Ex-Satanist Warns Christians About Popularity of Occultism in the U.S.

Henry Lewis, now a pastor in Georgia, grew up in the devil’s grip and says most Christians know little about Satan

Most Christians are unaware of how organized Satan is, according to Henry Lewis, who pastors a church in north Georgia. If anyone should know about the structure of the devil’s kingdom, it should be Lewis. He was renowned as a top satanic leader for many years.

“We must know our enemy, and we must realize he exists,” Lewis told Charisma.

Now a Christian, Lewis pastors Word of Life Christian Center in Carnesville, Ga. He was raised in a New England family that has a long history of involvement in the occult and witchcraft.

Lewis’ mother dedicated him to Satan’s service before he was born. When he was 3 months old, he developed meningitis. His mother chanted over him to ask that his life be spared.

“I feel she made a deal–her life for my life,” Lewis said.

When Lewis turned 2 years old, his mother died in bed in a mysterious manner–from no apparent external cause. Her body was black-and-blue as if she’d been attacked. Not long after she died, her boyfriend and her mother died in the same way, Lewis said.

As Lewis grew, he was considered a spiritually gifted person. His involvement in witchcraft grew stronger until, according to Lewis, he was regarded as one of the country’s leading male witches.

After his mother died, a Baptist woman who lived above them in a tenement house took in the 2-year-old Lewis for a period of time while Lewis’ father adjusted to life without his wife. During this time, the woman began praying for him. As Lewis got older and matured both as a witch and a gang leader, the woman would tell him about Jesus and continued to pray for him.

One night, Lewis cast a spell of revenge on her that he said was successful. “I was sitting on top of the world,” he said, “but that night when I woke up, I woke up in hell.”

Lewis experienced a revelation of hell that night that shook him. While most people think of hell as a fiery place, the hell Lewis saw was different–more terrible than fire.

“You can’t even see your hands in front of your face, but you can hear the moanings and groanings,” he said. “And the strange thing is, you are aware of where you are and why you are there.”

Lewis said the experience prompted him to repent and seek help from churches. But no one could help him. “I went from church to church to church, and people tried to counsel the devil out of me instead of casting it out,” he said.

In 1976, Lewis attended a storefront Pentecostal church. “I was the only sinner in that congregation, and the pastor preached everything in the world at me, and I received it,” Lewis said. Later, Lewis and his wife and a friend of hers came back to the church and gave their hearts to the Lord. Soon after that, Lewis was baptized and set free from occult bondage.

Since Lewis began pastoring in 1983, he has had various threats against him by witches. Once, his pet cat was crucified in his yard. He also has received death threats.

Lewis wants believers to know that witchcraft is infiltrating society, and he wants to reach those in bondage to Satan.

“A lot of them are lonely, hurting people whom the enemy feeds on. I know what it’s like, and I want to set them free. I’d love to have 100 ex-witches in my church!”