The following was emailed to me by an Orthodox friend in Greece.  Interestingly, the video itself was put together and translated by a young Greek who states in her youtube page that she is a practicing wiccan.  Nevertheless, the video is interesting for a few reasons:

1.  It is in Greek, but the video author has done a fair job of translating the audio to English subtitles.  Please note:  whenever the word "technology" is used, I think the author meant to say "works" or "workings".

2.  In the background, you can hear the priest simply continuing to pray the prayers of exorcism. There is no deviation from these prayers.  In the Orthodox world, they are different from the Rituale Romana that is used by the RCC.  Nonetheless, the process and prayers are very similar.

3.  The priest in these excerpts (the whole video is excerpts from different exorcisms and different victims) is known throughout the Orthodox world as something of a specialist.  Although we in the Orthodox communion do not have a separate "division" or department for exorcists, they do exist and they are not very numerous. This particular priest is known to have quite a good track record.  His name is Fr. Savva Achileos.

Now for the video:  Listen at your own risk and I recommend prayer before doing so.

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I am presenting here in one blog entry, a few videos that are interesting to those interested in Christian theology.  Some are encouraging words, others are terrifying.  What follows are serious messages to us Christians from some very holy men.  They are pertinent to every Christian, whether one is Protestant, RCC, or Orthodox.  I present them here, in hopes that they may be useful to anyone who views them.

God bless us all, everyone.

M.

Here is the ascetic priest Savvas Achileos from Greece, speaking on what happens when we even mention God, in the world.

This is Fr. Dmitriu Stailoae ---one of the finest Orthodox theologians of the 20th century, discussing the "essence" of christianity.  Fr. Dmitriu is known throughout the world as "The theologian of Christian Love"

This is Elder Justin Parvu, of Romania speaking to Romanian Orthodox believers on the apostasy of our times.

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While I am working on the Part 2 to the Primer, I wanted to address the question I am often asked the most:

What is it like to see or hear a demon?

The answer to this requires a rather lengthy answer, but I will attempt to keep it short. First of all, I have to say that my understanding of my experience has only come through a certain remove, namely that of distance and time to think about it.

When I was actively involved in occult teaching, and regularly experiencing paranormal and preternatural activity, I did not really have the fullness of human-ness to be able to assess it, nor did I have the wisdom to describe it accurately. My current understanding of it, has only come about in the last several years, as a result of great study and prayer.

Although I remember all the details, and all that they imply, I had no real yardstick by which to measure them. Simply put, I did not have an adequate vocabulary with which to accurately describe them. Some skeptics might suggest that over time, my perceptions have changed or that my testimony is "contaminated" by thoughts that occurred to me later. To them, I would answer that an experience with personal and intelligent evil is not the same thing as having a "nightmare" or seeing something on a television screen. It is fully, and in every sense, a living of that experience, in every possible way, through every possible bodily sensation.

So to answer the question of , "What is it like?"

I will say that it is not something that be easily described in words, but it is at the same time, very universal. It is an experience of total immersion in an another being, another separate existence of evil. It is entirely outside yourself, but it's potential also lies within yourself. It is this recognition that caused me personally, to experience the greatest terror: the knowledge that if I were to embrace such a separate thing, that it could assimilate my being and act through me, toward it's own end.

To encounter a demon is to come fully face to face with a reality that is not of this world, and not of human understanding. It is not a creation of human thought (as if we are even capable of such heights of imagination, which by the way we are NOT) or a creation of human imagining. Demons are not "thought forms" or "human invention". They are separate and distinct, non-human entities that have existed since before time was recorded, since before human history.

They are capable of possessing individual human beings and affecting the world in which we live in palpable and tangible ways. They are the very essence of evil, and a total absence of anything that can be called "good".

When I first encountered a demon, I thought at first, that I MUST be imagining things, because I did not believe they existed. The demon heard my thoughts and answered immediately, "You humans are so arrogant. You think you invented us. You think you can even dominate us. I tell you, we are constantly re-inventing YOU. It is US who SHAPE YOU."

