SCRANTON, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A bill in the Pennsylvania State House could repeal a century-old ban on fortune telling, but some say the law is outdated and misunderstands what many modern spiritual practitioners, like tarot readers, actually do.
Right now in Pennsylvania, fortune telling is technically illegal, but those in the spiritual community say not everyone using tools like tarot cards is trying to tell the future.
Under the current law, predicting the future using cards, palms, or other methods is a third-degree misdemeanor, but PA Representative Greg Scott is pushing a bill to repeal it. Saying it threatens the livelihood of tarot readers and other spiritual workers.
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"Fortune telling is the idea of using any kind of modality…That is to tell someone that you, as a person, can hardline, tell them what is going to happen in their future, and for them to trust you as a professional and then perhaps make life choices off of that," explained Alyssa Cost-Byrne, from Healing in the Cards LLC.
But tarot readers say their practice is about self-reflection, not predictions.
"Tarot is used as a mirror internally. We use the tarot to look at what's going on in someone's world. What is going on? It's a reflection of yourself in the cards," said Cost-Byrne.
Each card holds symbolic meaning, like cups for emotion or swords for intellect, and is interpreted based on the client’s personal experience.
"It's not me telling you that you're going to win the lottery or, you know, your prince charming is coming in. It's me going, hey, you've got all of this stuff going on. Let's simplify it. Let's clarify it. Let's use the cards to get a kind of an idea of what's going on," explained Cost-Byrne.
Alyssa says many clients use tarot as a spiritual tool, and that there’s a big difference between insight and instruction.
"My practice is not here to tell you how to live your life. It's to help give you clarity so that you can make the choices on how to live your life," said Cost-Byrne.
As this bill circulates, Cost-Byrne hopes more people will just take the time to educate themselves on this type of spiritual practice.
