Devils And Monsters.

The past few weeks have seen a glut of demon/possession related articles in the tabloid press and on social media. Most feature common themes and lack any substance. Others show a worrying trend of the use of the concept to facilitate dehumanisation of those with opposing ideologies.

On December 28th, 2016, the New York Post published an article with the headline "The World Desperately Needs More Exorcists". The title struck a particular cord with me as I've written many times on this blog regarding the dangers associated with the popularisation of ideas of demon possession and exorcism, pointing out that I'm yet to be directed to any solid way "demon possession" can be differentiated from mental illness. Unsurprisingly, these factors are missing in the post article too.

The article begins:

"A New York woman who levitated six inches off the ground, mysteriously spoke in foreign languages and demonstrated paranormal powers made medical history in 2008 because a panel of doctors from New York Medical College agreed she was possessed by the devil."

Once again as is common with reports of this nature, we are told of supernatural feats surrounding an individual presumed to be possessed. Despite hundreds of thousands of documented and recorded cases, these feats have never been demonstrated. Funny that. We always get the growling, shaking and contorting but the extraordinary evidence always manifests when the cameras are switched off leaving us with only anecdote as evidence. What isn't common here is the allegation that a panel of doctors concluded this woman was possessed.

It continues:

"In presenting the case of “Julia” in the New Oxford Review, board-certified psychiatrist Dr. Richard Gallagher cautioned that religious practitioners should be on alert for what he called a “rapidly growing worldwide phenomenon.”.."

Dr Gallagher (above) is indeed a Yale-educated psychologist, well respected in his field, He writes that the Julia case as a genuine case of demonic possession among a wealth of fraud and misattribution. When Gallagher tells us about the case he gives no details of the medical review panel, which the New York Post piece alludes to. We can likely dismiss this as a flourish added to that piece. What Gallagher does give use is a collection of the usual tropes associated with the "possessed" and as a result of this he never quite manages to highlight what exactly sets this case apart from others which he dismisses as "counterfeit". Dr Steven Novella examined Gallagher's claims and the Julia case on his NeuroLogica blog and concluded:

"Richard Gallagher is now a classic example of how even a highly trained professional can fall prey to bad logic and the desire to believe. He nicely demonstrates why basic skeptical knowledge is necessary, even for scientists and professionals..... like every snake oil salesman who says they are too busy treating patients to do proper research. This is not an excuse for lack of skepticism, but all the more reason for it. I can easily turn the tables on his logic – what if these are all just mentally ill patients with firm delusions, who happen to be smart and clever enough to do a decent cold reading? By accepting their delusion, you are reinforcing it, making it even harder to treat. You are victimizing the people you are supposed to be helping, by failing in your primary duty as a professional to be detached and evidence-based."

In Gallagher's own biography he describes his close associations with an organisation of exorcists "...Dr. Gallagher is the only American psychiatrist to have been a consistent U.S. delegate to the International Association of Exorcists, and has addressed its plenary session."  When "Julia" needed a doctor, a psychologist, what she got was an exorcist. The NYP implies this was revolutionary as a medical practitioner concluded she was possessed, but Gallagher approached the case not as a medical practitioner but as a believer in possession.

The NYP article continues:

"exorcists... claim there are now so many devils out there, the Vatican can’t recruit enough exorcists to chase them away. The Rev. Vincent Lampert, the head priest at St. Malachy’s in Indianapolis, Indiana, reports... the situation is dire, he said, because rampant pornography, illegal narcotic use and the occult have made it easier for Satan to cast his net."

Maybe the situation is dire because priests such as Lampert are working overtime to scare the public into believing the devil exists and possesses people. At a time when the Catholic church seems to be working harder to be more progressive, these archaic ideas work in direct opposition to that ideal. Clearly, some in the Church believe that the way to get people back into church is by scaring them there, perhaps recalling the claim that there was a surge in church attendance after the release of the Exorcist, something that has never actually been verified, although requests for the ritual of exorcism did rise at the time.

Don't worry though, the scientific advisor to the exorcists' association, Victor Cascioli is on hand to offer a much-needed dose of logic and critical thinking.

“... demons across the world have multiplied and there aren’t enough priests to fight them.The lack of exorcists is a real emergency,” 

Really? In the spirit of you allegedly being a scientific advisor, how about proving that? Or attempting to prove that demons exist at all. As with Dr Gallagher above, it's clear that when approaching topics of faith Cascioli's role as a scientist takes a backseat, relegated to a title alone, and that title is a ruse to gain unwarranted credibility.

