Demon possession is often regarded as a concept which has been rendered unnecessary by modern psychiatry.?

What ancient writers called demon possession is said to be mental disorder of the various types which are familiar to psychiatrists today. It is then argued that since modern psychiatry can explain the phenomena formerly attributed to demon possession we no longer need to believe in the existence or activity of demons. Now bear in mind psychiatry is rarely able to explain mental disorder, it is however able to ‘describe’ it as we can see from its terminology, which is almost entirely symptomatic or descriptive in character. It deals with ‘descriptions’ more than ‘causes’ although in a few cases it is able to identify specific causes of mental disorder. You see, the term demon possession defines a cause of mental disease, and is in a different category from the descriptive terminology with which modern psychiatry works. In psychiatric terms we may diagnose the Gaderene demoniac of Mark: 5. 2-7 as suffering from a manic-depressive psychosis. At the time he met Jesus he was in a state of acute mania, and from his local reputation he appears to have been frequently in such a state. By calling his disease a manic-depressive psychosis one has simply described his condition as a disorder of his personality which manifests itself by the occurrence of attacks of either mania or depression, or both states at different times in the same person. The diagnosis therefore is a purely descriptive one and tells us nothing about the cause.
Question:
In this light, would you consider demon possession to be real and occurring in many individuals today, but has been misdiagnosed by modern psychiatry who see only the symptoms and not the causes?
What say yea?
Maurog111: ‘So what you’re saying is, psychiatrists are in fact demon exorcists, and they don’t even know it?’ Because their treatments work, you know.’
No I am most certainly not saying ‘psychiatrists are in fact demon exorcists,’ and if you read the question clearly you would have noticed that, so where you got this idea from is beyond me! Of course some of their treatment works, I have not said different.
Please read the question clearly.
Gastoune: ‘So dear, you show us that your knowledge of modern psychiatry is scarce, to say the least, which is not surprising if you are not a psychiatrist…’
On the contrary, I know a far amount about it, indeed in my line of work I am called to know a far amount about it.
If you understood the question, you would have seen this, but clearly you do not and the best you can do is respond with a childish and uneduacted remark.
Anne: ‘I fail to see the connection between mental illness and demon possesion. They are not the same thing.’
Please re-read the question; you show a grave lack of understanding here.

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