by Rex Trulove

Created on: November 03, 2009   Last Updated: November 08, 2009

There is little doubt that ghosts, spirits, and demons are not the same thing. Part of the confusion is caused when people persist in thinking that two or more are the same, or when people honestly don't know the difference because of how often the terms are used interchangeably, unfortunately. It is helpful to explain what each is in terms that can be understood, in order to gain knowledge of the differences.

Ghost

One of the simplest ways to think of a ghost is that this is like an afterimage. If you stare at a bright object, then close your eyes. You see the image against the backs of your eyelids. Naturally, it is more complex than this, but it is helpful for getting a visualization of what a ghost is.

An important distinction of a ghost is that they don't interact with the environment and things in it. For example, the story is told of a small church that had a nun who walked down the aisle every day at noon. Hundreds saw her, and many were terrified, partly due to the apparition, and partly because she seemed to be chopped off at the knees.

She paid no attention to anyone in the church, and vanished upon reaching the end of the aisle.

A few open-minded individuals, including clergy, investigated. They found out that many years in the past, a nun had indeed made the march down the aisle at the same time every day. She did it daily, for decades. In essence, what people were seeing was an afterimage of an event that had repeated itself repeatedly for many years. They also discovered that the church had been renovated some years earlier, which raised the floor a couple feet. She was apparently still walking on the old floor.

Before anyone thinks this is too strange to be believed, remember that movies do virtually the same thing. John Wayne has been dead for years, yet you can still tune in and see him as he was, many years ago.

The bible also acknowledges ghosts, though never in a negative light. Ghosts are not evil, even if the original person was, but since they are after images, they aren't good, either.

Spirit

A spirit is entirely different. A spirit is a person's essence or life force. This is what makes you unique as a person, as compared to every other person, who has ever lived. For Christians, a spirit is eternal. Since a spirit is not assigned to either heaven or hell until judgment day, which occurs after Armageddon, this logically means that the spirits stick around, and not always where they are supposed to be, according to Christian beliefs.

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