feeling unfulfilled or lacking a sense of purpose, identity, or meaning.
Biblical Warnings About Altered States
Even if one has noble reasons in mind like treating mental illness to justify using psychedelic substances, the Bible gives many warnings about altered states of consciousness. The most frequent example seen throughout the Scripture condemning intoxication is drunkenness from wine or strong drink (Pr. 20:1). One of the clearest negative effects highlighted is “dissipation.” This refers to the lowering or inhibition of one’s moral standards and behaviors that increases the likelihood of behavior a person would normally avoid while sober (Ep. 5:18). A clear example of this is found in Genesis 19 when the daughters of Lot gave him excessive amounts of wine to drink in order that they could take advantage of him so they might conceive offspring by him (Ge. 19:30-38).
Along these lines, intoxication also makes a person more susceptible to the influence of others or external influences. The inherent danger in this is the possibility that a person could get tricked into believing or experiencing something that isn’t true. Going back to the example of Aaron Rodgers, his psychedelic “experience” may have left him with a new sense of unconditional love for himself and others, but because that unconditional love isn’t rooted in Jesus, it is merely a false imitation of God’s love. From a Christian worldview, experiences that mimic unconditional love but are not rooted in Christ are a form of spiritual deception.
With the inhibition of normal patterns of consciousness caused by psychedelic drugs, it is common for people to experience what are often described as “revelations,” “journeys,” or “awakenings” that are often said to be profound. Rodgers’ “life-changing” experience was no exception. It’s not a coincidence that terms like “tripping,” getting “high,” or being “spaced out” are used to describe the effects of these drugs as they reflect the common experience of going on a transcendent, other-worldly, journey. But, if these voyages and epiphanies don’t have their origin in God, one should ask where they originate? If they don’t have their genesis in the Lord, they are coming from a place of sin, darkness, and evil.
Psychedelics, Sorcery, and True Hope
This leads to another very important question. At what point can the usage of psychedelic drugs be considered witchcraft? It’s common knowledge that psychedelics have been paired with occultic rituals and paganism throughout the ages in various cultures across the world. In Mesoamerica, shamans of the Mazatec people used psilocybin mushrooms together with chanting, prayer, and calling upon the spirits during ceremonial rituals. In Africa, the Bwiti people in Gabon traditionally use a psychedelic root bark known as iboga in rituals intended to help communicate with deceased ancestral spirits. In the Amazon, many indigenous tribes consume ayahuasca to facilitate spirit journeys and divination to help diagnose illnesses.
These sorts of practices all fall under the umbrella of what the Bible labels “sorcery.” One of the Greek words in the New Testament translated into English as “sorcery” is “pharmakeia” (φαρμακεία), having the same root word “pharmakon” from where we derive our English words, pharmacy or pharmaceuticals. This Greek word had a range of meanings such as medicine, potion, or any biologically active substance, whether beneficial or harmful. It conveyed the idea of something having a powerful effect on the body or the mind – something that goes hand in hand with the practice of sorcery or witchcraft. Scripture clearly condemns all forms of sorcery, witchcraft, and spiritism. Unlike modern pharmaceuticals meant to alleviate pain or restore normal physiological functioning, psychedelics tend to be explicitly used to alter the mind, thus aligning them more with the ancient practices of pharmakeia. As such, substances known and utilized as vehicles for enabling such practices should be avoided (Dt. 18:9-12).
While I am not asserting that just because someone uses psychedelic drugs it is equivalent to doing witchcraft, I am saying that there is a very real and perilous association between the two. It’s with this in mind that Scripture provides a strong case for abandoning psychedelic use entirely, not just for those recreationally seeking personal enlightenment or esoteric experiences, but even for medicinal purposes including the treatment of mental illness. The inherent risks described above should not be taken lightly. Partaking of such powerful drugs could potentially open a doorway to deeper deception and even demonic influence. Surrendering complete control of one’s mental clarity and consciousness is an open invitation for attacks from the kingdom of darkness.
The mental health crisis in America is real, and the suffering endured by millions of people should not be understated. These individuals need genuine compassion, care, and hope. But turning to solutions that promise healing while leading people away from the truth is not the answer. Psychedelic drugs may offer temporary feelings of enlightenment, but they will not last and can never address the deepest need for reconciliation with God. Because these drugs can never truly satisfy that need, the yearning for fulfillment will only grow, easily leading one into the bondage of addiction. With that, it should not be overlooked that drug overdose and suicide remain two of the leading causes of death in the US.
As Christians, we can point people to the true source of hope, and the One who can give eternal healing, transformation, and life. Jesus invites all who are weary and burdened to come to Him and find rest for their souls (Mt. 11:28-30). We can also come alongside those who are hurting and pray for them, invite them to be a part of the family of God, and help them to find answers in the Word of God, knowing it will point them to Jesus. He alone can provide the hope, healing, and transformation that no drug could ever provide.