Professor Joseph Laycock joins Askia to break down demonology, exorcism, and the academic study of spirit possession. They cover the real history behind "The Exorcist," the global prevalence of demon beliefs, the Satanic Panic, and why unregulated exorcisms can get people killed. ______________________________ Check out some of Joe's books! https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/2206651/joseph-p-laycock/ https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B002I728MQ?ccs_id=290752eb-287c-4dff-b55c-e86b6ce01b23 Get Yumwoof, the healthiest food for dogs, for 20% with our code HORRORBLE https://yumwoof.com/HORRORble Go check out Warming Trends, the company that built the amazing fire centerpiece on our set! https://www.warming-trends.com Produced by Q6 Media https://q6.media ______________________________ Joseph Laycock is a religious studies professor that gets roughly two calls a month from people convinced they're possessed (he stays out of it, because he's not a mental health professional, and he's definitely not an exorcist). This episode goes deep on the etymology of the word "demon," the Nephilim, books that got cut from the Bible, and why "The Exorcist" triggered a wave of real exorcism requests that still hasn't stopped. ______________________________ Timestamps: 00:00 - Introducing Joseph Laycock 01:48 - Growing up with religion and horror 03:40 - Alien abductions 05:53 - Demons in modern society 10:21 - Religious studies vs theology 12:59 - Exorcisms gone horribly wrong 14:20 - What really is a demon? 18:36 - Animal sacrifice 23:27 - Nephilim and the Book of Enoch 31:08 - Possessions and inherited demons 35:28 - Santería 38:20 - Santa Muerte 42:58 - Spirit possessions around the world 50:16 - What does Hell look like in other religions? 56:01 - The impact of The Exorcist (1973) 1:06:43 - The Satanic Panic 1:14:44 - Richard Ramirez (The Night Stalker) 1:15:12 - 764 criminal organization 1:19:46 - What exorcisms actually look like 1:32:15 - What is a cult? 1:38:18 - Jonestown cult 1:40:10 - Branch Davidians cult FBI standoff 1:42:26 - Order of the Solar Temple cult 1:42:42 - Aum Shinrikyo cult 1:42:58 - Heaven's Gate cult 1:45:10 - The occult #Paranormal #ParanormalInvestigation #HorrorPodcast #GhostStories #horrorblepodcast #HORRORblePodcast #occult #demon #demonologist #santamuerte #nephilim #exorcism #theexorcist #truecrime #possession