A Psychiatrist's Personal Accounts of Possession

I have been familiar with Dr. Pecks's writing since The Road Less Travelled. In Glimpses Of The Devil he describes the challenges with two of his clients some years ago and why, from both scientific and spiritual perspectives these were genuine cases of possessions. The writing is paced and gripping and I found it difficult to put the book down at times. This is not an attempt to write a textbook on exorcism or to outdo perhaps the definitive book on the subject in modern times: Hostage To The Devil. Instead, it tells two very intimate stories taking the reader from a very scientific, objective perspective, about the therapeutic work involved in the discovery of possession and the very difficult process leading to the exorcism, then follow-up. Peck's analysis and summaries after each case help to clarify in the reader's mind the facts,the inferences and the inconsistencies where they exist. The book leaves the reader with several new questions while it attempts to answer a few major ones. All in all a solid read for a person with an open and inquisitive mind to this sensitive and very interesting subject.

GLIMPSES OF THE DEVIL, Peck's lengthy report on two exorcisms he performed, is a fascinating book for several reasons. Not least of all is that this book was Peck's last book, published the year of his death from cancer at the age of 69. Given his extraordinary career as a best-selling author and psychiatrist, it should be read by those interested in Peck and in one of his chief interests, the relationship between mental health and Christian spirituality.

It is also fascinating because he means it to be a contribution to science. It is not every day that a scientist publishes research on the Devil.

This is not the book to read if one wants to learn how to free people from the grip of the Devil. The chief place to begin to learn how to free people from the grip of the Devil is first, the Gospels, second, the rest of the New Testament, and third, the rest of the Bible. Peck at a number of places in this book acknowledges his dependence on Christ for his work as an exorcist. But there is no systematic discussion of biblical teaching on exorcism. There is more discussion of what he had learned from his mentor, the author and exorcist, Malachi Martin. But that is because Peck does not mean this book to be a manual. It is a report on what he considers scientific research.

Based on my study and experience of exorcism, the most important thing to keep in mind when discussing the Devil is what John, the disciple of Christ, wrote to followers of Christ: "the one who is in you [meaning the Holy Spirit] is greater than the one who is in the world [meaning the Devil]" (1 Jn. 4:4b). One should also keep in mind what another of Christ's disciples wrote: "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up" (James 4:7-10). Submission to God in trust and humility is what enables one to resist the Devil successfully, as well as exorcise any evil spirit. It is interesting that Peck considers the second exorcism he performed a failure and a mistake, at least in part because he was not sufficiently humble.

Peck, like many, errs in speaking of demonic and satanic POSSESSION. Ownership or possession is a frequent biblical image, but it is never said that demons or Satan own or possess humans. They are certainly said to influence humans for the worse, but they do not own them. A fundamental truth that pertains to this subject is, "The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it" (Psalm 24:1). The teaching of the sovereignty of God is woven throughout the entire Bible. When we imagine that the demonic possesses its victims we grant the Devil more than he is due and we disadvantage ourselves in our effort to combat the Devil. It is not simply a matter of semantics. It pertains to what the Kingdom of God is. The Kingdom of God is what Jesus is all about and what exorcism is about.

I recommend DEMON POSSESSION AND THE CHRISTIAN by C. Fred Dickason as a book that will be more helpful to those who want to learn how to deal with evil spirits. It presents more case histories than Peck's book and is written by one more experienced with exorcism that Peck is. But GLIMPSES OF THE DEVIL is noteworthy because it is written by a psychiatrist who happens to be famous and very influential.

Dr. M. Scott Peck, best selling author, famous psychiatrist and spiritual expert, has written a new book called Glimpses of the Devil, narrating his experiences of conducting two exorcisms in the 80s. I have been a fan of Peck's for years, and enjoyed most of his previous works, especially People of the Lie.

Most of us are familiar with the William Peter Blatty novel and movie, The Exorcist, which was loosely based on actual cases of demonic possession of two adolescent boys, but I don't know anyone who has ever really heard of an exorcism. I was surprised at the subject matter, because the suspension of the average reader's disbelief in supernatural evil (or reliance on faith) seemed quite high for a sophisticated and skeptical audience. However, Peck's account of the diagnosis and treatment of the patients he believed were possessed was utterly convincing.

In both cases, Peck claims that Satan itself was among the myriad of demons residing in the bodies of his two patients. Why Satan would bring out the proverbial big guns for two young women with no apparent personal power or influence remains a mystery. After treating a number of mental illnesses and behavior disorders, Peck believes that demonic possession is more common than we realize, and is often misdiagnosed in patients as a multiple personality disorder. In ancient times, mental illnesses, epilepsy, and behavior disorders often were assumed to be caused by possession of demons, and Jesus performed a number of exorcisms, according to the New Testament. Did demonic possession become extinct? Or is is merely universally untreated?

