Possession

From TinWiki.org

A person who has fallen victim to possession is said to suffer from a complete takeover by a demonic entity. Belief in demonic possession is common among conservative Roman Catholics and Protestants. The majority of liberal Christians, as well as essentially all Atheists, Agnostics, and other secularists have abandoned this belief.

1 History
2 Theories Behind Possession
- 2.1 Signs and Symptoms
- 2.2 Causes
3 Related Articles
4 Notes
5 External Links
6 Relevant Discussion Threads

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History

Possession by demons has been reported since as early as the first century C.E. According to the Bible, Jesus cured possession with the most notable case being the casting out of a hundred demons and sending them into a herd of pigs.[1] In medieval times, it was believed that God allowed the Devil to test people in the war being waged for their souls. The idea that God allows the Devil to test people persists among many Christians today. They see these trials as a test of man’s faithfulness to God.

Anyone who displayed unusual behavior or a strange personality was suspected of being possessed. Witches were often thought to be in league with the Devil in causing the possessions and were punished for their “crime”. If a witch could not be found, an innocent person was often found to blame. (It should be noted that modern witch’s strongly deny any association with the Devil, as they believe it to be a creation of Christianity.)

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Theories Behind Possession

There are four main theories behind demonic possession. The Mythical Theory holds Demons to be symbolic of the presence of evil. It considers the claims of Jesus casting demons from people to be symbolic of Jesus’ conquest over evil with his doctrine. Detractors see this theory as accusing the authors of the Bible to be liars by accusing them of claiming myths to be historic events. The Accommodation Theory advocates argue that Jesus and his apostles spoke in accommodation to the ignorance of the population about natural diseases and to the superstitions of the time. Those who believe the Hallucination Theory say that the individuals delude themselves into believing they are indeed possessed by a demon. This makes the exorcism seem like even more of a real event. Those who don’t believe any of the previous theories tend to believe the Literal Theory; that there are literal beings called Demons who possess people and can only be cast out by exorcism.

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Signs and Symptoms

Uncontrollable swearing, fits and convulsions
Extreme physical strength and violent, life-threatening behavior
Intense negative reaction/aversion to religious paraphernalia, and to the name Jesus
Multiple personalities or extreme changes in personality
Knowledge of the future or other secret information
Being able to understand and converse in languages not previously known to the victim
Changes in the voice to a deep, rasping, menacing, guttural croak
Occasionally there are signs of automatic writing or levitation
Strong scent of sulphur or body odors

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Causes

Some of the reported causes of possession include:

Playing with a Ouija Board
Following false religions or cults
Engaging in chanting
Extreme cases of sexual immorality
Involvement in astrology
Going to fortune tellers
Owning or using occultic charms, talismans, written material, music, etc.

Diseases known to modern medical science can explain some of the signs of possession. Schizophrenia, hysteria, and other psychological illnesses explain abrupt personality changes. Seizures and convulsions are symptoms of epilepsy. Knowledge of future events or information is called clairvoyance, and is considered a psychic ability among today’s occultists. Due to the advance of medical knowledge, the Catholic Church requires medical and psychological testing of a person before an exorcism is permitted.

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