Incense, spirits, and forgiveness...

I watched my neighbor burning incense inside her house. I watched her as she fan the smoke to every nook and cranny. I was a little puzzled, but I knew the reason why. Most Filipinos believe that incense could drive away spirits. Maybe, one of the reasons why this is so is that incense is associated with the gifts of the magis (or is that frankincense). Or, maybe we got the belief from the Chinese. Of course, the logic is that smoke drives away insects like mosquitoes out of the house...

She told the neighbors that she kept getting sick. She blamed malevolent spirits. I was watching her and I was asking myself, how can the demons be driven away? Of course my neighbor was good person, as far as I can tell. So, maybe she's just being superstitious.

I have often wondered about this "spirit thing" because I believe that people who sees spirits or ghosts in places like trees or houses may not be seeing resident spirits or ghosts that lives or resides there, but what they are seeing are ghosts or spirits that resides somewhere else. Somewhere very close to them.

Let us first take into consideration that during man's creation, the Lord put man or hmanity (through Adam) in charge of nature. Adam was the caretaker and the task was not given to the angels or to the spirits. Nature belongs to man, to subdue it and use it. So, how can the devil, demons, or spirits, who has no rights over them, live in places of nature, like trees or hills. Take another curios case event in Bible when Jesus was casting out demons, he did not cast out demons from trees, houses, o hills, or other structures man made or natural. He did not cast out demons from animals. In fact when he cast out demons (legions) from a man, the demons entered an herd of pigs, the pigs went berserk and then jumped off the hill. These pigs did not survive! So my inconclusive conclusion is this, demons cannot survive outside a person. Demons live inside a person. That is why Jesus always fights demons with forgiveness. No magic, no power, no tawas, just a simple act of forgiveness. Of course demons or spirits could roam the earth but theire home address is in hell.

That is why spirits cannot live on (or in) non-sentient (being) thing because they cannot feed there. Take the case of the pig, pigs do not have souls, how can legion survive there? The Demons cannot and they did not beucase there is nothing to eat there. There is no fear, no greed, no envy, no addiction, no insecurities...! The point is demons or spirits can only survive in a thinking and feeling organic being because there, they could exercise their power.

So, my guess if a person kept seeing ghosts or spirits in places or in things ... chances are...the ghosts are in their hearts. Psychology has proven this somehow.

Forgiveness and repentance, just like what Jesus have shown, is the only cure for spiritual diseases.

Anyway, just thinking out loud.... but there is truth in it. (Maybe even Freudian truth....)