Territorial spirit

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Territorial spirits are national angels, [1] or demons who rule over certain geographical areas in the world, a concept accepted within the Charismatic movement, Pentecostalism, and Dominionist Kingdom Now theology. This belief has been popularized by the novel This Present Darkness by Frank E. Peretti [2] as well as by the ministry of C. Peter Wagner and the related New Apostolic Reformation. [3] The existence of territorial spirits is viewed as significant in spiritual warfare within these Christian groups. Related is the belief in spiritual mapping in order to locate these demonically controlled regions.

Contents

Biblical context

Deuteronomy 32:8-9

In both the Septuagint and the Dead Sea Scrolls, Deuteronomy 32:8-9 refers to a time when God divided the nations of the earth among the "sons of God" (Israel is excepted as the special possession of God Himself.) Given the meaning of this phrase in the Book of Job, it is suggested that this is a reference to the origin of territorial spirits who were, at one time, angels administering the earth on God's behalf. Wagner appeals to F. F. Bruce, who points out that the Septuagint reading "implies that the administration of various nations has been parceled out among a corresponding number of angelic powers." [4] The question remains, however, as to whether these spirits are malevolent.

Psalm 82

Psalm 82 speaks of "elohim" who are "sons of the most High" and are assigned to judge mankind until dying like men or "falling like one of the princes". Psalm 58 covers similar ground.

Daniel 10

Daniel 10 concerns the visitation of a man "His body was like topaz, his face like lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and his voice like the sound of a multitude" to the prophet Daniel. This man explains to Daniel that he was delayed by the "Prince of Persia" (10:13), but was helped by "Michael, one of the chief princes" (a reference to the Michael the Archangel, who was recognized in Jewish literature to be a chief angel guarding over Israel). Later in the chapter, the man warns Daniel that soon the "Prince of Greece" (10:20) will join his Persian counterpart to make war upon them.

Wagner regards this chapter as a key passage supporting the existence of territorial spirits, and appeals to Keil and Delitzsch, who suggest that the "prince of Persia" is the "guardian spirit of the kingdom." [4] George Otis says that Daniel 10 is "a well-defined case of an evil spiritual being ruling over an area with explicitly defined boundaries." [5] David E. Stevens notes that many scholars take the Prince of Persia to be an earthly political authority, such as Cambyses II. Stevens personally accepts the angelic interpretation, but argues that the "influence exerted by these angelic princes is personal and sociopolitical in nature and not territorial." [6] Stevens notes that in Daniel 12:1, Michael the Archangel, is described as "the great prince who protects your people" (NIV), which "emphasizes the protective role of Michael in relation to the people of God rather than with respect to a given territory. Michael remained the guardian angel of the people of God, whether Israel was in the Promised Land or was dispersed in exile among the nations." [7]

Usage

The American ReAwaken America Tour was originally a COVID-19 protest, which later became "a rolling Chautauqua-style celebration of the spiritual side of Trumpism" [8] sponsored by Charismatic organizations and featuring New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) speakers. The events took on a spiritual warfare tone including references to territorial spirits; in 2022 pastor Mark Burns spoke of "demonic territory that's over the land" and Roger Stone mentioned a "Satanic portal [appearing] above the White House" after President Joe Biden took office, stating that it "must be closed. And it will be closed by prayer." [9] [10] [11]

Criticism

Melvin Tinker argues that the literary use of territorial spirits is a misnomer, since spirits referred to in various Biblical passages "are to be more associated with political and religious power and ideologies." [12]

Scholars such as Robert Priest, Paul Hiebert and A. Scott Moreau detect animist ideas in the arguments of supporters of the theory of territorial spirits. Robert Guelich of Fuller Theological Seminary does not find the concept of territorial spirits within the Gospels, and has analyzed this problem in a critical review of Frank E. Peretti's novel This Present Darkness . Peretti's second novel, Piercing the Darkness also features these themes. [13] [14] [15]

C. Peter Wagner promoted "Strategic-Level Spiritual Warfare" (SLSW) which involves the practice of learning the names and assignments of demonic spirits as the first step to effective spiritual warfare. [16] Opponents of this theological construct, and associated beliefs in "spiritual warfare", point out that while the Bible may describe some form of demonic control over geography, it does not prescribe many of the behaviors and teachings that proponents advocate in response. There is no mention in either the Hebrew Bible or the New Testament of believers banding together and praying a form of "spiritual warfare" against particular territorial demons. The battles occurring in the spiritual realms (as described in Daniel 10) have no Biblically identified link to the actions and prayers of God's people in the physical world. [17] [ unreliable source? ]

See also

Related Research Articles

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References

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Carr, Wesley (2005). Angels and principalities : the background, meaning, and development of the Pauline phrase hai archai kai hai exousiai. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 31. ISBN   0521018757.
  2. ↑ Gardella, Peter (2018). "26. Spiritual Warfare in the Fiction of Frank Peretti". In McDannell, Colleen (ed.). Religions of the United States in Practice. Vol. 2. Princeton: Princeton University Press. pp. 328, 330–332. doi:10.1515/9780691188133-029. ISBN   9780691188133.
  3. ↑ Taylor, Matthew D.; Onishi, Bradley (January 6, 2023). "Evidence Strongly Suggests Trump Was Collaborating with Christian Nationalist Leaders Before January 6th". Religion Dispatches . Retrieved April 14, 2024.
  4. 1 2 Wagner, Confronting the Powers, 173.
  5. ↑ George Otis, "An Overview of Spiritual Mapping," in Engaging the Enemy How to Fight and Defeat Territorial Spirits, 35.
  6. ↑ Stevens, David E. (2000). "Daniel 10 and the notion of territorial spirits". Bibliotheca Sacra . 157: 412–413.
  7. ↑ Stevens, "Daniel 10," 427.
  8. ↑ Lehmann, Chris (2024-04-15). "The Trump Revival". The Nation . ISSN   0027-8378 . Retrieved 2024-09-14.
  9. ↑ Lemon, Jason (May 14, 2022). "Trump allies warn of 'demonic territory,' 'Satanic portal' over Biden WH". Newsweek . Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  10. ↑ Hagen, Lisa (November 3, 2022). "The ReAwaken America Tour unites conservative Christians and conspiracy theorists". NPR . Retrieved January 5, 2023.
  11. ↑ Clatterbuck, Mark (November 14, 2022). "From Shofars to Hammers: The Spiritual Warriors of MAGA are 'ReAwakening' to Political Violence". Religion Dispatches . Retrieved September 14, 2024.
  12. ↑ Melvin Tinker, "The Phantom Menace: Territorial Spirits and SLSW," in Evangelical Concerns (Mentor, 2001), 171.
  13. ↑ Guelich, Robert A. (Spring 1991). "Spiritual Warfare: Jesus, Paul and Peretti". Pneuma . 13 (1).
  14. ↑ Gardella, Peter (2018). "26. Spiritual Warfare in the Fiction of Frank Peretti". In McDannell, Colleen (ed.). Religions of the United States in Practice. Vol. 2. Princeton: Princeton University Press. pp. 328, 330–332. doi:10.1515/9780691188133-029. ISBN   9780691188133.
  15. ↑ Riddlebarger, Kim (1993). "This Present Paranoia". Modern Reformation. 2 (3): 278-279.
  16. ↑ Tinker, "The Phantom Menace," 167-168.
  17. ↑ Payne, Leanne. "Spiritual Mapping: A Misguided Focus on the Demonic". Leanne Payne Pastoral Care Ministries. Archived from the original on May 10, 2002. Retrieved April 14, 2024.

Bibliography

Further reading

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