Faith

Not Just for Thrills: The Real Meaning of ‘The Exorcist’

Not Just for Thrills: The Real Meaning of The Exorcist

Just in time for Halloween, The Exorcist author William Peter Blatty has taken the opportunity to revisit what many have described as his deeply unsettling “magnum opus.”

The truth of the matter is that when he wrote The Exorcist and then later adapted it for the screen (for which he won an Oscar), he had no intention of doing it just to scare the pants off his audience. His intention was to write an in-depth examination of his Catholic faith under the guise of a “thrilling and suspenseful detective story.”

Simply put, the author wanted to write “a sermon that no one could possibly sleep through.”

In a recent Fox News article, Blatty writes that he had no “intention to frighten the reader, which many will take, I suppose, as an admission of failure on an almost stupefying, scale.”

And why doubt Blatty at his word? Before writing The Exorcist, he was writing comedies such as Which Way to Mecca, Jack? and the Inspector Clouseau comedy A Shot in the Dark. He simply didn’t have a résumé that indicated a penchant for gruesome sensationalism.

In fact, even after writing The Exorcist, he maintained his comic flair. In his obscure but phenomenal Twinkle, Twinkle Killer Kane, there are, for instance, dozens of comedic moments.

To this day, Blatty is still surprised, if not slightly dismayed, that The Exorcist is hailed as a horror masterpiece. He writes:

When I saw the novel’s early reviews (Newsday: “One of the most terrifying stories since ‘Dracula!’”), for a time I found myself prematurely in that unbalanced and “tricky age” for writers of comedy described by the great James Thurber in his rollicking “A Preface to My Life,” as a period “when they take to calling their office from their home, or their home from their office, asking for themselves, and then collapsing in hard-breathing relief upon being told they ‘were not in.’”

Some might say that it is a bit of a shame.

Although The Exorcist is an entertaining film (the revenue it generated at the box office attests to this point), to view it simply as a spook-fest and ignore its much deeper religious subtext might do the work a disservice.

But what was Blatty aiming for?

I do keep wishing – oh, ever so wistfully and – let’s face it, hopelessly – that “The Exorcist” be remembered at this time of the year for being not about shivers but rather about souls, for then it would indeed be in the real and true spirit of Halloween, which is short for the eve of All Hallows or All Saints Day.

More than anything, Blatty wanted to use The Exorcist to deal with the question of evil.

“When I first heard, in 1949, of an actual case of demonic possession and an exorcism going on nearby while I was a junior at Georgetown University,” Blatty writes in his Fox News article, “I remember thinking, ‘Someday, somebody’s got to write about this, because if an investigation were to prove that possession is real, what a help it would be to the struggling faith of possibly millions, for if there were demons, I reasoned, then why not angels? Why not God?’” Blatty added.

Later, when he made his directorial debut with The 9th Configuration (an absolutely brilliant adaption of Twinkle, Twinkle Killer Kane), Blatty continued asking these theological and philosophical questions.

The difference between the two films is that while The Exorcist deals with the question of evil—and some would conclude that its existence implies the absence of a supreme being—The 9th Configuration deals with the mystery of goodness.

Not Just for Thrills: The Real Meaning of The Exorcist

Scott Wilson as Capt. Billy Cutshaw in "The 9th Configuration"

If the mere presence of evil is used to “prove” that there is no God, then couldn’t you apply that same logic to conclude that there must be a higher being because of the existence of goodness?

Let’s put it this way: if the existence of evil is proof that the world is the product of chance and random occurrences, and that we are truly alone, then what do concepts such as “love,“ ”sacrifice“ and ”goodness” indicate? Surely, real self-sacrifice cannot be explained away as an evolutionary mutation (as it is contrary to the principle of self-preservation).

But is there really such a thing as “goodness”?

These are among some of the questions Blatty asks. It’s not just about Ouija boards and spinning heads. For this reason, it might be unwarranted for people to remember The Exorcist simply as “that movie where the girl throws up a lot.”

There is, according to Blatty, a far richer meaning to be mined from his work. If you can ignore the more sensational moments from the Hollywood adaptation, it might be worth revisiting The Exorcist with a new frame of mind.

Similarly, a viewing of The 9th Configuration could prove to be thought-provoking.

Blatty ends the humorous revisit of his most famous work:

. . . in every period of recorded history, and in every culture and part of the world, there have been consistent accounts of possession and its symptoms going all the way back to ancient Egyptian chronicles, and where there is that much smoke, my reason told me, there is probably fire – and a lot of it, if you get my meaning.

Do you? My faith is strong.

October 2011 marks the 40th anniversary of  the publication of William Peter Blatty’s “The Exorcist.” For this occasion, Mr. Blatty has re-edited the book and added a new scene.

