Ronald Lee Haskel killed six members of his ex-wife's family and tried to kill a seventh. His trial was in Houston, Texas, in 2014. In an Associated Press article, Juan A. Lozano reported the details of the fatal homicide committed by Ronald Lee Haskell, at age 39, who shot seven members of his ex-wife's family execution-style, killing six. The only survivor was a 15-year-old girl who was not immediately identified. She was shot in the head just like the others; however, she played dead until Ronald Lee Haskel left the scene. She later told police that Haskel had all of the family members who were there to lay face down on the floor and told them to remain quiet. He then executed them one by one, including four children, with one shot to the back of the head. According to court testimony by psychiatrist Stephen Raffle, the perpetrator, Mr. Haskel, was said to have heard several voices telling him that if he wanted to reunite with his ex-wife, he must kill members of his ex-wife's family. One voice in particular that Haskel heard in his mind was named Joseph. Joseph told Haskel he must kill members of his ex-wife's family if he wanted to be reunited with her.
Ronald Lee Haskel was diagnosed soon after the killings with bipolar disorder. BPD is "a brain condition that causes unusual shifts in mood, and from schizoaffective disorder, a condition characterized by hallucinations or delusions." Schizoaffective disorder is characterized by hallucinations, delusions, and mood disorder symptoms such as depression or mania. So, if Haskel had hallucinations or delusions, how could his brain convince him, with all the chaos inside his mind, to murder all of these people? The defense stated in open court that Ronald Lee Haskel planned "to meticulously plot a way to carry off his murder spree." How could a brain in a diseased state of disorder carry out a meticulous murder of seven intended victims after following their movements from California to Houston? Delusions and hallucinations do not follow a set pattern. Instead, the person is in a chaotic mental state.
Let us assume that the voices Haskel heard were demons and not due to bipolar disorder. Then the voices would have instructed Haskel on how to carry out his act of mass murder. The voices obviously must have spoken to Haskel on multiple occasions to convince him of their rationale for the murders, and then one day, the voice or voices convince Haskel that the mass murder is what he must do to regain his lost love.
I know from personal experience that demons, as well as Satan, do exist. In my book "Satan's World," I detail the story of my encounter with Satan and his demons. You can be sure of one thing; they are not friendly even though they may sound friendly and harmless. In my experience, I immediately knew I was hearing a voice other than my own since it sounded so distinct and demonic. In different situations, it may take some time before a victim realizes that the mental voice they are hearing is not their own but a mental voice other than theirs.
Demons recruit their victims like a spy may recruit someone they surmise fits the profile of an agent who could meld into a fraternity such as the CIA. The demon is on Satan's orders to find someone he can use to wreak death or destruction on a shocking scale. An act that will leave people gasping and stunned, wondering, who could do such a horrible thing to all those innocent people! Once the demon has found its mark, it begins a psychological attack by simply speaking to its intended recruit. In the beginning, it may seem to the victim that he hears his thoughts, then one day, his "thoughts" begin to reply back. The victim is naturally puzzled at first; however, things begin to get eerie when conversations between the demon and the victim take place. The victim usually believes they can stop listening and speaking to the strange voice any time they want and it will simply go away. However, it is not up to the intended recruit. It is up to the demon or demons to decide to end the connection now established between them and their intended recruit unless an exorcism is performed, which will begin to terminate the communications. If you should hear thoughts you believe are not your own, do not listen to them. That is one mechanism demons use to establish a connection between you and them. Try not to even think about the voice. Instead, drop to your knees and ask our Lord God to help you be free of the voice. And, stay with your prayers until you no longer hear the voice. In my own experience with demons, I prayed every day for nearly three years before I could say I was finally free of them. They are that persistent. When I first heard the demonic voice, I knew I was in trouble. I immediately dropped to my knees and began praying with all my strength. After hearing the demonic voice, my first thought was not to allow myself to become a school shooter. I did not want to be remembered as another mass murderer of schoolchildren.
We need to find a better way to help people deal with these situations in their lives. If we will, then we will be at a better advantage in stopping the mass killings, which are, in most cases, carried out by people who are being tormented by unseen demonic entities. Demons are highly intelligent and cunning. It is to the advantage of the demons to remain relatively unknown since that places humanity at a distinct disadvantage. As many may not know, Satan is the creator of demons, and they follow his orders. Demons are Satan's demonic army, you might say.
Nikolas Cruz, you may recall, was the young man who murdered so many at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on February 14, 2018, which resulted in the death of 17 children and the wounding of 17 others. Some victims were staff members of the school district. In a newspaper article, the reporter explains that Nikolas Cruz heard voices, and Cruz identified these voices as demons. For instance, moments after his capture Cruz told police officers he heard demons. Body-camera video released by prosecutors Friday begins with Nikolas Cruz handcuffed and on the ground with an officer kneeling beside him. A Coral Springs officer wearing a body camera asks the then 19-year-old suspect, "What's going on today, bro?" Cruz replies, "Demons, man. Voices." Cruz then said, "What happened?" One of the officers then says, "Just be quiet."
