Demon Chasers

 I can't help but notice how two things are happening simultaneously in our culture: (1) the rise of atheism and (2) the rise of the occult. It seems contradictory, but it stems from the fact that with the advent of the Great Apostasy of Vatican II, anything goes except the Truth. There is no sure guide condemning modern errors since the death of the last pope, His Holiness Pope Pius XII in 1958. Satan makes the most of the situation by fostering positive Indifferentism (i.e., one religion is as good as another, so who cares what someone believes), negative Indifferentism (i.e. all religions are equally bad, which leads to atheism), and occult practices (which leads them to perdition doing works pleasing to Satan).

 The latest phase in what some have called an "occult invasion" is the Pokemon Go craze which is sweeping the globe. To better understand the craze and what's wrong with it, this post will examine the game and explain the danger.

Beware The "Pocket-Monster"

The very word "Pokemon" is Japanese for "pocket-monster," i.e., a demon. The original Pokemon craze sprang from the popular Nintendo hand-held Game Boy video game and progressed to a 1998 TV cartoon series here in the United States. Pokemon cards, movies and other merchandise were ubiquitous among boys ages 4 to 17. In 2000, sales of Pokemon items was approximately $7 billion dollars. There was a wave of violence over stealing cards and assaulting people to get them. The weird looking monsters are to be captured and "trained" by humans to battle other monsters. If victorious, your monster gains points and "evolves." 

 Pokemon Go is an augmented reality ("AR") game. This is a game where there "is a live direct or indirect view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are augmented (or supplemented) by computer-generated sensory input such as sound, video, graphics or GPS data." To play the game, users download the Pokemon Go app to their IPhone or Android phones. Then they begin hunting down 150 different Pokémon creatures capturing them in virtual reality.Unlike any other game in the past, players must go to certain locations to capture the Pokemon. Various pocket-monsters appear on the screen and they must hunt them down in schools, hospitals, and even churches! It can take you anyplace in your surrounding area. Once at the correct location the app has chosen, you throw a "virtual ball" at the Pokemon to "capture it." As succinctly stated, "For those unfamiliar with the game, it’s a mobile app that puts players into a world of Pokemon. Players can catch the creatures, help them evolve and take them to battle, all while leveling up themselves. The game launched over the week, and despite quite a few problems, it seems like everyone is playing." (See http://jalopnik.com/pokemon-go-makes-driving-a-lot-more-dangerous-1783377760)

Since the game's recent release earlier this month, Nintendo stock shot up $7.5 billion dollars. The app is being downloaded more than Instagram, Snapchat, and Facebook. This time, it's not limited to mostly young boys playing. Adults of both genders are getting addicted quickly. 

Danger, Violence, and Big Brother

As Our Lord told us, "By their fruits, thou shalt know them." (St. Matthew 7:16). There is much to worry about this game.

1. Pokemon Go is being used by armed robbers to ensnare victims.

According to The Guardian, "Armed robbers used the game Pokémon Go to lure victims to an isolated trap in Missouri, police reported on Sunday.At about 2am in O’Fallon, Missouri, officers responded to a robbery report that led them to four people, all local residents aged 16 to 18, in a black BMW in a CVS parking lot. The occupants tried to discard a handgun out of the car when an officer approached, said Sgt Bill Stringer. The officer then identified the four people as suspects of similar armed robberies described in St Louis and St Charles counties.The adult suspects were charged with first degree robbery, a felony, and had bond set at $100,000 cash, Stringer said.

Stringer added that police believe the suspects used the phone app, which directs users to capture imaginary creatures superimposed onto the real world, to tempt players into secluded areas where they could be easily robbed. At a certain level in the game, he noted, players can congregate at local landmarks to join teams and battle.

'Using the geolocation feature,' Stringer said, 'the robbers were able to anticipate the location and level of seclusion of unwitting victims.'