Whilst these Priests seem to essentially blame the internet for the rise in possession, a New York chaplain Marcos Quinones, who also works as an "occult investigator", feels there is another culprit:  

“Many drug traffickers practice forms of the occult. They incorporate voodoo or black magic that gives them the power to succeed. It makes the product more powerful and creates a stronger addict. In essence, they’re doubling the curse the drugs cause anyway.... The original word ‘pharmacy’ is derived from the Greek ‘pharma,’ which literally means sorcery.” ”

Yep. Completely nuts.

The whole article is completely nuts.

And this topic is one the New York Post returns to frequently. On January 13th they reported that the priest on which the lead character in the Exorcist was allegedly based, Malachi Martin (seen above somberly not revelling in his fame as his calling requires) also the subject of the aforementioned Netflix documentary series, died "after a possessed child spoke to him..."Malachi Martin went to perform an exorcism on a 4-year-old girl in Connecticut in 1999 – but mysteriously died soon after when he was pushed by an invisible force." The only thing that truly stands out about this story is how unextraordinary it is. Martin died sometime after the child spoke to, and in the meantime, I imagine he spoke to many people. Also, Malachi was 78, sadly elderly people fall sometimes, rarely that fall proves fatal. Why are we to suspect an invisible force? Because Martin allegedly "told a friend" who isn't named or quoted.

The Post was banging the demon drum on 23rd January, reporting on a priest who has allegedly exorcised 6000 demons. Something which scares me for completely different reasons than the Post probably intends. As with the articles above the story quotes heavily from a report in Catholic News Agency and gives us lurid details of supernatural strength and occurrences without a jot of evidence.

I've tried time and time again to elucidate just how harmful I believe the propagation of this medieval superstitious rubbish is, and I will continue to do so. I'll never be short of examples of this belief, this backwards religious practice, being used to hurt the innocence and the ill often by the misguided, but too frequently by malicious abusers.

The following story wasn't featured in the New York Post, but the Daily Post in Nigeria. It's not lurid clickbait. It doesn't feature an elderly Priest warning of the diabolical dangers of weed or porn. Instead, it documents another way the spread of these ideas can be used to hurt innocent people.

"A Kenyan head teacher identified as Willy Kiprop, has been disgraced openly for allegedly defiling three school girls under his care in Kapsaos, Uasin Gishu area of Kenya."

Kiprop, uses as his defence that at the time of the abuse he was possessed by the devil. Would a lack of belief in the supernatural in the area have prevented the abuse suffered by these girls? Likely not, but we can't rule out the idea that Kilprop self-justified his actions being a result of possession.

Only days before various news agencies featured a disturbing video of a young couple in Peru being dragged through the streets by their families to attend an exorcism. The youngsters aged 18 and 16, are crying and growling, and I strongly suspect they are under the influence of Brugmansia. The couple's family indeed seem to acknowledge this when they tell the press the incident was a result of some kind of "pollution". This was after an exorcism was forcefully conducted of course.

Closer to home, ideas demons and allegations of possession were recently used by televangelist Jim Bakker (left) used to condemn participants in the Women's March and protests against Donald Trump. Bakker describes critics of Trump on both the left and the right as literally possessed by the devil:

“I’m telling you, there are some people that I’m concerned are demon-possessed. They’re just going crazy. Their eyes look like demons [are] coming out of them. I’m scared.”

It's a disturbing use of religious rhetoric used by Bakker to dehumanise people he is politically opposed to, in a similar vein to the rhetoric spouted by Alex Jones (above) during the election campaign. Jones frequently referred to both Hilary Clinton and Barrack Obama as being literally demon possessed. Even going as far, in the bizarre rant I've posted above, as to describe the foul stench of sulphur allegedly emitted by Clinton, and to cite footage of flies landing on President Obama proves his demonic nature.

It's easy to write Jones and Bakker off as complete lunatics or accuse them of cynically holding positions that appeal to their audience for financial gain. But, when public figures engage in the dehumanisation of their opponents it concerns me greatly.

Every time I speak or write about this topic I link to the What's the Harm page which details an uncomfortable and tragic number of cases of children and young adults killed and injured during exorcism attempts. But, it seems clear that the dangers presented by these ideas extend beyond immediate physical harm or mental abuse.

In my opinion, the World desperately needs less superstition, fear and bullshit right now. The World needs more critical thinking, skepticism and education.

In other words: More exorcists are the opposite of what the World needs.

The Nostalgia skeptic: Malaysian Supermarket Possession Video Debunked.

I've been thinking of an exciting new concept it's like totally original! I'll call myself the Nostalgia Skeptic and I'll just debunk things that are really old but keep getting dredged up by useless tabloid journalists  and dimwitted social media pages and groups. I'll even have a witty catchphrase. How about "I'm the Nostalgia Skeptic. I debunk it so you don't have to!"

What do you mean it's been done?

