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Appendix A: The Source of Paranormal Abilities

Additional Reading

What would it take for a paranormal ability like, say, telepathy to work? This may sound like a childish question, but there is a point to discussing it. Comic books wave telepathy away as some kind of genetic mutation or experimental chemical. Set all that aside for a moment. How might telepathy work? We would need something that could facilitate reading our own brain signals, reading the brain signals of another person, converting each unique thought pattern into a mutually understandable format, and transmitting a large amount of data across empty space between two people in real time. Identifying the “something” here makes a world of difference.

Could a gadget do that? This is not an unrealistic hypothesis. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth effectively communicate the “thoughts” of one computer to another in this way. There are also various research teams studying electrical activity within the human brain in order to map those signals to body movements—similar in concept to a Bluetooth specification for the human brain—but current technology is not nearly advanced enough to read our innermost thoughts. It may never be. Neuroscience does not fully understand the human brain, and from a spiritual perspective, there intuitively must be a line somewhere between the machinery of the body and the domain of the soul. This is backed up by Scripture, which teaches human beings have a body and soul component (Eccl 12:7; Ps 31:5; Luke 24:39; 2 Cor 12:2–4; Rev 20:4). Thoughts are more likely to reside in the soul than the human body. After all, human bodies are functionally similar, but all people have unique personalities and unique thoughts. It seems unlikely that a gadget will ever enable full-on mental telepathy.

What about innate human capability? There are no mainstream, peer-reviewed, scientific studies that have ever validated any claims that telepathy is a natural human function. Some have wondered whether the interaction between the human brain and natural electric fields or quantum physics might provide a workable solution; however, measurable, repeatable evidence simply does not exist. While humans do generate natural electromagnetic fields, and the quantum mechanics of subatomic particles are frequently counter-intuitive, it is entirely unreasonable to jump straight from these concepts to the idea that humans can naturally control any of this to facilitate interpersonal telepathy. Believing it without proving it amounts to religious doctrine. Those who agree that Scripture provides our sole source of spiritual truth will find there are no instances in Scripture of any person exhibiting paranormal abilities as a byproduct of their own unique genetic sequence or unusual talents. Perhaps the only noteworthy products of rare genes we find in Scripture are a group of unusually large people (Numbers 13:33; 1 Sam 17:4) and a man covered in red hair (Gen 25:25). Though interesting, these provide no evidence that natural human telepathy is possible.

Does a paranormal ability like telepathy necessitate a supernatural element? This moves our discussion squarely into a spiritual domain. Here we find biblical evidence: Jesus knew exactly what another person was thinking on at least two different occasions (Matt 9:4; Mark 2:8; Luke 5:22; 6:8)—as did the prophet Elisha much earlier (2 Kgs 5:25–27; 6:8–12, 32). However, Jesus was the earthly incarnation of Yahweh and Elisha was a prophet empowered by God who received a “double portion” of the prophet Elijah’s God-given, miraculous empowerment (2 Kgs 2:9–11). It should come as no surprise they could do this. Knowing the thoughts of a person is well within the capabilities of the Lord (Gen 6:5; Ps 139:1–2; Isa 55:9). Given who these two men were, we must assume a supernatural element—namely the power of God—enabled them to achieve these feats. Where does that leave us? Should human telepathy occur, the something that would make telepathy possible must have a supernatural origin. Who are the two opposing supernatural beings we see in Scripture? God and Satan. We see divine miracles throughout the Bible courtesy of God; we see demonic miracles throughout Job (and other books) courtesy of Satan. This demonstrates that God and Satan are both capable of supernatural miracles. One of these two supernatural sources must ultimately empower a paranormal ability like telepathy for it to work.

But how many of us have ever actually witnessed a miracle resembling telepathy among clergy? I am willing to guess very few of us. If this happens at all today, it is rare and not always what it seems. That is important to bear in mind. In fact, the apostle Paul writes, “For who among people knows the thoughts of a person except the spirit of the person that is in him?” (1 Cor 2:11 NASB). When we presume a supernatural origin and consider people who are not Christian or not actively furthering the kingdom of God in some way, it becomes certain that any incidence of telepathy derives from a satanic source. It is no stretch to think that demons in one demonized person could communicate with demons in another demonized person to create an illusion of telepathy. Feeling the emotions of a physically distant person could also be demonic communication by a similar means. Alternatively, either phenomenon could be simple demonic deception merely intended to ensnare the practitioner. Demons habitually lie (John 8:44). They also display social characteristics (Matt 12:45), so they know how to communicate with one another.

Just because we read something in a comic book does not mean it cannot also happen in the real world; however, the mechanics explaining how something fantastical could happen are almost certainly very different when comparing comic books with our ordinary lives. I do not advocate giving up comic books and adventure stories just because they do not mirror reality. Rather, it is healthy to understand that fiction is only an expression of the human imagination and rarely a blueprint to how life really works.