Nightmares with the Bible: The Good Book and Cinematic Demons
Author: Steve A. Wiggins
Publisher: Lexington Books/Fortress Academic, 2021
Popular culture continues to provide evidence of its fascination with the demonic and possession. Perhaps the best illustration of this is the number of horror films that have been produced over the years on the topic. Given the influence of Christianity as the dominant religion in American culture, and the centrality of the Bible within that tradition, it might be assumed that as the Bible informs cinema’s demons that this influence is straightforward, simple, and one-way: from the text to the screen. But this is not the case. The reality is far more complex, multifaceted, and synergistic.
Steve Wiggins explores and unpacks this topic in his new volume, Nightmares with the Bible: The Good Book and Cinematic Demons. As with his previous volume on religion and horror, Holy Horror: The Bible and Fear in Movies, Wiggins brings together his academic background in biblical studies, along with a fan’s and scholar’s interest in horror. The result is an informative exploration of both the Bible and the demonic in horror that has as much appeal for those involved in either area of research specialization, and even more so for those who appreciate when these areas overlap.
Wiggins explores his subject matter over the course of twelve chapters. The first six provide historical, cultural, and textual considerations of the demonic as the concept develops and evolves in the ancient near east and comes together in the Judeo-Christian tradition. From this foundation, the remaining six chapters look at the ways demons and possession have been portrayed in horror films, with particular attention given to The Conjuring and Amityville Horror franchises, the Paranormal Activity films, and of course, The Exorcist.
The first half of this volume includes a summary and discussion of a wealth of material from biblical studies, and here Wiggins’ background and expertise are evident. Biblical and religious studies scholars will be especially appreciative of this, but non-academics will also benefit from this section as they learn about the cultural milieu out of which the biblical concepts of the demonic arose and, later, would inform demons and possession in horror. Given space limitations of this review, I will mention three areas in particular that stood out in my reading.
First, this book reminds readers that, despite the continued focus on Satan, demons, and possession in both Christian religious circles and horror films, the Bible actually says very little about any of these. Wiggins draws attention to the development of the concept of Satan and demons, from the Hebrew Bible and Judaism where the ill-defined “accuser” asks God for permission to afflict Job, to slightly more concern for the Devil in the New Testament, but even here the text does not provide nearly as much discussion as believers and horror fans might assume. Not only do the supernatural figures associated with the infernal not receive much focus in the sacred text, but the metaphysical realm they are said to either inhabit or pull people toward doesn’t either. As Wiggins’ discussion makes clear, there isn’t much discussion of hell or other aspects of the afterlife in the Hebrew Bible or the Christian New Testament. Each of these areas would see later developments over time, and, in the modern period where they are featured in cinematic horror, these concepts would be influenced by pop culture, which in turn would then shape biblical readings.
Second, related to the point above, this volume shatters assumptions about pop culture conceptions of demons as sourced in the Bible. Rather than one singular concept of the demonic as evil, fallen, disembodied beings that seek to possess and mislead human beings, Wiggins shows the development and diversity of the concepts of demons and even angels over time as they are expressed in ancient Near Eastern cultures and their writings. The reality is far more complex and multifaceted than many religious believers allow in their efforts at systematizing biblical texts.
Third, Wiggins centers “Poe’s insight” that women are often featured as the victims of dark forces because they are weaker vessels. This insight is applied to the demonic and possession as featured in horror films, and the author provides a number of examples where Satan and the demonic harass and possess women, who often must then be rescued by men. Wiggins makes an interesting observation here in that while this is often the case with cinematic demons, it is largely not how stories of possession are treated in the biblical text. In the Good Book (Wiggins’ preferred term, as indicated in the subtitle), it is men who are often the victims of possession, not women. Although the Bible was written and compiled within patriarchal cultures, that seems not to have influenced possession narratives, unlike the gender stereotypes and tropes found in contemporary horror.
There are a few disagreements I would have with the book. Wiggins says the Synoptic gospels “present a one-year ministry of Jesus” (p. 73), whereas many scholars opt for a range of one to three years. In his discussion of the development of the concept of hell, Wiggins refers to the Greek term geenna or “Gehenna,” the valley of Hinnom outside Jerusalem, and connects this to a continually burning garbage dump (p. 81), which would have inspired concepts of everlasting torment. However, the origins of this association go back no further than Rabbi David Kihmi at around 1200 AD. A number of scholars have argued that the perpetual burning garbage dump is a myth from the Middle Ages. Despite the great popularity of hell as a post-mortem destination in Christianity, a narrative-historical approach to Jesus’ use of the term reveals it is more likely a reference to the anticipation divine punishment of Jerusalem by Roman powers rather than a future place of metaphysical punishment. Finally, the author states that “horror films existed since the 1930s” (p. 106), when the genre represents some of the earliest subject matter of film. Georges Méliès, however, produced the horror film about a haunted house titled Le Manoir du Diable in 1896. Horror cinema thus has a longer pedigree than the Universal horror films. These critiques are minor, however, and in no way detract from this volume.
Nightmares with the Bible is highly recommended. It provides something of value to the scholar and nonacademic alike, for those who enjoy biblical and religious studies, as well as those who enjoy horror films. Unfortunately, coming from an academic press the cost will be prohibitive for many readers, but securing a copy through your local library will be a rewarding experience.
You can find Steve Wiggins’ Nightmares with the Bible on Rowman and Littlefield’s website, and it’s also available on Amazon (ad):
Related: Steven Wiggins has written for Horror Homeroom on the figure of the Golem in horror film, Pet Sematary, the legends of Sleepy Hollow, Burnt Offerings, and Midsommar, among others.
John W. Morehead is an independent scholar who specializes in new religious movements, religion and popular culture. He is co-editor at The Journal of Gods and Monsters, and he blogs at TheoFantastique.com.
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