The Chinese version is after the English one.
中文版本在英文版本下。
Is there really a demonic force in this world? Or, to turn the question around: if there were truly an invisible force of evil in the world, seeking to destroy and seize human souls, how would it manifest?
If you were a demon, what would you do?
It probably wouldn’t show itself easily, allowing you to see it clearly. It would be better if you didn’t realise its presence. A more sophisticated approach would be to make people dismiss the possibility of its mischief before they even suspect it, firmly convincing them that it must be someone else’s or their own problem.
Have you heard of the “gaslighting” effect? In a movie, a husband, in order to conceal his own wrongdoing and embezzle his wife’s property, deliberately dims the gaslight. When the wife expresses doubt about the abnormal change in light, he vehemently denies it, repeatedly emphasising that it’s her hallucination. When he commits the crime, he intentionally creates noise. When the wife asks about it, he distorts the facts into her hallucination. Over time, the wife, confident and able to think independently, is almost completely controlled by her husband’s manipulation.
If there were truly a demon, and it wanted to manipulate a target individual, it wouldn’t make the victim believe it’s its intrusion but rather someone else’s or their own problem, causing deterioration in interpersonal relationships, low self-confidence, and a lack of understanding from others, further undermining their self.
Is it scientific?
We often emphasise “science.” Interestingly, spiritual forces, while interacting with the physical world, do not belong to the physical world. They are not composed of chemical elements and obviously not biological. If current scientific theories cannot explain them, asserting that the existence of spiritual forces is unscientific might itself be unscientific.
So, when judging whether there are demonic forces, consider:
- Just because charlatans use exorcism for deception doesn’t mean there are no demons.
- Just because religious authorities misdiagnose conditions, focusing only on exorcism and neglecting immediate practical issues, causing harm to individuals, doesn’t mean there are no demons.
- Blaming demons for personal responsibilities doesn’t mean there are no demons.
If there are demons, what is their purpose?
Three things: stealing, killing, destroying (John 10:10). Put lies into human hearts and distort the soul. See “Is Following Jesus Like Changing Nationality?” for details.
What can they do to people?
- Entice people to sin.
- Sow seeds of doubt about God in people’s hearts and encourage their growth.
- Establish pseudo-faith communities, keeping people away from God.
- Blind people’s minds, making them unable to see the truth, leading them to think and act in the wrong direction.
- Through traumatic experiences, they trap people in a cycle of curses.
- When a person’s will is weak, destroy their values.
- Drive wedges between relationships
- Hinder good things to happen by making disturbance.
- Build and consolidate vast interest systems, nurturing human desires, causing people to harm each other within it even without being aware (though the system itself may not necessarily be evil)
- Possess and control people’s emotions and behaviour.
Is the devil entirely responsible for the suffering in the world?
The causes of suffering can be complex, mainly falling into several categories:
- The natural consequences of sin (not necessarily breaking the law, but deviating from the state of being fully good before the Lord).
- The natural results of the fall of Eden, affecting the physical world (such as natural disasters).
- Pain caused by ageing, illness, and the limitations of different life stages.
- The emptiness brought by death and the pain of separation.
- Social, and even global, groupings forming interest systems that cause injustice.
- The pain of desiring but not attaining, or losing what one once possessed.
- The suffering caused by conflicts between individuals.
- The existential anxiety deep within a person.
Basically, the devil not only enticed humanity into sin, bringing sin into the world but has intervened in all the above aspects. However, people still have the freedom to choose whether to live in its dominion (see “Is Following Jesus Like Changing Nationality?”). In times of distress, we have the Lord’s help and salvation. God’s power can turn curses into the fertile ground for blessings, yielding sweet fruits. Eventually, the land we tread will be completely renewed by the Lord.
How should we face this invisible force?
- Choose to live in the Kingdom of God. The “World” (this world, in contrast to the Kingdom of Heaven) sets its rules, and sorry, there’s no middle ground.
- Don’t focus too much on what the devil is doing; live in love and trust in the Lord, familiarise yourself with God’s Word, and take care of your holistic health. This principle is similar to “an apple a day keeps the doctor (disease) away.”
- Stay vigilant to avoid falling into traps, adhere to principles of faithfulness and goodness, and don’t compromise with evildoers.
- Avoid contact with spiritual matters; set clear boundaries.
- Entrust your inner darkness to God, let Him heal the wounds inside.
- If you sense signs of Satan’s disturbance, cast it out in the name of Jesus.
- If you suspect someone is possessed, seek help from professionals in social work, psychology, psychiatry, and pastors simultaneously. Often, spiritual attachment is entwined with a person’s traumatic experiences.”
Let’s stop here for now. We’ll explore more and deeper next time.
