Things you can't explain

[xxclaro]

I'm not sure how to put this,but have you ever encountered something you can't explain? I mean there's lots of things I can't explain,but I know there's a rational explanation for them. What I mean here is things that just don't make sense from a rational veiwpoint. Reason I ask is becasue today at work I was speaking with a coworker about those hilarious/scary Pentacostal music video's. He told me about something that happened to him while working at a Pentacostal camp. One of the campers,a boy of about 11, seemed to be "possesed". He flew into a rage and they where almost unable to contain him. One of the camp counselors was a big man around 280 lbs. He got him to the ground and tried to use his weight to keep him down but was unable. It took 6 of the counselors to be able to keep him under control. The kid was conversing with them and mocking them but not in his own voice. My friend said the kids eyes where blank,as if he where in a trance or unconcious. He said the voice and everything was almost like a movie,minus the vomiting and head rotating stuff. They fought the kid for about an hour before they achieved some sort of breakthrough. He didn't go into what exactly happened at the end,he was somewhat reluctant to speak about the event at all. Next time I go to his house I'll ask him more about it. He was still obviously disturbed by what he saw,even though that was 20 some years ago it still gave him goose bumps.
Has anyone ever encountered anything like this? What do you make of it? He said that he could not doubt the existence of evil or superantural forces after that. How would you explain that away?He's not particularily religious at this point,but definitley believes in heaven/hell and the basic christian teachings.

 

[Skwim]

Yeah, it isn't at all uncommon for people to assign deviant behavior to a context they're familiar with. Happens all the time; however, problems can arise where the context is particularly meaningful, as with religion, and as such will tend to exclude other more likely explanations. Psychology is filled with tales of such misinterpreted behaviors. If you recall, epilepsy was once thought to be a case of demon possession, as were many personality and physical disorders. Have a facial tic? Best get thee to an exorcist, and ASAP.

 

[jonman122]

Yeah, it isn't at all uncommon for people to assign deviant behavior to a context they're familiar with. Happens all the time; however, problems can arise where the context is particularly meaningful, as with religion, and as such will tend to exclude other more likely explanations. Psychology is filled with tales of such misinterpreted behaviors. If you recall, epilepsy was once thought to be a case of demon possession, as were many personality and physical disorders. Have a facial tic? Best get thee to an exorcist, and ASAP.

and it is brutally difficult to hold someone down during a seizure, that's why when you are taught first aid you are not supposed to hold them down, they teach you to just move objects out of the way so they don't hurt themselves too bad.

That sounds almost like he was just enraged; when enraged, people can usually perform seemingly supernatural things by an increase in chemicals like epinephrine (adrenaline) that can even change your perception of time by making your brain and muscles respond much faster than they normally do. This can also make it difficult for a person who is many times the size of a person to hold them down, and there are many cases where a fight is not won by a persons size but by their agility.

 

[Breathe]

This could be exaggerated to some extent by your co-worker.

When you say the kid's eyes were blank, do you mean glazed over, or rolled up so only the whites are visible?

I'm afraid this does not make me think of it as a supernatural event, it was more than likely a seizure of some kind.

For one, what's a demon doing hanging around a Pentecostal camp, and how would this entity able to possess someone who's at one--who would, presumably, be Christian, in the first place (as I hear the occasional "Christians can't be harmed by evil spirits" claim)?

 

[Tiapan]

Was the kid epileptic?

Cheers

 

[Kilgore Trout]

I've never encountered anything I can't explain, except for women's erratic behavior, of course. Then again, I just chalk this up to the price you have to pay for some t n' a.

 

[Eliot Wild]

I can't explain Kleenex . . . you pull one out and another just pops right up to take its place. It's freakin' amazing. How do they do that?

 

[Akshara Dasa]

I can't explain Kleenex . . . you pull one out and another just pops right up to take its place. It's freakin' amazing. How do they do that?

I dont think we should even begin to try an answer such questions, we dont even have the technology to go to Jupiter and back, let alone trying to figure out the many different mysteries of Kleenex!

 

[xxclaro]

I understand what you guys are saying and I was trying to figure out a rational explanation for it. I've seen epilectic seizures and I don't think the person can usually communicate very well during one. This person was apparently communicating with them,although apparently his voice was distorted.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying this is a demonic possesion. I simply stated it's something I can't explain and those who where present believed it to be demonic possesion.No doubt this was largely influenced by their religious beliefs.
However if the story is true,and I have no reason to believe it isn't, then I am still at a loss to explain it completely. If it was epilepsy there wouldn't have been that level of communication. Also,his eyes didn't roll back in his head but had a vacant,blank look to them.
If he was merely ina rage I think he would have exhausted himself before too long. Being in a all out fight is extremely exhausting and the average person can only fight like that for a matter of minutes.
If I thought it was plausible I'd say it was PCP or something similar. Those are the only people I;ve seen who are able to display that kind of behaviour for an extended time.
There are many things about the human mind and body that we don't understand yet and this phenomenon may well be expainable,but as of yet I haven't heard it.