The Catholic Church has strict criteria for defining demonic possession with which Peck deviates in his diagnoses. Peck discovers several similar symptoms in his cases that he believes are as authentic as the more extreme events where the victim may manifest levitation, speaking in tongues, telekinesis, and physical aversion to sacred symbols. In Peck's cases, the patients transform into an inhuman entity: one began to resemble a snake, and the other a kind of evil imp. Both women had naturally stretched facial skin, like a bad face-lift; and when Peck called forth the demons (through hypnosis or a formal rite), the demons discussed things or used phraseology or expressions that the victims could not know. Both women were described as "potentially holy" and "a threat to the forces of darkness."

The first patient was an avid follower of New Age philosophies and avant-garde religions that were the result of rejecting traditional doctrines at about age 12. Peck uncovers one serious childhood trauma that may have made her vulnerable to attack, but he makes it clear that her acceptance of the demons was a matter of free will. The second patient was a more complicated case where the woman was raised by a truly evil mother who taught her a warped set of values that led to an abusive marriage and a complete psychic break with her heritage and traditions. When the Prince of Lies makes its appearance during the formal exorcism, it mixes heresy, blasphemy, partial truths, and manipulations to hold on to its prey.

Throughout his commentary in retrospect of the events, Peck defines the modus operandi of demons that resembles the behavior of evil people who are "perfectly possessed." "Imperfectly possessed" people are not evil, but struggle with a conflict of good and evil and are vulnerable, by some acceptance of a false belief system, to demonic attack. This conflict is debilitating and extremely toxic to their spirits and will inevitably result in self-destruction and terrible consequences. Whereas,

"Thoroughly evil people are not in conflict; they are not in pain or discomfort. There is no inner turmoil. They are quite common - much more common than the possessed.

Given the universal dynamics of laziness and narcissism, I do not think that the people of the lie need Satan to recruit them to their evil; they are quite capable of recruiting themselves."

Ultimately, Peck's experience leads him to a belief in the devil, which he was pretty certain did not exist prior to meeting it face-to-face. This served to reinforce his faith in God, since without a great power of good, there could not be this pathetic, but nevertheless destructive, power of evil. In Glimpses of the Devil you will get enlightening glimpses of evil people everywhere.

I am giving this book two stars because the author had to travel long distances and work very hard on what turned out to be extremely foolish projects that should never have appeared between the covers of a contemporary book. Actually, I can't add much to what has been (excellently) reviewed here already. I agree with just about every the store critic on this one. I, too, enjoyed "Children of the Lie." I also happen to be a fan of "Hostage to the Devil" - it is far more enlightening and entertaining, and provided me, a writer of fiction, with a number of good "archetypes" of evil upon which to draw for inspiration. If only certain acclaimed, best-selling writers would have a mechanism that cries out, "Somebody stop me!" there would be a lot fewer badly-written, self-important, quasi-religious, incompetent books like this one adding to the material glut on the planet. I got this book at the library and found myself literally throwing it back into the return bin. You know, what's bad about it mostly is that it screwed up people's lives, people who probably needed a whole different kind of treatment than the good "doctor-priest" or whatever he calls himself now, knew how to diagnose or give.

There is very little about the two exorcisms Dr Peck has preformed. Also, the book is centered entirely around himself and his role in very aspect of theraphy and exorcisms. In the first chapter, Dr Peck explains his often long distance relationship to Malachi Martin- to whom introduced Peck into Exorcism. Although interesting as a start, there is little left.

The problem with this book is that he doesn't focus enough on the actual exorcism itself nor the people behind them as much as he should. One patient was molested by her step father and Dr Peck spends little time in the book and with the patient about this occurence. In this instance he wants to blame the victim because she should have known her father wasn;t a real doctor.

This is only on example. I really think that anyone interested in exorcism from a relgious or psychological standpoint should not bother with this book.

Peck's account of two posessed people in this book is very realistic. He is a Christian, but he was uncertain of the existence of the devil. As a scientist, he had to see to believe. This book is not horrifying. As much as anything, the signs and symptoms of posession are easily overlooked by competent psychiatrist, priests, and others.

If you believe you have known someone whose behavior was driven by "evil", you should read this book. If you would like to learn about the ambiguity between some psychiatrists diagnosis and "possession", I would recommend your reading this. The book does not try to convert you to become a "believer" of the devil, but it points out what "holes" in one's being may enable the evil to get inside of you and stay. I think Peck's a brilliant writer, and scientist. Would recommend this book.

One wonders what Satan accomplishes by possessing obscure people. What devilish design does possession serve?

Maybe Satan is bored and in need of soap opera entertainment or, as in the case of Job, competition with God. The Bible recounts possession(Mark 5:2)and so does contemporary history, yet what exactly is possession? Is possession a spiritual event or a mental health condition or both? This book written by a Christian doctor attempts to answer the question.

This book was part of a dedicated search into the subject of possession which included the most reputable clinical sources I could find. A book written by a psychiatrist-no less from Harvard- met the requirement!

Dr. Peck uses his experiences with some patients to show evidence of possession. The book is well writen as a hybrid textbook novel which is strange in itself. The stories are creepy and undoubtedly true since they follow many other secular experiences with Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD) that have been documented.