In a separate statement, a department spokesperson added: 'you can add a beacon to a pokestop to lure more players. Apparently they were using the app to locate [people] standing around in the middle of a parking lot or whatever other location they were in.'"

This could also be used by pedophiles to lure unsuspecting children.

2. It creates dangerous driving habits leading to accidents.
You aren’t supposed to drive and play; the game reads your geo-location and can tell the speed you are moving. If it senses you are driving, you will be kicked out of the game except if you drive at very slow speeds. In this fashion, the game won’t detect that you are driving.  Driving and stopping while capturing the elusive Pokémon could be even more dangerous than texting and driving. Many accidents have been reported throughout the country.

3. Big Brother (Big Pokemon) Is Watching
You must accept the terms and conditions of the app, which gives the company full access to your Google account. While claiming they are trying to "fix this matter" they COULD:

• Read all your email
• Send email as you
• Access all your Google drive documents (including deleting them)
• Look at your search history and your Maps navigation history
• Access any private photos you may store in Google Photos
• And a whole lot more

(See http://adamreeve.tumblr.com/post/147120922009/pokemon-go-is-a-huge-security-risk)

Is it Bad just Because of the Name?

Pokemon Go, is dangerous because it combines fantasy role playing and the occult with modern technology. The original Pokemon franchise was developed by "Wizards of the Coast", who gave the world the occult games, DUNGEONS & DRAGONS and MAGIC THE GATHERING. What's very disturbing is the concept that children (and adults) are being trained to "capture" demon-like creatures, train and control them, and use them against others.  This closely mirrors what many high-level occultists attempt to do with real demons. According to occult researcher William J. Schnoebelen:

"The magician works from within a specially prepared magick circle which supposedly protects him from the demon as long as he stays inside it. He uses special magickal (many occultists spell "magic" with a "k" to distinguish the attempt to summon demons and such from slight-of-hand parlor tricks--Introibo)weapons like a wand, staff or sword to threaten the demon and make it do his or her bidding. Once the ritual is successful, supposedly the demon belongs to the magician to do his or her bidding -as long as the stipulations of their contract are kept by sorcerer. Often the demon will grant the magician occult powers or give him or her special talismans to control others. This is a large part of high magick. Now, there is barely a dime’s worth of difference between this and what goes on in the ' make-believe' Pokémon universe!" (Mr. Schnoebelen is Protestant, but his research seems well-done. He is at least aware of the Biblical prohibition on such evil practices in Deuteronomy 18:10-12, " There must never be found among you anyone who sacrifices his son or daughter in fire, practices divination, interprets omens, practices sorcery, casts spells, or who is a medium, an occultist, or a necromancer. Whoever practices these things is detestable to the Lord, and the Lord thy God will expel them before thee because of these things."---Emphasis mine)

Some people will protest that it's just a game, and place my warning on the same level as those who see evil everywhere and Black Helicopters are around the corner. Not so fast. Everything we do trains or conditions us for better or for worse. Seeing a movie, reading a book, or playing a game can open an interest in something. Whatever that something may be, it could lead us down a good path or a bad path. Many children and young people have admitted dabbling in the occult as the result of Harry Potter books and movies, as well as by the Twilight series. The pagan website (run by modern pagans--I'm not using the word "pagan" in a pejorative sense) wildhunt.org has an article entitled Pokemon and the Great Occult Scare which tries to assure us that Pokemon has nothing to do with the occult. I beg to differ. The very idea of capturing spirits to do your bidding is occult and its practice forbidden by God. It has the worldview that there is no God, just spirits and a set of occult laws. Success is predicated upon using the right ritual. The time spent "chasing Pokemon" could be better spent in prayer, acts of charity, or games/sports/activities that are devoid of occult themes.

Pokemon Go is of occult origin, and introduces children and adults to the world of the occult. It is causing many bad things to happen in just a short amount of time. The game, in augmented reality,  makes you think you're chasing demons to control them.  In actual reality, it's the other way around. Have nothing to do with it.