Volume 2 Number 1 January 10, 2007

MarketFaith Ministries is an equipping ministry which is focused on helping Christians become more effective
in living out their faith in the midst of the increasingly diverse worldview environment of modern society.
Introduction

Happy New Year! Praise God that he has seen fit to allow us to move into another year to serve him. I, personally, feel
ever more committed to challenging our society with the claims of Jesus Christ, and become more and more excited
about that as my own understanding of the implications of worldview grows. I hope that the information you are receiving
from this newsletter is providing you with a confidence that is also moving you in that same direction.

We are getting closer and closer to finishing a basic personal worldview training that you can run on your own PC. We are
approaching the last stages of development and hope to have it ready to go in just a few more weeks. I will notify you
when it is ready. As I mentioned before, it is our desire to make this available without cost in as many ways as possible.
We will make CD copies to give away, and will also put it on the website so that it can be run from the site or downloaded
to your own computer. You will also be able to burn it onto a CD yourself, if you like.

When it is ready, we will make and distribute them as quickly as possible. Currently, the resources we have to do this are
somewhat limited and I would like to ask if you would be willing to help us move forward more quickly. We would like to be
able to reproduce the finished CDs in house, but this will require copying equipment that will (Continued on page 2)

What is Animism?
When I served as a missionary in Okinawa, there was a
man that I will never forget who actively attended one of our
churches. He was not mentally ill, as far as I could tell. He
was a nice fellow and could engage a person in conversa-
tion as well as anyone. But there was one very strange
thing about him. As he walked around, he would sometimes
swat the air as if he were shooing away a fly or mosquito.
Because it was such a strange thing, I asked the church’s
pastor what he was doing. What I heard rather surprised
me. I was told that he was swatting away what he thought
were evil spirits which were in his path. It seems that even
though he had become a Christian, there were elements of
his previous animistic religious beliefs that he had not yet
been able to shake.
While Okinawa is now a part of Japan, which is a very mod-
ern country, it also has its own distinct culture and religion.
Before it was taken over by the Japanese, it was an inde-
pendent kingdom. The native religion is a form of Animism
and is still widely practiced on the island.
At this point, you may be a bit surprised that such a modern
country, which has been so strongly influenced by Western
civilization, would still see such strong residual Animistic
ways in practice. You also may be wondering how this re-
lates to anything that is going on in the United States or oth-
er modern countries. Well the fact is, Animism is not a huge
player in Western societies, but it does have a solid core of
adherents who express this worldview in a wide variety of
religious practices. Let’s examine this worldview and see
where the tentacles of its influence reach.
Basic Premise
Before we explore more deeply about the various forms of
Animism, let’s take a (Continued on page 2)

Contact MarketFaith Ministries

312 Anton Dr. Toll Free: 888-883-0656
Tallahassee, FL 32312 info@marketfaith.org Phone: 850-383-9756
http://www.marketfaith.org Fax: 850-514-4571

1
(Introduction - Continued)
cost in the neighborhood of $2000.00. We would appreciate it if you would consider a tax deductible contribution to Mar-
ketFaith Ministries to help us move in this direction. Thank you so much for partnering with us to strengthen the Body of
Christ.

It is our hope that you are greatly benefiting from this newsletter. Would you please take a moment to forward this issue of
Worldview Made Practical to all of your Christian friends and encourage them to sign up. Of course, as with most of our
resources, there is no cost to subscribe. Subscription information is found below, or individuals can go to
http://www.marketfaith.org and sign up directly on the website.

(What is Animism - Continued) moment to define what it is and the basic beliefs that it puts forth. Animism tends to
be centered more in primitive societies and is closely associated with pagan religions. It is essentially based on an experi-
ential approach to life where people without a formal religious doctrine have tried to explain what they perceived as a tran-
scendent presence.

In its essence, Animism believes that there are many spirit beings who exist in the universe. These spirits live in a spiritual
part of reality, but are also actively engaged in interacting with the material world. Some are seen to inhabit material ob-
jects (like trees and rocks), some are heavenly objects (sky, sun, moon and stars), some are animals, and others are be-
lieved to be the spirits of people who have died. The spirit world is understood to exist parallel to the material world (like a
different dimension) and the two worlds exist in a symbiotic relationship with one another.

