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Barbara L. Klika
This question of whether or not the diagnosis of DID
is consistent with Scriptural teaching has been raised on many occasions where
people are dealing with someone who has experienced severe trauma. A general overview will be provided here,
beginning with the mental health perspective because that is where the term
originates. I was taught in graduate
school (early 80’s) that this disorder was extremely rare and that it would be
unlikely that I would ever see more than one or two people suffering this way.
Professionally, what I found was that it was a great deal more prevalent
however I didn’t generally “see” it for a long time until the signs and
symptoms were much more familiar to me.
Then I could look back and remember people that had
similar behaviors that I didn’t yet recognize.
Personally, I have not really considered it an illness but rather a type
of a coping mechanism which is largely based in genetic inheritance. Whether or not it is expressed in a person’s
life has to do with the presence or absence of trauma at a very early age. It
is in a sense a beautiful way to cope with desperate situations.
A child may not be able to physically escape a bad
situation but if they can “go away” in their mind, there is some degree of
protection to their ability to grow as a functional relational person. If
severe abuse is experienced without that capacity, it often skews every aspect
of the individual’s mind, will and emotions, making relationships and just
living life extremely difficult.
I find it interesting that there was a great deal of
interest in this subject in the 1980’s and 90’s but it fell off by the early
2000’s, shortly before the time that those presenting themselves who it became
evident were dealing with this issue also seemed to decrease. This follows a
pattern at the end of the last century, with professional literature of the
late 1800’s addressing similar symptoms, only to see that drop off in the early
1900’s.
I have wondered whether or not there was any
connection with the Great Spiritual Awakening that happened in America at that
time. In recent years, there has been so much controversy over the illness, as
well as the question of whether or not therapists are themselves “creating” or
leading people into it through hypnotic means that it had become “a lawsuit
waiting to happen.” Many facilities or mental health professionals refused to
consider it real or a matter for treatment.
(Just
FYI, I did not use any kind of hypnotic or guided imagery with my clients but
rather focused on identifying the symptoms and consequences with prayerful
restoration. DID people especially are
very visual and quite filled with the images they already experience and I
saw no wisdom in confusing the matter.)
Popularly known as Multiple Personality Disorder
(MPD) it was re-evaluated and re-named Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) by
those who develop the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual which is the standard
used in mental health treatment facilities. The choice to rename had to do with
the recognition of the difficulties and fine points that had been involved
previously in making a diagnosis.
In very
general language, the standard for MPD involved determining whether or not any
of the different aspects of behavior and appearance that were presented were
distinct enough to be considered fully developed personalities. This is often a
very difficult judgment call, especially
when the different parts, known as alternate personalities or alters, may
either fear to or are defiant about making themselves’ known
to a mental health professional. Rather than focus on this distinction, the new
name and criteria focus on the process that is involved, which is called
dissociation.
Dissociation
involves a sort of “mental going away”
of one part of a person’s memory and behaviors while another part steps in,
which may or may not be amnesiac to the others. People can be dissociative without having the extreme experience of
having dissociative identity disorder (DID). This process may be minimal,
along the lines of a recurrent and consistent daydream or severe to the extent
that there are many completely amnesiac parts. Dissociated aspects may be emotions, thoughts, or physical sensations
and any given individual may have specific areas of disconnection. For
example, they may not remember a
specific incident of abuse but they are
well aware of the emotions that went with it without knowing why they
exist.
They may also
remember an incident but be completely unaware of their emotions during it.
When it becomes more comprehensive these groups of experiences or emotions are
organized into what is called alternate
personalities. In a brief description, I would say that a recurrent abusive
situation drives a frightened child into “mentally
going away” and the “place” to
which they go then becomes more fully developed, almost like a completely
different person.
This “person” holds the terrible memories of what
has happened, while the original child
is spared having to live with that knowledge. I have often used cupboards as an example of compartments in the mind;
some alters having a strong, thick wall of amnesia about the others and some
having only a gauze curtain. This is
VERY much of an oversimplification but perhaps it will help comprehend the
concept.
