And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire,

and used divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do evil

in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.

            A calf is a sacrifice but when it is worshipped, it becomes an idol. Casting idols from molten brass, copper or silver is a very ancient practice, and the idols found near the temples in the East today may have been formed more than five hundred years ago.

II Kings 17:16, 17

And they left all the commands of the LORD their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made a grove, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served Baal. And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire, and used divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.

            The practice of "fire walking" is not new, but as old as history and as devilish as Satan. Only a devil-possessed person could walk white hot coals of fire without getting burned.

           The Mohammedans, who are not supposed to be superstitious or indulge in base practices, have an unusual tradition. Once a year, at the time of the greatest religious festival, they build a special pit 14 feet in diameter and 4 or 5 feet deep, with an elevated wall 2 feet high surrounding the pit. A few days before the feast they build a fire and keep spreading the red hot coals throughout the pit. On the festival day people walk through the fire to prove that they do not get their feet burned. If they have to find out if a man has committed a crime, they compel him to go through the fire. If he gets his feet burned, he is guilty.

            God is not pleased with such ungodly practices, and His people are constantly warned not to participate in such devilish acts. God's people are to be judged by Him and His standards and not according to any of man's ideas. God is a spirit, and they that worship Him are to worship Him in spirit and not according to any image or idol. A spirit has no form or comeliness. The true God is the Father of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Bishop K.C. Pillai, D.D.