The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore has made its stance clear: Tarot cards are not okay for Catholics.

In a short statement on its official website, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore re-affirmed its position on tarot cards.

Tarot cards are not OK

Very recently, an article about tarot cards was posted on a local website. It alludes that the practice of reading these tarot cards is acceptable to Catholics.

We want to clearly state, that tarot cards, like other forms of divination, are rejected in the Catholic faith.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church clearly affirms that:

“All forms of divination are to be rejected: recourse to Satan or demons, conjuring up the dead, or other practices falsely supposed to ‘unveil’ the future. Consulting horoscopes, astrology, palm reading, interpretation of omens and lots, the phenomena of clairvoyance, and recourse to mediums all conceal a desire for power over time, history, and, in the last analysis, other human beings, as well as a wish to conciliate hidden powers. They contradict the honor, respect, and loving fear that we owe to God alone (Catechism of the Catholic Church No. 2116). ”

Based on the above, Fr James Yeo, Rector of the Catholic Theological Institute adds: “Therefore, Catholics are forbidden to have recourse to any form of divination mentioned in the CCC as it violates the very first commandment (Exodus 20:2-3) and is also considered by Scripture as an abomination before God. Thus, one cannot claim to be a Catholic and yet resort to such forms of divination.

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The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore oversees a congregation of some 360,000 Catholics and has 32 churches spread across five districts in Singapore.

The statement was circulated in response to a Mothership.sg article on a tarot card reader in Singapore who is also a practising Catholic, which you can read here:

Top photo by Tan Guan Zhen