Human interaction with various spiritual beings is vital, and prayers and offerings are given to win their good will. It is up to
living humans to perform rituals and give offerings in order to manipulate and placate these gods. If the right actions are
not performed toward the spirits, they will cause bad things to happen to the individuals. The spirits depend on the actions
of human beings for their own well-being and will reward humans who act rightly toward them.

Animism assumes that any kind of unexplained event happens because spirit beings, or supernatural forces, are at work
in the natural world. Certainly natural forces are recognized as operating in situations where a natural cause can be readi-
ly seen. But in cases where a natural cause cannot be seen, it is automatically assumed to be caused by some supernat-
ural power.

History
Historically, Animism is difficult to pin down. It is commonly understood by secular anthropologists to be the most primitive
of all forms of religion. Many think that Animism was humanity’s first attempt to explain the nature of the world we live in.
As Christians, we certainly don’t acknowledge it to be the first, but it certainly is the least sophisticated in terms of theolog-
ical and philosophical doctrine.

Animism has emerged in some form in virtually every part of the world. It is most common in primitive tribal and nomadic
communities, and is typically associated with the era before writing systems developed. Since Animistic cultures have
non-literate backgrounds, there is not an actual recorded history of the development of this worldview. Because of this,
archaeological research depends heavily on the artifacts found in burial mounds and archeological excavations for their
research into the history of Animistic cultures. They also depend upon an examination of the rituals and folk beliefs of cul-
tural groups which still practice these beliefs in our present day.

Typically, Animistic cultures which have had significant interaction with societies based on other worldviews, have ended
up being more influenced by the more sophisticated usurper, and tend to quickly adopt many of the more “modern” prac-
tices. That being said, old practices die hard and it is not at all unusual to find a great deal of syncretism between the old
and new beliefs.

Belief Systems Which Come from Animism

There are a number of different religious traditions which have Animism as their core worldview. These include:
Shinto
Witchcraft
Astrology
Fortunetelling
Spiritism
Voodoo

(Continued on page 3)

2
(What is Animism - Continued)
How Animism Answers the 7 Worldview Questions?
1. What is the nature of ultimate reality? & 2. What is the nature of material reality?
The universe contains both material and immaterial parts. Spirits exist in a separate place from physical beings,
but they interact with each other in a symbiotic relationship.
3. What is a human being?
Humans are material creatures who inhabit the physical world and have a spiritual core.
4. What happens to a person at death?
At death, an individual’s spirit enters the spiritual dimension.
5. Why is it possible to know anything at all?
Knowledge is simply assumed to exist and is acquired by observation.
6. How do we know right and wrong?
Morality is based on experience.
7. What is the meaning of human history?
History is a linear progression of events without special meaning.

Practical Implications of Animism

The impact on culture, from Animism, is that there is no built-in inner drive to strive toward higher levels of achievement –
either individually or as a society. When something bad happens to an individual or to the group, it is believed to be be-
cause some spirit has been offended. As a result, there is no focus on advancing society, the focus is almost entirely on
making sure the spirits are constantly appeased. Rather than develop new implements and systems to advance society,
they concentrate on finding which spirits caused things to be bad and offering prayers and offerings to fix them.

