The same network that hosts The Long Island Medium has decided to venture further into their whimsical misrepresentation of mediumship by launching a second reality show based on the dark art, this one called “Mama Medium.”

Mama Medium, which airs on Monday nights at 8:00 p.m., stars Jennie Marie Cancelmi, a middle-aged woman from Rochester, New York who refers to herself as a “empathic” psychic medium.

According to this article appearing in New York Upstate, Jennie Marie is presented as a kind of hero who interacts with a variety of people such as a mother trying to cope with the death of a child, and a family who lost their father in a plane crash and helps them connect with their lost loved ones. She also speaks for those who can’t speak for themselves such as a woman who was left paralyzed and unable to speak after a mishap related to lap band surgery.

Jenny claims she’s a fourth generation clairvoyant and comes from a family that has always had “gifts.” Her own ability to see into the future began when she was in middle school. By the time she reached her mid-20’s, she was experiencing moments that “connected her with the other side,” which is when she realized that she was special. From that time onward, she decided to meditate and let her power grow.

She went on to became a hairdresser and would pass messages along to her clients. When they came back to tell her that her messages had come true, she realized it was time to devote her life to her “gift.”

Since then, she married and had four sons, all of whom are manifesting similar “gifts.”

Several years ago, she told her husband that she would have a reality show and, sure enough, TLC just couldn’t resist, especially not after the enormous popularity of The Long Island Medium. And so now we have yet another show that misrepresents mediumship in a way that makes it look like it’s okay to dabble in the occult as long as you’re helping someone.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way in the real occult world. Those dark arts are drawing their power from a person named Satan and this malevolent being is only too happy to oblige those who believe calling upon him can be “empathic” or “fun.” He is well-known to play along for awhile, until the person is absolutely convinced that what they’re doing is okay, before he reminds them that these “gifts” don’t come cheap. There’s a price to pay and it’s always more than we can afford.

For example, Father Herbert Thurston writing in the early 20th century in his book, The Church and Spiritualism, wrote about many of the mediums of his time who warned others not to get involved in the profession because of the dangers. He tells harrowing stories of mediums who were attacked by the spirits they summoned, or who were harassed to the point of nearly going insane by spirits who would not leave them alone.

Nothing much has changed in the last century. Moira Noonan, a former medium who has now repented and returned to the Catholic faith, had the same experience just a few decades ago. As I detail in my book, The Learn to Discern Compendium, Noonan admitted that over time, she actually began to see the source of her powers.

“As I became more psychically proficient, I actually began to see angels and demons,” she writes in Ransomed From Darkness.

“I saw so many things, most of which I didn’t want to see. Demons, after all, don’t approach one gently, asking ‘do you have time for me now?’ Once the door is open, they bombard you. I eventually found it hard to sleep because my mind was always rushing, without interruption . . . Ask anyone who’s been a psychic, especially a clairvoyant. They will tell you the same thing: they have no peace.”

But these facts don’t draw TV viewers so they’re conveniently left out. After all, who cares about how irresponsible it is to misrepresent something so dangerous? Only religious fanatics, hopeless skeptics, and those who are too backward to realize that there’s money at stake here, and money always trumps morality. That’s why it’s okay to market this treacherous distortion during prime time to kids the same way Ouija boards are sold in the local toy store and kids fiction is riddled with sorcery.

That’s why we’ll never hear anything but Jennie Marie’s take on her “gift:”

“It’s important for people to know that it isn’t scary or evil,” Jennie Marie insists. “It can be fun and and lighthearted. We remember good times with loved ones and laughter makes it easier. Everyone just wants guidance and validation.”

Yes, but when we seek that guidance and validation from the wrong place, things can – and will – go horribly wrong.

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