FALSE PROPHETS
Chapter 38

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» Jeane Dixon (UO/55-61)

 

nvariably when the subject of astrology is discussed, the question of Jeane Dixon is brought up. Is Jeane Dixon a true prophetess? Do her powers come from God? What about the amazing predictions that she has made? We feel these and other questions concerning Jeane Dixon need to be addressed in light of the Bible in order to get a true picture of the situation.

Background

Jeane Dixon was born Jeane (or Lydia) Pinckert around the turn of the century in a small Wisconsin town. Her psychic abilities were either non-existent or hidden during her early years. It was not until she met a Gypsy woman who gave her a crystal ball that her psychic career began.

Supposedly, this Gypsy woman told her she had the makings of a psychic and was destined for great things. Although Jeane Dixon received recognition as early as the 1940s for her psychic powers, it was the publication of two books concerning her life, A Gift of Prophecy by Ruth Montgomery in 1965, and Jeane Dixon: My Life and Prophecies by Rene Noorbergen in 1969, that made her famous.

The Claims of Jeane Dixon

Jeane Dixon has made it clear that she believes her prophetic gift comes from God. "It is my belief God has given me a gift of prophecy for His own reasons, and I do not question them."

Furthermore, she has stated, "The future has been shown me to 2037 AD." She told her biographer, Rene Noorbergen, that "the same spirit that worked through Isaiah and John the Baptist also works through me."

In the foreword of her book, The Gift of Prophecy, Ruth Montgomery designated Mrs. Dixon as a "modern-day psychic whose visions apparently lift the curtain of tomorrow."

Fulfilled Prophecies?

Mrs. Dixon and others have made some astounding claims as to her ability to predict the future. The introductory section of one of her books reads as follows:

If you don't believe that anyone can predict the future with a crystal ball ... then read these startling, often frightening, precognitions of events by the phenomenal Jeane Dixon.

-The assassination of President Kennedy.

-Nehru's death and his succession by Shastri.

-That China would go communistic.

-The assassination of Mahatma Ghandi.

- Russia's launching the world's first satellite.

- Eisenhower's election; his heart attack, and his recovery.

-The Kremlin shake-up ending with Kruschev's dismissal and Suslov's takeover.

She also supposedly predicted the deaths of Carole Lombard and Marilyn Monroe and the assassinations of Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr.

The May 13, 1956, issue of Parade magazine said this about one of her prophecies:

As to the 1960 election, Mrs. Dixon thinks it will be dominated by labor and won by a Democrat. But he will be assassinated or die in office, though not necessarily in his first term.

With these examples of fulfilled prophecy, one might conclude that Jeane Dixon has a true prophetic gift. However, upon closer examination her "amazing" prophecies are not really all that amazing. Her prophecies concerning the 1960 Presidential election prompted Milbourne Cristopher to comment:

As we know now, the election was not "dominated by labor." She did not name the Democrat she said would win; no date was given for the President-to-be's end; and his announced demise was qualified with Delphic ingenuity "assassinated or die in office, though not necessarily in his first term.' Thus if the president served a single term, it would be within four years; if he was re-elected there was an eight-year span.

Such a surmise was not illogical for anyone who has studied recent American history. William McKinley was assassinated a year after the turn of the century. Warren Gamaliel Harding and Franklin Delano Roosevelt died in office, and during Harry S. Truman's tenure an attempt was made on his life. Moreover, the normal burdens of the Presidency are such that it is commonly regarded as a mankilling office. Woodrow Wilson and Dwight Eisenhower were critically ill during their terms. Unfortunately for the nation, the odds against Mrs. Dixon's prophecy's being fulfilled were not too great - 7-3 based on twentieth-century experience.

Moreover, before the 1960 election, Mrs. Dixon changed her mind, as Cristopher points out:

In January 1960 Mrs. Dixon changed her mind. Kennedy, then a contender for the Democrat nomination, would not be elected in November, she said in Ruth Montgomery's syndicated column. In June she stated that "the symbol of the Presidency is directly over the head of Vice-President Nixon" but "unless the Republican party really gets out and puts forth every effort it will topple." Fire enough shots, riflemen agree, and eventually you will hit the bull's-eye.

One of the most famous of all her prophecies was received on February 5, 1962. "A child, born somewhere in the Middle East shortly after 7 A.M. (EST) on February 5, 1962, will revolutionize the world. Before the close of the century he will bring together all mankind in one all-embracing faith. This will be the foundation of a new Christianity, with every sect and creed united through this man who will walk among the people to spread the wisdom of the Almighty Power.... He is the answer to the prayers of a troubled world."

