Demons
I don’t really believe in demons. At least, not literal persons that pester the human race. I do however think the Bible was talking about something very real and very important that Jesus healed people of. I’ve recently been working on a new way to read those passages, and it’s serving me well. It makes sense to me both on a logical and an exegetical side. Here’s what I have so far.
In the ancient near east, particularly in the Hellenized world it was very common to personify ideas as a way to make them easier to talk about. Gods and goddesses were already personified, and represented certain needs, forces or virtues. When something which was not already a god was needed for discussion, say Pistis (faith) or Liberty we simply personified it. Nay, we personified "Her".
The ancient world is full of depictions of gods and goddesses in the same plane with Caesars and soldiers and even personified land masses like Britania and Anatolia. All fighting, or falling in love, or interacting with one another in representative ways.
If we used the same system in the US today, we would talk about the Spirit of Trump, and of Socialism, and of Feminism, and Progress, and Liberty (some things never change) and these small gods would speak for themselves and squabble with each other and influence people.
When Jesus entered the scene as "The God" there was considerable consternation in the early church about the ramifications this would have on the other gods, or other spirits or “diamons”. (That’s the Greek spelling)
That word was used in ancient Greek documents to describe a kind of these small gods. One that might visit for a time and help you with your housework or your writing. Another, similar being was a "genius" who would come upon you suddenly and give you a great idea.
It did not make much sense for the early Christians to just deny these things these things. They could not imagine a way to talk which would describe these spirits as "not real". They are very real. They influence people. Some people are desperately paralyzed by them even. Socialism is real, Wisdom is real, Caesar is definitely real and present even to subjects who have never seen a royal parade.
So what’s an author to do? How do you make a theologically correct statement about Jesus among the Diamons. Is he prince of Diamons? No. But he has power over them and they respect him. And let me tell you about the people he helped….
When a child is raised in generational poverty they can be said to be oppressed by the spirit of that situation. When a person is subjected to so much violence and injustice that they see nothing else they may be possessed by that violent spirit. And yes, when a person has a debilitating irrational fear, it is not incorrect to pray that it be expelled or exorcised.
Those exorcisms may happen by prayer alone. They may come with application and administration of love, with welcome into community, or in some other way. “The Hunger” for instance is expelled with food. I think this is why you see so much variety in Jesus’ healings, it prevents us from trying to imitate Jesus exactly as a ritual, and invites us instead to do the right thing for the right person at the right time.