One case involved not only unnatural strength but a basic change of facial features recorded on tape. The face on the tape was that of an ninety year old even though the case involved a young woman. The tape records on this case are protected under privacy laws and so can't be included meaningfully in the book. A Christian friend of mine reported that his mother in law who is deeply involved in the occult similarly saw an ancient face in her bathroom mirror.

The book is absorbing but meandering. Is there any evidence of the supernatural in this book? Nothing described by Dr Peck can be completely excluded from a conventional diagnosis of MPD except the taped case which is not verifiable for legal reasons.

Possession itself is described as Dissociative Identity Trance Disorder,a catagory of MPD, in the DSM-IV (a standard diagnostic guide), and is treatable with exorcism appropriate to the victim's faith.

Objective proof is scarce in possession cases. There is no evidence of speaking in tongues with known languages unknown to the victim and specific to possession cases that have ever been documented reliably as far as I know.

Dr.Ralph Allison's MPD hypnosis studies involving age regression (however creepy) are shorn of verified personal histories or verifiable unknown languages. The entity infestations described by Dr Allison and the internal self helpers could just as easily be delusions.

The Maryland exorcism case that inspired the movie THE EXORCIST was studied by the well known Dr. Rhine who claimed he saw objects moving(PK) but PK incidents have also been documented as non demonic events by others. PK is related to young people,usually women, with troubled backgrounds. In the Maryland case the victim was a troubled boy.

Dr. Peck leaves us with questions never clearly answered yet worth asking. When I read this book and researched the nexus between MPD and exorcism I always had the feeling someone was standing behind me. I would turn around quickly in my cold apartment to look at the darkness behind the hallway door. What is Satan's purpose in oppressing the obscure? One can only wonder.

I had picked up this book after reading "People of The Lie" and found it interesting. This book took two of the caes that were introduced in "People of the Lie" and expanded them with more detail. This book was articulate and gave a personal account from a psychiatrist's view point. This book exposed a cause for there disorders and a remedy that is still relevant today to heal them through a form of exorcism. I encourage anyone that is envolved in the field of psychiatry to pick up this book as there is a lot to learn from the cases addressed in this book.

I enjoy researching cases of possession, so I often find myself buying books on the subject. However, it is not unusual for the books to be too firmly based from the religious standpoint for me to enjoy learning from them. This book, however, is something different. Peck does not deny that he is a christian, but he does not write the book from the perspective of one at all. He writes it from his professional perspective as a psychiatrist. The stories are not over-sensationalized like you often read about in possession stories, and he spends much of the book assessing the situations from a clinical and scientific mindset. If you're interested in the subject, this is a very good book to purchase.

i am extremely surprised that some have thought poorly of this book. i found it everything i wanted. it is factual, matter of fact, and totally compelling. i was very sorry it didn't go on for another 1000 pages. in addition, this book didn't scare me at all, whereas Malachi Martin's book was more frightening. i find it laughable that some reviewers of Peck's spiritual journey think he has gone in the wrong direction.

i would also recommend reading Martin Malachi's book too, the name of which i forget. the writing styles are so different. i much preferred Peck's style. there were times when reading Malachi's book that i thought the author was a bit too taken with his writing abilities, which are noteworthy.

I found this book fascinating. It recounts two exorcisms by M. Scott Peck. If you are unaware of possession by evil spirits or ambivalent about evil, this will certainly give you more to think about.

I found that his descriptions of the exorcisms to be interesting, (not in the way the movie The Exorcist displayed it) but more clinical and analytical. I have also read Hostage to the Devil by Malachi Martin and it is more mysterious in his accounting of the 5 exorcisms. M. Scott Peck actually knew Malachi Martin and this is how he came to understand evil and the fact that people can become possessed by evil.

I like that M. Scott Peck is a credible writer and therapist and used his background in psychology to begin his adventure (research) into this area of the human experience. I agree that not all of human experience can be determined through scientific methods and I wonder if there are more writers/therapists out there now that have continued with this theory?

Although a fascinating and valuable writer, Peck's Christianity finally traps him in lunatic assumptions about the existence of the devil that are simply medieval. This book is a sad finale for an intelligent man who abandoned the scientific method in a vortex of his own prejudices. Read, "The People of the Lie," or any of his other books, instead.

This is an excellent primer on the reality of evil and Satan. Peck was mainstream, Harvard trained scientist who converted to Christianity, in large part, because of his experiences with evil. The book is written in the style of progress notes familiar to professional therapists but also provides Peck's personal commentary. This is a good starting book for researching the reality of evil. I could hardly put it down once I started reading it.

I found this book frightening. Not for the reasons that the author intended, but because it is an example of how far down the rabbit hole someone who is otherwise supposedly rational might go in pursuit of their own issues.

It is the account of a psychiatrist who was deeply involved with two exorcisms and, in so doing, became resolved that demon/satanic possession is real. However, a close and rational reading, shows that neither of these women he dealt with had "demonic" issues, but serious mental health issues that came to be seen as demons of this and demons of that. He has even, later, admitted that at least one of the women may have been suffering from Multiple Personality Disorder.