This prophecy of a coming Messiah who would save the world received much criticism. Consequently, Mrs. Dixon revised the true identity of this child. Her biographer, Rene Noorbergen, notes:

For several years Jeane continued to advocate that this Christ child would guide the world in the early 1980s. The child was godly, he was divine, and he would become the salvation of the world.

Suddenly something happened. While interviewing "Mrs. D." for My Life and Prophecies, I became aware of the inconsistencies in the revelation. Over-sensitive to criticism, Mrs. Dixon soon changed her interpretation. "There is no doubt that he will fuse multitudes into one all-embracing doctrine," she explained in her "revised version." She continued, "He will form a new 'Christianity' based on this 'almighty power,' but leading man in a direction far removed from the teachings and life of Christ, the Son." Enlarging on her new interpretation, she called the child the "Antichrist" - a far cry from her first prophetic evaluation.

False Prophecies Although Jeane Dixon supposedly has made some predictions that have come true, she has made many other prophecies that have failed. These include:

1. World War III would begin in 1954. 2. Red China would be admitted to the United Nations in 1958. This did not occur until 1971. 3. The Vietnam war would end in 1966. It did not end until 1975. 4. On October 19, 1968, she predicted Jacqueline Kennedy was not thinking of marriage. The next day Mrs. Kennedy married Aristotle Onassis! 5. Union Leader, Walter Reuther, would run for President in 1964. He did not. 6. In 1970, she predicted the following events which did not occur: (a) Castro would be overthrown from Cuba and would have to leave the island; (b) new facts concerning the death of President Kennedy would be brought to light from a foreign source; (c) attempts would be made on the life of President Nixon.

Evaluation

There are those who believe Jeane Dixon has no supernatural power whatsoever but is rather a clever fortuneteller. Danny Korem comments:

In a given population there will be those whose "hit" ratio (a thought and an event matching up) will be higher than others simply because of the law of probability. This is true in any game of chance. When a clever fortuneteller combines good cold-reading techniques with a chance guess or two, he or she will appear to almost unerringly pick up someone's thoughts and prognosticate the future, but there will be other times when he or she will fail.

My questions is this: If such powers exist, why are they so fleeting, and why can't they be tested? The reason is a simple one. They don't exist. In the 12 years I have devoted to researching this subject, I have neither seen a valid case of prognostication, nor have I been confronted with hard-core documentation to substantiate a purported case.

Whether Mrs. Dixon possesses a supernatural ability to predict the future or not, she is definitely not a prophet of God for she fails on the following counts:

(1) She uses occult artifacts.

Jeane Dixon uses such things as a crystal ball, a deck of tarot cards and other occult artifacts to receive her prophecies. This type of practice is at odds with Scripture, for the biblical prophets received their prophecies directly from God without the use of any artifacts. The artifacts Mrs. Dixon uses are the same ones used by fortunetellers who attempt to predict the future through occultic means. A true prophet of God would never resort to using any occultic paraphernalia.

The true prophet of God spoke by the direct agency of God through the power of the Holy Spirit, not by means of any occultic devices. The words of the prophets are preserved for us in Holy Scripture (Romans 1:2) and their supreme testimony is always of Jesus Christ, the Son of God (Hebrews 1:1,2).

(2) Her prophecies do not exalt Jesus Christ.

The Bible makes it clear that all true prophecy has Jesus Christ as its central theme, "For the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophecy" (Revelation 19:10, NASB).

Mrs. Dixon fails miserably in this, for there is no attempt in her prophecies to bring people to the God of the Bible and His Son, Jesus Christ. There is simply no witness to Christ in her prophecies!

The biblical prophets always prophesied in accordance with God's will and for His glory. Mrs. Dixon does not glorify God in her prophecies, and there is no room for frivolous or gossiping prophecy in God's Word.

The biblical prophets also gave their prophecies in the name of the Lord, something Jeane Dixon does not do.

Since Jeane Dixon does not prophesy in the name of the Lord, or for the purpose of bringing individuals into a personal relationship with Christ, she cannot be considered a true prophet of God.

(3) She gives prophecies that do not come true.

Mrs. Dixon also fails in the most important test of all: She utters prophecies which do not come true. The Bible makes it clear how one can know who is a true prophet of God:

And you may say in your heart, "How shall we know the word which the Lord has not spoken?" When a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing does not come about or come true, that is the thing which the LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him (Deuteronomy 18:21,22, NASB).

» Edgar Cayce and the Association of Research and Enlightenment (A.R.E.) (UO/38-45)

A man who caused considerable controversy in the twentieth century with his prophetic utterings was Edgar Cayce, known as the "sleeping prophet" because of the prophecies he gave while he appeared to be sleeping.

