Demon Possession

Some liberal theologians and liberal Christian psychologists and psychiatrists believe that when Jesus and the other New Testament writers spoke about demon possession, they were speaking through the lens of a primitive culture, and that now we know that the illnesses spoken of in biblical times were really mental illnesses. How can I search for this in Logos?

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Beloved Amodeo

How can I search for this in Logos?

demon NEAR "mental illness" can be tried.

Wolfgang Schneider

One could search for the Greek words translated "demon, demonized, etc." in NT, e.g. when you have a Bible version with reverse interlinear do a search for "Lemma.g:δαίμων OR Lemma.g:δαιμόνιον OR Lemma.g:δαιμονίζομαι"
Another search for terms like "unclean spirit", "evil spirit" via a search for "spirit NEAR (unclean OR evil)" most likely has additional verses on the same matter.

This will provide a listing of the verses where these terms occur, which you then can carefully evaluate and study in their context, etc. to understand what the passages are about. A clue in light of the topic at hand, you may want to see if such events are mentioned as part of sick people being healed.

When checking out what Scripture teaches on "healing" (via a search for "healing"/"heal") one might find that most occurrences address situations with physical diseases ... but then, did people in those days not suffer from mental illnesses? are there verses about healing that are somehow related to what we today may call "mental illness" but which were called something different in Bible times and their culture? For further background information, looking up these words in Factbook, Bible dictionary, Greek lexicon, etc. may give helpful information.

Keep Smiling 4 Jesus :)

How can I search for this in Logos?

Book Search idea in All Books for articles and chapters is:

(field.heading:demon OR field.largetext:demon) WITHIN 100 WORDS (illness OR mental) whose results in my Logos library included:

Counseling Insights: A Biblical Perspective on Caring for People">
Demonic Influence vs. Mental Health

Two dangers must be avoided: spiritualizing mental disorders and psychologizing spiritual problems. Instances of demonization independent of mental illness or neurosis do occur, and instances of mental illness or neurosis independent of demonization also occur. In many cases, people struggle with problems that demonstrate an entangled combination of both.

Insight for Living, Counseling Insights: A Biblical Perspective on Caring for People (Plano, TX: Insight for Living, 2007), 554.

Expanded Book search suggestion is:

(field.heading:demon OR field.largetext:demon) WITHIN 100 WORDS (illness OR mental OR oppress OR possess) whose results in my Logos library included:

Spiritual Warfare Jesus' Way: How to Conquer Evil Spirits and Live Victoriously">
Symptoms of Demonization

Is it demons?”

That is a question I hear often.

How can I tell if that temptation I struggle to overcome is energized by demons?

How can I tell if a chronic illness doctors just can’t seem to help is being driven by demons?

How can I tell if my adolescent, whose whole character seems to have changed and who has even threatened to kill us, is demonized?

How can I tell if the voice I seem to hear speaking inside me is the Holy Spirit or one of Satan’s evil spirits?

Are there specific symptoms or markers that can help us determine the presence of demons within an individual? When we read books written by those experienced in casting out demons, we are likely to find lists of characteristics the authors say are indicators.

Larry Richards, Spiritual Warfare Jesus’ Way: How to Conquer Evil Spirits and Live Victoriously (Grand Rapids, MI: Chosen, 2014).

Keep Smiling [:)]

DMB

Another copied quote without attribution.

But poor Sarah in Tobit (if mental illness) ... it was she, who killed her 7 husbands! And Judas ... removed demons, but not the Prince of Demons? The issue does create a theological conumdrum (free will, election, and the Prince of Darkness).

