Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 11, No. 1, 1994, Page 48
More Than the Devil’s Due
Adrian J. Reimers, Ph.D.
Free Again in Christ
South Bend, Indiana
Abstract
Although mainstream religious groups tend to discount or minimize belief in the devil
and evil spirits, fundamentalists, charismatics, shepherding/discipleship groups, and
Bible-based cults do not. Indeed, in some groups, an emphasis on the devil and/or
evil spirits becomes a tool for the manipulation of consciences. In the People of
Praise, which this article uses as an example, a heightened fear of the devil or evil
spirits can be used to (a) put pressure on wavering members to stay in the group,
(b) elevate the importance of the group and its leaders, (c) enhance the leaders‟
control of the membership by reinforcing the notion that Satan can even work
through good people and only the leaders can discern his designs, and (d) undermine
members‟ confidence in their own judgment, especially about spiritual development.
The fears inculcated in members can cause considerable psychological distress when
they ultimately leave their groups.
I never knew I was a sexual pervert --not until the leader of our covenant community and
his wife prayed with me for deliverance. During this prayer in our living room the leader
discerned that for most of my life I had been unknowingly oppressed by an evil spirit, a
spirit of sexual perversion. I had never acted perversely. But our leader identified this
demon, which was crippling my life in the Holy Spirit and interfering with my ability to live
and to love. When he cast the demon out, then its hitherto undetected baneful influence
was gone from my life. Like every other member of our covenant community, I was made
dramatically and intimately aware of the deceptions and power of the devil to ruin my
Christian life.
Belief in the reality of the devil and of evil spirits dates from the very beginnings of
Christianity, but is now largely forgotten among Western Christians. Christians today rarely
hear their parish priest or minister refer to the devil or to spiritual combat with him. Many
regard evil spirits as little more than vestiges of a more primitive, unenlightened
Christianity. In fundamentalist circles, on the other hand, as well as in charismatic
movements within both Catholic and Protestant churches, firm belief in the reality of and
dangers represented by evil spirits persists. And in Bible-based cults,
shepherding/discipleship groups, and covenant communities this emphasis-or rather one
form of this emphasis-has become a tool for the manipulation of consciences.
In the wake of a powerful conversion experience, belief in the devil often becomes part and
parcel of a newfound faith in Christianity as a religion of the supernatural and the
miraculous. With this comes a certain mistrust of the institutional Church, which should
have taught about the devil but did not. A defect of faith is thus seen in the home parish.
The pastor has nothing to say about the devil therefore, I must learn from someone else
who knows and understands. Charismatic leaders purport to provide much expertise, which
institutional leaders lack.
Classically, the work of Satan has been understood-from the early Church Fathers to C.S.
Lewis‟s Screwtape Letters--to consist of temptations to sin. The devil‟s principal activity is
not to ruin our plans and frustrate our desires but to induce us to sin. It matters not
whether the sin be a spectacular one of mass murder or a quiet one of pride. The devil
tempts to sin. In the light of this, Christian teachers have recommended certain antidotes to

Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 11, No. 1, 1994, Page 49
the devil‟s work: frequent examination of conscience and repentance for sins, confession,
self-denial and fasting, and prayer.
The church also recognizes that on occasion devils can interfere in the material order,
especially by “possessing” certain persons. This phenomenon is rare, and the Church has
always treated it as such. Thus, in the Catholic Church an exorcism of evil spirits may be
undertaken only with the permission of the local Bishop and then only after a sober
investigation has ruled out all other possible causes of the aberrant behavior in question.
In reading the testimonies and accounts of cults, covenant communities, and
shepherding/discipleship groups from the Moonies to the Branch Davidians to the Sword of
the Spirit, we discover a strong and consistent emphasis on evil spirits. It is an emphasis
that differs significantly from that in traditional Christianity, and it becomes an important
tool for control of the lives of the members of these groups. In what follows, we will outline
the “demonology” typically used by the covenant communities.
Covenant communities are highly organized and committed groups of Christians who take
among themselves a solemn agreement or covenant, according to which they agree to
share their whole lives with each other under the authority of strong charismatic leadership.
Many such groups stress submission to community leaders in all aspects of life. They
characteristically emphasize a sharp distinction between roles of men and women. While not
separatists, they do keep a certain distance from the life of the surrounding culture and the
local Church. They consider their mutual relationships within the group to be the most
important in their lives. Many are ecumenical, although even in these the majority of
members are Catholic. This article analyzes the role and significance of the belief in evil
spirits in covenant communities arising from the Catholic charismatic renewal. It will point
out the distinctive and decisive role that the belief in Satan plays for the psychological
control of members.
The devil is the enemy of God, and as such he opposes everything that God tries to
accomplish. Most covenant communities regard the rebuilding of his people by means of
such communities as one of God‟s most important works. This means that these
communities directly thwart Satan‟s own plans of dividing God‟s people. Thus, these groups
purportedly threaten the devil‟s hegemony. His central strategy must necessarily be to
destroy these communities which so seriously threaten to restore the reign of God.
Some comments of People of Praise leader, Kevin Ranaghan, illustrate this well. In the late
1970s a sizable group of members left this covenant community, among them many who
had made the group‟s solemn commitment or covenant. Ranaghan explained that because
God was (purportedly) beginning a major work of healing and salvation through the
community, Satan was attacking it. His strategy was to undercut the factor that made the
community strong, namely its covenantal unity. By attacking the covenant he hoped to
render the community divided and uncommitted. Thus, he had sent a “quitting spirit” to sow
mistrust and disloyalty. The response to this, therefore, must be that each member renew
his commitment and resist every temptation to question his covenant relationship. Even to
think about leaving or to question the group‟s authority was to fall into Satan‟s devious plot.
Of course, such a position presumes that the group is tremendously important. It is not
claimed simply that since this community is good, the devil will oppose it. Any group can
claim this. Rather the community makes the stronger claim to hold a unique and distinctive
place in God‟s plan, a decisive role on which the salvation of men and the restoration of all
God‟s people depends.
According to traditional Christian teaching, the devil works by tempting people to sin. If he
works in this world, it is primarily by inspiring weak humans to sin. According to these
groups, however, the devil is fully capable of working his plans through good people who