Born in Kentucky in 1877, Cayce realized at an early age that he was clairvoyant and he determined to use his gift for the betterment of mankind. At 21 Cayce was struck with paralysis of the throat, losing most of his ability to speak. After some time Cayce diagnosed his disease and prescribed a cure while in a self-induced trance. The word quickly spread of the strange ability he possessed.

Cayce began to diagnose illnesses and prescribe cures for people who were thousands of miles away. He would make remarkable diagnoses which were later verified by medical authorities. All this was accomplished in spite of the fact that Cayce had no medical training and only a grammar school education.

Sometimes during his trances he would speak about religious and philosophical issues, and occasionally he would predict the future. During his career his "readings" on medical questions totalled almost 15,000.

Cayce was active in the "Christian" church, faithfully reading his Bible from beginning to end each year for 46 years. However, at the same time, he was an occult practitioner who gained international fame for his exploits.

In 1931 Cayce formed a foundation which he named the Association of Research and Enlightenment, Inc. (A.R.E.) The purpose of his organization was to preserve and make available for study the readings of Edgar Cayce. His son, Hugh Lynn, assumed leadership of the organization upon his father's death in 1945. The A.R.E. did not stagnate after its founder's death, but instead used his readings and experiences as a vast resource for reaching the contemporary world.

Today's aggressively evangelistic A.R.E. claims to "offer a contemporary and mature view of the reality of extrasensory perception, the importance of dreams, the logic of reincarnation, and a rational or loving personal concept of God, the practical use of prayer and meditation and a deeper understanding of the Bible." 18/48 Current paid membership in the A.R.E. totals 20,000.

Cayce's readings

The readings made by Cayce over the years reveal not only cures for medical ailments, but also statements about God and the future. His readings brought out the following:

-California would fall into the Pacific Ocean in the early 1970s.

-Jesus Christ was a reincarnation of Adam, Melchizedek, Joshua and other figures who lived before Him.

- God has in His nature a male and female principle, making Him a Father-Mother God.

-Mary, the mother of Jesus, was virgin-born like her Son. 

-God does not know the future.

- Salvation is something man does on his own. It is not a work of God alone.

-Reincarnation occurs in many human beings.

-Jesus was tutored in prophecy on Mt. Carmel while He was a teenager. His teacher was a woman named Judy, a leader of the Essenes.

-Jesus grew up in Capernaum, not Nazareth.

-Luke did not write the Acts of the Apostles as traditionally believed by the Church. The true author was Cayce himself in a previous life as Lucius, Bishop of Laodicea.

Biblical Evaluation

Although the A.R.E. claims to be a study group and not a religion, the readings made by Cayce comment on God and consequently should be evaluated in the light of God's revealed Word, the Bible.

First and foremost, Edgar Cayce is a false prophet according to biblical standards. He predicted many things which did not come to pass. Deuteronomy 18:21,22 applies here as well as with Jeane Dixon.

When Cayce said God does not know the future, he clearly contradicted Scripture. In stark contrast to Cayce, the God of the Bible does know the future, telling mankind of events before they come to pass. For example:

I declared the former things long ago and they went forth from my mouth, and I proclaimed them. Suddenly I acted, and they came to pass.... Therefore I declared them to you long ago; before they took place I proclaimed them to you, lest you should say, my idol has done them and my graven image and my molten image have commanded them (Isaiah 48:3,5, NASB).

Through His prophets, the God of the Bible revealed many things in detail before they came to pass. The predictions were specific and always accurate. Contrast that to Cayce, whose predictions were vague and often inaccurate. Cayce and his followers have a low view of the person and work of Jesus Christ. One Cayce devotee expressed it this way:

For almost 20 centuries the moral sense of the Western World has been blunted by a theology which teaches the vicarious atonement of sin through Christ, the Son of God.... AU men and women are sons of God.... Christ's giving of his life ... is no unique event in history.... To build these two statements, therefore -that Christ was the Son of God and that he died for man's salvation- into a dogma, and then to make salvation depend upon believing that dogma, has been the great psychological crime because it places responsibility for redemption on something external to the self; it makes salvation dependent on belief in the divinity of another person rather than on self-transformation through belief in one's own intrinsic divinity.

Cayee's claim to be the reincarnated author of the book of Acts rests on his fundamental belief in reincarnation. This is one of the central doctrines and greatest attractions of the A.R.E.

William Petersen gives a thought-provoking conclusion concerning Cayce's activities:

For a good portion of his life, Cayce was a commercial photographer. He understood very well the mechanics of his trade. A blank film is developed in the dark.

The nature of a photograph, whether it is a formal family picture or pornography, depends not on the film but on the photographer who uses the camera. During his trances, Cayce's mind was like a blank film that would be developed in the dark.

I believe Cayce allowed his camera to get into the wrong hands.

 

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