According to Michael’s Exorcism 101 professor, symptoms of demonic possession include tremors, self-mutilation and attempted suicide. Of course, these symptoms are ambiguous in that they could also indicate physical or mental illness. Even Rosaria coughing up nails could be attributed to an eating disorder such as pica.
The movie also shows avoidance of sacred objects (crucifixes, holy water, rosary beads) as a symptom of demonic possession. Father Lucas uses such objects in his treatment sessions with patients. Nonetheless, Angeline questioned whether such fears could be delusional, rather than demonic, in origin.
According to Father Lucas, the deciding symptom of possession is psychic ability, “knowledge of the unknowable.” For example, Rosaria correctly guesses what Michael has hidden in his bag. Another patient correctly predicts the death of someone close to Michael. These abilities are not easily explained by natural means.
Yet Michael and Angeline remain skeptics. Even when Michael personally experiences visions and other supernatural phenomenon, he at first thinks he is going crazy. Ultimately, [SPOILER WARNING] it is the violently bizarre and profane behavior of Father Lucas, Michael’s mentor, that causes Michael to believe in demons -- and to believe in God.
The New Testament describes several cases of demonic possession. In one example, a father brought his demon-possessed son to Jesus. The evil spirit had robbed the boy of speech. From time to time the spirit would seize the boy and throw him to the ground, where the boy would foam at the mouth, gnash his teeth and go rigid. The spirit would also attempt to kill the boy by throwing him into fire or water (Mark 9:14-29).
Another time, Jesus met a demon-possessed man in a region known as the Gerasenes. This man lived in the tombs and had super-human strength. When people tried to chain him up, he would tear the chains apart and break the irons on his feet. He would wander the tombs and hills, crying out and cutting himself with stones. (Mark 5:1-5).
And as another example, in the book of Acts, a man possessed by an evil spirit jumped and overpowered the seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest. The one possessed man gave the seven would-be exorcists such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding (Acts 19:14-16).
Thus, the Biblical account confirms that demonic possession may include violent and self-destructive behavior. However, there is no Scriptural support for the idea that demons respond to “holy” physical objects.
We do know that evil spirits have the ability to recognize Christ and His followers, with sometimes dramatic results. For example, one demon-possessed man cried out to Jesus in the synagogue: “I know who you are – the Holy One of God!” (Mark 1:24). The Gerasene demoniac shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me Jesus, Son of the Most High God?” (Mark 5:7). And the fortune-telling slave girl refused to stop shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” (Acts 16:17.)
In addition, while demons can surely observe what is happening in the physical realm, the Bible says little regarding their “psychic” powers. In Acts 16:16, we read that a demon-possessed slave girl was used by her masters to make money fortune-telling. However, we do not know whether her predictions were based on simple observation by the possessing demon, rather than a true knowledge of the future.
Interestingly, in each of the above New Testament cases of possession, the entire community recognized and was in agreement that evil spirits were the source of the trouble. The senseless, self-destructive and violent behavior gave them away.
Are all cases of demonic influence obvious?
More to come.
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