What are ghosts for Christians?

Most Christians I know attribute ghost stories to natural phenomena or demonic activity. But are these the only two options?

The Church has never definitively solved this question - in fact, some of her greatest theologians disagree with each other. But the Church has affirmed numerous apparitions of deceased saints as well as the messages they bring. This gives us something to do.

The ghost comes from an ancient English word related to the German geist, which means "spirit", and Christians certainly believe in spirits: God, angels and souls of deceased humans are all qualified. Many say that the souls of the dead should not wander among the living, since after death the immaterial soul separates from the material body until the resurrection (Revelation 20: 5, 12-13). But are there good reasons to believe that human spirits appear on Earth?

In Sacred Scripture we read about the spirits of humans appearing to the living. For example, the witch of Endor calls the ghost of the prophet Samuel (1 Sam 28: 3-25). The fact that the witch was shocked by the event suggests that her previous claims of raising spirits were probably false, but Scripture presents them as a real event without qualification. We are also told that Judas Maccabeus met the ghost of Onia the high priest in vision (2 Macc 15: 11-17).

In Matthew's gospel, the disciples saw Moses and Elijah (who had not yet risen) with Jesus on the mount of the Transfiguration (Mt 17: 1-9). Prior to this, the disciples thought that Jesus himself was a ghost (Matthew 14:26), indicating that at least they had an idea of ​​the ghosts. Appearing after his resurrection, rather than correcting the very idea of ​​ghosts, Jesus simply says that he is not one (Luke 24: 37-39).

The scriptures, therefore, provide us with clear examples of spirits that manifest themselves immaterially on Earth and do not record that Jesus scaled down the idea when he had the chance. The problem, therefore, seems not to be of possibility but of probability.

Some Church Fathers rejected the existence of ghosts, and some explained Samuel's accident as a demonic activity. St. Augustine attributed most ghost stories to angelic visions, but his concern seems to have been more focused on the fight against pagan beliefs than on metaphysical possibilities. In fact, he allowed God to bring back visiting spirits in some cases and admitted that "if we say that these things are false, we will indifferently seem to go against the writings of some faithful and against the senses of those who say that these things are it happened to them. "

St. Thomas Aquinas disagreed with Augustine on the question of ghosts, concluding in the supplement to the third part of the Summa that "it is absurd to say that the souls of the dead do not leave their home". Claiming that Augustine was "speaking" according to the common course of nature "in denying the possibility of ghosts, the Aquinas said that

according to the disposition of divine providence, separate souls sometimes leave their home and appear to men. . . It is also credible that this can sometimes happen to the damned, and that for the education and intimidation of man it is allowed to appear to the living.

Furthermore, he said, souls "are able to appear wonderfully to the living when they want."

Not only did Aquinas believe in the possibility of ghosts, he seems to have encountered them himself. On two recorded occasions, the deceased souls visited the Angelic Doctor: brother Romano (whom Thomas had not realized had died yet!), And the dead sister of Aquino.

But if souls can appear at will, why don't they do it all the time? This was part of Augustine's reasoning against the possibility. Aquinas replies: “Although the dead can appear to the living as they wish. . . they are completely in conformity with the divine will, so that they cannot do anything other than what they see to be pleasant with the divine disposition, or they are so overwhelmed by their punishments that their pain for their unhappiness exceeds their desire to appear to others ".

The possibility of visits of deceased souls does not, of course, explain every spiritual encounter. Although demonic activity in Scripture is mediated through living, physical (even animal) beings, there is nothing in Scripture or Tradition that limits them to this type of activity. Angels have appeared and interacted with physical objects and people, and demons are fallen angels. Catholics who routinely deal with the paranormal say violent or evil infestations may be demonic in nature.

So even if it is wrong and unbiblical to assume that all ghost-like manifestations are of demonic origin, it is also imprudent to assume that none of them are!

Having said that, if a ghost is simply understood as the spirit of a deceased human appearing on Earth, either by its power or according to a special divine purpose, we cannot simply erase ghost stories such as delusions or demons.

Therefore, we must be careful not to judge too quickly. Such experiences could come from God, angels of all kinds or departed spirits - and our reactions to them should be very different. God alone is due worship; good angels should be given reverence (Rev 22: 8-9) and bad angels far apart. As for the departed spirits: although the Church affirms the proper veneration and prayer with the saints, together with Scripture it forbids divination or necromancy - summoning the dead or other practices aimed at seeking forbidden knowledge (for example, Dt. 18: 11 see 19:31; 20: 6, 27; CCC 2116).

If you see a ghost, then, the best thing to do is probably the same thing we do to dead souls - our Christian brothers on the other side of the veil - that we don't see: pray.