ouija boards...

[Mickey's Minion]

and... I am careful, now that she's told me she's played it, to not be 'mad' or 'forbid' her too... I have told her how I'd "really like for her not to". She knows my feelings on it, I can only hope my desire is enough to curb her until she moves out

I am one of those that does not believe they are a door to the spirit realm or anything else, that they are just toys and not even remotely related to religion.

But, what I or anybody else believes does not matter, only what you believe. And since you do believe, what you stated above is really the only thing you can do. Treat it like any other area of your religion and explain the whys of your beliefs. If you treat it as seriously and as matter-of-factly as any of your other beliefs, the children will understand that this is an important part of your belief systems.

If they agree with you, they will themselves refrain from participating in the activity at parties or friends.

As for the father, that is a totally different matter.

You can talk to him and see if you can come up with a joint parenting decision, but in the end he has just as much right to shape and form the children and instill his beliefs as you do yours.

 

[raysnkaysmom]

Interesting take on JEmaryland's post. I actually think that the OP might find an opinion of what one person would do if her mother pushed this issue to be helpful.

I took it as her trying to be funny...which I failed to laugh. But, not big deal. If kids agreed with their parents all the time, life would be very different.

Yes, exactly. It's not the board itself that is evil, but what can be invited in through the use of the board.

We had a ouija board when I was a kid and my sisters and I used to play around with it, ask stupid questions, and giggle because we knew we were pushing the planchette. It was just innocent fun.

Then, my parents and my aunt & uncle started seriously using it to communicate with spirits and things quickly started spiraling out of control. Every night they "played", for months and months. They eventually got tired of hunching over the board and instead put down those Fisher Price magnetic letters and used an over-turned wine glass for the planchette. I remember standing by the table, watching that wine glass fly across the table - by itself - and knock every single letter to the ground. My parents finally decided enough was enough and we had to have our house exorcised.

I know some people won't, and don't, believe my ouija board stories and that's okay. I know what I saw and I know what I believe. I DO warn my own children against the use of the ouija board, but I have explained that a piece of wood is not what they should be afraid of, but what can happen if somebody knows how to use that board to open doors. Scary stuff.

Gotta Get To Disney!

I realize that a high percentage of kids using this game are just screwing around.

That said, people calling upon spirits are a very real thing. I have a friend who grew up in a Spiritualist family complete with seances and things flying around the room.

I think that it is a good thing to give my kids a healthy warning about what spirits you are inviting in. God, in the bible, warned Saul not to do it. He did anyway and it didn't go well for him. That and my friends stories are enough of a warning for me. I have asked my kids to stay away from them.

And...MY beliefs are these things happen, soo thats what I base it on. Not those who dismiss it...

I am one of those that does not believe they are a door to the spirit realm or anything else, that they are just toys and not even remotely related to religion.

But, what I or anybody else believes does not matter, only what you believe. And since you do believe, what you stated above is really the only thing you can do. Treat it like any other area of your religion and explain the whys of your beliefs. If you treat it as seriously and as matter-of-factly as any of your other beliefs, the children will understand that this is an important part of your belief systems.

If they agree with you, they will themselves refrain from participating in the activity at parties or friends.

As for the father, that is a totally different matter.

You can talk to him and see if you can come up with a joint parenting decision, but in the end he has just as much right to shape and form the children and instill his beliefs as you do yours.

And..I've said nothing to their dad... he probably doesn't even know she did it.
Just setting the record straight here too, I haven't even brought it up since she told me. I told her how I felt, how I really don't like her doing that, and she won't while in MY home. I'm leaving it at that, was just looking for opinions on how to talk to my daughter about it... NOT on how what I thought was ridiculous. Things like this happen on the DIS all the time. I knew people didnt' believe in it (inviting spirits), which is fine to not follow my line of thinking, but I still think some people are quite rude.

For those with 'real' advice...thank you

 

[xoprincessmomxo]

I didn't even know they had online ouija's so I had to check it out! I remember my mother and grandmother playing with one quite a bit when I was little. The online one was not nearly as fun, as it said I would not be going to Disney World next year. Obviously, it is a fake.

Anyway, I agree with the other posters to not turn it into a big deal. Let her know your position on it. And, let her know how dumb it is. Kids are intrigued by the "spirit" scary stuff.

 

[DisneyBamaFan]

... The online one was not nearly as fun, as it said I would not be going to Disney World next year. Obviously, it is a fake...

 

[ginna74]

I just find it odd that "things" never happened to me and it never went right BUT my friends always had something bad happen to them. No I also haven't died already and didn't marry the rock star (like someone else said earlier didn't happen to them either) BUT all my friends had things move and the boards fly and so on (supposedly). I guess I wasn't so "lucky". lol

 

[themilesfamily]

My great-aunt told me that they used to use Ouija Boards during WWII. All of the neighbor ladies would get together and ask the board if their husbands would come home alive from the war. She said it would always push toward 'yes', because that's what everyone wanted to hear.

As to how to get your point across to your kids that you don't want them to use Ouija Boards that is kind of tough. There are a lot of really scary stories out there on the Internet that you could share with them. But I'm sure you don't want to scare the heck out of them! If they have strong Christian beliefs, there ARE passages in the Bible that speak specifically to not using divination or witchcraft. Perhaps the Ouija Board might fall under that category and would convince them not to become regular users.

I personally view Ouija Boards as just a toy -- kind of like a Magic 8 Ball. But I don't claim to know it all, so I'm not going to criticize others' beliefs!!!

Good luck, OP!