Demonizationordemonisation is the reinterpretation ofpolytheistic deities asevil, lyingdemons by otherreligions, generally by themonotheistic andhenotheistic ones. The term has since been expanded to refer to any characterization of individuals, groups, or political bodies as evil.
Religions, even those that are radically monotheistic, do not necessarily deny the existence of other gods or spiritual beings. On the contrary, they claim some of the othergods are not worthy of worship and in actuality are demons who mislead followers from proper belief or practice.Christianmissionaries often employed demonization tactics when convertingpagans, althoughJudaism,Islam, and other religions have similar histories. Demonization is not limited to focusing on other religions but can also be directed inward to condemn various schools of thought or movements.
From a secular viewpoint, demonization can be used to denigrate an opposed individual or group, making adherents to one's own religion or viewpoint less inclined to do business with them (and possibly convert) and more inclined to fight against them. If foreigners are evil and corrupted by demonic influence, then any means of self-defense is easily portrayed as legitimate. The portrayal of almost all pagans in the Middle East asBaal worshippers in theHebrew Bible is an example of this.[1][2] If pagans are corrupted by the demon "god" Baal, then clearly they must be fought or at least oppressed.[3] Especially in the earlier books of the Hebrew Bible, foreign deities are portrayed as existing and corrupting entities rather than being mere powerlessidols. Some would argue this later transferred to Christianity afterConstantine I's ascension in itssuppression of Roman paganism.[4] Some of the most known of these demonizations areLucifer,Beelzebub andBaphomet up to the extent that they becamesynonymous with thedevil/satan ofAbrahamic religions. Later, the language of demonization would be invoked with the rise inAntisemitism in Iberia, leading to theExpulsion of Jews from Spain including theMoriscos.[5]
The view of early Judaism treating foreign deities as devils and later Judaism treating them as nonexistent is not universal. Psalms 96:5, for example, is alternately translated as, "For all the Gods of the gentiles are nothing," "For all the Gods of the gentiles are devils" (Vulgate), and "For all the gods of the peoples are idols." (NRSV) The GreekSeptuagint translation of that passage, used by the early Christian Church, used the "devils" version.[4]Jerome would follow the Greek text rather than the Hebrew when he translated theLatinVulgate edition of the Bible. The "devils" epithet would still appear in Bibles up until the end of the 20th century when the consensus reverted to the original Hebrew text for modern translations.
Analogs to demonization exist outside monotheistic religions, as well.Polytheism easily accepts foreign gods in general, and in times of conflict, a foreign nation's gods would sometimes be portrayed as evil. Less commonly, it would be applied to other religions as well. For example, Buddha's portrayal in Hinduism varies: Some strains ofHinduism consider theBuddha anincarnation of Vishnu[6] while in some texts such as thePuranas, he is portrayed as an avatar born to mislead those who deny the Vedic knowledge.[7][8][note 1]
Demonization is sometimes used against what are arguably political opponents rather than religious ones. TheKnights Templar were destroyed by accusations from KingPhilip the Fair that they worshippedBaphomet. Baphomet, often thought to beBeelzebub, may have been used because of the likeness of thishorned deity with the Christian images ofSatan.[10][11]
In colloquial usage, the termdemonization is used metaphorically to refer topropaganda ormoral panic directed against any individual or group, for the purpose ofdefamation,character assassination and/ordehumanization.
