Rational Approach to Demonology Mystic-Skeptic Media

he study of demons is a complex topic, as it taps into the most supernatural aspects of the monotheistic traditions. These mysterious beings have sparked countless legends, from tales about their origin, to perspectives that claim they can take hold of human consciousness and bodies. According to the biblical narrative, these fallen angels were originally created to serve G-d and communicate his presence in the world. The Book of Enoch is where the Catholic tradition of angels rebelling against God comes from, but it is in the NT that the role of Satan is defined. At the same time, Jewish theology originally identified Satan as a son of G-d not as an emissary of evil. The Genesis account of angels lusting after the daughters of men was taken as part of the fall of Lucifer by the early mystics. Demons are believed to be the cause for illnesses in the Bible making exorcism the only cure for the effects of possession. This was a prevalent practice during the second temple era around the time of Jesus. The earliest historical reference to exorcism was made by the Jewish-Roman Josephus. He describes how one of the early rabbis named Eleazar expelled a demon in front of Emperor Vespian. He used a formula which was believed to come from King Solomon. The Testament of Solomon a first century text could be called “the encyclopedia of Jewish demonology” This book, attributed to King Solomon, deals with many demons that are mentioned in the New Testament. Such as Beelzeboul and the angel of night which is called Lailah, known as the queen of demons. It is intriguing that most of these demons are associated with sexual passions. We also discussed how animals can be vessels for exorcised demons. The Gospel story concerning the passage of demons into the Gadarene swine is very similar to the Babylonian transference of demons from a possessed man to a kid or pig. However the book Essentials in Demonology finds the following differences: “In the one case, for example, the object is dead, in the other it is living. But the Gospel account at least shows the existence of a belief, widespread among many peoples, that demons are able to pass from men to animals as well as demon animals to men.” A rational explanation for demons in early Jewish mysticism is that the established gods and goddesses of other cultures were degraded to the rank of demons. Especially as the Essene mystics of Qumran, the writers of the Dead Sea Scrolls, associated the Roman armies with the occult as they conveyed their view that “…the sons of light shall battle with the company of darkness.” The origin of Catholic views about demon possession comes directly from the New Testament. The apostle Paul was himself concerned about humans having to challenge the power of Kosmokrators who bring about evil in the world: “Our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world-rulers of this darkness (Ephesians 6:12).” In the New Testament early Christians and the rest of the Jewish community viewed exorcism as a form of curing major illnesses such as dumbness, blindness, epilepsy, and mania. The later rabbis ascribed the various diseases to demons and considered the following diseases originating from supernatural sources: blindness; catalepsy, headache (or meningitis); epilepsy, nightmares; delirious fever and madness; leprosy and melancholy. Other signs of possession mentioned are: falling into fire and water, convulsions, foaming at the mouth, raving, grinding of teeth, savage fierceness