Book Review: Kingdom of the Occult

I received a review copy of Kingdom of the Occult by Thomas Nelson Publishing. This hefty volume (700+ pages) is designed as a reference work for those desiring more information about occult groups. Based on the research and work done by Walter Martin, this book was compiled and published after his death by his daughter Jill Martin Rische and longtime research assistant Kurt Van Gorden. Martin was the author of The Kingdom of the Cults, another research text that provides information on cults.

When I first read the book, I was blown away at how much information is crammed into this book. Separated into sections based on the occult group, it covers a wide assortment of occult and other “hidden knowledge” groups, such as witchcraft, Wicca, Kabbalah, and mysticism. For each group, there is a concise yet informative history of the cult, showing how it was formed and how certain practices were developed. Modern iterations of the group are then discussed (such as Hollywood’s recent mass acceptance of Kabbalah). For each group, the book provides a Biblical response to the group, pointing out the flaws in the group’s beliefs and giving Biblical support to the argument. Finally, at the end of each chapter there are some recommended resources listed that provide additional help to combat the group.

The strongest aspect of the book, besides the useful Biblical responses to each group, is the last few chapters of the book that deal with counseling and evangelizing members of the occult. These chapters provide advice and examples of how to minister to members of the occult. I found this very helpful, since a minister’s goal is not to merely learn more about a cult, but to use that knowledge to change people’s lives.

This book is a tremendous resource for youth workers and ministers. Some teens today are very open to experimenting in the occult. The only way to effectively minister to these students is to know where they are coming from, and what they are involved in. This book allows ministers to remove all ignorance and to understand what they are dealing with. It also provides strategy and tools to use while ministering to someone in the occult. A terrific book that I would recommend for any youth worker’s shelf. Rating: 5/5