The voice which I heard was disembodied, and I heard it audibly to my own physical ears.  The voice was not that of a human being, but it sounded rather like a million discordant notes that formed intelligible words. 

Do not fall into the trap of believing, as I did then, that demons and their agenda are an insurmountable adversary. I believed this for many years; and it took many years for me to overcome not only my abject, wild and primordial fear of them, but also to overcome my own beliefs about them. My beliefs about them, at that time, were shaped by what they themselves told me, and I believed every word. It is only with the remove therefore, of time and distance that I am able to look back now, and see where I erred.

Having said that I now see that this particular demon did in fact let slip a bit of the truth: we humans ARE arrogant. We do rather tend to think that whatever evil there may be in the world, we can overcome it by our own strength and by "pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps." Additionally, although demons did not and cannot create humans, they do in fact influence human behaviour and in this way, they affect the world around us, through human action.

People, that is to say, those who have actually met me and who know of my experience, ask me what demons "look" like. To this, I can only say that their greatest agenda is to be anonymous, to appear invisibly. Their worst work is when they are "invisible" to the human eye, and it is then they accomplish most of what they do. When they do appear to the human eye, they can take any form they wish, and often appear as very beautiful, physically gorgeous human beings. This is a perversion of the worst kind, since there is nothing beautiful about them and they wish to conceal their true nature.

The demon I referenced above, appeared to my eyes, as the most beautiful human being I had ever seen in an ethereal way, and encompassed about by a total being of sensuality. In retrospect, I see the Freudians now, all screaming that I wasn't loved enough by daddy. But I am here to tell you, that this was no illusion, no hidden concept in my mind, no "archetype" of anything. This was the real thing and to my eyes it looked so beautiful that I could not imagine it to be "bad".

When I had later encounters with demons, I began to see their "true" form, and this can best be described as something distinctly hideous, and not even remotely resembling human. I will not speak too much about this, because some things shouldn't really be bandied about, but I will say that it is not an accident that the human world has always visualized evil as a reptilian form.

As for the types of demons and their "jobs", I can say that most of the demons I encountered throughout my former life as an occultist, were quite "cerebral". They were not "dumb" or unintelligent ; quite the contrary, they were in fact very brilliant. Intelligence is not a measure of goodness, and we carry this presupposition in our western, rational heads as though it were a badge of truth. It isn't. Just because a being is more "advanced" than us, does not make it benevolent, or good. It is precisely their "advanced" state that makes them dangerous.

In closing I will say that demons are, in the grand scheme of things, not the most important beings in the Universe. They certainly think they are, and this is about them and their way of thinking, rather than the Truth. It is a telling admission on their part, about their rebellion from God and the nature of it.

God bless us, all, every one.

(Tiny Tim in A Christmas Carol)

Millie.

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An Eastern Orthodox Christian Primer on Angels and Demonology
– Part 1

Hollywood has spurred a great interest in demons and angels,
through various films, the most shocking
perhaps being The Exorcist. But we can
see this fascination in many other films as well, such as Constantine, or The
Sin Eater. These films, although in the main,
just badly written and inaccurate insofar as actual demonology are concerned,
speak to the human heart and its fears, its pre-occupation with evil
things. We are repulsed, and at the same
time, fascinated by the concept of evil.
Moreover, we are concerned that there must be someone in the world who
can overcome such evil and we are worried that that someone will not be around to help us, if we
should need it. In such stories, such a
person is usually a human being, gifted with great “power” of his own merit,
namely, an exorcist. This is an
inaccurate view of the exorcists themselves, but it makes for better story
telling we are told. Additionally, we do
not seem as concerned about the state of the human beings that are tortured and
tormented by evil. For us, they are an
object of entertainment, and there is something intrinsically evil in this.

Nonetheless, there remain questions about
evil, about demons, about angels, that we are ever trying to pursue, in a
profound human hope that good will eventually triumph and that the human soul will eventually reach some sort of state that is beyond being touched by evil.