 

[Penumbra]

I've never encountered something I can't explain when hindsight is considered. There was a time when I had a vivid experience with a ghost and couldn't explain it for a while, but it became obvious a year or two later.

When it comes to people acting crazy, some people just act crazy. The mind is extremely powerful and can make us do all sorts of things.

If the requisite "encountered" is dropped from my answer, then I'd say the one big thing I can't find a rational answer for is the origin of existence, and this includes whether a deity is involved or not.

-Lyn

 

[budha3]

Even though the prophet Isaiah and Apostle Paul claim to have seen God, mental health counselors believe that if someone says this today that they have a serious mental disorder. The only conclusion is that psychologist, are basically scientist, Who obelieve only what they can see; that is, unless they're parapsychologist.
I was raised a Pentacostal, and I've seen similiar incidents, which is probably why I am no longer a Pentacostal.

 

[Beaudreaux]

I'm not sure how to put this,but have you ever encountered something you can't explain? I mean there's lots of things I can't explain,but I know there's a rational explanation for them. What I mean here is things that just don't make sense from a rational veiwpoint. Reason I ask is becasue today at work I was speaking with a coworker about those hilarious/scary Pentacostal music video's. He told me about something that happened to him while working at a Pentacostal camp. One of the campers,a boy of about 11, seemed to be "possesed". He flew into a rage and they where almost unable to contain him. One of the camp counselors was a big man around 280 lbs. He got him to the ground and tried to use his weight to keep him down but was unable. It took 6 of the counselors to be able to keep him under control. The kid was conversing with them and mocking them but not in his own voice. My friend said the kids eyes where blank,as if he where in a trance or unconcious. He said the voice and everything was almost like a movie,minus the vomiting and head rotating stuff. They fought the kid for about an hour before they achieved some sort of breakthrough. He didn't go into what exactly happened at the end,he was somewhat reluctant to speak about the event at all. Next time I go to his house I'll ask him more about it. He was still obviously disturbed by what he saw,even though that was 20 some years ago it still gave him goose bumps.
Has anyone ever encountered anything like this? What do you make of it? He said that he could not doubt the existence of evil or superantural forces after that. How would you explain that away?He's not particularily religious at this point,but definitley believes in heaven/hell and the basic christian teachings.

Have you ever watched the TV show "Mindfreak"? Can you explain how Chris Angel does what he does? Do you believe he has supernatural powers?

 

[xxclaro]

I've watched MindFreak,and I can't explain what he does. However, I understand that he is a professional illusionist with a skilled team behind him helping to pull off these illusions. If you read my original post, you may remember that I said there are many things I don't understand but know there is a rational explanation for. I have no interest in debating things that you don't understand but know there is a reasonable explanation for. The question,quite simply, is "Have you ever encountered something you can't explain?" Perhaps I should have been more clear and added "and don't know the reason for" or something similar. I can't explain what Chris Angel does,but I know the he creates illusions with various trickery and slight of hand. I don't know how a 100 lb person fights multiple people twice their size for an hour,speaks in strange voices and so on. Maybe there is an explanation,but I don't know what it is. I don't know how to explain the ghosts some people see. I know there's many false sightings and perhaps hallucinations,but some of the cases baffle me and I have not heard it explained to my satisfaction.
I tend to be skeptical of most things considered paranormal or odd, but sometimes things happen that I cannot explain nor find a rationale explanation for. When that happens, I get very curious and want to know the answers. I don't think a case like the one I mentioned necessarily points to anything supernatural,but I won't say that it absolutely cannot be something supernatural either. Maybe some people can just write it off as "the mind does weird things" and consider it adequately explained, but I'm not one of those people. I either want to find an answer or keep an open mind until an answer is found.

 

[McBell]

There are many things about the human mind and body that we don't understand yet and this phenomenon may well be expainable,but as of yet I haven't heard it.

There is a big difference between "adequately explained" and "accepted explanation".

 

[Reptillian]

Even though the prophet Isaiah and Apostle Paul claim to have seen God, mental health counselors believe that if someone says this today that they have a serious mental disorder. The only conclusion is that psychologist, are basically scientist, Who obelieve only what they can see; that is, unless they're parapsychologist.
I was raised a Pentacostal, and I've seen similiar incidents, which is probably why I am no longer a Pentacostal.

1. the prophet Isaiah and Apostle Paul claim to have seen God
2. mental health counselors believe that if someone says this today that they have a serious mental disorder

If both 1 and 2 are true then the conclusion is...you're so close...

(hint: its not, psychologists basically believe only what they can see unless they're parapsychologists)