Comments (127)

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  • Bronco II
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 6:41am

    Yes EVIL is real.As GOD allows good spirits to roam the earth he is fair and allows evil to roam to.He gave us FREE WILL who will we follow satan or GOD.This earth and heaven AGE is our PROBATION PERIOD.Keep GOD close to you dwell with him and he will dwell with you and he has already told satan he can’t touch a hair on the heads of those who believe in Jesus Christ and have the seal of GOD in them.We have power over our enemies in CHRIST NAME.The Old Testament is an ensample to us not to do what happened then and what will be if we do.GOD said I have fortold you all things have you read it? THE BIBLE with understanding.If you hate GOD and are empty inside then evil will fill that void.Not everyone who has mental disorders are possesed need to know the difference and if you try to mess with someone who is possesd you better know what your doing because satan and his demons will chew you up and spit you out if you haven’t read GODS WORD to know how to handle them.

    Report Post » Bronco II  
    • lukerw
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 7:25am

      Interestingly… Christ just means Savior in Greek… Jesus is a form of JeZeus, in Greek… which Paul used as tools to convert the Greeks… who worshiped the god Zeus (JeZeus meaning Son of Zeus, thereby Son of God).
      If “in His Name” is important, His Name was: Joshua ben Joseph… where Joshua is the exact same name as in the Book of Joshua in the Old Testament… where Jushua took the people out the desert and settled them in the Promised Land. Hence, a Prophecy of Deed in the Old Testament becomes a Fulfillment in the New Testament… where Joshua preaches upon the Kingdom of God on Earth!

      Report Post » lukerw  
    • qpwillie
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 7:49am

      lukerw,
      Since the letter “J” or it‘s sound wasn’t used in Bible times, I believe his name is “Yah” (after his father), “Hoshua” (savior) – contracted to ‘Yahshua”.

      Report Post » qpwillie  
    • Eliasim
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 8:37am

      “Good” is a combination of uncomfortable and comfortable things. Look at it this when: when they exorcise the demons and they leave, then the person feels pretty good. I mean if there were Hollywood type possessions.

      Report Post »  
    • Eliasim
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 8:45am

      I know evil exists because they make movies like the Exorcist which causes people to doubt the power of God, and the constant exposure to fear opens people up through desensitization for bad things. I also know evil exists because of Socialistic programs which desensitize people to the span of comfort and discomfort, and then they lose track of what good really is.

      Report Post »  
    • Eliasim
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 8:48am

      Let me ask: giving your children to God that being Liberty and letting your new-born child cry in the crib until they learn to comfort his or her self – is that evil? Because some people would say it is.

      Report Post »  
    • Luke21
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 10:06am

      Eliasim what are you getting at? “Let me ask: giving your children to God that being Liberty and letting your new-born child cry in the crib ..” I don‘t follow what you’re trying to state.

      Is killing an unborn child in a womb good or evil? In “modern” society it is “good” because we say it is a choice the woman should get to make & she would never do “evil”. Unless of course we are talking about California & Scott Peterson – aparently when he “caused” the abortion of his child (by murdering his wife), that abortion was evil – hence the charg for double homicide.

      If evil is the “proof” there is no God, then evil does not exist. Evil is what is morally reprehensible. W/o God there are no morals – for there is no moral law giver. There are only subjective rules made by men – as we now have in a society doing all it can to live w/o God.

      Thus the definition of “evil” yesterday is not the same as today, nor will it be the same tomorrow. He who rules defines “evil”. Can’t have it both ways.

      Point being if the existence of evil is proof of no God, then there is no evil. The reality is that the heart of men are evil. Hence the need for redemption.

      “The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it? I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings.” Jeremiah 17:9-10

      Report Post »  
    • Eliasim
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 10:09am

      LUKER,
      Are you telling me that Paul resorted to trickery to convert the Greeks? Paul who blames the Jews for the death of Jesus? Because somehow I thought it was the Romans who actually crucified him, and Pilate could have kept it from happening.

      Report Post »  
    • Eliasim
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 10:12am

      LUKE21,
      I’m not talking about human sacrifice when I say give your children to God. I’m not talking about abortion. I‘m talking about letting babies cry until they comfort themselves that’s all.

      Report Post »  
    • motonutt
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 10:13am

      The night that I got on my knees and truely accepted the Lord into my heart, an MD doctor, a christian, witnessed to me and told me you cannot live as a non-spiritual being as so many think they can. There is no “grey area” as he put it. It’s either black (satan) or white(God). Either you become saved and live with the H.S. in your heart, or satan and his unholey spirit will come fill the void. You can’t avoid it. You are either living with God in your heart, or satan, you choose, I fell to my knees at that moment 20 years ago and have never looked back.

      Report Post » motonutt  
    • Eliasim
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 10:14am

      LUKE21,
      I have no angle. I don’t try to angle. Although people who have guile are always trying to see the angle.