In effect then, DID can be said to be a fragmenting
of the mind, will and emotions which has been cemented in through establishing
great fear. This fear can be of the abusers, what has happened in the past or
what may happen in the future, to ones’ self or to loved ones. (I have examined this aspect in a small
PowerPoint Teaching entitled “To Whom Do You Cling?” which is found at our
website.)
For those who have experienced what I have called
more “normal”
trauma, such as physical, emotional or sexual abuse of one kind or another, there is usually just
one group of alternate personalities, several to perhaps a dozen. For those
who have experienced cult related (SRA)
or intergenerational trauma, there can be a set of groups of alters, called systems, with the number of alters easily
into the hundreds.
If we move out of the mental health territory and
begin to examine this experience from a Biblical viewpoint the immediate
question that always seems to arise is whether or not this is purely a demonic
phenomenon rather than one involving the mind, will and emotions. Of course,
most mental health professionals would completely deny the possibility. On the
other hand, many of those who believe in the Scriptures would deny that it
could possibly be an issue of the mind, will and emotions. My experience is that it is a “both/and” situation, often as clear as
mud.
I do see it as a
coping mechanism associated with childhood and powerlessness and would not consider it sinful in that context. However,
when an adult becomes aware that this is their choice of coping mechanism it
moves into a different “category.” I
hesitate still to name it as a “sin” because the person has often been rendered
so incapacitated that a careless or premature use of that designation could cause more harm than good!
Neither does a person who has DID and a history of
severe trauma experience that trauma as something that happened years ago.
Rather, it carries power in a very daily and present way since their alters may not be at all aware of the
passing of time. So, efforts to confront someone and accuse them of holding
on to the past in a sinful way, keeping unhealthy anger alive unnecessarily,
can also often do more harm than good.
When a person has progressed in treatment to have
some understanding of what has happened to them and how it is maintained, there
generally comes a time when they need to
decide if they want to continue to depend on that human way to find “safety” or
trust more fully in our Father and Creator.
I see it as belonging to the concept of needing to
put away childlike things as we grow to maturity, yet also remembering to be
grateful that a way of escape had been possible.
When
I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a
child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. (1 Corinthians 13:11)
So, on to the question at hand: Is DID in
Scripture? No, I don't believe it is by
specific reference, but yes, by principle: by being aware of how we have been
designed/created we can see how the creation has been distorted and maimed. I
don't believe the specific term is there any more than jet propulsion is in
Scripture though the principles of
physics are consistent with Scriptural Truths that involve a universe in which
jet propulsion can be achieved.
The
term “demon possession” has been used but I take exception to this. The term in
Scripture is “daimonizomai.”
Here again, I see a question of outcome vs. process. How
often or how
deeply does a person have to be experiencing demonic oppression or harassment
to be considered demon possessed?
My suggestion
is that it is also a process. An individual may be under occasional
influence of these wicked entities or more frequent influence. It is a matter
of which lamp of the spirit is being
tended…are we cultivating an attitude open to the transforming work of the
Ruach haKodesh (Holy Spirit) which leads to righteousness; wisdom,
understanding, wise counsel, power, knowledge and awe under the leading of the
Central Heart of the Spirit of YHVH? (Isaiah
11:1-2)
OR, are we cultivating an attitude that opens one up
to the influence of the ungodly opposition, as listed in Proverbs 6:16-19, resulting in haughty eyes, lying tongue, hands
that shed innocent blood, feet that run swiftly to evil, mouths breathing out
lies/false witness and strife among brothers, all wrapped up in the schemes of
the wicked heart.
Is demonization in Scripture? Yes, it is described
and noted on many occasions though before Y”shua[1],
apparently no one had any clue how to deal with it and deliverance just didn't
happen much. Perhaps David's harp
playing for Saul might be one example of how it relieved Saul of the
oppression, but it did not release him of it.
His own actions gave ground.
After Y”shua, people experienced deliverance at His
command, and sometimes at command of disciples.
Usually we have record only of AN
encounter and deliverance, not an ongoing process, which is different than how
we have experienced it.
If someone
has "normal" trauma without the ritualistic or satanic aspects, they
may have oppression issues that will need to be dealt with spiritually in order
for them to experience health and wholeness.
