“Satan masquerades as an angel of light,” the Bible claims (2 Corinthians 11:14, NIV). Surely then, he must frequent in Christian robes. The idea that Satan, the literal or mythical personification of evil, presents as his opposite has caused no small amount of...
Religious groups aspire to be agents of psychological and spiritual healing. Yet frequently they stigmatize people who suffer from mental health conditions or problems as sinful, demonically influenced, and weak-willed. Depression, anxiety, psychosis, and addiction...
Unconditional love is a universal longing of the human heart. We all experience the agonies of rejection, not-belonging, and love tainted by strings attached. We seek unconditional love from romantic partners, peers, social groups, and from ourselves. We benefit from...
How can a person be possessed by the will of another and convinced that will is her own? Possession is a state of consciousness where one’s agency is being used by another entity (person, group, ideology) against one’s own interest. It is a form of psychological and...
Religious belief in hell fills the waking moments and dreams of untold numbers of people with terror, many of whom seek therapy to break the nightmarish fear. Treating hellfire trauma requires knowledge of the client’s religious indoctrination and upbringing, as well...