# Demon possession and other Biblically supernatural events **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 26, 2003, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761 "2003-08-26T15:40:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/1 "2003-08-26T15:40:22Z")
Inspired by [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&postid=3896864#post3896864) thread. Obviously, the people who committed the atrocity named in the linked article don’t speak for all Christians, and certainly not for me. I’ve always believed that demon possession and speaking in tongues and the like are possible, but not everyday occurances. So I guess the question I bring before the Teeming Millions is this: Are all people who believe in this sort of thing evil ignorant fundies? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_great_unwashed/32/4791_2.png) [@The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Great_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/2 "2003-08-26T15:43:26Z")
I think you’ll fing the phrase was _complete whackos_. As for _evil ignorant fundies_, I couldn’t speak of their evil intent nor their fundamentalism. ---
**Author:** ![Slacker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@Slacker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slacker)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/3 "2003-08-26T15:48:58Z")
Of course not, we’re just fundie wackos! 😃 I believe stuff like this is possible, but more often than not it can be explained medically. Was the kid in the OP that you linked to infested with a demon? It’s possible, but I think it’s a tad more likely that there was a problem with his brain. Are people who speak in tongues (I don’t - for reasons mentioned in the thread Ashtar linked to) actually receiving divine transmissions from the Big Guy? Again, it’s certainly possible, but it’s more likely in my opinion that they’re experiencing some kind of cognitave disconnect fueled by extreme emotion. That isn’t to say that I think these people are intentionally trying to mislead; they are likely quite sincere in their beliefs. I just personally think they’re misguided for the most part. ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/4 "2003-08-26T15:53:19Z")
> [@](#): > > So I guess the question I bring before the Teeming Millions is this: Are all people who believe in this sort of thing evil ignorant fundies? I’d just say that they are too credulous. There is no such thing as demonic possession and speaking in tongues is just gibberish uttered during an ecstatic fit. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/5 "2003-08-26T16:07:11Z")
I don’t see demon possession as any more unlikely than any of the other supernatural occurances in the bible. I personally think they’re all fairy tales. But, to believe in demon possession today, when we’ve known about mental illness for such a long time, is not just wrong but dangerously wrong. It can result in people not getting the treatment they need, and the tragic occurences in the linked BBQ pit thread. It’s certainly ignorant. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/6 "2003-08-26T16:19:24Z")
I don’t think they’re evil, just idiots. There is no possibility of either demons or demonic possession. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_great_unwashed/32/4791_2.png) [@The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Great_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/7 "2003-08-26T16:24:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Revtim \* > \*\*It’s certainly ignorant. \*\* Can I add, from a personal POV, that it is not _nasty, or, blinkered, or, backward_, oh no. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/8 "2003-08-26T17:35:46Z")
I sense a little sarcasm, **Unwashed**. Care to elaborate? ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/9 "2003-08-26T17:37:26Z")
The only benefit an exorcism might have, from my point of view, might be wishful thinking? That a person THINKS he’s possessed, and starts acting that way, so that when a priest comes in and “banishes the demon”, he starts feeling better. Of course, how many priests would you find willing to DO an exorcism nowadays? Not many, I’d bet. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/10 "2003-08-26T17:51:41Z")
[aside] I saw a “real” exorcism on TV once. It was conducted my people who considered themselves to be fundamentalist Christians, yet they used the old Roman Catholic ceremony. Apparently demons only understand Latin. [/aside] ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/11 "2003-08-26T17:54:24Z")
So, basically what I’m getting is that it’s ignorant to believe in anything supernatural. Or am I overgeneralizing? ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/12 "2003-08-26T18:00:43Z")
Lord Ashtar, to some Dopers it is. I have always preferred “preternatural,” leaving the possibility that we may someday understand it. ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/13 "2003-08-26T18:05:09Z")
