When Holy Meets Hell
When holy meets hell our attention is piqued. Sure, the terms are nearly synonymous with good and evil, but I believe it goes deeper than that. For example, there’s almost nothing more terrifying than a possessed child, a wicked doll, or a cruel clown. But what makes so many people afraid of these seemingly innocent things?
That’s just it. It’s their proximity to goodness, to safety—the things we consider familiar and pure. And when that is twisted, spun on its head, and what we believe to be benign or harmless becomes a threat, our reality is shifted off its axis, and a new fear is born.
A holy terror.
In the episode, we hear from a source named “Jeremy.” He recalls an instance when he went to a church with some friends. When he tries to enter a door within the church, he’s stunned when he can’t seem to remember walking through. He and his friends never make it past the door, even though they tried. There are others in the church who are using aOuija board, and the planchette moves on its own. Listen to the episode to hear the full story.
Legend Tripping
In Jeremy’s case, it was the place that should have felt safe and holy, but instead, an evil had invaded that made an already scary scene even that much more terrifying.
This type of experience is called “legend tripping,” often experienced by teens or young adults who are chasing an urban legend. Their curiosity and thirst for adrenaline often take them on adventures the rest of us would gladly pass up.
Often, it’s the expectations to be scared that can sway perceptions into the dramatic. But what someone feels is real—to them, at least. And that legitimate feeling can chase them—or maybe a better word would be haunt them—for the rest of their lives.
These unexplained occurrences can lead people to develop a fear of demons (daemonophobia) and the paranormal.
No matter your religious beliefs, most people agree that evil—real evil—exists. And it’s among us.
Sleep Paralysis
Sleep paralysis happens to one in 10 people. Although people of any age can suffer from it, it usually occurs in teens, young adults, and people in their 20s. It’s believed that sleep paralysis happens because your body and mind are not moving through the sleep stages smoothly. There’s no cure for sleep paralysis, but antidepressants or sleeping medication may often be prescribed to treat the symptoms. The medical community will tell you that there’s no reason to fear some type of demon or possession it in the night. That there’s no reason to have nightly tears. Doctors often recommend just making sure you get enough sleep and decreasing the amount of stress in your life. And since sleep paralysis happens when you’re sleeping on your back, it’s suggested that you sleep on your side or on your stomach.
Art often imitates life; we know that. And there’s no denying that through the centuries people have claimed that an evil presence visits them at night and paralyzes them. For example, the hag in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is a reference to sleep paralysis. And The Nightmare, which is a painting by Henry Fuseli that was done in 1781, depicts sleep paralysis and a demonic visitation. In the picture, a woman is lying helplessly on her back in a very incapacitated state, and there is a small being that looks absolutely wretched sitting on top of her chest. Every culture and history talks about evil nightly terrors where humans are left helpless in the middle of the night, and there’s some type of presence that attacks them.
This is the hag, when maids lie on their backs,
That presses them and learns them first to bear,
Making them women of good carriage.
This is she!
Mercutio, Romeo and Juliet
It’s very common for people who have sleep paralysis to feel this tightening on their chest like something or someone is sitting on them, even if they can’t see that something or someone. During the event, the person cannot move or speak, and it’s a terrifying experience to be awake but not have your body be awake with you. Researchers often say that suffers are hallucinating, which is the source of the intense fear that they feel. Episodes usually only last a couple of minutes, but many people have claimed to have them repeatedly throughout a season in their life. Most often, those seasons are related to stressful events or occurrences. In some cases, sleep paralysis is considered genetic. And it’s believed to be a dysfunction of the RIM sleep.
I’ve explored this phenomenon a few times in my writing because I suffered from it in my twenties, and I wanted answers. And like almost everything in my life, I used my writing to work through those fears and emotions. You can find more online about sleep paralysis if you’re curious or if you are one of the many who suffer. For purposes of this exploration, though, sleep is just another ordinary, familiar, comfortable thing in our lives that can be downright terrifying when turned on its head.
If you enjoy spooky topics, you may find Ten Days in a Madhouse fascinating.
As I mentioned earlier, Daemonophobia is the fear of demons. Regardless of your spiritual beliefs, rarely is horror more frightful than when it studies the demonic. Talking about ghosts and mysteries is scary enough, but people tend to bale when the conversation moves into the spiritual unknown. No one wants to talk about it. Believers skirt the topic, and non-believers who don’t believe in God have trouble justifying recognition of the Devil.
But even though there’s a lot of confusion regarding the existence, purpose, and practice of the anti-Christ, one thing remains true—darkness is petrifying to us all. Especially when that darkness comes from an unexpected place. We all know to avoid haunted places, don’t use Quija boards, and never dabble in things we cannot control… and yet we’re curious people. And sometimes, the exploration of that curiosity will spook us for years to come.
Still, we must be careful not to knock on certain doors—doors that have something lurking behind them that should remain hidden.
We never know… just one choice could confront us with the absolute truth we think we wanted to know. It’s often easier to meet hell than it is to meet holy.
But I’ll tell you from experience, nothing will push one to the light like a personal confrontation with real—evil—darkness.
