Demons
The Middle English word “demon” derives from the medieval Latin demon and the Latin daemon, from the Greek daimonmeaning “deity,” that is to say, a god or goddess. Inherent etymologically and historically in the English word is an ambiguous mixing of the ancient Greek notion of spiritual beings in addition to the gods and goddesses, not necessarily evil, with the postexilic Hebrew thought of harmful spiritual entities, the Persian notion of conflict between light (Ahura Mazda) and dark (Angra Mainyu) forces, and the Synoptic Gospel accounts of Jesus exorcising evil spirits that had invaded human beings, causing mental and physical illnesses (e.g., Matthew 8:28, 12:22; Mark 5:1, 3:22; Luke 8:26, 11:14). The contemporary use of the English word “demon” is for the most part skewed negatively to suggest one of an army of negative supernatural entities under the leadership of the devil or Satan, despite attempts to reintroduce the more positive connotations of an attendant daimonic...
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