Are demons real?\u00a0 Yes.<\/p>\n
Are they Individual, identifiable and possess a power of their own?\u00a0 Are they able to override and overrun the innocent without their cooperation, as in the film \u201cRosemary\u2019s Baby\u201d?\u00a0 No, I don\u2019t think so.<\/p>\n
A physician who is both a student and a friend observes,<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2026all of this talk of the Enemy and demons can be uncomfortable for me, living in the current century and after formal study in the scientific method.\u00a0 Most demons and devils I have encountered in patients within my own profession of psychopharmacology I have been able to treat with modern antipsychotics and mood stabilizers.\u00a0 These demons can usually be influenced by manipulating a dysregulated neurotransmitter system of dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine within the brain and with supporting psychotherapy when indicated.\u00a0 Now in my own spiritual formation as I delve into my inner self, my own \u2018drug resistant demons\u2019 become more real to me in my psyche.\u201d<\/p>\n
I share his reservations.\u00a0 I also have a theological problem with some of the language that we use about demons: The only real, identifiable being with power of its own is God.\u00a0 Every other power on earth either depends upon the power of God, or operates in the shadow of God\u2019s absence.\u00a0 So, to talk about demons as if they have a power all their own is the stuff of horror stories, not theology.<\/p>\n
But my friend is also right.\u00a0 Some demons are \u201cdrug resistant.\u201d Hitler\u2019s Germany, Idi Amin\u2019s Uganda, Cambodia\u2019s\u00a0 Pol Pot come to mind.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s also the reason why the language of devils, demons, and evil is so important.\u00a0 When we give ourselves to desires and designs that are aligned against the will of God, the evil we do acquires a consuming force all its own.\u00a0 Although we may be able to account for the ferocity of it to some degree in sociological, psychological, or political categories, the sum is often greater than the parts.\u00a0 In the spiritual world sometimes 2+2 equals 8.\u00a0 The language of demons, devils, and evil then becomes profoundly important in naming the spiritual and moral issues at stake \u2014 as well as the very real dangers that they present.<\/p>\n
In the end, it is always our choices that provide evil with an opening.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Are demons real?\u00a0 Yes. Are they Individual, identifiable and possess a power of their own?\u00a0 Are they able to override and overrun the innocent without their cooperation, as in the film \u201cRosemary\u2019s Baby\u201d?\u00a0 No, I don\u2019t think so. A physician who is both a student and a friend observes, \u201c\u2026all of this talk of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":240,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-157","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n