Deliverance ministry

In Christianity, deliverance ministry refers to groups that perform practices to cleanse people of demons and evil spirits. These groups attribute certain people's physical, psychological, spiritual, and emotional problems to the activities of these evil spirits in their lives.[1] Not all Christians accept the doctrines and practices of these ministries.

Deliverance is meant to cast out evil spirits (a.k.a. "demons"), helping people overcome negative behaviors, feelings, and experiences through the power of the Holy Spirit.[2] Each event is different, but many include some or all of these significant steps: diagnosis, naming the demon, expulsion, and some form of action taken by the afflicted person after their deliverance to keep the demon from returning.[1] The distinction between deliverance ministry and exorcism is that while exorcism focuses largely on possession and is for believers and unbelievers alike, deliverance focuses more on spiritual oppression and is more for believers.[3] In both cases in casting out spirits, intercessors are following the example of Jesus Christ and his disciples given in the New Testament.[4]

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Csordas, Thomas J. (1997). The sacred self : a cultural phenomenology of charismatic healing. Berkeley: University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-91906-8. OCLC 43476838.
  3. ^ Carroll, Rory (9 June 2022). "Irish exorcist calls for extra help for people oppressed by evil spirits". The Guardian.
  4. ^ Silcock, Jeffrey G. (2013). "A Lutheran approach to the ministry of deliverance". Lutheran Forum. 47 (4): 51–57 – via EBSCOhost.