One of the most telling parts of the book was how, when they needed to take a break for lunch or whatever, the woman they were doing the exorcism on would be normal during their break and then go back to being "demonic" when the break was done. How a psychiatrist could miss this cue that this whole "possession" was at least under the unconscious if not the conscious control of the woman in question--and how they themselves were influencing her--casts serious doubts on the whole thing. What "demon" would be happy to take a lunch break in the midst of an exorcism? Only one that the woman herself and/or the exorcists had created in their own minds.

What is frightening is, by using these sessions (first exorcism and then psychotherapy) to aid in resolving his own beliefs, he obviously got caught up emotionally and spiritually with them and clearly should have stepped back from what he was doing. If he was still practicing today and did what he said he did in these books, went over the boundaries of what is acceptable with a patient as he did, he would be in deep trouble. It is obvious that he overlaid his own spiritual beliefs upon what was going on, to the point of seeing things that were not caught on the videotapes of the events...and then used that as a "reason" for why what happened was actually supernatural. If it wasn't on the tape that was a sign that supernatural forces had been involved. Not that he and his helpers were wrapped up in a shared delusion.

But then he was likely in deep trouble from Day One by coming under the influence of Malachi Martin who got him involved with all this in the first place. The author states in this book that Malachi Martin was the most bald-faced liar he had ever met, but then he allows himself to be drawn into his world of make-believe demonic possession. To think that people in the world are constantly beset by very real demons of all kinds.

The two women in this book were undoubtedly in need of help and one of them was helped to an extent by her "exorcism," probably because she believed that she would be (the same as taking a sugar pill can sometimes bring good results so long as the patient believes it is really medicine). However, using this as a basis for pushing an agenda that modern psychiatry should include a diagnosis of demonic possession is fanciful and dangerous to say the least. This book certainly shows that.

Its not a badly written book style-wise, but it does not prove its point...at least not to anyone who already does not ascribe to that particular world view. What it proves, instead, is that psychiatrists should not dabble in exorcism because the person who will most likely pay for this will be the patient.

With GLIMPSES OF THE DEVIL, psychiatrist and bestselling author, M. Scott Peck adds "exorcist" to his resume.

After reading William Peter Blatty's THE EXORCIST, Dr. Peck started to search the origins and motivations of Human Evil; first as a secular researcher and later as a Christian believer he began an intellectual and spiritual quest to either discredit or confirm demonic possession phenomena.

Peck's acquaintance with renowned but controversial author and exorcist, the late Father Malachi Martin, led him ultimately to conducting exorcisms on his own. Recalled here are the cases of two women whom Peck claims were demonically possessed: Jersey, a 27-year-old wife and mother with no history of mental illness but a chaotic and eccentric family background; Beccah, a highly intelligent middle-aged woman suffering from long years of spousal abuse. According to Peck, the purging of Jersey's demons was successful, Beccah's was not.

The book left me with contempt for M. Scott Peck. I found the sequence of events too coincidental, contrived.

It's hard for me to believe that the enigmatic, very protective and ultra-conservative Malachi Martin would've so easily entrusted -let alone manipulated- the newly baptized, non-denominational Peck with purging demons. Demonic Possession and exorcism was something Fr. Martin took extremely seriously. All his work was explicit about exorcism potentially being very dangerous and spiritually costly for all parties involved, he was constant that only trained clergymen, strong in faith should conduct the procedure and that they should not stray from the Roman Ritual.

Furthermore, Peck's general portrayal of most clergy in this book is negative. He shows us both priests and ministers either being sceptical, indifferent or cowardly when confronted about the demoniac. Only he and his motley crew of laymen and laywomen had the fortitude to defeat the Devil.

Jersey's case was laughable. Peck tells us he became convinced she was truly possessed merely from a comment she made about feeling sorry for her demons (Why would that confirm anything preternatural?). Later on, he and a colleague get together and continuously insult her intelligence and maturity (Why?). The seeming ease which he claimed to have summoned, questioned and expelled her demons shows Peck not only to be a ridiculous but also an arrogant crank. Peck seems as much the huckster as those "new agey spiritualists" he intimates were contributing factors to Jersey's dilemma.

I believe this book will bring both believers (such as myself) and sceptics of demonic possession to one of those rare moments of agreement: This book is rubbish.

If you haven't yet read Fr. Malachi Martin's book, HOSTAGE TO THE DEVIL, please do so.

A Ground-breaking Work of Love and Redemption: M. Scott Peck's Psycho-spiritual Magnum Opus!

I have waited over 15 years for this book to be written. It is simply a gift.

GLIMPSES OF THE DEVIL supplements his previous, classic work on the topic of evil PEOPLE OF THE LIE, which itself scientifically expanded on--in psychological depth and breadth--father Malachi Martin's pioneering masterpiece on demonic possession HOSTAGE TO THE DEVIL, forming a trilogy of hope, healing, and redemption. These works have also greatly shaped my personal understanding, as well as that of countless others, of the reality of evil, providing a clearer road map with which to better navigate through the trials and travails of existence, ultimately saving me time and suffering in my encounters with evil in everyday life.

