lionti@ecs.umass.edu (09/18/90)
nlt@duke.cs.duke.edu (N. L. Tinkham) writes: > What is the history of the belief that adherents of polytheistic religions > worship demons? The _CT_ writer said merely that the belief was held in > Biblical times, but this seems overly simple to me: Paul's discussion of > meat offered to idols, for instance, suggests that Paul thought of idols > not as demons but as images of nonexistent deities. So, how far back does > one find the belief that the gods of other religions are demons rather than, > say, nonexistent entities or flawed perceptions of the one God? And has it > ever been an "official" belief of Christianity, or has it coexisted with > other, equally orthodox, views? I don't know about the historical aspects of this question, but I would definitely say that the present Catholic(post Vatican II) view is that the other religions are NOT officially said to worship demons. To further this premise, I include some quotes from "Vatican Council II, The Conciliar and Post Conciliar Documents", ed. Austin Flannery, O.P. 1988 revised ed.: "Declaration on the Relation of the Church to Non-Christian Religions" Vatican II, _Nostra Aetate_, 28 October, 1965 1."Men look to their different religions for an answer to the unsolved riddles of human existence. The problems that weigh heavily on the hearts of men are the same today as in the ages past."... [these (...) are put in by me] 2. "Throughout history even to the present day, there is found among different peoples a certain awareness of a hidden power, which lies behind the course of nature and the events of human life...in Hinduism men explore the divine mystery and express it both in the limitless riches of myth and the accurately defined insights of philosophy...Buddhism in its various form testifies to the essential inadequacy of this changing world...other religions which are found throughout the world attempt in their own ways to calm the hearts of men by outlining a program of life covering doctrine, moral precepts and sacred rites." ***"The Catholic Church rejects nothing of what is true and holy in these religions. She has a high regard for the manner of life and conduct, the precepts and doctrines which, although differing in many ways from her own teaching, nevertheless often reflect a ray of that truth which enlightens all men. Yet she proclaims and is in duty bound to proclaim without fail, Christ who is the way, the truth and the life (Jn. 1:6)."*** "The Church, therefore, urges her sons to enter with prudence and charity into discussion and collaboration with members of other religions. Let Christians, while witnessing to their own faith and way of life, acknow- ledge, preserve and encourage the spiritual and moral truths found among non-Christians, also their social life and culture." The numbers refer to sections, which usually run about 2-3 paragraphs in English. My guess is that this is a break found in the original Latin the documents were written in. I'd say this suggests that the Roman Catholic Church would definitely frown on the "demons as 'gods' idea", especially the part marked by *'s As I was typing this in, I realized it has alot to say about the "should we pray with the New Agers" thread. For Catholics and non-Catholics alike I can't reccomend this book more highly. ISBN: 0-918344-15-8, Costello Publishing Co., Inc., P.O. Box 9 Northport, New York 11768. I got my copy for $10 (paperback). They also put out a "study" edition. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Eric C. McClure lionti@umaecs.bitnet Standard Disclaimer [In the Institutes Calvin seems to allude to the concept that similarities between the Bible and pagan works indicate that Satan was trying to foist an imitation on mankind. A footnote supplied by the editor says "Calvin may have had in mind here the assertion of Justin Martyr that the demons deceived the ancient pagans by inventing imitations of the prophetic revelations pointing to Christ. Apologia I. lx-lxiv." I don't know enough about patristics to know whether this was the universal view. However it seems likely, given the consistent position against pagan gods taken by the OT prophets, which presumably would have been inherited by Christianity. I Cor 10:20 says that pagans offer their sacrifices to demons. --clh]