 
|
|
Paperback
Publisher: Harpercollins
One On One With SatanA chilling and highly convincing account of possession and exorcism in modern America, hailed by NBC Radio as "one of the most stirring books on the contemporary scene."
| Customer Reviews: |
|
| |
| Christian Beware |
| Customer Rating: 1 out of 5 |
 |
|
Please do not waste your money on this book. It gives info similar to the book/movie, The Exorcist, even after the author emphasizes that exorcisms are not to be considered entertainment. The details seem gratuitous, and the filth that is documented is not something that Christians need to read. I do not believe that this book gives glory to God, but rather focuses too much on the power of the devil to destroy lives when we open ourselves up to his power. True? Yes. Necessary to meditate upon? Absolutely not.
I only bought this book because it is referenced in Ted Dekker's new novel, Adam, which I also don't recommend (not worth your money--check it out from the library, if you insist on reading it).
The Bible admonishes us to guard our heart, and avoiding this book is one way to do that.
|
| Disturbing, yet worthwhile |
| Customer Rating: 4 out of 5 |
 |
|
As a skeptic to the phenomena of possession and "believer" in a common Creator of all humanity, I had some reservations about the overly-religious appearance of this book. Rest assured that this book does not flaunt a bible-thumping, "hellfire and damnation" approach, and perhaps feels more disturbing for it. Malachi Martin's narrative of five cases of possession and exorcism reads in a fluent, yet gripping style, leaving the participant to ponder upon questions about the soul in a less superficial way than they might otherwise like. In this respect, the good author has undoubtedly achieved his purpose.
The case studies, covering the breadth of the 20th century, deal with a spectrum of issues, personal conflicts and personality disorders that many people may recognise. Indeed, many cases of "possession" show psychological illness as the cause. Psychopathy - psychobiological evil - may have a role as well. Martin states clearly however, that the nature of possession transcends pure psychology, even parapsychology. He refers to spiritual qualities of conscience, faith, hope, selflessness and love that spring from a divine source; a capacity for "humanness" most perfectly embodied in the historical figure of Jesus Christ. The historical discussion around "Jesus" receives no space in this book - readers will need to separate Martin's assumptions from other research in this regard. Fleeting (and encouraging) references to other teachers such as Buddha and Mohammed do exist however, which indicates a reassuring note of religious tolerance in Martin's writing.
Indeed, one can speculate from the cases that while possession and exorcism interact at a super-causal level, the religion itself may simply act as a "stage" on which the will of the exorcist and exorcee opposes the will of the "demonic" influence. Specific prayers, symbols etc, may have no effect if they do not create a "focus point" for the will of the human entities present. After all, possession and exorcism have a historical existence outside of Judeo-Christian cultures.
Martin also assembles the available information into an interesting "pathology of possession" as well. The causation and progress of possession as it proceeds through various stages, examined and listed in a scientific manner, gives the material an authentic feel which evokes the reader's attention in a sometimes uncomfortable way. One gets the sense that long-held communal beliefs about the nature of good and evil in the world may not hold up under the weight of spiritual reality. After all, how many people do you know that admit the concrete influence of truly, consciously Evil forces amongst us? And if such forces do exist... what responsibility do we have? Where does that leave us?
Such questions have no easy answers, but "Hostage to the Devil" dares to ask them of the reader, and provides persuasive evidence to insist that we do not forget them.
|
| Made me more repentant for my sins |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
 |
|
Praise Jesus!!!! This book seriously made me shiver but I got two very important things out of it: 1.) a new respect for the exorcists who risk their own lives to help the victims of possession; 2.) an urgency to remain in God's grace and avoid sinning as best as I can.
|
| "Hostage to the Devil" |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
|
|
At first did not know whether the novel was still in print. Purchased second-printing in 1986, but misplaced the book during many military moves in intervening years. Amazon offered perfect vehicle to research availability. As result, I was able to replace copy for my library at very reasonable cost.
|
| Very unsettling and puzzling. |
| Customer Rating: 4 out of 5 |
|
|
This is a very sobering and disturbing group of stories. My question if I could ask the author would be why he wrote it. While it is great that the people suffering under demonic influence were exorcised, the real-life stories are a bit too descriptive. These are definitely adult. I am not sure I would even want an older teenager reading this book. The positive thing to remember is that good triumphs. It is an awful battle. It is amazing that people turn to witchcraft and sorcery and even devil worship. There is definitely evil and Malachi describes it. We need to be careful and realize there are things evil that are explained by psychiatry and then there are things beyond the grasp of the knowledge of the "mind doctors". Here are such cases as presented by Malachi. It is a hair-raising read. I sometimes needed to put the book away a couple days to calm down. Read it. But it wouldn't hurt to have some holy water and maybe say a prayer or two to chase away any of your fears or maybe ... someTHING else.
|
|