I have prepared this simple essay, not as an attention seeking
exercise, but for the benefit of people who are interested in this subject, for
their good and for their positive development.
It is not possible to hold a “copyright” on Truth and therefore, you the
Reader are free to disseminate this information however and wherever you will,
without notice or permission from me. It
may be reposted, reproduced, or printed in any form you wish and you need have
no fear of being accused. Since I do not
write under my real name, it is not necessary to give “credit” to me, and if
you must say who wrote it, simply say that I, Millie, a forgiven sinner, wrote
it on Tuesday, June 24, 2008 at 9:55 am.

Rather than attempting to reinvent the wheel, this essay is
comprised not just of my own writing, but also many quoted references. This saves me the time and trouble of having
to type with arthritic hands, but also gives voice to many that are far more
eloquent than I am.

This essay presupposes a knowledge of the basic Christian
teaching concerning this subject, and it is by no means a ‘manual’ of
demonology or angelology. Instead, it
seeks to give the reader a starting point from which to examine the teaching of
the Eastern Orthodox perspective of evil, of goodness, of the living of a
spiritual life as the only antidote to evil.

And this is the most important point I could possibly make: There is only one anti-dote to demons, demonic activity and to evil in general: The Lord Jesus Christ and the living of a spiritual life that is oriented entirely around him. I say this, not just as an Eastern Orthodox Christian, but as a former occultist who spent many years in magical orders, and under a direct demonic oppression. My experience is not relevant simply for the sake of talking about the "fantastic" or "extraordinary". It is only a testament to the verse in John that says "The Truth shall set you free."

For us westerners, we often think of "truth" as a relative term, entirely subjective and subject to the whims of the beholder. But we also know that the Universe is not just a mystical place, full of mystical experiences, it is an orderly and quite mathematical place, wherein an ultimate "truth" lies. Those who do not believe in any ultimate truth, are bound to fall for the first lie that comes along. Additionally, for the Christian, the "truth" is not just an abstract and philosophical idea. It is a Person and that Person is Jesus Christ.

Now that I have committed the unspeakable, and declared a politically incorrect Truth, we will move on to the catechesis of demons and angels, and the problem
of evil in our world.

Part 1: Who are angels and
demons?

Rather than asking “what are angels”, rather
we should ask “who” they are, as this may give us more insight into their
nature, and their agenda. An angel is a spiritual
creature created by God, blessed with free will and choice. They are not “male or female” and they do not
have physical form. Likewise, demons, properly
speaking, are also angels and they possess all the qualities already
noted. The difference between them lies
in their personification. Before the
creation of man (some early Church Fathers say before the creation of “time”),
all angels were created by God and were subject to a test of a kind that we are
not given to know. But nonetheless,
there was some sort of test. We can
visualize this test as some sort of “Pass or Fail”. There was no ambiguity and no in-between. Revelations 12:4-9 tell us that when Lucifer
(the Devil) was cast from heaven, a third of heaven went with him. Therefore, we know that the populations of
both angels and demons must be enormous.

As a result of this test, angels were found
“not guilty” of separation from God.
Demons, on the other hand, failed and were found “guilty” because of
their inclination toward their own selves, and their own selfish agenda. It is this self-serving nature that causes
their separation from God, and their inclination to evil. We may call this, a “personification” of a
quality ---the angels personified goodness, and self-lessness while demons
personified evil and selfishness.

Although they are not human, angels and
demons are persons, in the sense that they are individually gifted with intelligence
of varying degree, and abilities, and distinct personalities.

Among the angels and demons there is a hierarchy,
a chain of command so to speak. It is useful,
to begin with the angels.

“On the Celestial Hierarchies
by St. Dionysius the Areopagite, divides the world of the angels
into nine ranks, and these nine into three hierarchies, each consisting of
three ranks. In the first hierarchy stand those that are closest to
God-thrones, cherubim and seraphim. In the second, or middle hierarchy are
authorities, dominions and powers. The third hierarchy, which is closest to us,
contains angels, archangels and principalities (Orthodox Confessions). We find
the enumeration of nine ranks of angels in the "Decrees of the
Apostles", and in the works of St. Ignatius the God-bearer, St. Gregory
the Theologian, and St. John Chrysostom; later in the works of St. Gregory the
Dialogist, St. John of Damascus and others. This is what St. Gregory the
Dialogist writes: "We accept the existence of nine ranks of angels,
because from the evidence of the Word of God we know about angels, archangels,
powers, authorities, principalities, dominions, thrones, cherubim and seraphim.
The existence of angels and archangels is witnessed throughout Holy Scripture;
it is principally the books of the Prophets which mention cherubim and
seraphim.”

