The etymological origin of the word demonology is found in the Greek and more exactly in the union of two words. On the one hand, there is daimon, which means “genius” or “demon”, and on the other, logia, which could be translated as “science”. In this way it would be determined that demonology is the science that studies the nature or the qualities that the devil has.
It is important to underline before entering into the deeper definition of the concept that concerns us that “demon” in the past, in Greek culture and before Christianity, was a word that was used to define a minor type of divinity, whether it was good or bad. However, this concept was established as something absolutely negative, as diabolical, when the aforementioned religious doctrine arrived.
Demonology is the sector of theology that is dedicated to the analysis of demons. His studies are related to those of angelology, a discipline focused on the study of angels. “Malleus Maleficarum”, by Heinrich Kramer and Jacob Sprenger, is one of the key works of Western Christian demonology, where they refer to the existence of witchcraft as a central aspect of the beliefs of Catholicism and as a potential harm to believers.
Demonology is responsible for putting together lists to name and draw a hierarchical order of evil spirits. In this sense, it is the discipline that opposes angelology, a framework in which similar work is carried out but focused on kind spirits.
The precepts of Christianity indicate that demonic entities are angels that fell from heaven. The fall, therefore, occurs when the angel is expelled from paradise for not respecting God ‘s orders . Theologians attribute this rebellious behavior to what is known as free will or not understanding the dispositions of the Supreme Being.
In any case, it is interesting to note that the bases that bring together references of a demonological profile present knowledge that was obtained from those who claim to have the ability to invoke evil spirits. This facet of demonology is exploited by grimoires of occult magic.
It is important to underline the fact that throughout history the devil has been represented in many different ways and has also adopted many different names. Thus, in the Bible we can find it under the name of Satan, Devil, Belial, Beelzebub, Prince or even The Dragon.
A book that is the basis of the Christian religion, where you can contemplate duality, the eternal struggle between Good and Evil that is represented by that aforementioned demon and whose clear mission is to carry out the perdition of human souls. However, as is known in the Bible, it is established that Christ is the Savior of those, who manages to defeat the devil and who is resurrected.
The main monotheistic religions share the belief in a malefic entity of supernatural order, which performs in a way contrary to what a God of good intentions intends. However, these entities do not become Gods, since the very essence of these religions implies the impossibility of the existence of two deities of equal power who, moreover, are opposed.