Dr. Peck pays particular attention to the process nature of exorcism, and the utilization of deliverance as a prerequisite means of uncovering the demonic within before finally employing the more formal, drastic measure of the ancient rite itself. Even through the darkest moments of finally uncovering Satanic interference as the motive force of self-destruction in the lives of two of his patients, and their subsequent deliverance and exorcisms, Peck's courage and humanity--in psychospiritual and even physical combat with preternatural evil--radiates like a beacon of love, shattering not only the "Pretense" of the devil's victims, but also the cold silence of a largely disbelieving world, exposing the raw nerve of man's ultimate freedom to choose absolute good or summary evil.

I expect this book to be met with resistance across the medical and religious spectrum, and it already has, but, as with any ground-breaking and important work that threatens complacency and post-modern belief structures, also with significant acclaim. GLIMPSES OF THE DEVIL rises above much of the confusion and hyperbole surrounding this rarefied topic, dares to make judgments on the limits of personal behavior, and offers no apologies for what it says. For it merely speaks the truth: Evil is real, the devil is real, and real prices are paid in suffering by the victims of possession and those heroic exorcists who must brave soul-scathing demonic attacks to free people from temporal strangulation and eternal damnation.

If secular, corporatized medicine ever evolves out of its atheistic limiting belief structures and affirms the condition of the human soul as the ultimate foundation for the formation of a healthy mind-body-spirit paradigm, only then will the science of exorcism finally be codified by the mental health establishment and both human evil and demonic possession recognized as the debilitating, psycho-spiritual pathologies that they truly are. Medicine will have Fr. Martin and Dr. Peck to thank.

For, if Malachi Martin is truly the father of modern-day possession and exorcism, then M. Scott Peck is its godfather. Already hundreds, if not thousands, have chosen to renew their contract with God and life, and have discovered true liberation from the shackles of the devil through the work of these daring men of compassion, as, undoubtedly, many more will do in the future.

*Note: Fr. Martin's unparalleled spiritual and theological expertise--wedded to Dr. Peck's ground-breaking psychological insights and experience--form a synthesis of psychospiritual and psychotheological understanding from which the truth about the mysterious phenomena of exorcism and possession are only now beginning to fully emerge. But mysteries, by their very nature, remain: the mystery of good versus evil, of free will; the paradox of why a little child can have the will and reason of an adult in some areas; hence, a younger age of "accountability" and higher susceptibility to possession; why the demonic chooses one person over another, etc., ad infinitum...

Dr. Peck chose to write a book that laypeople could understand and relate to. This does not mean that there isn't a wealth of information, anecdotal and otherwise, to back his assertions. For instance, there has been an increase in demonic possession amongst children at an early age. In addition, exorcists are seeing more cases of people in their 20s and 30s who have, for egoic or mercenary reasons, entered into "pacts" with the devil for personal gain. If you are too sophisticated or judgmental to believe that a "pact" with the devil or "selling one's soul" is possible, you deny the truth. Father Martin's book HOSTAGE TO THE DEVIL, as well as the experience and writings of other exorcists, confirms the subtleties of the phenomenon of selling out.

I heard one Protestant exorcist describe how someone, because of a violent car accident, incurred demonic interference. He speculated that the psychophysical trauma caused some sort of "separation." We know that all individuals have susceptibilities, dispositions, and predispositions to all sorts of conditions, medical and otherwise. It is known that the demonic are attracted to "negativities" in people's lives. We speculate about the triune nature of man and the interdependence between mind, body, and spirit. There is evidence that in some individuals, the induction of trauma or abuse can cause the psyche to separate or split, and, because of certain psychospiritual mechanisms, facilitate possession.

The problem with some of the more intellectually-dishonest reviewers of this book is that they cannot tolerate the criticism, direct or indirect, that Peck's work creates in their own minds. Some choose to ignore the facts, while others are just ignorant. Some individuals, weilding a neurotic world view, accept the "ideal" of a secularized psychology or spirituality while rejecting the "real" of the preternatural or supernatural; thereby, creating a lacuna with reality. Instead of bridging this reality gap with love or knowledge of the truth, or scientific inquiry, they fill it with fear or the hot air of their egos, puffed up with pride, and become veritible intellectual blimps.

Alas, in their selfish reason and narcissistic pride, they foolishly believe that the totality of objective reality can be grasped exclusively via the fallible subjectivity of the senses, and posit a static cosmological bias against the dynamic verities of faith, like Heaven and Hell--or angels and demons--and a moral universe of being. Instead of a holistic approach, they favor a fragmented or wholly naturalistic interpretation of life--contra right reason, experience and evidence--that excludes the knowable but immesurable forces of God and the supernatural. This is the proper theology of insanity!

