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[[Image:Healing of the demon-possessed.jpg|thumb|Jesus healing the man from [[Umm Qais|Gadara]]. Medieval illumination]]

{{from wikipedia|Legion (demons)}}

'''Legion''' is a demon or group of [[demon]]s, particularly those in two of three versions of the [[exorcism of the Gerasene demoniac]], an account in the [[New Testament]] of an incident in which [[Jesus]] performs an [[exorcism]].

==Development of the story==
{{main article|Exorcism of the Gerasene demoniac}}
The earliest version of this story exists in the [[Gospel of Mark]], described as taking place in "the country of the [[Jerash|Gerasenes]]". Jesus encounters a [[Demonic possession|possessed]] man and calls on the demon to emerge, demanding to know its name – an important element of traditional exorcism practice.{{sfn|Keener|1999|p=282}} He finds the man is possessed by a multitude of demons who give the collective name of "Legion". Fearing he will drive them out of the world and into the abyss, they beg him instead to send them into a herd of pigs, which he does. The pigs then rush into the sea and are drowned ({{Bibleverse|Mark|5:1–5:13|NRSV}}).

This story is also in the other two [[Synoptic Gospels]]. The [[Gospel of Luke]] shortens the story but retains most of the details including the name ({{Bibleverse|Luke|8:26–8:33|NRSV}}). The [[Gospel of Matthew]] shortens it more dramatically, changes the possessed man to two men (a particular stylistic device of this writer) and changes the location to "the country of the [[Umm Qais|Gadarenes]]". This is probably because the author was aware that Gerasa is actually around 50&nbsp;km away from the [[Sea of Galilee]] (although Gadara is still 10&nbsp;km distant). In this version, the demons are unnamed {{sfn|Senior|1996|p=84}}{{sfn|Boring|2006|p=148-149}} ({{Bibleverse|Matthew|8:28–8:32|NRSV}}).

==Cultural background==
According to Michael Willett Newheart, professor of New Testament Language and Literature at the [[Howard University]] School of Divinity (2004), the author of the Gospel of Mark could well have expected readers to associate the name "Legion" with the Roman military formation, active in the area at the time ([[First Jewish–Roman War|around 70 AD]]).{{sfn|Newheart|2004|p=44-45}} The intention may be to show that Jesus is stronger than the occupying force of the Romans.{{sfn|Blount|Charles|2002|p=77-78}} [[Seyoon Kim]], however, points out that the Latin ''legio'' was commonly used as a loan word in Hebrew and Aramaic to indicate a large number.{{sfn|Kim|2008|p=118-119}}

==See also==
* [[Legion in popular culture]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite book|last1=Blount|first1=Brian K.|last2=Charles|first2=Gary W.|title=Preaching Mark in two voices|date=2002|publisher=Westminster John Knox Press|location=Louisville, Ky.|isbn=9780664223939|pages=77–78|edition=1st|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=n0uBgJw9E2UC&pg=PA77|ref=harv}}
*{{cite book|ref=harv|last=Boring|first=M. Eugene|title=Mark: A Commentary|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zmP5-Jp8VzsC|year=2006|publisher=Presbyterian Publishing Corp|isbn=978-0-664-22107-2}}
*{{cite book|ref=harv|last=Keener|first=Craig S.|authorlink=Craig S. Keener|title=A Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sWzhEdBZOp4C|year=1999|publisher=Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing|isbn=978-0-8028-3821-6}}
*{{cite book|ref=harv|last=Kim|first=Seyoon|title=Christ and Caesar: The Gospel and the Roman Empire in the Writings of Paul and Luke|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pb0UP-UHbZYC&pg=PA118|date=7 October 2008|publisher=Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing|isbn=978-0-8028-6008-8}}
*{{cite book |first=Michael Willett |last=Newheart |title=My name is Legion: the story and soul of the Gerasene demoniac |publisher=Liturgical Press |location=Collegeville, MN |year=2004 |isbn=0-8146-5885-7 |oclc=55066538|ref=harv}}
*{{cite book|ref=harv|last=Senior|first=Donald|title=What are They Saying about Matthew?|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xuyaPmvwnLEC|year=1996|publisher=Paulist Press|isbn=978-0-8091-3624-7}}

==External links==
*[http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/mark.html EarlyChristianWritings.com Gospel of Mark], see discussion at bottom of page
{{New Testament people}}

[[Category:Demons in Christianity]]
[[Category:Exorcisms of Jesus]]
[[Category:New Testament Latin words and phrases]]
[[Category:People in the canonical gospels]]