Christians and ghosts

There probably is no definitive answer to be found on this. I think belief in ghosts is probably of a much more personal nature than rooted in religious belief. That said, Jesus was technically a ghost after he rose again, I'd say, although he did inhabit his body. It's all quite confusing. I think you could pretty much say whatever you want on the subject. It's bound to be wide open.

Well, Christians usually believe that people on death go to heaven or hell to wait for the resurrection, so staying around as ghosts doesn't really fit in with that. There are three basic explanations that Christians are likely to believe:
1) Ghosts are real, but are the exception to the norm. People only become ghosts rather than moving on to the next life under unusual circumstances.
2) Ghosts aren't real, and there's a natural explanation - they are a trick of the mind, or a natural phenomenon
2) Ghosts aren't real, and there's a spiritual explanation - they are other spiritual beings that people mistake for the souls of the dead, and are in fact angels or demons or some other spiritual being.

IME, I'd expect Christians to believe that supposed ghosts usually have a natural explanation, but are open in principle to the possibility that they are a genuine spiritual phenomenon, but would be sceptical that they are actually the souls of the dead.

Thank you for your input. It was very helpful. If they are not the souls of the departed or angels or demons, what other spiritual beings could they be and why would they try to communicate in this fashion?

"The soul should always stand ajar, ready to welcome the ecstatic experience." Emily Dickinson

I've seen ghosts before. And if there is one in the house, I would be likely to say something or look kinda shocked at first, and then someone would ask me what's wrong and I would be like, oh nothing, but if they keep asking, I'd tell them, I saw a ghost and they just think I'm crazy, but I did. I once saw one at my Aunt's house, this kinda scared me but it wasn't really, cause it was my Aunt's Grandma and she just kinda hangs out at the house and my Aunt said that sometimes she sees her rocking on the chair and that's why she never got rid of her old chair. But there's no reason to be afraid cause she was a really nice person and her Grandma just smiles at her. Then I saw this other guy looking like a cop was a ghost, sitting over at my neighbors house and my Dog saw him too, and she started barking at him and the other dogs across the street were barking and he just kinda stared at me and looked lifeless by the car.My Mom asked me what was wrong and I told her and she thought I was crazy, said there were no ghosts, but I knew I saw one and sometimes I just sence them. That's the part that scares me. But I've never come across anything mayjor.

If you think I'm crazy, well then, maybe your right!!

I am a Christian. I don't believe in ghosts being from those we have known of or loved that have died. I believe they are evil angels and demons who impersonate our loved ones.

The Bible clearly says the dead know nothing.

When the Second Coming of Christ occurs, the dead will rise; those believers to meet the Lord in the air; and the unbelievers will die a second death; never to exist again. Evil will never reign on earth again.

Teri

No idea. But many Christians would be open to the idea that there are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamed of in their philosophy.

I think a lot will depend on the denomination of Christianity and the individual(s) involved. My father is a pastor in a relatively liberal Protestant church and enjoys reading accounts of hauntings. He has also told me one of the churches at which he preaches actually seems to be haunted.

The residence in which I work with adults with disabilities seems to have a benevolent spirit attached to one of the clients. Things happen in that house which cannot be explained by the actions of the staff or the clients.

I am sure not all Christians would agree on the topic of ghosts.

You can believe what you want to believe, but I know what I saw. I'm not gonna tell you are wrong, however, you do have a good point.

If you think I'm crazy, well then, maybe your right!!

If ghosts do not exist, what do you make of I Samuel 28?
Neither Saul nor the medium seem in any doubt that she has indeed called up the ghost of Samuel, and Samuel, even recalled from beyond the grave, behaves completely in character.

There's some debate about who or what Saul and the medium actually encountered. IIRC, the entity was not "spot on" in it's prediction when Saul and his sons would die. Logically then, it was not Samuel, because Samuel was a prophet in life. The conclusion would be that it was an evil spirit that appeared as Samuel. Others figure that the entity could have been Samuel.

But when you think about it, the possibility of being a ghost in the after life is pretty sad -- to see everything but be unable to change it and never moving beyond this world. Gloomy stuff.

I don't know that that helps much but thought I'd throw that out there.

Ann

I'm a Christian and in a position where I teach. (But not directly on matters regarding the afterlife or heaven/hell/purgatory.) The only general advice I give on the topic is that the spiritual world's limits are beyond our knowledge, and that there are many more denizens of the invisible world than we can imagine. Scripture gives us some knowledge, but is not exhaustive on the subject. Therefore we as Christians are free to hold whatever opinions we like so long as we don't blatantly contradict received doctrines.