      Report Post »  
    • Eliasim
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 10:19am

      You see because the truth about Saul (Paul) is that he persecuted Christians, but when he saw the power of Jesus he got scared and so he changed his own name to Paul. Paul is a left-handed so-called Apostle.

      Report Post »  
    • motonutt
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 10:22am

      I used to be a paramedic. After preforming CPR on a gentlemen for over 20 mins. with no sign’s of life the doctors and nurses stepped out of the curtained area to discuss calling and declairing a death.
      My partner and I remained and continued CPR. The man was entabated (breathing tube) at the time.

      Suddenly the man rose up and said “save me I’m going to hell”…..clear as a bell. It scared the holy crap out of us, litterally,Then fell back and he never came back to life again. Now for those of you who don’t know when you are entabated the tube goes down through your larnix (voice box) and you are unable to speak. I was not a christian at the time, that incedent was the start of me realising there is a heaven and a hell.

      Report Post » motonutt  
    • Eliasim
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 10:45am

      motonutt,
      You know what I think would be hell? Having to live with someone for eternity of which I have no concept of what he is doing or why, and yet I’m bound by his rules of the house. That’s what I think hell is. I think it‘s getting held back getting hold close to the Lord’s heart of which I do not understand. Kind of the same way Jacob held Benjamin back when the other children went to work in the field.

      Report Post »  
    • Luke21
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 10:49am

      Eliasim
      Peace – I simply didn’t understand what you were driving at. As for angles – I don’t believe I accused you of “angling” – though I’m not sure I agree w/ you about not having an “angle” (since you brought it up). We all have angles. We all have beliefs, we all have agendas – be they good or bad (or evil), right or wrong, true or false.

      Even God has an agenda – His, which is a romance of redemption between God and man, to glorify Himself in mankind – to restore man to a right relationship w/ God.

      Religion always seeks to make man “right” with God – through deeds (an impossible task). In the Cross, God makes man “right” w/ Himself through substitution, when God the Son put on humanity & took our place in judgement. Jesus said (paraphrasing) He came not in His own name, but in His Father’s name & not to do His will but the will of His Father in Heaven (John 5:43, 15:10). That was His agenda or angle.

      Report Post »  
    • Eliasim
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 11:01am

      You see because the thing that people haven’t yet realized about the Bible is that there is a direct and indirect correlation between the children of Jacob, and the twelve Apostles. And Benjamin is to Judas Iscariot. Because Benjamin didn’t only betray Joseph, but he also betrayed Jacob, because Jacob loved Joseph more than any of his other children.

      Report Post »  
    • motonutt
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 11:06am

      @ElIASIM….God Bless. Your posts are making no sense this morning. Take you meds, clear your mind and then come back and post. I think you have a real heart for the Lord, but sometimes you are just way to far out there.

      Report Post » motonutt  
    • Eliasim
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 11:12am

      motonutt,
      What are you talking about? Of course they make sense. Benjamin betrayed Joseph, and therefore Jacob was afraid that the other children would also dispose of Benjamin, and therefore Jacob held back Benjamin the next time the children went out to work the field (field =earth, as it says right in the Bible). And likewise: Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus, and Judas Iscariot knew what the other Apostles would do to him and so he went and hung himself. Oh it makes sense alright.

      Report Post »  
    • Eliasim
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 11:34am

      motonutt,
      You should try to learn more about the Bible. Guess what else? Adam is Jacob, and Jacob is also Jesus. And, Enoch is Esau, and also John the Baptist. How does that grab your behind? And that’s why John the baptist said: John 1:23 He said I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the Prophet Esa’ias.”
      And it’s also why John the Baptist said: John 1:27 “He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me whose shoes latchet I am not worthy to unloose.”

      Report Post »  
    • RJO
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:16pm

      The persecution of the Catholic Church goes back to the Apostle’s. The movie illustrates why evil attempts to degrade and attack not only Catholics, but other Christian sisters and brothers as well. We are witnessing many historic events – the persecution of the followers of Jesus Christ will intensify with each passing day. Best News: We have a guarantee that evil will LOSE in the end.

      Report Post » RJO  
    • Young Patriot
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:55pm

      The more you go into the bible the more it sounds like a over complex movie idea like inception. I love it. Is there a god?, probably? is the bible gods word?. How vain can you be.

      Report Post » Young Patriot  
    • Islesfordian
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 3:32pm

      “Jesus is a form of JeZeus,”

      It’s amazing how many people propogate or swallow such complete nonsense when a simple Greek lexicon could inform them of the truth. Jesus is the English form of the greek iesou, which is itself the greek form of the hebrew Yashua. And in what language do you think JeZeus could possible mean son of Zeus? Because it isn’t Greek

      Why do some of you want to read the Bible out of a ******* Jack box decoder? And why do you think anyone is stupid enough to buy your crap? Is it because so many people voted for Hope and Change? Well, you might have a point then.