Keep Smiling 4 Jesus :)

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/1248675#Comment_1248675

search for "Lemma.g:δαίμων OR Lemma.g:δαιμόνιον OR Lemma.g:δαιμονίζομαι"

Alternate search is: root.g:διαμονιον OR root.g:δαιμονιον

Another search for terms like "unclean spirit", "evil spirit" via a search for "spirit NEAR (unclean OR evil)"

Search can be combined with lemma search (as English glosses in SBLGNT are searchable):

Lemma.g:δαίμων OR Lemma.g:δαιμόνιον OR Lemma.g:δαιμονίζομαι OR (spirit NEAR (unclean OR evil))

Root search alternative: root.g:διαμονιον OR root.g:δαιμονιον OR (root.g:πνευμα NEAR (root.g:καθαρος OR root.g:πονος))

Keep Smiling [:)]

Keep Smiling 4 Jesus :)

Some liberal theologians and liberal Christian psychologists and psychiatrists believe that when Jesus and the other New Testament writers spoke about demon possession, they were speaking through the lens of a primitive culture, and that now we know that the illnesses spoken of in biblical times were really mental illnesses.

Another copied quote without attribution.

How can I search for this in Logos?

Book Search in All Books for "Some liberal theologians and liberal Christian psychologists and psychiatrists believe" finds one result in my Logos library:

Hermeneutics: Principles and Processes of Biblical Interpretation, 2nd ed.">
85. Some liberal theologians and liberal Christian psychologists and psychiatrists believe that when Jesus and the other New Testament writers spoke about demon possession, they were speaking through the lens of a primitive culture, and that now we know that the illnesses spoken of in biblical times were really mental illnesses. What do you think of this assertion and why? If you believe that demon possession and mental illness both exist, how would you decide if a parishioner was suffering from one instead of the other?

Henry A. Virkler and Karelynne Gerber Ayayo, Hermeneutics: Principles and Processes of Biblical Interpretation, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2007), 211.

Keep Smiling [:)]

Justin Gatlin

If I type "mental illness" into Factbook, I get the suggestion to use disease. If I click that and scroll down to "search for disease," it generates a massive search string. If I type in demon to the Factbook and do the same thing, I get another massive search string. If I combine those with an AND, I get

term:(culture:Sickness OR preachingTheme:Sickness OR topic:Disease OR section:culture:Sickness OR section:preachingTheme:Sickness OR section:topic:Disease OR milestone:culture:Sickness OR milestone:preachingTheme:Sickness OR milestone:topic:Disease OR headword:Disease OR headword:"Disease and Healing" OR headword:Diseases OR headword:"Diseases and Infirmities" OR headword:Germs OR headword:Illness OR headword:Infirmities OR headword:Infirmity OR headword:"Mental Illness" OR headword:Sick OR headword:Sickness OR headword:"Sickness and Disease" OR Disease OR "Disease and Healing" OR Diseases OR "Diseases and Infirmities" OR Germs OR Illness OR Infirmities OR Infirmity OR "Mental Illness" OR Sick OR Sickness OR "Sickness and Disease") AND term:(culture:"Demons and Evil Spirits" OR topic:Demon OR section:culture:"Demons and Evil Spirits" OR section:topic:Demon OR milestone:culture:"Demons and Evil Spirits" OR milestone:topic:Demon OR headword:Daemon OR headword:Demon OR headword:Demons OR headword:"Demons and Evil Spirits" OR headword:"Demons and Exorcism" OR headword:Devil/Demon OR headword:"Fallen Angels" OR headword:"Familiar spirit" OR headword:"Unclean Spirit" OR Daemon OR Demon OR Demons OR "Demons and Evil Spirits" OR "Demons and Exorcism" OR "Devil/Demon" OR "Fallen Angels" OR "Familiar spirit" OR "Unclean Spirit")

This gives me several results discussing your exact question.
This one showed up in the new Q&A section and this one from the Baker Encyclopedia of Psychology and Counseling is probably exactly what you want. If you are looking for the early defense of the liberal position, James Leo Garrett's Systematic Theology points to: By the Finger of God: Demon Possession and Exorcism in Early Christianity in the Light of Modern Views of Mental Illness (New York: Macmillan, 1951), esp. p. v.