Andre Kole Featured in JamaicaInside MagicMagic News Updated Daily for the Professional Magician

There was a very nice piece in the Jamaica Observer (Jamaica) covering Andre Kole’s performance on behalf of the Campus Crusade for Christ. The article notes: “Kole is widely considered to be one of the world’s finest magicians; but there is a major twist to his presentations. He uses the stage and his abilities to create illusions to spread the word of the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

I like the phrasing. Mr. Kole is not being described as “one of the world’s finest Christian magicians” or a “minister who uses magic to entertain and engage his audience.” He is, I think we all agree, one of the finest illusionists, certainly one of the top inventors in our craft and an incredibly effective minister of the Gospel.

I have related in the past that it was Mr. Kole’s show in Albuquerque, New Mexico in the early 1970’s that really encouraged me to learn more about Jesus Christ and His free gift of eternal life that was meant not just for all but specifically for me. Just goes to show that even an Irish Catholic magician (I’m still all three) can be helped and therefore there is hope for all.

The article is complimented by a second story in the Jamaica Gleaner. Mr. Kole’s history in magic and philosophy is detailed along with his response to those who suggest a magician cannot be a Christian. Mr. Kole is quoted as saying that he does not agree that the type of magic we perform for entertainment is Satanic in origin.

“When I became a Christian I heard about the supposed demonic connection to magic. So I began to investigate magic all over the world. I found that Satan works basically in our minds and our thoughts. Satan does not have the ability to give anyone supernatural powers. A lot of people cite the story of Moses and the magicians in Pharaoh’s court. If that really happened, that means Satan has the ability to create…

“Every levitation I have investigated anywhere in the world has always been a magic trick. One of my offers is  I am willing to pay US$1,000 for every second that a person can levitate  up to 10 seconds. There is no such thing as real levitation, but the problem is that a lot Christians and non-Christians don’t have the ability to recognize the trickery and deception.”

Following the deaths of people close to him, he began to turn his studies to answering the questions we all ask at 3:00 am. The deaths “made me begin asking the serious questions in life  why am I here, when I die where will I go, is there any real meaning and purpose in life.”

His study, came equipped with the careful eye of sceptic and a magician. He wanted to look at the miracles of Jesus Christ not as a member of the converted but as a magician. This magician who is credited with some of the most spectacular and commercial illusions of our time, determined that Jesus was not a magician or a fake.

He affirmed Nicodemus statement to Jesus in John 3:2, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one can do these signs that you are doing unless God is with him.” (NAB).

Mr. Kole did give up performing magic for about three years but began to reevaluate his approach to the Art and his calling. He points out the obvious but often missed proof,

“The greatest evidence that He was God are the miracles He performed. So if Jesus had been a magician you would have to visualize Jesus and his disciples walking through the dusty roads of Galilee with three diesel trucks following behind carrying all the equipment that would be necessary for Him to do what He did by magic.”

Mr. Kole writes in his show flyer, “As a magician, I deal with many illusions in my business. But in my own experience, I discovered that God is no illusion; rather, He is a reality, and that Jesus Christ truly is the ‘magic ingredient’ who really makes life worth living!”