      Report Post » Islesfordian  
    • Islesfordian
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 6:39pm

      Eliasim,
      What religion do you practice? Where do your beliefs come from? They certainly aren’t orthodox Christianity.

      Report Post » Islesfordian  
    • slimster
      Posted on October 30, 2011 at 2:00am

      lukerw – wow, you just posted the most inaccurate information on the etymology of the word Jesus I have ever seen on the internet. If any one really wants to learn where Jesus name has arrived in our English language- all you have to do is google “Yashua” the truth is very different from what you have said.

      Report Post »  
    • colonial10
      Posted on October 30, 2011 at 2:15pm

      I know evil exists because in the home I grew up in, I saw a picture of Jesus entering Jerusalem for Palm Sunday fly off the wall and land 15 feet away. It flew 15 feet away right at me and landed on the bed exactly where I could see it. The interesting thing is, right before I entered my room I was wondering to myself why I kept finding the picture on the ground. It had happened three times. 2 times earlier and when I walked in my room thinking about it, it flew off the wall the third time. What ever entity resides in that house read my thoughts. That house has a very intelligent entity. It is evil. I saw it with my own eyes and heard it with my own ears. I had a few of my LDS missionaries friends come over and bless the house. Everything stopped. Even to this day 2 years later there has not been activity. Why would it stop after the blessing if there was no Good? Before the blessing I heard footsteps, voices, loud bangs on the roof and on the walls (outside the house) and I saw flashing lights. I did not just see them alone. I have seen these things with other people in the room. Others have seen apparitions and others have had there pets stand with their hair straight up and growling at the unseen. Lights, doors and furniture have been manipulated. Since the blessing, not a peep. I had someone close who constantly lived in suicidal thoughts. Now she is fine. How can science explain this?

      Report Post » colonial10  
  • Frogdaddy
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 6:30am

    I remember laughing this movie off when it was on HBO and had an R rating at the beginning of it.
    Sitting in a friends dark basement fearing whatever may be under the stairs to begin with. When the head spun around, I couldn’t run fast enough up the stairs. My heart was pounding out of my chest. Scariest crap I’d ever seen.

    Report Post » Frogdaddy  
  • A_VT_PREPPER
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 5:04am

    I was 17 years old when this movie came out. I lived by myself and after seeing that movie was never able to sleep with all the lights out when I was alone for many, many years and I also had nightmares about Satan and possession for years! In it’s day it was the scariest movie ever made.

    Report Post » A_VT_PREPPER  
    • Dustyluv
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 6:40am

      I was also mid teens when the movie came out. I was a truly saved Christian that went to Church. I went with about 5 friends. I am pretty sure all of them went to Church with me the next day and also gave their life to God. His work was a masterpiece of truth for the people who didnt understand Satan for sure. Scared many people into the Kingdom of God.

      Demon posession and opression is real…Heck just look at how many people were duped into voting for Obama….For that matter, look at the demon possesed leader himself. If anyone thinks this man is a Christian they are pure fools. As we say in Texas…He does not know the Lord from a lizzard…

      Report Post »  
    • Discord
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 7:29am

      Good job, you live your lives based on the fear of a horror movie.

      Report Post » Discord  
    • Susan
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 7:59am

      I was 13 when this movie came out and of course my parents wouldn’t allow me to see it. By the time I was 16 (1976) I was working at a drive-in theater and thats when I got to see it, over and over again. I understood the meaning. I understood when you call on evil spirits, even in play, they just might show up!

      I‘m 51 now and to this day I’ve never touched a Ouija board, held a seance or done anything that might invite evil into my life.

      Whats that scientists say…For every action there is an equal and opposit reaction? If there is good, there is evil. Nuf’ said.

      Report Post »  
    • Dustyluv
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 10:11am

      Discord…It wasnt so much a movie as it was an enlightenmnet to SATAN for many people in that time. It had a heavy spiritual overtone that made people wake up to the FACT that there is a Satan and there is a hell…The movie did not scare me at all. I know God. Nothing scares me now, because I know where I go when I die…Do you?

      Report Post »  
  • ZAP
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 3:36am

    You think this movie is scary? What do you think happens to people that do not obey GOD !

    Report Post » ZAP  
    • John_Free
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 4:56am

      As a degreed and licensed retired Christian psychotherapist, and as a trained exorcist, I can tell you categorically, that not all possession is the result of disobedience to/of God.

      I would suggest that you do a study of Satanic Ritual Abuse and its resulting MPD/DID.

      Report Post » John_Free  
    • Lotus4115
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 6:34am

      Oh, so god is an evil *****. First there has to be a god.

