Tag: Marcia Montenegro

‘Grounding’ exposed: Former psychic calls trend spiritually dangerous, scientifically baseless

By Leah MarieAnn Klett, Assistant Editor Tuesday, July 08, 2025

In a recent episode of her podcast “Ex-Psychic Saved,” former medium Jenn Nizza sounded the alarm on grounding, or “earthing,” calling it a deceptive New Age practice built on pseudoscience and spiritually dangerous ideas. 

Joined by researcher Marcia Montenegro, a former astrologer and the founder of Christian Answers for the New Age, the pair offered an extensive breakdown of the spiritual, scientific and financial dangers behind the popular wellness trend.

“Is it an innocent healing modality or a New Age deception?” Nizza asked at the top of the episode. “We’re going to dive into this topic of grounding today.”

Montenegro began by debunking the notion that grounding is simply walking barefoot outside or enjoying nature.

“Grounding is not liking to walk barefoot outside. It’s not finding the outdoors relaxing. It’s not appreciating God’s creation,” she said. “Those things are fine. They’re not grounding. Grounding is based on the belief that energy in the Earth is healing, and that’s not biblical, it’s pagan.”

She explained that the practice is tied to New Age energy beliefs, similar to those found in crystal healing and other alternative therapies. “There is some kind of energy theory going on,” Montenegro said. “It’s wrapped up in scientific jargon to sound credible, but it has zero factual support.”

Clickhere to listen to the Ex-Psychic Saved podcast

Montenegro traced the grounding trend to Clint Ober, a former cable TV executive, not a scientist. Ober’s ideas were then promoted by others, including the late Dr. Stephen Sinatra, a cardiologist who specialized in integrative medicine and called himself a “certified bioenergetic psychotherapist.”

“Integrative medicine is just a rebrand of alternative healing,” Montenegro warned. “They integrate superstition with science. And ‘bioenergetic’ is one of those New Age buzzwords that signals energy healing. That’s a red flag.”

Montenegro noted that one of Ober’s associates is a known advocate of energy medicine. “These are not people I would take my dog to,” she said. “These are not credible sources of truth or healing.”

According to Montenegro, grounding is not just ineffective, it’s spiritually dangerous. “When you fall for a deception or give it worth, you are helping to make your mind more open to other deceptions,” she said.

Nizza agreed. “You buy grounding sheets today, and maybe next week you’re going to a sound bath or a New Age yoga class. These things are gateways deeper into deception.”

Montenegro described how these practices rely heavily on anecdotal testimonials rather than data: “Testimonials are not evidence. That’s a logical fallacy called the anecdotal fallacy.”

She warned Christians in particular not to divide their spiritual loyalty. “If you’re a Christian participating in grounding, you are honoring a false belief system. You’re giving spiritual weight to something rooted in paganism.”

Both women condemned attempts to justify grounding with biblical references. “There was a post claiming Moses taking off his sandals at the burning bush was an example of grounding,” Montenegro said. “But the ground was holy because of God’s presence, not because it had some energy in it.”

Nizza added, “That’s what the enemy does — he’ll try to make you think that God is connected to these things so you feel good about them. It’s not biblical. It’s deception.”

Montenegro warned that grounding is just one example of a growing trend: the infiltration of New Age beliefs into the Church, often through concepts like energy healing, vibrations and frequencies.

“This is the heart of all pagan belief systems,” she said. “In Taoism, it’s ‘chi;’ in Hinduism, it’s ‘prana;’ in the South Pacific, it’s ‘mana.’ In the West, we’ve called it ‘life force’ or ‘vitalism.’ Satan is trying to bring that into the Church.”

The podcast also touched on prominent figures Montenegro sees as responsible for spreading these ideas, including Dr. Laura Sanger, who has spoken on Christian platforms about topics like frequencies and Nephilim-related theories. Montenegro criticized her use of Scripture and called her ideas “completely unbiblical.”

“She says things like the walls of Jericho fell because Joshua used ‘the sounds of Heaven,’” Montenegro said. “This is the kind of nonsense Christians are now being taught as theology.”

Nizza emphasized the importance of discernment. “We want to pray for the deceived,” she said. “But we also have to expose these things as they come. Ephesians 5:11 says, ‘Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.’”