As Dr. Peck says in PEOPLE OF THE LIE, in order to grow intellectually and spiritually, they would have to expend energy and suffering in order to revise their ontological road maps to conform to reality, which is a painful process. So, instead of shedding further light on the subject at hand, they generate heat and project their conflict outwards through ad hominem attacks against those with whom they disagree; thereby, taking the easy way out and lazily avoiding the conflict within themselves that critical self-examination would engender. And, "the unexamined life," as one philosopher so aptly put it, "is not worth living." Besides, performing exorcisms requires the virtues of self-sacrifice and courage, which many--in the economy of today's hedonistic society--simply lack.

The first condition of learning is humility. While Dr. Peck's acceptance of mystery--itself an act of humility--facilitates the open-mindedness required to further scientific investigation and discovery in this rarefied area, others' arrogance and lack of humility stifles further scientific and theological progress, tethering them to unreality, while muting the spiritual quest, not unlike the possessed. And, as Dr. Peck says, "sanity is the adherence to reality at all costs." Therefore, one might logically and reasonably ask, "are they insane?"

These faithless critics--medical and clerical professionals alike--would do better to first cast the Empire State Building of disbelief out of their own eye before admonishing Dr. Peck to cast the mote from his.

To the discerning and educated observer, one of the quantum leaps of understanding provided by this book, and a fascinating topic for further scientific inquiry, is the phenomenon of the manifestation of the "Pretense"--in its many variations--outside of the formal rite of exorcism. In this case it was Jersey's pretense of schizophrenia, and its purpose as a ruse to confuse Dr. Peck, but more importantly his therapeutic use of it as a diagnostic tool to uncover the existence of an authentic possession, since confusion--taken in context as a manifestation of the lie--is a hallmark of evil, preternatural and otherwise. In other words, the evil spirit within Jersey desired to confuse Dr. Peck into thinking she was schizophrenic and not actually possessed, to preclude it's discovery and final expulsion.

Similarly, another area for further research is the mini clashes of will between an evil patient and his therapist, above and beyond the normal resistance encountered in traditional psychoanalytic psychotherapy. These tend to have a peculiar, existential quality. For instance, an unnatural and patently hostile aversion to stated religious truths, that Dr. Peck experienced outside of the main "Clash" of wills seen during a deliverance or formal exorcism, can aid in the diagnosis of evil when triangulated with other phenomena.

Superimpose this knowledge, and apply it to some of the case studies of evil personalities in Dr. Peck's PEOPLE OF THE LIE, and a clearer picture emerges that perhaps Peck's intuitive, hypothetical diagnosis--back in the 1970s-'80s--that Charlene was indeed possessed, and not merely evil, was correct. Also, the possibility that she was too far gone--and beyond the normal rite of exorcism because she was perfectly possessed--may have also been accurate given the intensity of her will and the size and energy of her pretense, as is eerily demonstrated by the similarities between Charlene and the harrowing case of Beccah in this book.

Dr. Rama P. Coomaraswamy is a Harvard-trained psychiatrist and surgeon at Albert Einstein Medical Center. He was personal friends with both Malachi Martin and Mother Teresa of Calcutta. Fr. Martin instructed him in possession and exorcism. Dr. Coomaraswamy's books are most informative.

As always, keep an open mind and heart & proceed with caution; however, do proceed...and buy this book!

Dr. Peck passed away September 25, 2005. We will miss you.

This will sound positively medieval to the above reviewers, but I have to say it - you are victims of the "lie" yourselves. Did it ever occur to you that not everyone in medieval times was backward and stupid??? I'm a very, very liberal Christian, yet I do believe in possession. I believe I've known people who were possessed. It is not always like "The Exorcist," but the evil is always palpable. They say, and I agree, that Satan's masterpiece is getting people to believe he does not exist!
THINK, you guys! Open your minds!

I was doing research into spirit possession as a cultural and psychological phenomenon. I eagerly snatched up this book from the local library, thinking it would be an exciting clinical case study and began skimming it.

To my disgust, I found that the author, a psychiatrist, whilst outward claiming to have been a rational skeptic and a man of science, came to BELIEVE THAT THE PATIENT WAS ACTUALLY POSSESSED AND HAD PERFORMED AN EXORCISM.

If you are religious and want a book that validates your beliefs, go for it.

If you are a serious researcher, I strongly recommend the work of I.M. Lewis and Aihwa Ong instead.

How believable is it for a Roman Catholic priest trained as an exorcist to suggest to a lay person (even if he is a psychiatrist) that the Doctor do an exorcism? That priest is either incompetent (and in the wrong profession) or his faith is not close to what it should be considering his job as an exorcist.

Okay I only got through the first couple of chapters regarding the first "case history". To me (and I'm not a psychiatrist) the symptoms this woman presented seemed the result of complex psychiatric disorder (one no doubt requiring a differential diagnosis). Does demonic possession exist? The Roman Catholic church thinks so because, yes, there are trained exorcists. And I know that there are strong spiritual influences in all psychiatric illness because the person is at his/her weakest and that's how Satan and his minions "work" -- by taking advantage of our weakest points. (If you're reading this review and you think I'm insane for believing in Satan, think again, and why would you want to read this book, anyway?)

The entire concept that a lay person with no ordination, no commissioning, no education and no spiritual preparation would be ready, willing or able to confront true possession or demonic disturbance is absurd to me. Makes for good book sales, though, I betcha.