      Report Post » Lotus4115  
    • MOLLYPITCHER
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 6:39am

      @john_free
      I’m not trying to criticize you, but The Holy Spirit and satan cannot exist in the same body. So how can someone who has received the Holy Spirit, and is therefor obeying God by trusting in Jesus, be demon possessed?

      Report Post »  
    • Discord
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 7:30am

      I think what happens is they live their lives like normal folks.
      Nothing is different except sundays off sleeping in and a lot less fear and magical thinking.

      Report Post » Discord  
    • loriann12
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 10:19am

      @MOLLYPITCHER

      You are right, those who have the Holy Spirit can not be inhabited by Satan, or demons, but they can be influenced if they are suppressing the Holy Spirit.

      Report Post »  
  • ORACLE12389
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 2:34am

    I get so tired of these liberals always trying to argue the existence of God. Like always they want you to explain God etc… if we could prove let alone explain God we wouldn’t be having this debate. The reason people don’t believe is not because of proof, but because if you believe in God you have to believe in the devil, hence consequences for your actions. Bottom line how arrogant can you be to think you can prove or explain a God who created the universe when we can’t even cure cancer yet?

    Report Post » ORACLE12389  
    • izzy1127
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 2:47am

      For someone who still questions the bible, I like your response. Even though I still struggle with my beliefs, I wish more people who do believe without question would find themselves back in church. I plan to get involved with my local churches to help start food drives and hoarding for what might happen. But I hope one day its clear to me and no more questions. But I have to admit, I have watched the movie twice this weeks already and # II once this week. Still don’t find it scary, but very entertaining……..

      Report Post »  
    • mocon
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 6:53am

      Prophecy. You can use fulfilled prophecy to prove the existence of God. God declares the end from the beginning so that we may believe (Isaiah 46). Those who study bible prophecy accept prophecy as proof that God is who he says he is.

      Report Post » mocon  
  • MrMagoo
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 2:15am

    I spent 8 years of my early young life in school being taught by nuns and priests.I learned respect,honor and world history.and math!
    There was no in between or politically correct.
    And we were always taught what a great country the USA was.And still is!

    Report Post » MrMagoo  
    • izzy1127
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 2:40am

      Well, that’s nice MRMAGOO, but what does that have to do with the “Exorcist? The article is about a book and movie, but your comment is about education……….. Guess I’m too stupid to get it……….

      Report Post »  
    • MrMagoo
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 3:07am

      @IZZY1127…because the Catholic religion is‘nt about ’exorcists’.It OFFENDS me to see actors or others wearing Catholic garb.
      Sensationalism doesn’t make a great movie.

      Report Post » MrMagoo  
    • MrMagoo
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 3:29am

      I don’t need Blatty or anyone else to show me evil.He just put it on paper and Hollywood visualized it.All the ridiculous mumbo jumbo means nothing.
      Hell is a terrible place,as Regan MacNeil shows in the film.Imagine a place where all faith,hope and change is non-existent.No love or peace.Gloom and doom 24 hrs a day.Moans,groans,Immovable,stuck there.Its a horrible place to be.Halloween

      But Christmas is right around the corner………………..:)

      Report Post » MrMagoo  
    • American Resistance
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 12:50pm

      Hate to tell you,christmas is as pagan as halloween. They were only accepted by the early church to try and convert followers of pagan beliefs because plain old Christianity wouldn’t have as much fun as the pagans. Only God decides what is good or evil but as usual mans arrogance prevails. They are a great excuse to spend time with family but are otherwise meaningless. Just because man declares it does not make it so. Also nowhere does the Holy Bible say to celebrate the birth of Jesus, although I don’t see how honoring Him would be a bad thing, the highest honor is copying His behavior.

      Report Post » American Resistance  
    • Greenwood
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:55pm

      @AMERICAN RESISTACE……….”Hate to tell you,christmas is as pagan as halloween. They were only accepted by the early church to try and convert followers of pagan beliefs ……….

      You are correct and Easter is also from pagan origins. The goddess of fertility “Ishtar” where we get Ostara, Eostre, Eastre…………….“Queen of heaven” It comes from ancient Babylon along with the symbol of the rabbit and the egg.

      Report Post » Greenwood  
  • angelnuggets
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 2:08am

    when I first read this book back in the 70′s I was reading late at night. I could not put the book down. I began to get really dizzy, and feeling awful..I was so scared , the dizziness kept getting worse..I thought I was getting possessed by reading the book……then finally I ended a chapter, took a deep breath and realized I had NOT been breathing at all for many pages. when I finished the book, I burned it !! most terrifying book have ever read. to this day, I wont have anything to do with watching/reading anything with that kind of evil.

    Report Post »  
  • rdietz7
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:42am

    Happy Halloween!

