Christians won't bat an eyelid at a black cat on Friday the 13<sup>th or avoid walking under ladders on the basis that it's bad luck. But superstitions aren't just simply silly beliefs held by those outside the faith. We Christians can be just as superstitious, despite the Bible teaching that we shouldn't be.
Some superstitions are so ingrained in our culture that we don't even realise we're investing in them. However, these invented beliefs can be really harmful to us and our faith because they often rely on placing our trust in a series of random actions or occurrences instead of in God.
And some superstitions can be selfish in their nature. They can be loosely categorised as following the format: "If I do X, I will get Y". Jesus teaches that we should serve one another, while the Bible teaches we should trust God and lean not on our own understanding. Superstitions, meanwhile, tend to encourage the opposite.
When we're superstitious, we place a connection between things where there is none. Bad and good things happen regardless of whether you do x or y.
Have you already recognised some superstitious beliefs that have stuck with you? See if you relate to any of the ones on our list.
1. If you don't say God bless you after...someone sneezes their spirit may be taken by the devil. While it's custom to say "bless you" today. We shouldn't place any relation between someone sneezing and their spirit or feel the need to call on God to protect them in the midst of perfectly normal bodily function.
2. If you do good things...you will receive rewards on earth – Also known as the prosperity gospel, this belief that Christians give to others to gain from God completely ignores the reality of God's grace. We'll never have done enough to deserve it.
3. If you turn your back on the altar...God will turn his back on you – While it's fine for us to show respect in holy surroundings, we shouldn't idolise these environments.
4. If you bury the dead wearing jewellery...they'll be turned away from heaven – What we wear when we die is out of our control and doesn't bear any connection with where we'll spend eternity.
5. If you got to church...you'll get to heaven – similarly to the prosperity this belief centres on the need to do something in order to receive grace from God. Going to church is a significant part of our Christian life but when we conflate that which is strongly encouraged with that what is an essential requirement, we adapt the Bible's teachings for our own purpose.
6. Killing a spider means that you will have 40 sins pardoned. This superstition is one that is well known in the Russian Orthodox community. Spiders are associated with an enemy so killing one is seen to be an acts in destroying evil.
