I had a chat with journalist and author Elle Hardy for her most recent piece in the Guardian on how deliverance from demons is a booming practice among some evangelical Christians, promising freedom from afflictions, ranging from addiction to cancer.
The Concordia University theology professor André Gagné says that deliverance is a growing practice due to its experiential dimension. It promotes spiritual gifts such as healing, which gives believers supernatural abilities to respond to certain people’s needs. “It’s about Christianity with power, and exercising that power over sickness and demons,” says Gagné. “For some, going to church and reading from a hymn book is deadening – this is about feeling a connection.”
The fact that it’s not always taking place in traditional churches is also significant; Gagné points to ministries manifesting themselves in events such as the Reawaken America tour, and a growing proliferation of online prophets. Leading publications such as Charisma magazine run daily articles about spiritual warfare that offer a host of solutions; it usually involves selling self-help infused prayer in the form of a book or online course.
Read the full article here.