    Report Post » rdietz7  
    • USAMEDIC3008
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:58am

      I just received a high security flash report
      over my DHS alert system
      3 objects just landed neer Grovers Mills,N.J. at aprox.0116hrs. And
      at 0132hrs. 3 more just south of N.Y.City.will try to give more
      information later ,If thay dont get me

      Report Post » USAMEDIC3008  
    • lukerw
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 5:09am

      Tis said: if you run naked around your home, counter clockwise, three times… you will reverse the Evil of the Year :)

      Report Post » lukerw  
  • USAMEDIC3008
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:36am

    Maybe we need to send an exorcest to Washington D.C.
    Start at the White House but save Nancy Pelosie till the end
    Like to see her head spin,and green job vomit…

    Report Post » USAMEDIC3008  
  • rdietz7
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:30am

    Lucifer used 60′s counter culture and the entertqin,ent of the 70‘s and 80’s to lure young souls away from their Christian background. Now we see Satan at work in the political world. While we pay homage to Satan’s artwork he is playing his pipe in Washington. The piper is here as foretold in Stairway to Heaven, and ‘he’s calling you to join him.’

    Report Post » rdietz7  
    • rdietz7
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:38am

      ‘The piper’s calling you to join him’

      Report Post » rdietz7  
    • lukerw
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 5:22am

      Lucifer… first appears in the Latin text… where the word was The Morning Star (Venus, also being the Evening Star). And, again appears at the begining of Revelation… as a gift from Christ. Scholars hate this… and run away from the Lucifer Debate… so I would stay away from referencing Lucifer with Satan! Rather, as some suggest, the Morning Star is Christ, as the Fallen Angel, who fell, because His followers did not do what He told them (re the Lord’s Prayer): Build the Kingdom of God “on Earth”!

      Report Post » lukerw  
  • burnteye86
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:27am

    when my son was 16 (24 now) he watched it and even tho he was a fan of violent movies and video games he said it was the scariest movie he had ever seen. And he has seen some horror movies. That just verified for me Satan’s influence on the world.

    Report Post » burnteye86  
    • burnteye86
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:30am

      actually, I should say that it FURTHER verified for me…

      Report Post » burnteye86  
  • Midwest Blonde
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:16am

    I had a friend who read the book when it first came out. Scared the crap out of him. It haunted him. However, he was too cheap to throw the book away so he taped it shut – using several rolls of scotch tape to do the job. I often wonder if he still has the book……

    Never saw it, never read it, never going to do either :) I believe in demons (and angels) and I don’t need a movie or book to show me the horror.

    Report Post » Midwest Blonde  
  • ramburner
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:16am

    Thanks be to God; I don’t watch that stuff! Messing in ANY way with the occult opens doors within our soul for demon possession, etc. I don’t allow those movies, books or any other representation in my family or on TV. We never see movies in any form which deal with the occult, including the “cute” little story of Harry Potter. The Bible is clear on this subject; just stay away from it in any form!

    Report Post »  
    • KStret
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:26am

      If you have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, you can’t simultaneously have an indwelling demon. Also remember that evil’s M.O comes from deception and lies.

      Report Post » KStret  
  • KStret
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:11am

    The book Possessed by Thomas Allen is about the case of demonic possession that Blatty based The Exorcist on.

    Report Post » KStret  
  • MrMagoo
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:05am

    The Exorcist unrated version is the most horrific movie I’ve ever seen a time or 2.Never again.Regan and the spider walk down the stairs. Even when the edited versions are shown on cable channels,I hurriedly whiz right past them.
    The places in Hell make this movie seem tame,I’m sure of it.

    Magoo

    Report Post » MrMagoo  
    • jzs
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:11am

      Scariest movie ever made IMO.

      Report Post » jzs  
    • KStret
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 1:20am

      I agree with you. The Spider walk was pretty creepy.

      Report Post » KStret  
  • capitalismrocks
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 12:57am

    That movie scared the crap out of me, still does to this day…

    Report Post » capitalismrocks  
  • CatB
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 12:45am

    “no intention of simply scaring the pants off his audience.” speaking as someone who watched this movie in the theater with her eyes closed and had nightmares for a LONG time … it was enough for me.

    Report Post »  
  • sodacrackers
    Posted on October 29, 2011 at 12:01am

    Anyone living today has got to know there is evil afoot in this world.

    Report Post »  
    • Jas Kasalova
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 12:40am

      I don’t disagree with you, but are you implying that there were other times in history where evil did not clearly exist… in other words, are you saying that things are somehow “worse” now than ever before? Just wondering, because my reading of history tells me that things have been just as bad, or possibly much worse, in the past.

      Report Post »  
    • decendentof56
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 7:08am

      JAS…..
      Sod doesn‘t seem to be implying anything other than there is ’real‘ evil in this world ’right now’. To try to assertain if that statement is implying something else is pointless.
      I could say “I’m glad the Cardinals won the World Series.” That statement ‘could imply I’m a Cards fan when, in fact all I said was that I was glad the Cards won.
      However, I agree with you that there have been many times in recorded history where there has been at least as much chaos as we see today.