http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/death/angels2.aspx

We all know that we have guardian angels
and the Church has always taught this.
St. Justin Martyr speaks of it, and many who followed after him. The Bible itself references this, and so we
are not going to go into great detail here, except to say that each person
should in faith, and in love, approach his/her guardian angel in humility and
thanksgiving for their help, their guidance (that is their job you know!) and
their continued faithfulness.

The Eastern Orthodox have always held that
there are seven angels of the presence. That is to say, there are seven archangels
who are regularly admitted to the face of God. Every Monday, every week, the
Eastern Orthodox remember to give thanks for the angels and to seek their help. Here are the 7 Archangels (that we know
about) and a little bit about who they are.

Michael: Hebrew: “Who Is Like God”:
The Commander in Chief: He is the head of God’s army and he is
considered Heaven’s “Heavyweight Champion of the World”.

Gabriel: Hebrew: “God’s Power” The Public Relations Department Minister: It is Gabriel who holds press conferences and
enlightens people’s minds with the Truth of God’s love and mercy.

Raphael: Hebrew: “God’s Mercy” : The
Surgeon General: He is a healer and in
some accounts, an exorcist.

Salaphael: Hebrew: God’s Prayer:
The Bishop: He seeks prayer to
God on behalf of all humankind, constantly praying “without ceasing”.

Uriel: Hebrew: Light of God:
God’s Spy: Uriel is one of the
most elusive figures in patristic and canonical writings. He is the one who went “behind enemy lines”
to warn Noah of the flood, checked the doors for lamb’s blood in Egypt during
the plague, and he holds the key to the “pit” (hell/hades/Tartarus) in
Revelation. His fiery sword lights the
world and enlightens the mind with the Truth.

Yajoudael: Hebrew: God’s Glory:
The Rock Star: He is a singer,
singing praises to God always.

Barakael:
Hebrew : God’s Blessing: The Treasure
Keeper: He is the angel who dispenses
the blessings of God on those who humbly seek God.

It is my personal opinion, (also known as a theologumenon) that the heirarchy of the angels, their individual jobs so to speak, are indicative of God's process of healing individuals. That is to say, the ball "rolls downhill" --- in seeking first Michael, as a protector, this sets the ball toward healing rolling. To illustrate, it may be helpful to see it in this way:

Seeking Michael, going "to the top" leads to Gabriel, "God's Power". The power of God is unleashed. Then the process moves to Raphael, a "diagnosis" by him, the healer. Then, the process goes to Salaphiel, the Bishop...we should always seek healing through prayer. Then onto Uriel, the enlightener of men's minds, the aha! or "Eureka!" moment of truth, the "discovery" of the truth! Then the process moves to Jegudiel, singing praises to God, in thanksgiving for his help. Finally, Barakiel, dispenses God's grace and blessings in the form of healing.

Approached in this way, we can also see that astonishingly, the process works in reverse as well!  If we began at the "bottom of the chain of command" with Barakael, seeking God's blessing, and move upward, the process still works and deliverance "from evil" is still the same. Therefore, we know that our deliverance is about wholeness, about union with God, about completeness, with no mis-step.

Here again, we see order in the face of chaos, in direct opposition to the process of "possession". We see a direct answer to the problem of evil, of possession by the Devil, which also is a process of degeneration.

A more thorough treatment of angels and their agenda among
humans can be found here:

http://aggreen.net/beliefs/the_angels.html

It is important to note, that although angels are not human,
we do share one similarity with them and it is important: Both humans and angels, are on a path of
total union with God. Although angels
are more “perfect” than we are, since they have no bodies, and have not sinned,
they are nonetheless, very interested in ever-greater union with their Creator. In this, we humans share a similar goal and
we can certainly count on angels to help us in achieving it.

