10 of those

“There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight.” (C. S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters)

A 2019 survey of atheists found that 30% believe in “underlying forces of good and evil,” 20% believe in supernatural beings, and 11% believe some objects have mystical powers. It’s a reminder that we might a materialist and a magician in the same person.
So how should we understand our culture’s obsession with magic, superstition and the spiritual realm? And how should the church think about these things, when it so often falls into the errors of disbelief or an unhealthy interest in spiritual warfare? How does the spiritual realm relate to our evangelism, our suffering, and our temptations?
Those are our questions for Issue 10 of Primer. With contributions from Lewis Allen, Kirsten Birkett, Keith Ferdinando, David Shaw, and Helen Thorne.

Stranger Things -An introduction to the issue and articles from David Shaw

Bewitched? - A history of magic and the occult in the Western tradition from Kirsten Birkett

The Battle Belongs to the Lord - A biblical theology of God’s warfare from Keith Ferdinando

Dungeons & Dragons - Spiritual warfare and the witness of the church in Revelation 11-13 from David Shaw

The Devil in the Detail - Thomas Brooks and Precious Remedies against Satan’s Devices from Lewis Allen

Life in the Trenches - Thinking about Spiritual Warfare with David Powlison’s Safe & Sound from Helen Thorne

Consulting the Living - The issue’s contributors answer questions sent to us on the topic.