Can Christians be Possessed by Evil Spirits?

Abstract

In the African ministry context, accusations of demon possession are commonplace. It would appear that every strange, bizarre, or abnormal form of behavior is attributed to demon possession. Unfortunately, in many cases there is a very thin line between occurrences of mental disorder and demonization. This is because the symptoms in several instances are quite similar, and the precursors may be quite complex. For these reasons, another article in this issue sought to address the issue of discerning whether certain conditions were caused by mental disorders or demonization. In addition, the predisposition to regard every unexplained behavior as having a demonic origin was also addressed in this issue and described “the expanded middle.” However, one debate that has continued for decades and which is the concern of this chapter is, Can Christians be possessed by evil spirits?