"And the Lord did grin, and the people did feast upon the lambs and sloths and carp and anchovies and orangutans and breakfast cereals and fruit bats and large chu--" "Skip a bit, brother."

Christians believe in human souls that survive the death of the body. When viewed on Earth, these entities are termed "ghosts". It is given that the one "way" for the dead to pass into view of the living is, of course, God. If a certain wisdom could be discerned in their appearing before the living, that would help to explain their existence on Earth.

The other channel for the dead to re-inhabit the world of the living of the living is through the will of Satan, although whether or not such power is his to command is unclear (though he does hold considerable sway over the living.)

With these two facts established, we have a potential method for allowing the incursion of both good and evil ghosts into this world.

It also should be noted that dead people are "finished" in terms of their destination. They are either bound for Heaven or Hell. So a "good" ghost could not make an evil decision though a bad ghost could conceivably play at being good if his ultimate aim was to do evil.

Although this fact has not stopped a number of great stories about "bad" ghosts struggling to atone for the evil they have committed in life.

But in the end, I am a Tolkienite; good theology makes for great stories.

It is the definition of a story that it ... begins in one place and ends in another. From Buddha ... to Aken Aten ... from Pythagoras ... to Confucious ..., there is not one of them that does not in some way sin against the soul of the story. GKC

I was reading "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Heaven But Never Dreamed of Asking" by Peter Kreeft, who is a Christian philosopher. It mentions that ghosts are real and they can be separated into three types:
-the ones that are working out unfinished business-this may have to do with purgatory.
-bright spirits that come, most likely from heaven, with messages of hope and love (and are most likely deceased family or friends).
-evil malicious spirits that most likely come from Hell.

"I may not agree with a word you say, but I'll fight to the death for your right to say it."-Voltaire

To be honest, I don't think religion plays much of a role in your beleif in ghosts; my family is Catholic, and they're a pretty ecclectic bunch when it comes to Ghost stories. My nan beleived they were sacred (after all, there's the Father, son and Holy Ghost) whereas my dad was freaked out by them and my uncles loved the idea of meeting one, just to see for themselves what ghosts were like.

Though lovers be lost, love shall not,
And death shall have no dominion.

Yeah, it depends on the person, especially the culture. Native Americans, Hispanics and Afro-Carribean Christians may believe in and celebrate ghosts or Spirits of the Deceased because it was and still is a part of their culture. (Dia de los Muertes, anyone?) As for me, the only Ghost I believe in is the Holy Ghost, but God is the ultimate Head Honcho, so if He makes ghosts, then it's a-ok. So would I write ghosts into my fiction? Of course, if I had that kind of interest in them.

NaNo 2008, what will you bring?
More WKRC? The Triumphant return of Siegfred's Giant? The Misadventures of Hans and Greta? Or the newly discovered From one Architect to Another?

I had a long conversation about this with my mum the other day. She was teaching Hamlet to some students and wanted to know what the religious idea of Hamlet seeing his father's ghost, which tells him to kill his uncle. I said that views on ghosts differ from Christian to Christian really and within denominations. I'm a Catholic and don't really believe in them, my godfather does. My mum asked whether believing in ghosts has to do with believing in purgatory and I don't really think it does, although the idea makes sense. If the dead are somewhere where they are not yet in heaven- a between sort of place- then it makes more sense for them to come back. If you believe people go straight to heaven (or hell) when they die, it is harder to see where ghosts from. If you believe that people stay in the grave until judgement day, ghosts seem more logical again. It's all to do with theories about eschatology... This is where my mum, as a non-Christian and a non-theologian got lost/ bored and thought she had enough detail for Yr 12.

As to ghosts as demons tricking people, that was the point about Hamlet. The ghost came back to tell him to kill in revenge. That's wrong, according to many Christians, so that ghost might well have been seen as a demon, tempting him into sin. It might depend on the actions of the ghost. If it was a malevalent ghost, breaking stuff and scaring people then it might be a demon. A benevolent ghost comforting loved ones on the other hand, a soul between worlds. Take your pick really.

I really believe that there is no purgatory... but I'm not Catholic, either. Honestly, if souls either go to Heaven or Hell when they die, how could they dwell on this Earth? Yes, the bodies stay in the grave until Jesus calls them home, but first comes the Judgement (I think I've got that right, I don't remember specifically).

Really, I do believe in the fact that Satan and his demons inhabit this Earth. In the Bible, it says that he roams the Earth like a lion searching for prey.

Hope this helps, but I think it's too late anyhow. :(

'Chew Toy (:

I might possibly be the most spastic person you will ever know.
!Soy una alce tonta! I'm a silly moose. YAY! *facepalm*