Christian Counseling, DID, and Demonic Possession
Christian counseling recognizes demonic activity is happening today. It is a topic C.S. Lewis addressed in his book The Screwtape Letters (1996). Exorcism, which Jesus practiced and commissioned his followers to use is still being done today. Psychiatrist Richard Gallager reported on this in a July 1, 2016 Washington Post article. How does a Christian counselor know if a person is suffering from organic mental illness or if they are being tormented by a demon? As in any complex diagnosis, accuracy takes knowledge, experience, discernment and often time.
Some symptoms of Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)
Two or more distinct personality states -
discontinuity in sense of self, sense of agency,
related alterations in affect, behavior, consciousness, memory, perception, cognition
and/ or sensory-motor function
Recurrent gaps in recall of everyday events, important personal information, and/or traumatic events that are inconsistent with ordinary forgetting
Symptoms cause significant distress or impairment in personal life, work or other important areas
The intensity of the above symptoms varies. At the intense level, even an MD with a clinical point of view has been known to call the client’s state demonic possession. Some Christians say that DID is demonic possession. The reasons for this determination was explained in a Washington Post article by psychiatrist Gallager (2016).
What does demonic possession look like in the Bible?
The demon often has special knowledge about the person doing the exorcism, or other people in the room. Sometimes there is more than one demon in a person. The demon is physically harming the person.
Mt 8.28-31 When he arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way. “What do you want with us Son of God?” they shouted. “Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?”
Mt 17.14-16, 18 When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. “Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffereing greatly. He often falls into the fire or into water. I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him.”
. . . Jesus gave a command to the demon, and it went out of the boy and at the very moment he was healed.
Mk 1.23-26 - Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an impure spirit cried out, “what do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are - the Holy One of God!!”
“Be quiet!”Jesus said sternly, “Come out of him!” The impure spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek.
Luke 8.27-30 When Jesus stepped ashore, he was met by a demon-possessed man from the town. For a long time this man had not worn clothes and lived in a house, but had lived in the tombs. When he saw Jesus he cried out and fell at his feet, and shouting at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, don’t torture me!” For Jesus had commanded the impure spirit to come out of the man. Many times it had seized him, and though he was chained hand and foot, and kept under guard,he had broken his chains and had been driven by the demon into solitary places. Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” “Legion,’” he replied, because many demons had gone into him. The demons begged Jesus not to send them into the Abyss.
Luke 11.14 Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute; and when the demon went out, the man who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed.
Who can do spiritual interventions?
The article from the Washington Post refers to an international society of exorcists, a priest and a psychiatrist working together to diagnose. The priest and exorcists are generally known for practicing exorcism because you do need knowledge and authority in Christ. In Matthew, Jesus gave his followers authority to “cast out demons” which implies that Christians have the power and knowledge to do this through the Holy Spirit. We also have the teaching and examples of Jesus and his disciples for exorcism.
Most people have considerable fear of demons created by false beliefs or lack of knowledge. In Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis teaches us what we can do to avoid the traps of ordinary living through the instructional letters of a demon to his apprentice and nephew. Charles H. Kraft in I Give You Authority (2012), educates believers about what he has learned in the last forty years about prayer, authority over demons and what Christians are empowered to do. We can learn from each other.
Taking back the ground in your life.
C.S. Lewis talks about many of the enemy’s strategies that keep us distracted or derailed. His book helps us to understand and live intentionally. Here is the first line of defense:
Put on your spiritual armor as described in Ephesians 6.
Recognize how your thoughts can “give Satan a foothold.”
Reject and repent from known sins.
Work through family issues to overcome destructive relationship patterns.
Take action by praying on another’s behalf. You can start with a simple prayer “the Lord’s will be done” or “Help!”
The referenced articles and sources below will give you broader insight into this important topic.
If you need help coping spiritually, call your Christian counselor in Denver at 720-577-5985.
References:
Clements, Roy. Demons and the Mind - referenced by https://royclements.net/wp-content/uploads/Papers/Demons-and-the-mind.pdf
Cook, Chris (2024) Demon Possession and Mental Health - referenced by https://www.cmf.org.uk/resources/publications/content/?context=article&id=61.
Gallager, Richard (2016) As a psychiatrist, I diagnose mental illness. Also, I help spot demonic possession: How a scientist learned to work with exorcists - referenced by https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2016/07/01/as-a-psychiatrist-i-diagnose-mental-illness-and-sometimes-demonic-possession/
New International Translation (NIV) referenced by the Bible app, https://www.bible.com/
Kraft, Charles H. (2012) I Give You Authority: Practicing the Authority Jesus Gave Us, Baker Publishing Group, Bloomington, MN.
Lewis, C.S. (1996) The Screwtape Letters, Simon and Schuster, Broadman and Holman Publishers, Nashville, TN.