From our study of angels, it is rather simple to deduce the
nature of demons and their hierarchy.
Naturally, the ‘chief’ of demonic forces is Satan, Lucifer. His direct opposite, naturally, is the Archangel Michael. Under Lucifer's command, is a hierarchy very
similar to that of angels, as noted above, with varying names, with only one real difference that matters: Demons are altogether evil. They are not capable of being “cured”, “saved”
or of progressing at all in the grand scheme of things. Why is this?

Because their personification is that of pure selfishness,
self-serving desire. Although it may seem overly simplistic, it is
nonetheless quite true. Selfishness, and
self-serving desire, leaves no room for anything other than self. Additionally, it seeks its own, and does not
seek diversity, equality, or goodness.
It seeks domination, subjugation, complete destruction and complete assimilation
into evil. Whereas human creation is
diverse, personified evil, that is to say, demons, are of one quality, one
mind, one goal, one end. They have no
other choice, because they have chosen not to have any other choice. For them, there is only one action: the will
to do evil. By contrast, humans and
angels always have alternatives to evil and recourse to God. Demons do not have this and the reason
is: it is by their own choice and by
their own participation that they are condemned.

Part 2: An
Examination of Demons and their Behaviour coming soon.

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http://www.myriobiblos.gr/bible/studies/economou_revelation.asp

An excerpt:

Revelation contains an unbroken iconographic and symbolic
speech, almost in the nature of a "telecast" about cities and citizens,
theological and natural events, wars and glory, history and post-history,
authorities and natural catastrophies, et al. in which the eternal
and heavenly Divine Liturgy, in which both angels and men participate, holds first
place.

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http://www.myriobiblos.gr/texts/english/constantelos_ab.html

An excerpt:

 The purpose of this essay is to seek
answers to these questions on the basis of Church canons, commentaries
on them, rituals and hagiographical texts. A study of them confirms the
survival of ancient Greek piety and beliefs in the religious life of
the Byzantine Empire. Their influence on Byzantine religiosity can be
discerned primarily in three areas of religious practices and custom:
salvation rituals and superstition, popular festivals and demonology.

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These are simply a collection of links to Eastern Orthodox sources in English on the traditional teachings of the Church regarding these matters.  I post them, not for any attention to myself, but in the hope someone may find them useful.

On the Afterlife:

 http://www.goarch.org/en/ourfaith/articles/article7076.asp

http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/death/freewill_death.aspx

http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/death/theodora.aspx

On Angels

 http://aggreen.net/beliefs/the_angels.html

http://www.ocf.org/OrthodoxPage/reading/angels.html

http://orthotracts.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=12&Itemid=58

On Speaking in Tongues

http://www.goarch.org/en/ourfaith/articles/article7112.asp

On Exorcism

http://www.goarch.org/en/ourfaith/articles/article7079.asp

 http://www.orthodox.net/gleanings/exorcism.html

On Demonology:  

This is a link to a book review and you can order the book from amazon.  In my opinion, it is a very concise treatement of the subject and frankly, one of the very few in English.

 http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/general/review_tsirp.aspx

A book that draws the parallels between possession and mental illness, and that which can be cured by spiritual practice:

Chrysostomos, Bishop.
"Demonology in the Orthodox Church: A Psychological Perspective."
Greek Orthodox Theological Review 33 no. 1 (1988): 45-61.

An Article in English:

The Making of Monastic Demonology: Three Ascetic Teachers on Withdrawal and Resistance by David Brakke   Church History, Vol. 70, No. 1 (Mar., 2001), pp. 19-48

  (article consists of 30 pages) Published by: Cambridge University Press on behalf of the American Society of Church History

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To study demonology is to study patristics, that is the Church Fathers. Although there is no Idiots Guide to Demons in the Holy Church, this knowledge comes from a thorough study of the theological writings of the early Church Fathers. In the west it is considered good scholasticism to give each subject it's own book title and then publish.

