Demonic Possession

Recently I came across an interesting article about demonic possession and exorcism. The idea that an evil spirit can take control of a person’s body is found in many societies. But most of the discussion in this article is focused on Christian beliefs about the subject.

I was surprised to learn that the first miracle of Jesus mentioned in the Gospel of Mark is an exorcism. Before he expelled the demon, he had a conversation with it, since it was able to control the vocal chords of the possessed man. Jesus expelled it simply by ordering it to leave the man’s body.

According to the article, in modern exorcisms the demon will often actively resist being expelled, and sometimes the process becomes so violent that the victim is tied down, beaten, or even starved. In a few cases, people have actually died as a result of attempted exorcisms.

John 7:20 says that Jesus himself was even accused of being possessed by a demon. The article says that this was an explanation for his ability to perform miracles. In ancoent times it was thought that a possessed person could have unusual powers.

The article points out that the possessed people mentioned in the gospels probably had mental illnesses, and that demonic possession is similar to multiple personality disorder. And Jesus may have cured them by using psychological techniques.

To read this article, go to Demon Possession

Occultopedia

This website contains a large collection of articles about the “occult”. From the main index page, I gathered that this word covers a very broad range of topics, including alchemy, astrology, demons, angels, lost worlds, magic, voodoo, witchcraft, myths, pseudoscience, religious mysteries, secret societies, UFOs, extraterrestrials, and superstitions. Perhaps the best general adjectives for all of this would be “mysterious” and “unexplained”.

The Religious Mysteries section contains articles about such subjects as the Devil, demonic possession, speaking in tongues, reincarnation, stigmata, the Shroud of Turin, Jesus, religious relics, and faith healing. From the stigmata article, I learned that blood can somehow slowly ooze from stigmata even though there are no breaks in the skin. The article on demonic possession says that the voice and facial expression of a possessed person can change during periods when the demon has overt control of the body.

This very large website also includes an art gallery, a shop, a very extensive bibliography, and a long list of links to other sites.

To visit this site, go to Occultopedia

Secular Web

According to its “About Us” page, the main purpose of this website is to promote a naturalistic view of the world. This means that everything happens in accordance with natural physical laws, and that miraculous or supernatural events never take place. Proponents of this view necessarily deny the fundamental tenets of major religions such as Christianity, Hinduism, and Islam.

The site includes a number of sections, including a blog, a forum, a library, a news wire, and a bookstore. I found that there are a large number of articles in the library, on subjects such as abortion, church-state separation, immortality, faith healing, magic, and witchcraft. Anyone can submit an article, but it must meet certain guidelines before it can be published on the site. I noticed that some of the articles are quite scholarly, and that the standards are generally high.

Much of the site’s focus is on raising questions about Christianity. Articles discuss possible inconsistencies in the Bible, questions about the divinity of Jesus, and current Christian practices such as speaking in tongues and attempts to influence school curricula.

The News Wire section lists recent stories about such topics as investigations of tele-evangelists, child molestation by priests, and court actions on teaching evolution in schools.

Here is a link to the site:

 Secular Web

WikiMedia Commons

This free resource contains images and maps on almost any conceivable subject. As with the main Wikipedia site, nearly all of this material is contributed by users. Also, most of the images and maps are in the public domain, meaning that anyone can freely use them.

The site keeps a running count of the number of available free files, and when I checked today, the count has reached more than 2.4 million. In addition to images and maps, the material also includes photographs, diagrams, animations, music, spoken text, and video clips. This is an amazing resource for anyone looking for free images, photos or video to put on their website or blog. And the treasure only continues to grow as people upload new material.

According to the site’s guidelines, you are free to use any of the files on the site, provided that you credit the source and the authors, and also release your copies/improvements under the same freedom to others. To this end, the database and the texts in it are licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. More details about this license, and about usage guidelines can be found on the site.

Wikimedia Commons is almost wholly supported by the public, since it depends on contributions of material, on volunteers, and on private donations to pay for the tremendous expense of operating an image resource site. Check it out today.