N. T. Wright asserts that within two thousand years, there has been limited research dedicated to the phenomena of demons. William Placher argues in his book, The Domestication of Transcendence, that some modern theologians have departed from pre-modern theologies and now embrace modern perspectives on certain biblical concepts through a process he calls the domestication of transcendence. The result of this domestication has led some modern theologians to deny supernatural activities of demonic powers and the phenomenon of demonic possession.
Firstly, this paper will discuss the theory of the domestication of transcendence via Placher’s work. Secondly, it will examine Thomas Aquinas’s theological view (and if space allows the views of other pre-modern theologians such as Martin Luther or/and John Calvin will be included) by analyzing the tenets of his (or their) theological views on demon possession and exorcism. Lastly, the paper will compare the views of exorcism among post-modern theologians such as Craig S. Keener and James Collins.