In the Eastern Orthodox world, we simply do not operate this way, which is why westerners who look for information in our libraries do not find what they are looking for. Rather, the eastern Orthodox mind is trained to see what is written between the lines and what is referenced.

The Eastern mind does not suffer from reductionism. In other words, it is prone to take the whole of a thing and analyze it as apophatic exercise. It does not reduce the thing to the smallest part and then draw conclusions. This is why the study of demonology in the east, is by default a study of early Christian theology as a whole.

An example: Here is an anecdote from the Philokalia.

Once there was a holy elder living in the desert and working out his
salvation in fear and trembling before the Lord. He struggled for 40
years and was revered by other monastics for his humility and
gentleness. One night, an angel of light appeared to him and said, "I
am Gabriel and I have come to you with a message because you have made
such great spiritual progress." The holy elder turned away, saying "I
am not worthy of such a message for I have made no spiritual
progress." And immediately, the devil disappeared and appeared to
Mohammed who agreed to receive him.

From this story, the Eastern Orthodox theologian concludes several things:

1. Monasticism is the highest contemplation and study of God.

2. The Devil appears as an angel of light.

3. The Devil approaches humanity with flattery, just as in the Garden of Eden.

4. The only defense against such a subtle and insidious attack is: HUMILITY.

From these four points, we add to our knowledge of the demons and their agenda. They seek subjugation of the human soul through its first major weakness: pride.

Because we in the east are not limited to sola scriptura, we can draw conclusions from many sources. I will attempt in future days to post a series of online sources that are offered in English, from the Eastern Orthodox perspective on these things. The trouble lies in finding them. The vast majority are not available in English translation, but instead are still lying dusty in Arab, Russian and Greek libraries. This is the shame of the Eastern Orthodox world, and which we EO's are trying to remedy. We believe that we have information that is useful to other Christians of other traditions and in the last several years, much has been done to share to that society. But it is not enough and the laity of the eastern world has to step up and offer their abilities as translators. Hopefully, in years to come, this will come true.

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As an Eastern Orthodox Christian, I am disturbed by the vast amount of "political correctness" that has been allowed to seep into our philosophy and theology with regard to demonology and theology.

It is of this that Fr. Gabriel Amorth, the Vatican's exorcist, writes:  A Christology that ignores Satan is crippled and will never understand the magnitude of redemption.

He could not possibly be more correct and it is important for Christians of every tradition to realize the full impact of his words.  If there are no demons, no Satan, there is nothing from which we need to be saved and there is no Gospel.  

In our efforts to educate, we demonologists are often asked how we treat people of different faiths when it comes to demonic possession and oppression and infestation.  We are anxious not to be seen as "preachy" and we are overly concerned with how our message will be received.  We are obsessed with couching viciousness in terms which  people can "accept" and of which they can "approve".   I truly believe that this obsession benefits no one and edifies nothing.

There is no room in the Christian life to be wishy-washy about the reality of demons and their agenda.  Further, there is no place in the demonologist's arsenal for weakness and a lapse of seriousness.  If we believe the truth of the Gospel we will fearlessly state it, in all of it's politically incorrect glory.  

It is not popular, nor fashionable to speak of demons who roam the earth seeking whom they devour, but this is a central tenet of our Faith and we must not allow ourselves to engage in silly speculation on spiritual matters.  This juvenile tendency on the part of some to avoid "offending" others who do not share our faith, is to deny the power of the Cross and the Saviour who bought us. 

Additionally, this timidity on the part of priests and their failure to stand up and counted as exorcists is to deny the very priesthood with which they have been entrusted. 

2Timothy 3:5

5 holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these.

I am concerned for people who in these last days are experiencing much activity of demons and seek help among the very wolves who have invited them.  This is due entirely to Christian churches which are cut off entirely from their tradition, their historical roots and their true calling.  

Our Lord Jesus Christ did not come but for one reason:

1John 3: 8

The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.

  So too, should we be concerned with his commandment to oppose the devil in all his forms and to oppose the agenda of demons.  A demonologist is not made by accident, but is called into the work by our Lord Jesus Christ and to apologize for that in a misguided attempt at ecumenism is to hand the Devil his next victim.

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