The kids are not alright. Or maybe they’re extremely alright, depending on your feelings about witchcraft.
WitchTok — TikTok’s thriving occult subculture — has now accumulated 69 billion views. Billion. With a B. Teenagers are learning spell-casting, tarot reading, crystal work, and “manifesting” from their phones, and entire cottage industries have sprung up around Etsy spell kits and TikTok witch influencers with millions of followers.
Youth for Christ recently reported that teens are having dreams of Jesus and rushing to join youth groups. At the same time, those same teens are apparently also selling each other candles infused with “banishing energy” on the internet. It’s possible these groups overlap. Spirituality is complicated.
Christian organizations are understandably concerned. They’ve published guides with titles like “The Allure and Danger of WitchTok” which, to be fair, is a great title. The research suggests teens are drawn to witchcraft because it emphasizes personal empowerment, connection to nature, and aesthetic vibes — which, honestly, is not that different from what youth groups used to offer, minus the crystals.
We’re not taking a side here. We’re just noting that 69 billion views is an enormous amount of witchcraft, and that whoever is manufacturing crystals right now is absolutely printing money.
The Conversation has a solid deep-dive on how it works. Premier Christianity is less enthusiastic about it, but has thoughts.