Photo Credit: Raymond Wong
真有惡魔勢力的嗎？
或者我倒過來問：如果世上真有一股肉眼看不見的邪惡勢力，想摧毀和搶奪人的靈魂，牠會用什麼方式展現？
如果你是惡魔，你會怎樣？
牠大概不會輕易現身，給你看得清清楚楚，你最好不要察覺牠的存在。更高明的做法，是在人類懷疑牠在搞鬼之前，便要令人排除這個可能性，並深信一定是別人、或是自己的問題。
有聽過「煤燈效應」嗎？電影中，丈夫為了掩飾自己的罪行，和侵吞妻子的財產，刻意把煤燈調暗一點，妻子對燈光的異常變化表示疑惑時，他就堅決否定，並一再強調這是妻子的幻覺。他犯案時，又故意製造噪音，當妻子問起時，又把事實扭曲成是妻子的幻覺。久而久之，自信並能獨立思考的妻子，險些完全被丈夫精神操控。
假如真有一個惡魔，牠想要操控一個目標人物，當然也不會讓受害者相信是牠的侵擾，而是別人、或自己的問題，令其人際關係惡化、自信低落，別人也更不能理解他，進一步瓦解他的自我。
科學嗎？
我們常強調「科學」，有趣的是，屬靈的力量雖然與物理世界互動，但並不屬於物理的世界，非由化學元素組成，也不是生物範疇。用現有科學理論解釋不到，便斷言屬靈勢力的存在並不科學，這結論本身也許並不科學。
所以，在判斷是否真有惡魔勢力時，不妨想想：
- 有神棍以驅魔招搖撞騙，不代表世上沒有惡魔。
- 有神職人員斷錯症，只顧驅魔，不處理現實當務之急，令當事人受害，不代表世上沒有惡魔。
- 有人把人的責任推卸給惡魔，不代表世上沒有惡魔。
如果有惡魔，牠目的為何？
三件事：偷竊、殺害、毀壞 (約翰福音10章10節)，在人的心裡植入謊言，令人的心靈扭曲。詳參《信耶穌好像改換國籍？》。
牠可以對人做些什麼？
- 引誘人犯罪
- 在人的心裡播下否定上帝的種子，並促使其成長
- 建立似是而非的信仰群體，令人遠離上帝
- 蒙蔽人的心眼，讓人看不見真相，往錯誤的方向思考和行動
- 透過創傷經驗，把人帶進咒詛的循環
- 在人意志薄弱的時候，破壞他的價值觀
- 分化人與人之間的關係
- 透過不同的搞擾，阻礙事工的進行
- 建立和鞏固龐大的利益系統，養大人的私慾，讓人在其中相殘而不一定自知 (但系統本身不一定邪惡)
- 附身，控制人的情志，甚至行為
世界上的苦難，魔鬼要負全責嗎？
出現苦難的原因可以很複雜，主要可分成幾大類：
- 人犯罪(不是「犯法」，而是指脫離了全善上主的狀態) 的自然後果
- 伊甸園墮落後，物理世界的自然結果 (如天災)
- 老弱、疾病，與及人在不同階段的限制造成的痛苦
- 死亡帶來的虛無，與分離的傷痛
- 社會、以至世界性的集團構成利益系統，造成不公
- 求而不得，或由擁有到失去的痛苦
- 人與人的矛盾帶來的痛苦
- 人內心深處的存在焦慮
基本上，魔鬼不獨引誘人類先祖犯罪，把罪帶進世界，且在以上各方面均有介入。然而，人仍有自由選擇是不是要活在牠的國度 (詳參《信耶穌好像改換國籍？》)。在困苦中，我們有上主的幫助和拯救，神的大能可以使咒詛變成祝福的土壤，結出香甜的果實。最後，我們腳踏的土地也將成為過去，被上主完全更新。
面對這看不見的勢力，我們應該怎樣面對？
- 選擇活在上帝的國度裡。「世界」(此世，相對於天國) 的潛規則是牠定的，抱歉沒有中間路線。
- 不要常常專注於思想魔鬼做了些什麼，活在恐懼和懷疑之中。反而應該常活在上主的愛裡，熟習上帝的話語，照顧自己的全人健康。這原理跟「每日一蘋果，醫生(疾病)遠離我」相似。
- 儆醒不落入圈套，堅守信實、善良的原則，不可與惡者妥協。
- 不接觸靈界事物，劃清界線。
- 將內心陰暗處交託給上帝，讓祂醫治內裡的創口。
- 如察覺撒旦搞擾的跡象，奉耶穌基督的名驅除之。
- 如懷疑有人被鬼附身，請同時向社工/心理學/精神科專業人士，與及牧者求助。很多時候，邪靈的依附是與人的創傷經驗纏結在一起的。
今次先說這麼多，下次再談。
照片提供：Raymond Wong