      Report Post »  
  • Chet Hempstead
    Posted on October 28, 2011 at 11:58pm

    Saying a book about a priest performing a ritual has a religious subtext shows a lack of understanding of the word subtext and the prefix sub. It can have a sexual subtext, or a political subtext, or any other kind of subtext, but the religious theme is the text and the other themes are the subtext.

    Report Post »  
    • TheGreyPiper
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 12:05am

      Technically true; I think what he’s driving at is that the spiritual theme is so dominated by the horror theme that it is all but lost.

      Report Post » TheGreyPiper  
  • twofoot_trucker
    Posted on October 28, 2011 at 11:56pm

    “Does real, true evil exist?”

    Sure it does. How else does one explain democrats?

    Report Post »  
  • TheGreyPiper
    Posted on October 28, 2011 at 11:53pm

    9th Configuration is one of my favorites!!!! Brilliant, dark, and funny. One of those movies, nearly every time you watch it, you pick up some new little subtlety. It’s a companion piece to Exorcist, not exactly a sequel. The only connection is actually hidden, Capt Cutshaw, pictured above, is an astronaut who flipped out and hit the panic button seconds before liftoff; we get a flashback of him being frogmarched off the gantry screaming “There’s nothing up there!” — speaking of picking up subtleties, it just occurs to me that he is expressing his doubts about the existence of God as much as he seems to be thinking there is no Moon or anything. Anyway, he is supposed to be the same character, unnamed in Exorcist, who Regan, crashing the party, says, “You’re going to die up there.” to. Stacy Keach is also brilliant as the disturbing, and disturbed, Army doctor, Colonel Kane, who comes to take over the asylum where Cutshaw and a number of other Section 8s are kept.
    Get it. Watch it. Love it.

    Report Post » TheGreyPiper  
    • TheGreyPiper
      Posted on October 28, 2011 at 11:58pm

      PS – if you actually read the book “The Exorcist,” it gets a heckuva lot deeper into the theological thn the movie does. So much so that the increasingly-vile Steven King noted in two different chapters in *the same book* that Exorcist the movie was one of, if not *the* greatest horror film ever, but called the book a “great, thudding tract.”

      Report Post » TheGreyPiper  
  • Darren
    Posted on October 28, 2011 at 11:46pm

    “The funny truth of the matter is that, according to Blatty, when he wrote The Exorcist and then later adapted it for the screen (for which he won an Oscar), he had no intention of simply scaring the pants off his audience. The stated purpose of his book was to be an in-depth examination of his Catholic faith under the guise of a “thrilling and suspenseful detective story.””

    Ha! What a joke that attempt turned out to be.

    “Simply put, Blatty wanted to write “a sermon that no one could possibly sleep through.””

    Didn’t exactly turn out to be mega church mateiral, did it?

    Report Post » Darren  
  • chips1
    Posted on October 28, 2011 at 11:46pm

    When it first came to theaters, people were walking out they were soooo scared. It made my head spin.

    Report Post »  
  • lukerw
    Posted on October 28, 2011 at 11:40pm

    Theologically… the Body cannot contain Two Souls… thereby, the presence of a Demon… means the Person was Soul-less… where truely Evil People are identified to be Soul-less. Just, something to think about!

    Report Post » lukerw  
    • statesrights
      Posted on October 28, 2011 at 11:49pm

      Really? Have you read the New Testament story of the man who was possessed, there were definitely 2, i repeat 2, souls in the same body. Gods world works completely outside of our limited knowledge.

      Report Post » statesrights  
    • Darren
      Posted on October 28, 2011 at 11:52pm

      I don’t know. I have met possesed people in my lifetime. It’s pretty chilling at times. Thought, like against all evil, God’s power is infiintely greater. Just remain faithful to Him and rely upon Him for protection and guidance.

      Report Post » Darren  
    • lukerw
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 4:23am

      @STATESRIGHTS
      If a person is possessed… by a demon… it means that prior they did not have a Soul, allowing the demon to enter… where once exorcised they are Empty… thereby the ritual continues with a Baptism, to Soul (being reproduction of Birthing, bringing Soul)… hence a fetus is UnSouled, as a Woman cannot have two Souls in her, nor can a Soul be divided nor cut.
      Interestingly, when Cain is sent into the outside World… for the murder of Abel… since only Adam and his family were Souled (after the 7th Day of Creation)… Cain mated with a Soul-less woman of the 6th Day of Creation. Hence, some the 6th Day descendants still exist as the Soul-less (probably alike Adolf Hitler)!
      The Ancient Egyptians believed that they could have muliple Souls… and could store one in Trees and Animals, and reclaim it, if theirs was lost or destroyted… thereby Pharaohs passed on their God-Soul to the next Pharaoh, each Pharaoh really being the same Pharaoh.,, in their Theology!