This author should have thought twice before publishing this work. I have never read any of his other books, but I had a fairly benevolent impression of him. After reading how gullible, confused and simply old-fashioned he was/is on sexual abuse and the vagaries of the mind, I have lost that impression. He is probably a nice man but needed to do a great deal more self-education relating to his own experience of the "exorcisms" before publishing his perspective on them for a modern audience.

The arrogance written on every page of this book is 2nd only to the absolute incompetence/negligence this man has as a therapist.

Let's see, shortly after being fascinated with the book, "The Exorcist," Peck is visited by a woman who thinks she might be possessed. It's the early/mid 70s, movies and books about satanic possession are all the rage. She's depressed, trapped in a marriage with an overbearing man... and Peck manages to surmise that because she walked a few blocks away from her home at 18 months old that she opened herself up to satanic powers.

The Catholic church wants nothing to do with her. She doesn't show any of the real signs the church looks for in a situation like this, but SuperPeck knows better!

He rounds up a spiritual posse and runs all them old demons out of town. Oddly enough, one of them was named Damien. Just like the anti-christ in the Omen, which was out about that time. Chalk one up for coincidence!

After talking that bad old Devil out of her, SuperPeck requires her to come to weeks of intesive therapy. "I don't know what I'd do if I ever had a patient that was possessed but didn't have money," writes SuperPeck, tongue apparently not in cheek at all.

His 2nd case is even more disturbing. She's also trapped in a bad marriage/depression, etc. SuperPeck suggests to her that she too is possessed. And then, something unheard of in the annals of psychiatry happens -- the patient, desperate for help, agrees with the authority figure. Perhaps, I am possessed, SuperPeck.

To the Exorcism Cave!

I don't want to spoil the fun, except to say that she turns into a giant snake and it's all caught on video camera. Except she's like a vampire and her transformation doesn't show up on the video. Oh, well.

Oh, later the voices come back and she dies of cancer or suicide. SuperPeck isn't really sure which, but he is confident that the "greatest exoricist" in the world couldn't have done anymore than SuperPeck did. Christ himself couldn't save her apparently. This middle-aged depressed woman was beyond all aid, human or demigod.

Words cannot express my disgust at this book at this man's practices on these poor women.

Peck, if you are reading this, you should be ashamed of yourself. You've revealed yourself as a sham and a charlatan and I pity anyone who endured your "therapy."

Firstly, are demons cunning ? Certainly - every exorcist will tell you this is their prime attribute - half truth being the most prolific and effective.

Secondly, can one be possessed by inviting a demon into oneself, as the author writes that he did ? Again, certainly - all exorcists agree that flirting with the occult and evil is often sufficient, and the result of direct invitation, in the close presence of many demons, needs no speculation.

Let us hypothesise for a few moments, for sake of clarity and illustrating points here, that Religion (Christianity and Church) and the opposition (Satan, Lucifer, Satanists, Evil) are in fact Intelligence services (the national security type).

Then let us identify the Religion (Church) as service A, and the opposition (Satan, Lucifer, Satanists, Evil) as service B.

Service B wishes to insert a deep cover agent (or agent of influence) into service A, for:

i) A disinformation campaign about the power and supremacy of service B (the overall message in the book is that evil prevails, but this is presented in disguise - dressed in the clothes of piety and Christianity).

ii) Sabotage of service A's procedures and marginalising them as obsolete, irrelevant and unnecessary (the entirely mixed, unorthodox, improvised, unauthorised methodology presented as an exorcism)

iii) Degrading service A personnel (using a high Church Officer as `assistant' and portraying others as cowardly and uninvolved).

iv) Encouraging people at large without qualifications and training to assume duties of service A members (the author is an unordained member of the laity carrying out an exorcism)

v) Character assassination of a leading figure in service A who has often set back service B and done it much damage by his writings and actions (the vilification of Malachi Martin as a liar, adulterer and wife-stealer; and by asserting that a high Church officer screamed to him more than once that Father Martin was `evil' - with no shred of evidence presented in support, and then self-excused under a pretext of gratitude and dedicating the book to him - that in itself is an attempt at very subtle installation of moral confusion in our minds - that ultimately a person the author presents as an adulterer, liar and evil person may and should be justifiably honoured).

vi) Causing division of departments in service A by portraying them as divisive and unreasonable (thinly veiled arrogance and criticism of all but non-denominational Christians).

vii) Force-multiplying propaganda (the introduction of Satan and Lucifer as two now separate, giant powers in the own rights, to be reckoned with)

viii) Instilling hopelessness and futility of resistance to service B (an exorcism was presented as successful. It was not. The voices of the same demons were heard at a later date by the victim. The subtle almost subliminal message here, for our mental consumption, is that `even successful exorcisms do not work')

There is not a little justification here for suspecting possible demonic possession of the author (which he says he invited), and his book being a subtle attack on Christianity.