BUT if someone has been traumatized by
intergenerational satanic families, satanic ritual abuse (SRA), there has been a specific intentional process by which demons
were layered in to the various personality structures.
I do not believe that this can be dealt with
sequentially by seeing a pastor and then seeing a counselor, or vice versa, but
that the person they work with needs to have both bodies of knowledge, in faith through prayer, to be able to
correctly discern how to proceed.
This kind of DID and demonization is so intertwined
and so convoluted that the person would be devastated if they were
"delivered" all at once: no sense of self left; like an
assault in itself. Just as the
Israelites had to proceed step by step to take the land, because otherwise the
wild animals would have been too much for them, so do we see restoration from
SRA/DID. (Exodus 23:29; Deuteronomy 7:22)
• Is
every person who is dissociative also demonized? No, I haven't seen that to be true.
• Do
demonized people play at being dissociative? Yes, I have seen that.
• Do
dissociative people sometimes play at being demonized? Yes, I have seen that.
Sometimes it has appeared that an alter is a demon and
sometimes that a demon is pretending to be an alter. The God of
Israel, YHWH’s wisdom, discernment and
prayer are always crucial to determine what one is dealing with so as to
know how to deal with it. I have seen great
damage occur when “either/or” thinking is used, resulting in someone
treating a person/alter as though they were a demon or in trying to accept a
demon as a part of a person. Leaning into prayer on such matters is essential.
A Few
Further Thoughts
I had heard a teaching years ago about the "shattering of the holy people" as
being a reference to DID. (Daniel 12:7)
Though, it makes a sort of intuitive sense, I wouldn't "go there"
now. I think it becomes clear that it
is an end times reference and not necessarily to be considered in the same
sense we would think of it in the shattering of the psyche. I have also heard a
connection made with the idea of a broken
heart being a reference to DID which would seem to make a little more
sense. (
In Hebrew context, generally the heart refers to the mind, where thinking occurs, which is the
seat of the will. In brief, Hebrew understanding of body, mind, will and
emotions is that all are of one piece without the possibility to tear them
apart. Still, we DO try to understand and
see different aspects of the whole. In the general sense that the heart
represents the mind, will and emotions it could be said that it is a
broken heart, but only in a very specific sense. It would not be accurate to
say that any kind of a situation that involves sadness or grief, what we think
of as a broken heart, would lead to DID in every case.
A fragmented
will maintained through fear bonds is the issue in DID as I see it. In SRA/DID that is further complicated with demonization and
many interpersonal systemic connections and triggers to maintain it all. At the
risk of oversimplifying here, may I say that it is the ability to experience
trusting relationships and joy with our Father and His People that will make it
possible for an individual to break free from those fear bonds.
This is an effort to present very briefly about an
extremely complicated subject. Hopefully
it will be of help to those dealing with this for the first time. May you and
yours be blessed, strengthened and protected in our Messiah Y’shua (Jesus)
through whatever kinds of these encounters you may experience.
[1]
Y’shua
(Hebrew) is Jesus’ real name, which means “Salvation”. Kanaan
Ministries has no problem with the name “Jesus” – it is merely the
Greek transliteration of “Y’shua”. Jesus
is the name most of us grew up with.
Remember though, Y’shua was a Jew, of the Tribe of Judah, not a Greek.
It’s sort of like this … when you come
to know someone’s real name, you want to
use it, hence the use of Y’shua
instead of Jesus. Another powerful reason to use Y’shua is that every time you
say His Name, you are proclaiming “Salvation”. You will also note in some
places, we have used the real Name of the FATHER, YHVH. The Name is made up of the Hebrew letters, Yod
Hey
Vav
Hey,
and is most commonly pronounced “Yahweh” or “Jehovah”. Again, we have chosen to
use this, as YHVH is the FATHER’s Name ... using
the FATHER’s Real Name is also very important for those in the field of DID/SRA,
as there is much duplicity, counterfeit,
and false programming done using “Jesus”, “GOD”, and so forth. To use YHVH
helps to identify the True GOD, YHVH, GOD of Israel.
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