      Report Post » lukerw  
    • lukerw
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 5:00am

      @STATERIGHTS
      If you are thinking of the Story of Legion: a Legion was a Division of the Roman Army, serving as a Unit and a Brotherhood…. so when the Demon announces that he is Legion as their are many of us… it is not a statement that more than one is in Human… rather that there are many Demons in the area, serving as a Unit or Brotherhood… and all are sent into the pigs. This Power to defeat an entire Legion… is important to the text as a Major Miracle… for it is not a simple Exorcism of one person!

      Report Post » lukerw  
    • lukerw
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 6:27am

      @STATESRIGHTS (con’t)
      I know of no Christian Denomination nor Sect that proposes a Theology that would support 2 or more Souls in a Human… as the complications of Recording Deeds, Judgment, Souling, and Spiritualism would become divergent, eaching having a possible alternate Personification.
      In Judaism, references to the Hall Of Souls, can be found… where Souls await assignment (or the Abyss or Pergatory where Souls are cleansed)… and where the implied fear was that there would be a time where there were more Humans than Souls… so Soul-less-ness would create Chaos on Earth.
      Hence, no form of JudeoChristianity is given to the support of MultiSouled people!

      Report Post » lukerw  
    • Islesfordian
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 3:41pm

      Spirits are not souls. And the human soul can be inhabited by numerous spirits. It is amazing how you just make stuff up that makes zero sense, absolutely NONE when read against the Biblical accounts of demon possession. It’s blithering idiocy

      The most astonishing idiocy you propose is that there are or could be human beings with no soul. As the soul is the center of it’s life, the animating force of the body, a soulless person would be a lifeless person.

      Report Post » Islesfordian  
    • lukerw
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 5:50pm

      @ISLESFORDIAN
      The Ancient Egyptians… believed the Body contained at Spirit and a Soul (the Bah and Kha)… and that the Spirit stayed on Earth (and required Offerings) but the Soul traveled to Heaven (through Hell, where Demons attacked it and Gods judged it). And, their Religion used Sex & Drugs as Communion!
      Christians believe in one Soul per Body, where the Soul is Immortal (being Given and Taken Away, to Judgment and perhaps Heaven), and where the Soul is in the Body from Birth to Death, but where the Soul can be destroyed in the Living (according to Christ’s words in the Gospel) intentionally or accidentally. Thereby, according to New Testament Gospel: The Soul-less exist!
      Spirit, on the other hand, tends to be thought of as Mind! But, Demons seem to be Immortals, alike Souls in form.
      Remember, this is Theology… this is not a vote upon what people believe as Democracy!

      Report Post » lukerw  
    • Islesfordian
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 6:35pm

      “but where the Soul can be destroyed in the Living (according to Christ’s words in the Gospel) intentionally or accidentally.”

      Got an actual citation? You will not find what you just wrote anywhere in the New or Old Testament. If the soul is destroyed the body is destroyed too.

      Go ahead. Quote me your text.

      Report Post » Islesfordian  
    • meld531
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 8:07pm

      @lukeW

      Only humans have souls. Cats, dogs, horses, fish, etc are all without souls and having a soul is the main thing that distinguishes us from God’s other creations. The soul is what makes us human.

      Furthermore, if being soul-less was a prerequisite for demon possession then explain why animals aren’t walking around possessed and taking people down left and right? The only people that have to worry about being possessed by the SPIRIT of satan or one of his demons are those who refuse to ACCEPT the SPIRIT of Christ in their heart and soul. Innocents, such as babies and people who are unable to understand (severely mentally disabled) are protected. Its the people who willingly turn God away that Satan can try to claim. Although I would argue that that their are probably plenty of “christians” who could be in danger of falling into the clutches of satan’s control as well. Even “good christians” can fall prey to Satan.

      Regardless of whether you or anyone label the explanation as theology or some other science, those with true faith know this and what ever some other tribe from a few thousand years ago or a scientist from today believes has zero influence on this fact.

      Report Post »  
    • Islesfordian
      Posted on October 29, 2011 at 8:55pm

      Meld,

      Most philosophers of the classical world believed that animals have souls, just not souls made in God’s image. They possess animal souls. It is the repossitory of the mind and whatever consciousness the animal is capable of. I would imagine that‘s Koko’ the Gorilla’s animal soul is greater than that of a lab rat, but I have nothing but deuction to back that up. Only human souls have a moral conscience and free will. Human souls are spiritual and meant for eternity.

      Report Post » Islesfordian  
  • Scapp70
    Posted on October 28, 2011 at 11:40pm

    one of my all-time favorites. I can watch this all the time, and I do. Still scares me.

    Report Post » Scapp70  
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