The Apostle Paul and the Oracle of Delphi The Oracle of Delphi: How the Ancient Greeks Relied on One Woman’s Divine Visions The Temple itself was destroyed by Christians in 390 AD, only the broken pieces of the structure are left today. When Rome started to embrace Christianity, in the 4th century, Prophesying was abolished, due to it conflicting with Christian beliefs.
Oracles, Prophecies, and Fortune Tellers ruled Greek society for centuries, bewitching them with their theatric ways. If the slave girl was from the temple, how did a spirit attach to her? Could what was meant to be a hoax for financial gain, be a breeding ground for demonic activity? If the slave girl served at the temple, and people witnessed a demonic spirit being cast out of her, could that have opened the eyes of society? Revealed that the Oracle and The Temple Of Apollo was demonic, and not as innocent as some believed it to be? The Spirit, in the end, is cast out by Paul, whatever happened to the girl after is unknown. It is most likely that this girl could’ve been from the Temple Of Delphi, having encountered a spirit which attached itself to her. It is said she had a spirit of divination, The Python Spirit (See my Spirit Of The Python post). In Acts 16:16-18, Paul and Silas are pursued by a demon possessed slave girl. Paul and Silas traveled to Philippi in the book of Acts, near where the temple was located. I’m leaning a little bit more towards it was a hoax, based on some other articles I’ve read about the subject.
So, what was it? A hoax, or something supernatural? I believe that it was either all a hoax, or just a multitude of confused and intoxicated individuals. Greece, Delphi, Temple Of Apollo-Via Wikimedia Commons The small room, in which the Oracle communed with the Gods, had limited ventilation and amplified the effects of the gasses. The temple sat on top of two intersecting fault lines, which lead scientists to believe that the gasses were from tectonic movements, releasing Ethane, Ethylene and Methane gas into the temple. They have come up with three theories to the origins of the mystic vapor. Many have traveled and excavated the remains of Delphi, scientists never coming to a clear conclusion on what exactly was filtering into the room (Assuming there wasn’t actually a dead serpent under the structure). The Priests would interrupt the Prophecy to the “consultants”, using the best of their abilities to make out the “divine” message from the Gods. Therefore, she spoke erratically, like speaking in tongues. The gasses escaping from the crevice were discovered to be hallucinogenic, sending The Oracle into a conscious state. She would begin to prophecy, saying to the onlookers what Apollo was “speaking to her”. Once The Oracle inhaled the fumes, she was sent into a frenzied, euphoric state. When the Oracle had a visitor, the crevice would be uncovered, releasing vapors from the supposed slain serpent that’s corpse rested beneath the structure. After partaking in a cleansing ritual, and receiving the sacrificial offerings from the “consultants” ( What they called the individuals who came to visit the Oracle), The Oracle Of Delphi would sit on a stool above a crevice in the ground.
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