Anyway, The Mirror displayed it's utter determination to become a paranormal click-bait site and little more this week by resurrecting this piece of tosh, "Man possessed by ghost on CCTV"  which first started to be shared back in 2012. The footage was allegedly shot in a supermarket in Malaysia in 2011.  Of course, now a major British tabloid have picked up on this, other organisations such as Coast to Coast, have jumped on the bandwagon.

Take a look.

The footage dates back to 2011 and has been shared to death on paranormal social media. The big selling point of the video has always been the eerie "face" that appears in the reflection of the chiller at the end of the footage. Following this. some stock "mysteriously" falls off the shelving. 

This moment is interesting to me for a completely different reason, it's the point where the fakery of the video becomes apparent. Watch the video again, this time watching nothing but the clock. You'll see that from the time the shadow moves across the chiller cabinet to the moment the stock hits the floor the clock freezes.

Look at the two separate time codes here(circled): the youtube time code is 1:04 whilst the security footage time code is at 01:29:21.

Now looking at the point just before the stock has hit the floor. The store time code is at 01:29;22, so one would expect the youtube time code to read 1:05. It doesn't. It reads 1:08. This is because the store clock spends three seconds at 01:29:22.

The three seconds of 01:29:22 clear evidence of alteration of the video.

Also just before this point at 1.03 watch the "possessed" man's left foot. You'll see clear evidence of an edit as his foot jumps from one position to another. It's difficult to display this. Watch at 0.25 speed and focus on the foot you'll see a clear jump edit.

In my opinion, the image appearing in the chiller door is someone moving in the aisle facing the door. Whatever they do knocks the stock from the shelf.I think whoever tampered with the video removed this person but failed to remove their reflection. It could even be the reflection of our possessed man moving, I think it's actually the reflection of him sitting up. I think this video is another composite shot as we discussed here. A stationary shot and a shot in which the groceries fall. 

We have to also ask is the whole incident faked? The behaviour of the man in question is certainly reminiscent of a temporal lobe epilepsy sufferer experiencing a seizure, especially the clawing at his clothes and the shaking of his head. Of course, I could be wrong and this could be staged. The position in which this all occurs is perfect to be covered by the camera, but the footage would be highly unlikely to be so widely circulated if it weren't. The man's final fall to the ground seems extremely staged. He clearly falls in such a way as to cause no pain. This fall also brings an end to the episode. Several commenters also suggest the man glances at the camera several times, although I didn't really see this myself.

There's no doubt this is fake, the question is did it originate as fakery or did someone come across the footage and edit it and why did no-one at the Mirror or any of the other outlets that have featured it notice the disparity in the two time codes. Oh I know.... they couldn't be bothered to look.

I'm Nostalgia Skeptic: I debunked it so they don't have to.... or something.

An Open Letter to Those Who Promote and Condone Exorcism.

About a week ago I wrote at open letter to a major promoter of the concept of demonic possession on Facebook. Needless to say, the post was quickly removed and I was prevented from reposting it. I won't give this individual more publicity unless I absolutely have to so I have removed his name.

Here it is:

"Dear ...., 

Whilst you and your "team" promote this superstitious rubbish, there are scientists and researchers in the fields of neuroscience and psychology endeavouring to discover the causes of abnormal behaviours that have in the past been labelled as possession. 

Your "work" actively hampers this progress. It results the sufferers of such afflictions not seeking out the correct medical help. It also impedes the work of mental health advocates who campaign to remove the stigma of mental health conditions. It results in the families of individuals suffering from these disorders not encouraging them to openly seek out the correct help without shame and fear. 

Take a recent case in Bolivia of a six year old girl suffering from uncontrollable fits of laughter, she was labelled as "demon/devil possessed", in the world that propagation of such nonsense threatens to bring about, that "diagnosis" would have resulted in the application of brutal, damaging, ineffective and occasionally lethal procedures such as exorcism. Thankfully in our scientifically literate age, doctors were able to use MRI and CAT scans to successfully locate and remove a tiny tumour on her temporal lobe. http://ecancer.org/journal/8/full/436-child-with-temporal-lobe-hamartoma-a-to-z-images-and-a-case-report.php 

The propagation of these beliefs often leads the abuse and murder of children by adults blinded by supernaturalism and often, mental illness themselves. Recent cases include: 

Amy Burney, 5, Staten Island New York, murdered in 1997 when during an attempted exorcism, her mother and grandmother tied her down and forced her to swallow a toxic potion and taped her mouth shut. They were charged with second degree murder. 

Kira Canhoto, 2, murdered in 1995 in Canada, when her parents and grandmother thought she was possessed by a demon, and attempted an exorcism. They forced her to drink huge quantities of water. The grandmother, mother and a neighbour were convicted of manslaughter. 