Theology (and the writings of numerous exorcists) teach us that Satan cannot materialise and conceal every single part of itself - the French have a saying - they urge looking at the feet - to see if there are hooves. No possessed person can entirely conceal their signs, or pattern of change.

Are there any signs in this case ? Well, what happened in this book ? The style of the author has radically changed - there is an unmistakable and almost suffocating streak of arrogant vanity running through it - that hits the reader in the face. It was not present in the other books.

Is this a 'hoof' ? The sign ? What a pity we can't see the author's eyes in the photo on the reverse of the book - the photo and spectacles are just a little too shaded or dark for visibility. Psychiatrists value eye contact higly in establshing trust, and the binding and quality of the book is impeccable - first class - except that you cannot see the author's eyes in the photograph. this may seem petty or obscure, but much can be analysed from eyes and their environs, even in photographs.

The author proudly states that he sided with a wife against a husband over a dispute concerning dress code. It is irrelevant who is right - this is certainly not a psychiatric function, or medical ethics, and breaches the Hippocratic oath. Did the author, a self professed and strong Christian, forget the Christian caveat on marriage "Let no man put asunder" ?

After mentioning in one exorcism that he looked at the woman on the bed but saw a serpent of gigantic proportions (coils of one yard thickness), how can the author convincingly put the case of serious concern for his reputation in other parts of the book, in the sure knowledge that the psychiatric, scientific community will practically destroy his reputation for what he wrote about the coiled serpent, let alone the rest of the book ?

Perhaps this is explained by the fact that Satan is held to destroy not only his chosen victims, but also those who have served him. Satan is not bound by ethics, morality or fair play - quite the antithesis, in fact. If you seek the Devil, you may well find him, and if you do, you will certainly be in his environment - hell.

If I have done the author an injustice, I sincerely apologise and will humbly and gladly face my Christian fate and punishment for that, on Judgement Day, but I smell here, intelligent evil at work.

Breathtakingly preposterous nonsense. I'm not a licensed therapist, but it sure seems to me that Peck should have his license revoked for practicing charlatanry on people with severe mental health issues.

This book, is groundbreaking only in the sense that it draws attention to something that psychiatry should probably study more seriously.

I am a Christian who does not believe in spiritual entities, be they beneficent or malign. "The Kingdom of God is within you."

The trick is going to be the reconciliation of supernatural thinking with natural thinking, that is, the awesomeness of God revealing Godself through science. Dr. Peck, maybe without realizing it, has taken a baby step in that direction in the medical field.

It is ironic that Dr. Peck believed in demonic entities (if he did), because he reveals in this book through psychiatric language what demonic possession probably is: an intriguing new vein of scientific ore to mine.

Also, it is fun to read, not like the Malachi Martin dirge, _Hostage to the Devil_. M.M. must be laughing his butt off right now, wherever he may be, at all of the believers (in him) he conned when he was alive. He was a brilliant and maybe even genius but wacko psychotic and con man.

Both Peck and Martin are worth reading. See for yourself, but don't take them too seriously.

This book could be judged by the back cover. You see an author photo of some smug self-satisfied Father Merrin wannabe giving an all knowing look to the camera. I don't care how many books this shrink has sold in the past, this tome is a cure for insomnia. Peck may or may not have encountered Satan, but if you read Glimpses of the Devil, you will personally find yourself soon in the arms of Morpheus. The so called exorcism scenes are dull, and it is rather telling that the video camera does not at all register those "Satanic" expressions and coiled "snake" (oil) scenes that Doc Peck rants about. At least Malarkey Malachi Martin writes an interesting factoid about the struggle between an imaginary evil force and an imaginary savior. Satan is older than Jesus, and he throws better parties too, folks. Is there really a force out there that seeks the destruction of mankind? Sure, it's name is Man. Does Doc Peck really get a TKO (testament knock out) of Old Nick in this book? Well, if you believe that, there's some South Dakota ocean front property I just happen to have for sale...

I for one happen to believe in exorcism and possession, however I am quite certain after reading this book that Mr. Peck performed at least one of these "exorcisms" on someone who instead was suffering from severe mental illness.Perhaps he was unable to articulate the situation clearly enough; this is just my opinion from my reading of his account.

Read the other one star reviews. They are right! Dissappointing, narcissistic, arrogant, and ridiculous. Whether you believe in such things or not this is just plain BAD and does nothing but sound foolish and self-indulgent.

What possessed me to pick up this book? I usually hold others in contempt for critiquing a work they have not thoroughly digested, however, my system could not hold this one down. I hurled before it settled. However, I have not read any of his previous material so my opinion has no base. I expected credible conflicts among science, the supernatural and the author. For me, it just did not deliver.

I recommend this book to people who have FIRST read "People of the Lie, by M. Scott Peck," and desire a deeper look at how human evil affects our lives. This book has religious and controversial undertones. It deals with human demonic possession. Read carefully and with an open attitude. This book refers back to "People of the Lie, by M. Scott Peck," throughout the text. Please read "People of the Lie, by M. Scott Peck," first or you may not grasp the context of this text. This book is not meant to replace the guidance and support of psychological counseling. Fast easy read.