Perhaps Nickolas Cruz was thinking of killing himself or dying in a hail of gunfire like so many other assassins who attack schools, Churches, Synagogues, or musical events such as the one held in Las Vegas, Nevada, where 527 were taken to local hospitals and 58 people died in the attack. The perpetrator, Stephen Paddock, age 64, had no prior criminal record, although his father did. What drives a man like Stephen Paddock to want to kill so many people? To mow them down like so much grass? What kind of evil does it take to do such an act? Stephen Paddock was known to be in torment. His girlfriend said he would lie in bed, moaning and screaming. Why Stephen Paddock lay in bed moaning and screaming has not been established. Stephen Paddock even told his girlfriend to leave town for a few days since he was about to do something horrible. Why would Paddock warn his girlfriend that something terrible was about to happen? Perhaps he felt his situation was beyond his control and wanted her safely away when he committed mass murder. Stephen Paddock killed himself before authorities could capture and question him. This is a pattern you will see quite often with mass murderers. The fact that most mass murders kill themselves tells me these people are not out to make a name for themselves. If they wanted to make a name for themselves, they would still be around to enjoy the notoriety.
On November 12, 2017, Devin Kelly walked into a Sunday Worship service in Sutherland Springs, Texas, where he killed 26 people assassination style, including one baby still in its mother's womb. Twenty others were wounded. Each victim was shot point-blank to the head, including a 15-year-old girl whom witnesses said pleaded with Kelly to "please don't shoot me!" This mass murder was especially horrific since it occurred in a Sanctuary of our Lord God.
How might it seem to an outsider if someone heard voices and tried to explain to a friend what was happening to them? Would they not suggest that we go to a psychiatrist and get ourselves examined? Then, after we speak to the psychiatrist, they may say, take this medication. This medication should make the voices go away. The psychiatrist might also explain that you are suffering from hallucinations and delusions brought on by a disease known as bipolar disorder, or perhaps schizophrenia, rather than taking seriously that we may be under attack by demonic spiritual beings. Do you see what many people are facing if they should come forward claiming they are tormented night and day by voices in their minds? The doctors probably do not even ask the patient what the voices are saying to them. If the doctor did ask what the voices were speaking to the patient, the doctor would likely not take the words seriously since it is part of the hallucination, according to their theory of human behavior. Here is a quote from "The Rite: The Making of a Modern Exorcist" by Matt Baglio, which defines demonic obsession: "Demonic obsession is generally defined as "an intense and persistent attack on the mind of the victim." This is not the same as demonic possession, where someone finds themselves physically controlled by a demon or demons. You may remember from the Holy Scriptures the case of the man who was possessed by a legion of demons who were cast out of the man by our Lord Christ Jesus. The demons fled to a nearby herd of swine, who all plunged into a nearby lake. This was an extreme case, however. Most possessions, which are rare, usually occur by one or two demons. However, to be fair to psychiatrists, Mr. Baglio mentioned that a new relationship of respect is developing between exorcists and psychiatrists. Mr. Baglio wrote in "The Rite: The Making of a Modern Exorcist" that today some psychiatrists will refer their patients to recognized clergy when they cannot diagnose a known mental illness. Clergy will usually refer their clients to a psychiatrist for evaluation before doing an exorcism since great harm can be done to the patient if they are not adequately evaluated.
As a society, we need to provide services that will give people suffering from hearing voices a place where they will be taken seriously. I suggest that a facility be staffed by psychiatrists and clergy trained in demonic obsession and demonic possession. If such a facility existed, this would be a place that someone hearing voices could go to without fear of being ostracized or ridiculed by those unfamiliar with the spiritual world. It should be staffed with competent and understanding people who have compassion for others. This will be a facility that will provide the specialized training that people hearing voices need. If we have the foresight to do this, it will help significantly reduce the number of mass murders that occur each year in our nation. We have recently gotten out of a worldwide pandemic that left many people without help or hope for many months and significantly increased the ranks of those with mental illness. This means that more people have mental illness and go untreated. As a nation, we must do more to help these people because mental illness is something that demons often take advantage of since those with mental illness are already in a vulnerable condition. We should all contact our Representatives in Congress and local authorities if we are to get the medical facilities necessary to treat all those who have been left behind in the past two years of the pandemic.
This essay was inspired by our Lord Christ Jesus.
Typed by Wayne Hill of Trinity Insights Publications