Demons and the Devil

Rating:
Summary: Interesting Anthropological Study
Review: This is an interesting glimpse into the mindset of the Greek Island villagers of Naxos and in particular the village of Apeiranthos where disease and misfortune are attributed to demons or exotika. The existence of the exotika, or "outsiders" is handled in very specific ways by the people of Apeiranthos i.e. Greece--indeed, there is a ceremony or spell that counteracts either their ill effect or their general contact. Stewart relates the interesting correlation between the Orthodox saints and the exotika and the way in which the Orthodox Church sanctions the actions of their congregations in combatting the exotika's evil influence. The author also attributes the general elevation in the degree of formal education to the overall reduction of such superstition.
In general, this book was not a breeze to read as it is intended for the student of University level anthropological studies. However, as a lover of the Levant, I found the subject intriguing and well worth the two weeks that it took me to actually read and make notations regarding the book's contents.
This is a great companion piece to Lawson's "Modern Greek Folklore and Ancient Greek Religion" and the Blum's "The Dangerous Hour: The Lore and Culture of Mystery and Crisis in Rural Greece.