Was the Aurora shooter possessed? Father Dwight Longenecker thinks it’s a possibility:
Is James Holmes demon possessed? It is impossible to say without a detailed diagnosis. Even then, it is a slippery question. We are dealing with a reality that is rubbery. In many ways this is the wrong question. Better to ask, “Was James Holmes taken over by Evil?”
Yes. Something happened to the mild mannered science geek. He turned into a monster. Something twisted in his mind and heart, and Evil made an entry. Evil infested his life. It took him over. Whether the twist was through mental illness, some inner wound or some terrible dark intelligence, we cannot say. The fact that we can’t say what went wrong and don’t have a neat and tidy answer is the key to understanding the terrible conundrum of evil.
When faced with mindless massacres, we don’t have a rational answer—and that is the rational answer. What I mean is that the further one goes down the path of Evil, the more it becomes irrational and mindless.
Before you poo-poo this attempt at explaining an inexplicable act, consider this: If there was such a thing as demonic possession, how would it look different from a homicidal psychotic episode? How would it look different from a descent into madness?
If you stipulate that there is such a thing as evil in the world–and there is–arguing over whether it’s insanity or possession is just arguing over semantics.