A recent survey by the Pew Research Center found that almost 1/3 of all Americans have had some paranormal encounter with human spirits after they have died. This, coupled with nearly half of all Americans admitting to “believing” in ghosts, makes the existence of ghosts a fairly common topic of discussion, especially in our increasingly superstitious culture. What does the Church have to say about ghosts?
To begin, there are a few preliminary points that will serve as a foundation for the discussion. First, when we use the term ghost, we are referring specifically to human spirits who have died as distinct from angels or demons. Second, although Christians often dismiss the question as absurd, there are Scriptural reasons to believe that ghosts do exist. The most well-known example is when King Saul conjured up the ghost of Samuel and spoke to him (1 Samuel 28:12-18). Our Lord too spoke of ghosts during His earthly ministry, twice, in fact. On both occasions (Mt 14:34, Lk 24:39) the Apostles thought He was a ghost. Rather than saying “ghosts do not exist”, He reassures them that He is not a ghost because ghosts “do not have flesh and bones as I do.” Our Lord tells us that ghosts not only exist, but that they are in a spiritual state in which they do not have material flesh and bones.
Why There Are Ghosts
If ghosts are, at least theoretically, a possibility, then what practical purpose might their manifestation serve. In short, they are meant to communicate some message to the living, although this statement needs to be seriously qualified. For this, we can rely upon St. Thomas who himself was visited at least three times by ghosts in his lifetime. We should not be surprised then that he treats this topic in his Summa Theologiae (Supp. Q.69, art. 3).
St. Thomas asks whether it is possible for souls in heaven or hell to be able to appear on earth. His response is thorough enough that it enables us to come up with guidelines for understanding the purpose of these visitations. First of all, we are judged immediately upon death. This means souls are either in Heaven or in Hell, with some making a temporary stop in Purgatory before settling in to their final destination in God’s presence. There is no such thing as a soul that is doomed to wander the earth or anything like that. While this might make for a good Dean Koontz book, it is not rooted in reality.
It is the natural state of these souls then to be cut-off from their communication with the living, but according to God’s will they may miraculously appear to men on earth. This is also noteworthy because it helps us to understand the Biblical injunction about conjuring spirits of the dead in order to make inquiries of them (c.f. Lev 20:6, Deut 18:3). It is only according to the designs of God’s Providence that these visitations might occur and not through human manipulation. To try to invoke spirits of the dead is to usurp a power that only God, as the God of the living and dead, can use.
The saints in heaven can appear to the living whenever they will because their will is always aligned with the Divine will. They appear so as to instruct men on earth in a similar manner to St. Paul appearing to St. Thomas when he was stuck in his interpretation of a particularly difficult passage in Romans. The souls that are damned too can appear to men “for man’s instruction and intimidation,” although they would not do so willingly. Those souls in Purgatory appear in order too seek prayers and suffrages. St. Thomas was visited by his sister Gui from Purgatory and she asked him prayers and masses to be said in her memory.
The last group, those in Purgatory, bear further discussion. These are probably the most common type of “ghosts” because they come as members of the Church Suffering in need of the help of the Church Militant. Their appearance, at least according to most demonologists and exorcists, are usually gentle and they limit their communication to a request for spiritual help in the form of prayers and Masses. For that reason they are also the easiest to discern their authenticity. In fact it might be said that there is no discernment necessary—if one has a ghostly encounter then they should simply pray for the dead person and have seek no further interaction.
Ghost and Demons
The ghostly elephant in the room is the action of the demonic. This is an area, especially because people are in an emotionally vulnerable place, that the devils are particularly active. They are bullies that like to prey on the weak. It is for that reason that we need to have our understanding clear about this. Demonologist Adam Blai says that the demons usually come to places where souls have previously communicated with the living asking for prayers so that they might manipulate the living. That is why we should never seek information from the dead other than the need for prayer. Any messages we do receive we should submit to a thorough process of the discernment of spirits, including asking God to verify it in other ways.
In truth, we should be very suspicious of paranormal communications to the point of rejecting them whole cloth. This is not because we don’t believe in them, but because our capacity to be deceived is very high. We can do no wrong in praying for the dead but can easily get pulled into something more through extended conversation. Better to reject it out of humility and obedience, two virtues particularly pleasing to God, than to succumb to the tricks of demons. Once we have opened the door for them and inviting them in, it can be very difficult to chase the legalistic demons away.
Ghosts continue to remain a fascination for many of us. There are good reasons for Christians to believe in their existence, but they should avoid encouraging any interaction with.