Exorcism

[Minnesota]

Why is it that exorcism only occurs to Catholics or within the Catholic church?

Has protestants or other christian religions never been possessed? And if they do what do they do about it?

[Romeo]

Exorcism is actually a kind of faith healing, and is not used so much nowadays since many symptoms of 'possession' can be explained and treated through psychiatry. Nevertheless, exorcism can sometimes work (if the victim believes in it) where psychiatry fails. The Catholic Church use the same exorcism ritual they have used for centuries. 'Possession' has indeed affected the Protestant community throughout history, and the Protestant Churches have used exorcism, but they do not use a prescribed ritual with holy water and special phrases, they simply use prayer and 'hands on' healing.

[Cetti]

Go to any Pentecostal Church and at some time you will see the laying on of hands for Deliverance (Exorcism). It's still widely used although may be done in a room off the main body of the church  as it can be a bit scary to watch if not carried out properly - and by someone who knows what they're doing.

Hope we are speaking about the same thing?

[Octavius]

Exorcism is the practice of evicting or destroying demons or other evil spiritual entities which are supposed to have "possessed" (taken control of) a person or object. The practice, though ancient in roots, is still part of the belief system of many religions.  The movie The Exorcist was inspired by an actual Catholic exorcism, hence the ctaholic link.  The concept of "possession" by "evil spirits" and the practice of exorcism are very ancient and widespread, and may originate in prehistoric Shamanistic beliefs.

The Christian New Testament includes exorcism among the miracles performed by Jesus. Because of that precedent, possession was part of the belief system of Christianity since the beginning, and exorcism is still a recognized practice of Catholicism and some Protestant sects.

In recent times, the practice of exorcism has diminished and has lessened in overall use. This is due to a greater understanding of psychology and the functioning and structure of the human mind. Many of the cases that in the past might have been candidates for exorcism have been found to be the products of mental illness.

Exorcism is said to have been a part of Islam since its beginning, and there are verses in the Qur'an that speak of possession by evil beings. There are also Sunnah that the Prophet Muhammad and his followers expelled evil beings from the bodies of believers using verses from the Qur'an, supplications to Allah, and holy Zamzam water.

In Hinduism the possession of the body by spirits is often accorded a more holy status as it is believed that Goddess Kali or her various incarnates enter a body. People often worship them and also ask for their blessings. However if the spirit refuses to leave after sometime then a village exorcist is brought in to drive out the spirit. Often the priest resorts to beating the said person with neem leaves in an elaborate and dramatic "exorcism".

[El D]

Don't forget the darker side of this practise - beating and torturing little children because the parents believe they are possessed. They are often poorly educated African people who have perhaps only a pseudo-grasp of their religion. Sickening and unbelievable.

[johntheplamf]

I have been possessed by spirits in the past, Usually a couple of anadin and a lie in does the trick.

[Octavius]

EI D - I totally agree, I watched this report on BBC at the time and I felt sick to the stomach as they showed video footage of the children being exorcised.  It happens in the UK too though, remember the case of Victoria Climbie.  For a sobering view (and video footage if you can bare) of the serious side of 'deliverance' see here.... 

 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4677969.stm

Some viewers may find this disturbing.

[Cetti]

You are both right - this is in itself evil, but then you will always have extremists in every area and religious practices do seem to attract the most.

I fail to see how this kind of abomination helps anyone. More likely to end up with some terrible mental illness. This should be undertaken only if the person is indeed inflicted with some demonic influence and then only if the pastor, priest or member ofthe church knows exactly what they are doing.  Then, and only then a simple laying on of hands and a quiet prayer (no shouting or waving of arms) will release the person to peace and calmness.

Hollywood has a lot to answer for in the way they deal with this .....

[Octavius]

That depends on your view.  As said above, it is more than likely to be a state of mental illness and this should be the concern of medical professionals, not charlatans.

Admittedly some comfort can come from human kindness, but it doesn't have to have a tenuous religious link.

[Romeo]

Thanks for that link, Octavius. Pretty sickening, without any argument.

Sadly, Angola clearly lacks adequate medical facilities, psychiatric services and mainstream church personnel who know how to conduct a humane method of this form of treatment. Cheap 'traditional' practitioners abound, though, and the poor turn to them. But it goes beyond poverty. As the narrator said, it is ingrained into African culture, which makes it more difficult to ease the problem.

[El D]

haha demonic influence - let me check the date . . . no it is 2005 and not a time warp.

out ye evil spirits i sense thee - out into yonder pigs

truly hilarious

[Romeo]

El D - It's not helping to laugh at a people's cultural beliefs. Some kind of practical suggestions rather than a sneering European attitude might be in order.

[El D]

Of course it does - the faster this kind of deluded nonsense is stamped out the better for all mankind. Hiding absurd beliefs behind the barrier of culture is merely a way of enshrining the past when we need to be looking to the future. If something is bollox, it's bollox no matter how long people have believed it or how many people believe it.

[Octavius]

Not only that, but people with potential mental illnesses are not given the correct treatment or relevant human attention.  Fundamentally (in the link) it is a form of medieval abuse and persecution of innocent children who may perhaps have some academic prowess or deformity or sadly a mental illness.  They are abused for being different, or just being accused by someone for bad behaviour.

[hinge1967]

Whilst I agree with everyone who is sickened by abuse conducted in the name of exorcism, Octavius, I'm sad to report that some medical practices conducted in the name of treating people with mental illness can be pretty abusive too, carried out with the same conviction and belief by those who believe in possession, on people who are different, or accused by someone for bad behaviour.

Just as we now consider treatments of 50 years ago (Straightjackets, Insulin Therapy, unregulated ECT, institutionalisation) to have been barbaric, I suspect we will come to question the use of chemical restraints in the same way.

[El D]

Quite Hinge, but as you say in 50 years we will hopefully have developed a superior scientific method of dealing with such problems - I doubt very much whether religion and those ignorant enough to follow it will have moved on from their thousand year old ritual. . .

[Peter Pedant]

Oh this is very twentieth century

let me give you the 1680s England view.....epileptic children were sometimes thought to be possessed, and therefore had the living daylights whipped out of them.

however the men of science of the 1680s were as bright as we are, and apparently, after a few times, stopped when it clearly didnt work. - that is the children went on convulsing even when beaten.....

Gabbay, I think has written on this subject.

the 1680s in England, were times when the scientific method was getting established by Hooke, Newton and his friends, so this view may be quite valid.- ie try it and see, and if it doesnt work, try something else.....

(and in the 1690s in New England, they had the witches.....)

[Octavius]

Hence my point about medieval abuse above.