Is Demonic Possession Real? What about Exorcism?

Is Demonic Possession Real? What about Exorcism?

The reason for this blog essay is the recent Netflix movie (or movie on Netflix) titled “The Deliverance” starring Glenn Close. But also, the streaming service series “Evil” (Paramount Plus). Both feature dramas related to demonic possession and exorcisms.

I watched a few episodes of Evil and decided it wasn’t my cup of tea. I mean, it just wasn’t that interesting. Every episode leaves the viewer wondering if the story was really of demonic possession or something else such as severe mental illness.

The Deliverance is different. It’s sort of an updated version of the old “The Exorcist” movie. I never watched The Exorcist. I read the book by Peter Blatty instead. The movie is loosely based on the book and the book is loosely based on an alleged real exorcism of a demon possessed boy. (The movie changed the character to a girl.)

I grew up in a form of Christian life that was intense and included belief in demonic possession. There was much talk about victims of demonic possession and of exorcisms but I never saw either one. Nothing drove me further away from that phenomenon than teaching two years at a large, well-known charismatic university. I won’t go into the details of that here, only say that talk about Satan and demons was far, far too prominent in chapel services.

Then I came into friendship with a well-known evangelical theologian whose name most people here would recognize. He told me true accounts of demonic possession and exorcisms he was personally involved in. I had trouble doubting him. But, still, I didn’t want any direct involvement with the phenomenon. (There are churches that “specialize” in “deliverance ministry” and it’s not that difficult to get involved if you seek them out.)

But what really convinced me of the reality of that kind of evil, whatever “that kind” is, but something beyond clinical diagnosis or treatment, was my African students. Over the many years of my teaching I had numerous African students, students from Africa, primarily West Africa, and they ALL believed without doubt or question in demonic evil, possession, and exorcism. And they were not “guilty” of being “primitive.” They were and are sophisticated persons with critical thinking abilities. They all expressed some degree of surprise at how naturalistic American Christians are.

So, I just had to watch The Deliverance because it opens with a gospel song I grew up singing in church! “I don’t know about tomorrow, I just live from day to day….” An old gospel song written by a Pentecostal preacher and song writer named Ira Stanphill. That drew me in.

I have to say that the language of the movie shocked and surprised me. It alternated between extreme vulgarity and Pentecostal “language of Zion.” By “language of Zion” I mean traditional talk familiar to Pentecostal but probably not to non-Pentecostals or non-charismatics. I have rarely seen or heard characters in popular movies or television shows (including streaming service series and limited series) utter language peculiar to the religious milieu of my childhood and youth.

The movie in question here, The Deliverance, leaves much to be desired. Less extreme “language” (vulgar, obscene words and phrases), less violence (the exorcism itself is very gory), and less sensationalism. It is allegedly based on real-life events, but I seriously doubt everything depicted in the movie really happened to anyone. Unfortunately, the female Pentecostal minister who attempted to exorcise the demon was killed by it. I’m not at all sure that’s even possible. On the other hand, the demon was finally conquered by the power of the faith of the main character.

I’m not a psychologist, so I can’t answer why there is so much interest in popular culture in demonic evil. (Another example is the limited series “Midnight Mass.” There are others.) I guess it is simply part of the popularity of horror films in general. But why that?

If I could, I would interpret “principalities and powers” of a demonic nature as social structures, a la Walter Wink. However, the Bible depicts demons as real entities (Mark 4) and my African students convincingly tell me that there is no doubt about real evil of a personal nature in African cultures.

Also, I have read psychologist M. Scott Peck’s book People of the Lie that details clinical cases of evil that he could not explain by appeal to any diagnosis in any edition of the DSM. He came to believe in demons and demonic possession before he became a Christian.

Do I want anything to do with this realm? Only as a theologian.

People ask me for suggestions of books about Satan and the demonic realm and the best one is I Believe in Satan’s Downfall by English theologian Michael Green. I strongly recommend it to anyone interested in a moderately evangelical perspective on the subject.

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