REL 2226 - Spirit Possession and Exorcism

Credits: 4
Spirit possession is a subject of rumor, fantasy, and fear, but it is also a very common occurrence in the world’s religions, especially outside of the United States. This class will examine the practice of possession in a wide range of religions, such as Voodoo, African Traditional Religions, Islam, Hinduism, Judaism, and Christianity, as well as the quite different representations of possession in popular media, such as the film, “The Exorcist.” In trying to make sense of possession, it will seek to uncover some of the sources of the stigma generally associated with possession in the United State, and it will explore some of the accounts that scholars of religions and others have given of what possession is and why it occurs.
McDaniel Plan: Social, Cultural, and Historical Understanding; Multicultural