The Animistic understanding of the operation of the world, and life in general, is that it is not moving toward a higher desti-
nation. Rather it basically just sits in static time. The focus is almost entirely on the present. The tendency is simply to live
life one day at a time and accept things the way they are.
Certainly there are places where Animistic religions are still
practiced but which have had advancement in the various
realms of the society. However, the places where these Subscription Information
exceptions have occurred tend to be places where there
has been significant influence from the outside by some If you would like to receive Worldview Made Practical as a
other worldview. free email subscription, simply go to www.marketfaith.org
and click on the sign up link.
How Animism Deal with Specific Culture War Issues?
Life Issues - Abortion, Euthanasia, Suicide, Genocide, Past Issues of Worldview Made Practical are available
Murder, “Right to die,” Terrorism, War free of charge in .pdf (Acrobat) format in the archives at
Animism considers most of these issues to be wrong as http://www.marketfaith.org.
they relate to ones own group. Each one of these tends to
disrupt the connection between family and clan – both
those who are living in this world and the ones on the other PERMISSION TO REPRINT: If you wish to reprint this
side of death. It may be another matter, though, as it re- month’s article in your own print or electronic newsletter,
lates to other groups. The primary goal is to make sure that please include the following paragraph:
one’s own gods are protected and taken care of. The group
that fails to do that will be punished by their gods. Reprinted from Worldview Made Practical; a free e-zine
Sexual Issues - Adultery, Bigamy, Polygamy, Exhibition- produced by MarketFaith Ministries featuring practical
ism, Fornication, Homosexuality, Pedophilia, Pornography, teaching and life tools to help Christians become more ef-
Bestiality, Prostitution, Rape fective in their faith life. Discover MarketFaith Ministries at
In Animistic societies, most of these activities are consid- www.marketfaith.org.
ered wrong as they relate to one’s own group (though each
group might have its own ideas about any particular act).
Anything that tends to disrupt the connection between fam-
ily and clan, both living and on the other side of death, is
typically considered to be bad. Acts such as rape and pros- Support MarketFaith Ministries
titution, when done to someone not related to the group or
the group’s gods, may not be seen as particularly trouble- The purpose of MarketFaith Ministries is to equip the Body
some, unless the act ends up having a bad effect on one’s of Christ to become more effective by sharing the practical
own group. applications of worldview. We are involved in developing
training and resource materials for that very purpose. If
Personal Integrity Issues - Cheating, Fraud, Greed, Ly- you would like to partner with us in this effort, you may
ing, Profanity, Revenge, Theft send your tax deductible contribution to MarketFaith Minis-
(Continued on page 4) tries, 321 Anton Dr., Tallahassee, FL 32312.

3
(What is Animism - Continued)
Within the sphere of influence of the local gods, Animistic thought would probably consider each of these issues to be
bad, since they are disruptive to the unity of the group. Outside of the group, however, where the influence of the clan or
family gods is not an issue, there is no essential problem.

Physical Health Issues - Alcohol abuse, Drug abuse, Gluttony, Obesity, Smoking, Overwork, Lack of exercise
Animism doesn’t necessarily see any of these issues to be particularly problematic unless they result in behavior that
harms the group. In any case, it is not the individual activities that are bad, but the actions that result from them. As long
as a person can keep from bringing difficulty on the group, and not disrupt the gods, there would be no problem with
these.

Industriousness Issues - Gambling, Hedonism, Laziness, Begging, Mooching

Industriousness issues tend to focus on happenings that relate to self-satisfaction. Animists have a high concern with the
welfare of the group. Thus the idea of becoming totally self-absorbed could cause damage to the group which would not
be considered a good thing.

Relationship Issues - Bigotry, Child Exploitation, Domestic Violence, Hatred, Divorce, Prejudice, Slavery, Torture
In Animistic belief systems, most of these issues would be considered wrong as they relate to ones own group. Each
would disrupt the connection between family and clan – both those living and those on the other side of death. It may be
another matter, though, as it relates to other groups. The primary goal is to make sure that one’s own gods are protected
and taken care of. The group that fails to do that will be punished by their gods. There is no particular problem, though, if
this is done to those outside of ones group as long as their gods are not able to cause problems to your group.

Church-State Issues - Posting of Ten Commandments, Religious symbols on public property, Praying in school, Pray-
ing at public institutions, Government money to religious schools, Government money to religious charities, Religious or-
ganizations meeting on public property, Religious symbols included in public symbols, Religious words in the pledge of
allegiance
In principle, Animists would not have a problem in this area. They already recognize physical and spiritual reality as com-
pletely intertwined.

Summary
Some time back I wrote a letter to the editor stating my opinion about an issue that related to expressing faith in the pub-
lic square. When the letter was printed in the paper, they also included my personal e-mail address. I expected to get
some personal responses from this, especially from the atheist crowd.

What surprised me, though, was that I got just as many responses from Wiccans. They were actually not trying to en-
gage me in a theological discussion, they just didn’t want their faith to be left out of the mix. Because this religious form
tends to group themselves in very small circles, we don’t often hear much from them. But there is a very distinct pres-
ence of this and many other adherents of Animistic belief systems who are living all around us.

I believe that most of us shy away from discussions with people who hold beliefs that are unfamiliar. But these people
need the Lord, too. Understanding Animistic beliefs at the worldview level, and having the ability to contrast it with the
truth of the gospel, will give us the knowledge and confidence to share our faith with anyone, no matter how esoteric their
beliefs.

Coming in February - What is Theism?

Find these books along

with other great world-
view resources at
www.marketfaith.org