Amora Bain Carson, 13 months from Texas, murdered in 2008 by her mother and partner who believed she was possessed and tried to rid her of demons. They allegedly bludgeoned her and bit her more than 20 times. 

Terrance Cottrell Jr, 8, Milwaukee, murdered in 2003, Church members thought he was possessed by the devil. In an exorcism he was held down for two hours until he suffocated. The pastor was sentenced to prison, but never admitted guilt. 

Unfortunately those cases are just the tip of the iceberg, for the list I restricted myself to under tens from the last 20 years, and the US and Canada. I could of restricted myself to teenagers, or to partners murdered by spouses, or to children murdered by parents, or to the Northern hemisphere, or the Southern. and pulled just as many incidents.

Of course it would be ludicrous to say that belief in demons and possession always leads to murder but one cannot the unifying factor in these cases was the superstitious beliefs of the murderers./abusers. This is an ignorance that we should be lifting, not propagating.

-SB"

Unfortunately if I was writing that today I would probably be addressing it to the largest religious organisation on the planet. An organisation that speaks to, and to some extent for, roughly 1.2 billion people. The Catholic Church.

Whilst not a Catholic myself, many of my friends are, they are reasonable rational people who often privately admit that their church's frequently backward, intolerant, and sometimes damn-right deadly doctrines, actions and positions cause them great embarrassment. That's why I am happy to see occasional minor steps forward, many of which were made under progressive pope John Paul II. Unfortunately, for every small step forward the Catholic church seems to take one massive step backwards.

On July 2nd, the Catholic church formally recognised the International Association of Exorcists, an organisation lead by Father Gabriele Amorth, known as the "Exorcist of Rome," who claims to have performed 160,000 exorcisms.

In my opinion, Amorth is quite possibly as in need of assistance from mental health professionals as the unfortunates that he performs exorcisms upon. Previous statements of his include labelling Yoga as "satanic" and warning that Harry Potter introduces children to "black magic". The fact that he describes science as "not worth a jot" strongly implies that he isn't recommending that those believing they are possessed receive psychological assessment before they undergo exorcism.  Members of the group have spoken of sitting in front of lesbians and hearing "Satan growl." Amorth himself said that the relapse of the Mexican man touched by Francis to his previous state is a signal from God that Mexico should abandon a liberalization of its abortion laws.

Is this is the kind of individual and organisation that a forward thinking church should seek to credit? It seems that the new Pope is quite happy to let fundamentalism remain in the Catholic church.

An argument frequently used to defend exorcism, is that sometimes it actually works. Believers and sceptics alike present this as almost a spiritual placebo. The sufferer believes the ritual will alleviate their affliction and the theatrics of the exorcism process actually help confirm this.  The problem is, its simply not ethical to put people through a potentially harmful process simply to alleviate the symptoms of a possible underlying mental health disorder. The ends do not justify the means. Plus this process doesn't actually address the actual cause of the disorder. What happens if it reoccurs? Another exorcism? Often these are identifiable and manageable conditions.

As the Catholic church recognises the International Association of Exorcists, seemingly adding credence to the concept of demonic possession and exorcism, a stark reminder of the possible consequences of such beliefs has emerged from Pakistan.



The Independent reports:

"Police in Pakistan have launched a murder inquiry after a young woman was reportedly beaten to death by a Muslim holy man who was trying to “exorcise demons” from her.

Reports said the 24-year-old woman from Lahore, Zeenat Bib, had been suffering from undiagnosed problems for some time and that her family had taken her to several doctors.
Her condition had not improved and so her family decided to take her to a local pir, or Sufi elder, who they believed could confront “the demons tormenting her”.

The exorcism process involved tying Zeenit with ropes and beating her with a baseball bat. Her cousin, Shahbaz attempted to intervene, but the Pir, Pir Afzal, told him the blows were not harming Zeenit. The pir then instructed Shahbaz to take Zeenit to the hospital when the exorcism was complete. Unfortunately, the hospital was unable to revive Zeenit.

The police are currently holding Shahbaz and searching for Afzal.

Such incidents are unfortunately all too common. Salma Hussain, 13, was killed during an exorcism carried out in a Cheecha Watni village in 2012. She suffocated when pir Shabbir filled her nostrils with cotton wool, and burned her with an iron rod and chilli powder in an attempt to exercise "Djinn" from the girl.

As with Zeenit, her parents allowed this because of their unquestioning faith in a pir and their lack of understanding of mental health issues and medicine in general.

As I was completing this post, this news story emerged from Japan.

As this shows, such cases are not restricted to religion or geographic location. As I mentioned at the start of this post, website What's the Harm? features hundreds of such cases, such victims, from all across the world, the common theme?

Ignorance and superstition.