A woodcut from 1598 shows an exorcism performed on a woman by a priest and his assistant, with a demon emerging from her mouth (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
Having recently watched Insidious
The Conjuring was almost preachy at times. Not only did it present itself as being based on a true story involving "demonologists," but it explicitly repeated the message that demonic possession was real and that it was easy to let demons in. Somewhat less explicit was the implication that one really ought to be Catholic to protect oneself from this sort of thing. The special features on the blu-ray version I watched were even more explicit on these points. All the ghost hunting stuff was real because ghosts are of course real. Same for demons.
I understand that most people who watch films like this are well aware that they are fictional. I also understand that plenty of people (like me) do not believe any of this stuff and still manage to enjoy such films. My question, I suppose, is whether the prevalence of such themes in films like these contributes to the popularity of these superstitions. Do films like this at least make the existence of ghosts and demons or the power of exorcism, clairvoyance, mediums, and the like seem a bit more plausible than they would otherwise? I am not sure, but I think they might.
I think the question is relevant because we see so many examples of the damage caused by belief in demons and exorcism. We see how such beliefs fueled cruel treatment of the mentally ill, and it should make us nervous that the Catholic Church is still pushing this stuff.
Assume for a minute that such films do end up making it somewhat more likely that belief in demons and exorcism flourish. Would that mean I think they should be banned? No, not at all. But it might mean that skeptics need to be more vocal in such matters, devoting more attention to debunking this stuff and demonstrating the harm of such beliefs. It might also mean that the studios who make such films should be encouraged to include interviews with skeptics in their material every once in awhile.
The content to which the public is being exposed seems awfully one-sided. There must be 10 or more shows on TV about ghost hunting, all of which treat ghosts and demons as if they were real things. Contrast that with maybe 1-2 involving skepticism and science. Perhaps this should change.