Two little interesting blips from the somewhat vanilla KansasCity.com site:
The first is a seemingly simple Q&A regarding the tenets and practices of wicca. It reads like other over-generalized PR fluff, but veers into steamy venues when the discussion ventures into open relationships. So, we go from this:
Q: Do witches worship Satan?
A: No. We can’t worship Satan because Satan does not exist as a deity in Wicca. Satan exists in Christianity, as an anti-deity.
Which is just hogwash and reductive to the point of being useless. What do you mean “We can’t”? and “Satan does not exist?” Ugh….
But then we go to this:
Q: Is a Wiccan marriage understood from the outset to be an open marriage?
A: No. It is not understood to be open. It is not understood to be closed. It is understood that that is a private issue between the two people in the marriage.
Which is awesome, because it shows once again that, yes, we all secretly think wiccans are polyamorous, which aside from assumptions making asses out of u and me, is not A.) too far off the mark, and B.) necessary indicative of something “bad.”
But, you know what else is awesome? Exorcism.
Citing a shortage of priests who can perform the rite, the nation’s Roman Catholic bishops are holding a conference on how to conduct exorcisms.
The two-day training, which ends Saturday in Baltimore, is to outline the scriptural basis of evil, instruct clergy on evaluating whether a person is truly possessed, and review the prayers and rituals that comprise an exorcism.
Oh to be present at that convention! Not sure how other people feel about this, but to me, exorcism is one of the last remaining potentially valid (if done “correctly”) veil-splitting esoteric practices left in our J-C-I.
Signs of demonic possession accepted by the church include violent reaction to holy water or anything holy, speaking in a language the possessed person doesn’t know and abnormal displays of strength.
The full exorcism is held in private and includes sprinkling holy water, reciting Psalms, reading aloud from the Gospel, laying on of hands and reciting the Lord’s Prayer. Some adaptations are allowed for different circumstances. The exorcist can invoke the Holy Spirit then blow in the face of the possessed person, trace the sign of the cross on the person’s forehead and command the devil to leave.
You got that right!
exorcism is awesome and valid? you’re going to have to explain that a little more for me.
when i think of exorcism, i think of abusing people who are defenseless and sick. putting them through hell without understanding the origin of their “disturbance”.
what is exorcism done “correctly”?
what am i missing here?!
When we talk about exorcism, or any kind of spiritual purging, we’re talking about belief systems, and especially those that involve specific signs and symbols, in this case God and the Devil.
An exorcism, in its idealized form, “restarts” or “resets” the semiotics of a persons belief. In the strict dualist forms of Christianity, God is good and the Devil is the bad antithesis of all that is good. When a Christian is “possessed” by the bad—is in effect overcome by the symbols (language, vision, bodily functions) of evil—then a exorcist will reset the belief through ritual, etc.
That’s the grad school answer.
The ground floor answer is more pedestrian, but in my opinion just as valid. A Christian is sick and seeks help through Christian (of a certain variety) means. If they are “healed,” than who cares.
But your assumption that there is a misunderstanding of the, as you say, “origin” of the “illness,” is somewhat telling. I’m guessing you’re referring to something scientific and empirical in a laboratory setting?
Perhaps you think of exorcisms as abusive, because you only know of them through movies and sensational stories?
Is drinking the holy ayahuasca no less an exorcism?
Personally, I think not!
no, i don’t necessarily mean to set it up as laboratory vs. the church…i think i was wondering who gets selected (or elects themselves) to undergo an exorcism. do you know how that process comes about?
in that article you linked, it says, “The Vatican’s guidelines for driving out the devil includes a caveat not to mistake psychiatric illness for diabolic possession.” i’m wondering how they do that. what are the guidelines for determining which is which?
true, i only know exorcism from sensational stories (but what sensational stories they make!). point me toward discourse about them that are less hollywood-ified.
regarding “if they are healed then who cares”, i’d like to know more about who is healed and the nature of their healing.
it’s all an experiment when it comes to seeking routes to health. the methods- be they faith, breathing, drug therapy, yoga, needles, surgery, ECT- are all attempts by people to achieve harmony with their bodies and the evironment. however, sometimes we have stumbled off the path and done more harm with certain treatments than good.
Thanks. Really interesting,if short, piece.
come listen to the GOD-MAN who needs no ritual to cast out demons,for all demons are subject to him. KING JESUS says I AM THE WAY THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE AND HE THAT COMES TO ME I WILL IN NO WISE CAST OUT. COME LET US REASON TOGETHER SAYETH THE LORD, THO YOUR SINS BE AS CRIMSON THEY SHALL BE WHITE AS SNOW. BEHOLD I COME QUICKLY AND MY REWARD IS WITH ME TO GIVE EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO WHAT HE HAS DONE.