Saturday, June 18, 2005

I'll Take "Not An Authentic Example of Christ's Love for $1000, Alex."

There are days when the Christian faith feels like it is on the cutting edge of philosophical sophistication and religous purity. And then there are days like this. There are reports out of Romania that a priest has crucified and killed a woman whom he believed was demon-posessed. This does not look like the love of Christ to me.

A Romanian nun has died after being bound to a cross, gagged and left alone for three days in a cold room in a convent, Romanian police have said.
Members of the convent in north-west Romania claim Maricica Irina Cornici was possessed and that the crucifixion had been part of an exorcism ritual.
Cornici was found dead on the cross on Wednesday after fellow nuns called an ambulance, according to police.
On Saturday a priest and four nuns were charged in connection with her death.
Police say the 23-year-old nun, who was denied food and drink throughout her ordeal, had been tied and chained to the cross and a towel pushed into her mouth to smother any sounds.
In all of the scripture I have read, nothing like this was ever put forth as a method of dealing with demon posession. Instead, prayer and fasting is mentioned, along with calls to the one living God. I suppose it is reasonable to withhold final judgement until more details come out, but this seems like superstition and hysteria to me.

And that comes from an Evangelical Christian who does believe in demon posession.

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