> [@](#): > > So, basically what I’m getting is that it’s ignorant to believe in anything supernatural. Or am I overgeneralizing? No, you’re right, it is ignorant to believe in anything supernatural. I mean, you can pray to spirits, cast horoscopes, or consult the Tarot, if that makes you happy, but there is zero evidence that any of those activities have any effect on the external world or that any supernatural entities exist. No Yahweh/Allah, no Papa Legba, no Mithras, no gods, devils, elves, sprites, pixies, apsaras, or fairies. ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/14 "2003-08-26T18:24:32Z")
Hey! Some of us fairies do exist. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_great_unwashed/32/4791_2.png) [@The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Great_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/15 "2003-08-26T18:40:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dropzone \* > \*\*I have always preferred “preternatural,” leaving the possibility that we may someday understand it. \*\* I prefer _præternatural_, but then, I’m a sucker for digraphs. As to the OP, it is _interesting_ that if you were to ask the same question about a supernatural god, that (I imagine) the overwhelming majority would not categorise such a believer as a _complete whacko_. In fact, in polite society, it is generally rude to do so: “You’re a Christian you say? Wow, what’s it like over there in _Complete Whackodom_?” It seems that some “mainstream” religious beliefs are somehow a _culturally acceptable delusion_ (that is, of course, to my mind). Is this because there are a greater numbers of believers in a supernatural god than in demonic possession? I think it is, turns out that _whackoness_ is a democratic issue! Who’d have thought it? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/16 "2003-08-26T19:20:23Z")
There’s a difference between believing in an abstract, transcendent truth and believing that right now, right there, some kid has a little red devil inside him. It is ignorant and irrational to posit supernatural explanations for phenomena which have p[erfectly natural explanations. It is irresponsible to treat sick children with voodoo instead of medicine. Would it be any _less_ rational to blame goblins instead of demons? How about mind-controlling, intelligent rocks in the Sirius constellation? Why demons? What shred of evidence is there in all of human history that demons exist? I’m sorry but if anyone is seriously going to argue for the existence of demons I am going to mock them. ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/17 "2003-08-26T19:24:56Z")
It’s simply an explanation for the unknown. Back in the day people had no idea what lightening was, so they figured “god was angry” or something. I’d assume the same with your demonic possession, as it’s most likely some medical condition. Thank goodness we know better these days. ---
**Author:** ![Super\_Gnat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@Super\_Gnat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Super_Gnat)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/18 "2003-08-26T19:36:04Z")
I’m a Christian, and I think demonic possession is possible, but not likely. You’ll notice that in the Gospels and Acts, all Jesus or a disciple/apostle had to say was “Demon, come out!”. None of this mess with long prayer services and _groooaaaanings_ and drama and the like. And of course I think that mess with the autistic kid is horrible and wrong. Speaking in tongues–personally I don’t practice it or hold with it, and neither does my church. I think my church’s official position is that we don’t do it, but won’t dispute with others that do unless they’re claiming it is a requirement for those who are saved. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/19 "2003-08-26T20:09:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Diogenes the Cynic \* > \*\*I don’t think they’re evil, just idiots. There is no possibility of either demons or demonic possession. \*\* Er… I’m sure you meant to say that there is no _reasonable_ possibility, or that it is highly unlikely, so much so that the likelihood is not worth consideration. Because, you know, it _is_ possible. Just highly, highly unlikely. - Rick ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761/20 "2003-08-26T20:52:38Z")
Nope. It’s _impossible_ by the pure definition of the word. There is no conceivable way that a non-material, invisible, intelligent entity can coexist with the laws of physics as we know them. There is no conceivable physical mechanism by which intelligence can exist without materiality, therefore it is _impossible_ for demons, spirits, etc. to exist. That’s really not as bold of an assertion as it may seem like. From a purely scientific perspective, it’s not just a question of not having supporting evidence for such things, it’s that their existence would violate the laws of physics which is _by definition_ impossible. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/demon-possession-and-other-biblically-supernatural-events/197761.md?page=2)