Those Rituals you Think are Pagan Probably Have Catholic Roots

I recently heard a respected Catholic exorcist claim that you shouldn’t knock on wood, because this is an ancient Druid practice invoking tree spirits for protection. Only I’m pretty sure he’s wrong about that.

The explanation I’ve encountered for the origin of “knocking on wood” is actually Christian. Because our Lord’s passion took place on a wooden cross, there is an idea that all of the wood of the world has been sanctified in an analogical sense. Since very few have the privilege of being able to touch the wood of the True Cross, the practice arose of touching any wood as a way of invoking the protection of the Cross of Christ.

Now I’m no anthropologist and I haven’t done extensive research into this topic, but, as an explanation for the origin of “knocking on wood,” it makes sense. And if it’s being done for devotional purposes, as I’ve just described, there is no reason a Christian shouldn’t do it. If you are doing it superstitiously, that’s another matter.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church rightly condemns superstition as contrary to religious virtue (see paragraphs 2110-2111). Superstition is described as “a perverse excess of religion” and “a deviation of religious feeling.” The word itself means “too much belief.” If you believe that rapping upon a wooden table top is going to magically ward off evil or bring good luck, then you believe too much.

Superstition is condemned because it is irrational. Insofar as superstition leads one away from worship of the True God, it can potentially open one up to demonic influence. But that’s very different than saying knocking on wood exposes you to demons because Druids used to tap on trees to summon tree spirits. The idea that simply making a physical gesture (like the poses used in yoga, for instance) can invite demons into your life because someone somewhere used the same gesture in the context of pagan prayer or worship is also superstitious. If you believe that, you believe too much.

And I’m pretty sure this is not a Druid practice in any case. Again, I’m no expert. But when I was an undergrad studying history, I had a strong interest in the ancient Celts. One of my big pet peeves at the time was the rampant misinformation circulating in popular culture about anything “Celtic.” This was especially true of pagan Celtic religions, as I had many friends who were involved in Wicca and Neo-Paganism. So I went looking to see what we actually know about Druids and their religious practice. What I found was… nothing. We know almost nothing about the ancient Druids. The records simply don’t exist. Theirs was an oral tradition and most of what we know about them is conjecture. Any qualified historian or anthropologist will tell you this.

This is true of pretty much all pre-Christian European pagan religions. The notion that ancient religious practices somehow survived underground for centuries in an otherwise thoroughly Christian culture is popular, but largely unsupported by historical research.

I bring this up because Halloween is coming. And then will come Christmas. And we will once again have to endure the obligatory round of claims circulating on social media about the supposed pagan origins of Jack-o-Lanterns and costumes, Christmas trees and mistletoe. Frankly, I’m surprised no one has yet suggested that eating turkey on Thanksgiving is really pagan because Native Americans sometimes ate turkey (whether or not it was with cranberry sauce is a matter of debate).

When one goes looking for the actual roots of these holiday traditions — turkey eating aside — one usually discovers that they originate in various medieval (Christian) folk customs. This is why the “wood of the cross” origin of knocking on wood rings more true to me than the Druid story.

The suggestion that these popular customs are really pagan is the product of post-Reformation Protestant slander against Catholicism. There was (and still is to some extent) a puritanical bend in some Protestant circles that disavowed any form of celebration not explicitly found in the Bible. This led, for example, to the outlawing of Christmas in the New England colony of Massachusetts between 1659-1681. In more modern times, the “pagan origin” trope has been used by atheists as a slander against Christians in general. I find it ironic (and not in a good way) that those same arguments are now being taken up in some traditional — and in many ways puritanical — Catholic circles.

Let’s be clear. Demons are real. Their existence is taught in the Bible and by the magisterium of the Catholic Church. Exorcism ministry is a real and necessary thing. It’s something the Church has been involved in since the time of Christ and I have great respect for those priests who devote themselves to this spiritually challenging work. I don’t mean to be dismissive of any of that.

Demons work to negatively influence us in many and varied ways, one of which is tricking us into paranoia. It is easy to become so obsessed with the demonic that we begin seeing demons everywhere, which leads to fear and anxiety, over time wearing away the peace and trust we are to have in God.

It is certainly wrong for Christians to engage in any sort of unauthorized ritual invoking spirits, such as consulting mediums, using Ouija boards, and so forth. This sort of thing is unwise on many levels, not the least of which is the fact that it invites demonic influence into our lives. But we don’t need to fear invoking a demon by accidentally saying or doing the wrong thing, like “knocking on wood.” That’s not how it works.

Let’s use burning incense as an example. This is a common practice found in many religions. If I’m burning incense in church as part of liturgical prayer, then that’s what it is — a prayer to God. If I’m burning incense as part of a Wiccan ritual offering to some earth goddess, that’s another matter entirely. I’m invoking a pagan spirit and opening myself up to the influence of that spirit. But if I’m just burning incense at home because I like how it smells, then I’m doing neither of those things, and I’m no more “accidentally” opening myself up to demons than I am “accidentally” praying to God.

So if you are knocking on a tree in an attempt to awaken a “tree spirit” to do your bidding, that’s clearly something a Christian should not be involved in and yes, you are potentially inviting demonic activity into your life by doing so. But if that’s not what you’re doing, then that’s not what you’re doing. Just tapping on a piece of wood itself is not going to magically summon a demon — especially if you are doing it as a devotion to the True Cross of Christ.

Remember, one of the titles of Satan is the Father of Lies. If we really want to steer people away from demonic influence, one of the most effective weapons in our arsenal is the truth. Jesus said that if we become his disciples, then “you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (Jn 8:31).