You can always chalk it up to being psychology. But you definitely don't want to mislead people into thinking it's something supernatural or occult.

I’ve found that by having a comedy character, it enables me to do both magic and mentalism in church without any problems. They already know without my having to be always telling them that it’s not for real. My act is always more about the presentation than anything else , but every now and then I do something strong enough to knock their socks off, just to keep the adults on their toes.

I know this is an old thread, but hey, I figured I post my recent experience. I've only done one mentalism trick in a church setting. It was this past Saturday at our Easter Egg hunt. I retold the story of Mary arriving at the tomb and "the gardener" seeing her weeping and asking her what was wrong.

I mentioned being a dad, a husband, and a minister to the audience (mostly kids with some parents). Regarding those roles, when I see someone hurting, especially someone I care about, I really want to know what is wrong. Sometimes people have difficulty expressing what's wrong. So I asked wouldn't it be good to just look and know...almost as if you can read someone's mind. I mentioned the gardener, we later find out, is Jesus and he knows why Mary is crying. I mentioned the more time you spend with someone, the easier it is to "read" them. I then selected two people I knew from the audience and riffed on Bob Cassidy's Name and Place routine.

It was well received. Mostly because I didn't say I could read their minds, only pull out limited details...like a name and a place. I leaned into "Mary" (name) at the "Tomb" (place) looking for "Jesus" (name) and where he had "been taken" (place). When I couched the performance in these terms, it seemed to be well received.

Careful presentation is everything. Mentalism is more difficult under these circumstances than magic. People don't go see a magician thinking its real magic, but there are those convinced people can bend spoons with their minds.

Audiences are made up of people who don't know what's possible. The possibility of mind reading is what makes mentalism intriguing. Several years ago I wanted to make a disclaimer. I adopted and slightly changed Terry Holley's admission that 'I'm not psychic, but in an hour some of you will be convinced that I am."

I asked a participant recently, "are you a Sagittarius?" He said yes and was surprised. I continued, "I thought so... I don't really believe in all that, but it seems more mystical and impressive than saying you were born on December 11th."

A decade ago I wouldn't have felt comfortable telling someone their Zodiac sign even while delivering a joke. I didn't want to confuse people. I wanted to avoid doing anything that might foster false beliefs. I have found a gentle way to disclaim certain things, but I have also relaxed, I think. I take medicine for OCD now, and I worry and obsess much less. I am thankful to God for that.

For several months been asking - Is there an FCM in Central Florida ??- NO ANSWER - don't wish to be judging -Christian Fellowship ? I'm 85, in Magic/Vent since 10, a welfare Child to help Mom and Sis. Then my own Family. Grandfather was a Methodist Pastor. - Housebound, would like to converse with fellow Christians. See 'profile ?' Ralph ROUSSEAU

Just an observation.

There is a very active FCM Facebook group (and, they also seem to do regular Zoom / online gatherings).

That is way more active than the FCM members on the Magic Café. You'll likely get a response if you were on Facebook, and asked your question in that group.

I guess the other alternative is to log into the FCM website members area (again, not a post on the Magic Café), and ask your question there.

To summarize, try Facebook or the FCM website for a more active response, and to connect with active participants.

- Donald

Sorry Donald, I don't do Facebook, too much trash.

I hope these links help your search for FCM chapters and fellowship:

https://www.fcm.org/live-events/

https://www.fcm.org/local-events/chapters/

Terry

Thank You Terry, Ralph

I think you have to be careful and not try to convince the audience that what you are doing is spiritual or from God. i.e. God told me what you are thinking, or the Holy Spirit is giving me your thoughts.

Reading from "The Living Bible" Paraphrased - read '2 Corinthians 4:1-2 - Is how I open my Program - May Help, the NKJ , NJKV -and others may be confusing

I always tell people it's not about actual mind reading but more about their body language. So basically I contribute being able to figure out what they are thinking with questions and how they answer.

Isn't that being deceptive though if you are not actually doing such?
I like the reference on the first page- "If I could actually read someone's mind, it might look something like this.