How do we interpret devil possession?

[marco]

Jesus seemed to encounter a surprising number of devils on his wanderings, 2 millennia ago. Take this one:

"So they brought the boy to Him, and when the spirit saw Him, at once it completely convulsed the boy, and he fell to the ground and kept rolling about, foaming at the mouth. 21 And Jesus asked his father, How long has he had this? And he answered, From the time he was a little boy. 22 And it has often thrown him both into fire and into water, intending to kill him. But if You can do anything, do have pity on us and help us. Mark 9:20-22 "


Presumably the devil hasn't stopped raging like a lion today but one doesn't come across possession with the frequency that Christ met it. Should we just disregard such tales or do they distract from any truth the gospels might have?

[JJ50]

Jesus seemed to encounter a surprising number of devils on his wanderings, 2 millennia ago. Take this one:

"So they brought the boy to Him, and when the spirit saw Him, at once it completely convulsed the boy, and he fell to the ground and kept rolling about, foaming at the mouth. 21 And Jesus asked his father, How long has he had this? And he answered, From the time he was a little boy. 22 And it has often thrown him both into fire and into water, intending to kill him. But if You can do anything, do have pity on us and help us. Mark 9:20-22 "


Presumably the devil hasn't stopped raging like a lion today but one doesn't come across possession with the frequency that Christ met it. Should we just disregard such tales or do they distract from any truth the gospels might have?

Don't you mean possessed by demons? I supposed in those far off days people behaving strangely because they had a mental illness could have been thought to be possessed by demons as they knew no better. Modern medicine has disproved that mythical nonsense.

[marco]

Don't you mean possessed by demons? I supposed in those far off days people behaving strangely because they had a mental illness could have been thought to be possessed by demons as they knew no better. Modern medicine has disproved that mythical nonsense.

I said devils since I see no difference between demons and devils. Yes, today possession would be diagnosed as one of the hundreds of syndromes modernity has created. It is a shame that Jesus didn't explain exactly what was afoot, preferring to leave us with the impression he spoke to imps in the boy's body. As one does.

[Tcg]

[Replying to post 1 by marco]


I've had two friends who suffered with epilepsy. One, a former college roommate, died in his sleep a few months after graduating. He had been on medication to control his epilepsy. Given that he hadn't had any seizures for a number of years, his doctor recommended he stop taking the medication. While napping in the afternoon, he had a seizure and died due to suffocation.


I was with another friend when he had a seizure and what I observed matches very closely with the description given in Mark. He was piloting a small fishing boat as we were returning from an outing. His body began to shake violently and mucus caused him to have difficulty breathing. I and another friend cleared his airway and supported his body. After his seizure ended, he spent some time clearing his throat coughing up mucus that appeared very similar to foam. He too had stopped taking his medication after years of being symptom free.


Perhaps their medication repelled devils and when they stopped taking it, they came back. Perhaps this is why devils are so much less active than in Jesus day. Of course it could be that what has been described as possession would be better understood as physical ailments.



Tcg

[ttruscott]

Presumably the devil hasn't stopped raging like a lion today but one doesn't come across possession with the frequency that Christ met it. Should we just disregard such tales or do they distract from any truth the gospels might have?

I suppose that you have proof that you find compelling that the symptoms of demon possession are in fact attributable to some other source completed by proof of the fallacy of demons themselves?

[Zzyzx]

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‘Possession by demons’ and ‘raging devil’ are OPINIONS and/or IMAGINATION of people (often preachers) to ‘explain’ behavior that deviates from what society expects. Modern medicine, Psychology, and Neuroscience provide different explanations.

Some religious fanatics and others still prefer ancient opinions over modern information. Perhaps some believe that demons were ‘cast out' (or into swine) by a 'miracle worker' once upon a time in a land far away.

[ttruscott]

Modern medicine has disproved that mythical nonsense.

How? What is your proof that the renaming of the symptoms in fact dispelled the previous diagnosis?

[Zzyzx]

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Modern medicine has disproved that mythical nonsense.

How? What is your proof that the renaming of the symptoms in fact dispelled the previous diagnosis?

'Renaming'?

Modern medicine successful treats many or most cases of 'possession' using pharmaceuticals, medical treatment, and/or psychological counseling. It would require quite a stretch of imagination to claim that 'demons' are involved and are susceptible to such practices.

Still, some defend ancient notions.

[JJ50]

[Replying to post 4 by Tcg]

My husband had epileptic seizures, now under control, after he had a brain haemorrhage in 2006, they were very scary indeed. People in Biblical times could have been forgiven for thinking people having seizures were demonically possessed as they knew no better.

[marco]

I suppose that you have proof that you find compelling that the symptoms of demon possession are in fact attributable to some other source completed by proof of the fallacy of demons themselves?

I think the onus would be on someone to prove devils had taken possession of someone's body. I understand that witch doctors would treat spasms and shakes as the work of evil spirits but I place no great trust in witch doctors. I imagine that unsophisticated minds of the first century would make the same interpretation but then they would also believe that thunder was a demonstration of divine anger. Am I compelled to prove this theory wrong as well?


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