Montenegro addressed accusations that she’s overly critical. “My ministry is about warning against New Age and occult deception,” she said. “I’m not trying to be negative. I’m trying to protect people and help the Church remain pure. That’s what we’re called to.”

The episode concluded with a sober reminder. “There are real dangers in the world,” Montenegro said. “But these exaggerated dangers, these false ideas, keep people from thinking clearly. Christians need to be sober-minded and discerning.”

Leah M. Klett is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: leah.klett@christianpost.com

‘God …Condemns It’: Ex-astrologer Dismantles Horoscopes, Warns of Divination’s Dangers.

Ex-astrologer Marcia Montenegro is on a mission to warn people about horoscopes, divination, and the many ways people turn to sources outside of God to try and find “truth.”

“[Divination is] when you’re seeking information supernaturally, but outside of God, outside of God’s will,” host Jenn Nizza explained at the start of the most recent “Ex-Psychic Saved Podcast.” “God absolutely condemns it.”

Montenegro agreed, noting divination is an attempt to get information “beyond the normal means,” and noting it can take the form of turning to Tarot cards, astrology, numerology and tea-leaf reading, among other practices.

She went on to speak about the fact some will try to use the Bible to validate astrology — the belief celestial bodies have an impact on human affairs — or act as though using the stars to predict the future somehow comports with the Gospel.

Listen to Montenegro warn about divination and horoscopes and share her journey:

https://player.edifi.app/embed/index.html#/episodes/’God…Condemns-It’:-Ex-Astrologer-Dismantles-Horoscopes-Warns-of-Dangers-of-Divination/5617612

“A lot of Christians … get confused over it,” Montenegro said, explaining why astrology and the Bible simply don’t mix. She specifically clarified the differences between astrology and astronomy.

“Astrology and astronomy are two different things. Astronomy is a science, and it’s based on observation of data,” she said. “They are observing the heavenly bodies … and it’s strictly concerned with facts and trying to figure things out about those heavenly bodies.”

Montenegro continued. “Astrology is focused on the idea that there’s a meaning there.”

As a former professional astrologer, she recounted being so “in” on her beliefs that she once refused to sign an apartment lease while Mercury was in retrograde, fearing what might happen if she did.

Mercury retrograde is an optical illusion that unfolds a few times each year and appears to show Mercury moving backward in its orbit. When Mercury laps Earth in its 88-day move around the sun, it causes Mercury’s appearance to be retrograde from Earth’s perspective.

Astrologists believe happenings in the sky impact life on Earth. Thus, mercury retrograde has people engaging in speculation and superstition over purported disruptions they think it can cause.

With that belief in mind, Montenegro was afraid to sign the lease. Flash-forward to today, though, and she is a Christian who pushes back against the beliefs she once held dear.

“What astrology is … it’s a form of divination, because you’re reading a meaning into the planets that isn’t there,” she said. “Astrology … looks kind of innocent to a lot of people, because it’s so common … the internet has made this information more accessible.”

But Montenegro explained precisely why it’s anything but innocent, and sounded the alarm over the prevalence of such content on the internet today.

“[Generation Z is] captivated by all this and, because of the internet, it’s so very accessible. You could go online and find an astrologer,” she said. “Because it’s more accessible, and more popular, and more mainstream, people don’t realize what it really is.”

Montenegro continued, “Behind all this kind of glitzy, kind of interesting, fun facts about ‘who you are’ is this belief system that’s set up completely opposed to God and denounced by God.”

She likened horoscopes and astrology to a pretty house that looks gorgeous on the outside but, upon looking inside, is dilapidated. While it seems innocent and fun, she said astrology is plagued by darkness.

“It looks gorgeous on the outside and it has maybe a beautiful wreath on the door and the lights are glowing in the window and you think, ‘Oh, what a beautiful home!’” she said. “And then you open up the front door and you go in and it’s dark and the floors have holes in them, and there’s pieces of wood sticking up.”

While astrology is often treated like a game that’s laughed off, Montenegro warned people to see it as far more sinister.

“God has completely forbidden it and denounced it, so that should be the end of the story for a Christian,” she said.

Listen to Montenegro’s story.

This story originally appeared on Faithwire.com.