If Jellystone Were in the Sixth Sense, Would Yogi Bear’s Little Buddy’s Name Be a Clue That He Wasn’t Alive?

Question: Are there ghosts? And should I be worried about them? As a child I had a Casper the Friendly Ghost board game. I’m not sure I ever actually played the game part; I just liked that it included a big glow-in-the-dark Casper. You must remember that this was back in the day when you bought cereal for the prize it contained, not for the flavor of the stuff in your bowl. A poorly-made baking soda powered submarine, kazoo or a silly straw was all it took to make my morning–assuming I was able to get to it before my brothers did. So a weirdly green bulbous-headed toy 6 or more inches high was a huge deal. I never really thought much about the fact that the disembodied soul of a dead child (Granted, with a disproportionately large noggin) was serving as my quasi-nightlight. Today the good old-fashioned ghost story is back in vogue with movies and TV shows like Insidious and American Horror Story resurrecting the vengeful spirit/ lost soul drama that Casper never seemed to grasp. He was the Pollyanna of the almost afterlife, but is he a more true depiction of ghosts? Or better yet, do ghosts exist at all? You might be surprised to learn that ghosts do pop up in the Bible. Well, sort of. During the whole walking on the water event, the disciples wondered if the man coming toward them was still kicking. “But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, ‘It is a ghost!’ and they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.’” (Matthew 14:26-27 ESV) I heard a pastor remark one time that one of the many clues to the truthfulness of scripture is that the gospel writers do not shy away from depicting how foolish the followers of Christ sometimes were. Propagandists will generally make themselves look greater than they could ever be. I believe that during his heyday, Castro not only ruled the “people’s paradise,” but cured polio, wrestled a bear and occasionally spotted Atlas when the big guy got tired. Not the disciples. Here they are in a boat living out a Scooby-Doo mystery. They think they see a ghost and they are terrified. Should they be? Does the fact that the Bible uses the term prove that ghosts are real? What about Saul’s odd visit with Samuel? In 1 Samuel 28, after the prophet has died, the king is fearful and wants to hear from God. Since he doesn’t get the response he desires on his timetable (Saul had issues with patience), he snuck out of town to consult a medium as these were, eh hem, rare in Israel having been condemned by God. ( Leviticus 20:6, 27; Deuteronomy 18:10-12) This spiritist agrees to raise the one the king requests, but is startled to discover it is an actual spirit. (She calls him a god or divine spirit. ) Like modern hucksters who use cold readings (Those very generic guesses like, “ I sense a presence. Is there someone with a G in their name that has passed on? How about an A? Q? An unpronounceable symbol? Oh, wait, Prince is still alive.”), she would be used to falling back upon such skills. Not this day. Something weird was going on. And unlike every medium who wants repeat business, this spirit doesn’t tell the king what he wants to hear. In fact, it is pretty harsh. “ Moreover, the Lord will give Israel also with you into the hand of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons shall be with me. The Lord will give the army of Israel also into the hand of the Philistines.” (1 Samuel 28:19) Samuel does not subscribe to the Casper the Friendly Ghost sunny disposition. The question is, is he a ghost? In the King James it could fit because they used the word very broadly, applying it to any spirit, from the spirit of man all the way up to the Holy Spirit. Unfortunately, that isn’t what is being discussed in either passage. The disciples were in fear of a phantasm, while the medium describes Samuel as a lower case god. We typically think of ghost as the disembodied spirit of a person who has not crossed over to the afterlife due to some trauma, unfinished business or the need to provide the set up for a Halloween movie. Is that what is going on here? “Then Samuel said to Saul, ‘Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?’” (1 Samuel 28:15a) Samuel is clearly not caught between worlds. He is rather ticked, because it meant leaving heaven for this bit of Saul’s nonsense. He is not a ghost and, to be frank, this is not an ordinary event. We have nothing even remotely similar in all of scripture. In fact, the scripture is very clear about what happens when we die. “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27 KJV) So each of us passes into our final destination immediately upon death. Paul even struggled with continuing his earthly ministry because, while he could do much good, to be absent the body was to be in the presence of God. (2 Corinthians 5) And once there, we stay where we end up, as Jesus noted in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Note: Not the same Lazarus that was resurrected.) “And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.” (Luke 16:26) So even though the disciples were afraid of a ghost, their fear was unjustified. Once dead, we are too busy to spend time knocking over lamps and closing squeaky doors in haunted houses. Yet, God tells His followers not to consult mediums. Why, if ghosts aren’t real? Here’s where the King James terminology is helpful. There may not be ghosts, per se, but there are ghosts ( ie spirits.). The Bible is filled with the goings on a angelic and demonic spirits. The demons love to wreak havoc and lead people away from the Lord. While it might sell more tickets to portray them as red, horned imps, that is not the portrayal scripture uses. “And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.” (2 Corinthians 11:14 ESV) What better way to lead someone away from God then to have them cling to the false hope of contacting their departed loved ones. Such a pursuit consumed the latter years of Houdini’s life, in fact. It is quite possible that mediums, who aren’t outright charlatans, are actually contacting real spirits, just not Grammy and Uncle Phil. The demon can appear as that loved one and encourage that person to trust in what they say, to disbelieve what God has spoken regarding eternity and to cling feverishly to false hope. Even more malevolent spirits can have similar effect. The poltergeist-like presences inspire fear instead of faith. Scooby-Doo was right, the real monster wears a mask. After teaching on this subject one time, I had a girl say that she hadn’t been afraid of ghosts because she knew they were make-believe, but discovering that sometimes these appearances were demonic did scare her because demons are real. Thankfully, we have great encouragement from God in this area. “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39) Our big-headed friend Casper may be entirely fictional, but we can embrace his attitude knowing that there is no power on earth–even Satan Himself, that can take away God’s love for His people. So we can scratch ghosts off of the things to fear list. Clowns, however, are still right up there. Got a question? Ipymin@gmail.com