There's been a lot going on here. I'd rather not get into discussions about abortion because it's such an emotive issue. I have to say I am amazed how intelligent people can believe in creationism, but that's obviously an emotive topic here too. A lot of people seem to think it shows deeper faith if they take what their scripture says literally. I would say that in any religion, many stories are just that -- stories that are meant to be understood metaphorically, including the stories that Jesus told. This doesn't lessen their power or their inherent truthfulness. That deeper meaning is lost when people start believing that these things must literally be true. Does it matter whether or not there was a real family in which the prodigal son story played out word for word as Jesus said? Of course not. You'd be missing the point if you were worrying about that. I don't see why there's a problem with accepting that there is a God and also that life evolved. You could say God created that life, so where is the problem? At the end of the day I don't expect to change anyone's mind on this, but I would certainly object to creationism being taught in my daughter's school, and I'm glad I live in a place where I don't have to worry about that.

Bex, I have ideas about cases of possession which are a bit unusual. They tend to follow the typical pattern of poltergeist cases, the exception being that the poltergeist actually comes to be inside the focus, somehow. Classic poltergeist cases are usually, though not always, centred on a "focus," usually a young person. I believe that this person generates the poltergiest in some unconscious way, and that it can take on a kind of life of its own. How this happens, and what the nature of the poltergeist is, I have no idea, and I'm very curious. Often a possession case begins with typical poltergeist phenomena, but the focus and his/her family is very religious too. Someone may suggest the need for an exorcism. Through believing that they really may be possessed, the focus becomes just that. And through believing that exorcism will "cure them," this is what needs to happen. Why do poltergeists tend to be so childish and destructive? Maybe because of the way they are generated unconsciously through negative emotions. I think there must be people in the world, mystics, who know how to generate and direct higher-level energy. I'd like to meet them.

I don't think the actual phenomena are in doubt, unless you are someone who wants to dismiss all the reports of ghosts and such for the past several thousand years as 100% nonsense. But there are as many interpretations of these phenomena as there are cultures and religions in the world.