Is mental illness ever related to demon possession?

The reason this post was one of my favorites over on my blog is simply because the topic interests me. I don't necessarily think that I've said anything so brilliant, or that you couldn't think of for yourself, but I am interested in your response to my ending question:

Is mental illness ever related to demon possession?

If you've read this blog much you know that I have a heart for mentally ill adults. Since I have a sister who is a paranoid schizophrenic, and I'm a CA licensed nursing home administrator who has ran secured psychiatric facilities serving the chronically mentally ill for the past 9 yrs, I've had lots of experience with mentally ill folks.

I've seen up close how much mentally ill people can suffer.

There are some groups of extreme belief type Christians who think that all mental illness is caused by demon possession. On the other hand you get folks like Michael Spencer over at the Internet Monk who wrote a post entitled Is mental illness demonic that cautions us as to how we should read the gospel accounts where Jesus cast out demons. Spencer states:

"The Bible was written in the narrative world of ancient, prescientific cultures that often interpreted reality and events through a grid quite different from our own way of looking at the same reality. When the Bible speaks to us from its ancient setting, it does not “update” its cultural interpretations of causation for commonly observed phenomenon. Instead, it speaks in the cultural norms of the time. Those cultures tended to see most of what we call mental illness as the result of demonic influence or as a punishment for sin. Now, Christians have been entirely free, in their own settings and cultures, to appropriate, interpret or re-interpret these Biblical explanations. "

I see Spencer's point and agree with the principle. Just as the Bible parables relate to a different culture, so do the accounts. So it may be that some of the people we read about in the Bible who acted in ways we see Schizophrenics behave today, may have been healed of Schizophrenia and it was explained in terms of demons because that was the understanding of the day.

But I do not think it's an either or situation. It's very difficult for me to separate out the physical and spiritual so completely. I think it may be that we have both physical and spiritual phenomena occurring simultaneously. The fact that the voices that many Schizophrenics hear talking to them in their heads (I've met at least 300 individuals on whom I'm basing this statement) are always negative, leads me to seriously question the origins of these voices.

My guess is that in some instances, mental illness is almost exclusively a physiological phenomenon. In these cases the person has a physical anomaly that is causing the mental illness, and the enemy tries to use against the person , as well as his loved ones, just as in any other serious physical illness such as cancer. I would also guess that this is the most frequent case for mental illness.

But I'm also quite certain, from many situations I've observed through the years, that there are cases where what is manifesting as mental illness is almost exclusively spiritual.

But, if I'm being totally candid here, I would never let some religious group come into my facility and start casting out demons.

I really don't have any great insights or answers to this issue, just thoughts and questions.

What do you think, is mental illness ever related to demonic possession?

Stomp!

If you’ve lived in the world of charismania for very long you’ve sung a bunch of songs about the devil. When I was a little girl, I learned that:

 The devil is a sly ol’ fox, if I could catch him I’d put him in a box,

I’d take the box and throw away the key for ol’ those tricks he’s played on me.

This was followed by hand clapping to a rousing chorus of:

I’m so glad I’ve been converted (3x just in case the first didn’t take) I’m trusting in the Lord.

I guess they are still teaching this meaningful song to children. You really should check out this little boy singing it. He hasn’t been converted though, he got salvation. See it here, it’s adorable.

I suppose this song is supposed to build up ones faith just like the more adult versions such as:

I went to the enemy’s camp and took back what he stole from me. He’s under my feet.

I tell you I’ve gotten quite moved by that song a few times as I put the devil under my feet with excited jumping and stomping. If you watch this video, you’ll see quite a few people very excited to put the enemy under their feet. You’d think with all of this, the devil would never show up again.

Or how about this one if you are a little bit older:

Victory is mine, victory is mine, victory today is mine. I told Satan to get thee behind. Victory today is mine.

It seems Satan likes that King James English too and the use of the word thee.

If you are singing along with me, some of you are no doubt shouting by now. We could have a Holy Ghost breakdown if we tried. A few strong exhortations with some hallelujahs would have our faith exploding. We’d be ready to whip that sly ol’ fox’s butt. If only it were that easy.

Several years ago, I was a camp counselor. Of course, they told me that there was some unwritten rule that you had to be under the age of 30, preferable under the age of 25 to be a camp counselor. However, one of my daughters begged me. The old mother  went to camp, slept on a cot, took showers in cold water in the centralize bathroom outside our cabin, dealt with little prima donnas who would have preferred a cool college age counselor, and almost got saved all over again. After all everyone gets saved during church camp. Every day in chapel we’d sing another catchy song about the devil and spiritual warfare.

I don’t think the song ever caught on like the sly ol’ fox one or stomping the devil under our feet. So you probably don’t know it nor has any one put it on youtube. That year at camp though, it was our theme song.  With extreme enthusiasm, we asked God to take us to the front lines of the battle – where the Lord is marching on.

God answered that prayer for me. If you’ve been in the frontline of a spiritual battle you realize this wasn’t exactly what you bargained for…All that stompin and excitement can give way to exhaustion and lack of faith.  After months of frontline detail, I found myself severely battle fatigued.

One day when the spiritual fatigue was particularly bad, I thought about that camp song. I remember clearly that I was engaged in a great spiritual activity, I was changing the sheets on the bed. As I walked around the bed several times, tucking and tugging and straightening, I said out loud with more enthusiasm than I had at camp:

God, you know how I sang that song about going to the frontline. I don’t want to go to the frontline anymore, I take it all back. This was followed by my ranting about how stupid that song was, that they should never have taught me that song and work me up into a spiritual fervor to declare such a thing.

This went on for a while. Then I thought about how driven I am to excel, to be the best. I thought about how people tell you, this is a spiritual test. I always thought I should be in the spiritual AP or honors class.  I was strong, and ready to face all the challenges. After all, I’d been putting that sly ol’ fox in a box since I was about two years old. That day I asked God to put me in the remedial class. I said no more AP or honors classes for me. I just want to pass with the ordinary class--No more of this frontlines business for me!

Okay, so you thought this week we were supposed to talk about victory. Doesn’t this sound a bit like defeat? I should have known I had power because I had sung “We’ve Got the Power” and “Faith is the Victory.” (Thought I’d throw another song or two in there to pump us up a bit so we don’t get too deflated.)

This is about victory. This is about realizing your own limitations and that you can’t fight alone.  I fought on then and I am still fighting on. I didn’t give up, God didn’t answer my prayer and send me to the remedial class. God gave me more strength to fight another day.

Several years later, I saw Lord of the Rings. As I watched Aragorn at the Black Gate, ready to go into battle, my spirit leaped with excitement. This time it was a more realistic excitement than stompin the devil under my feet.  For I now understood what it was like to rise up out of my own weariness, weakness, defeat and fear to fight on another day.

I need to hear this often – maybe you do too.

Sons of Gondor! Of Rohan! My brothers. I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me. A day may come when the courage of Men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day. An hour of wolves and shattered shields when the Age of Men comes crashing down, but it is not this day! This day we fight!
By all that you hold dear on this good earth, I bid you stand, Men of the West!

Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Ephesians 6:13