Exorcism of the Gerasene demoniac characters Gerasene demoniac
The exorcism of the Gerasene demoniac (Matthew 8.28-34; Mark 5.1-20; Luke 8.26-39), frequently known as the Miracle of the (Gadarene) Swine and the exorcism of Legion, is one of the miracles performed by Jesus according to the New Testament. The story shows Jesus exorcising a demon or demons out of a man and into a herd of swine, causing the swine to run down a hill into a lake and drown themselves.
The story appears in the three Synoptic Gospels, but not the Gospel of John. All accounts involve Jesus exorcising demons, identified collectively in Mark and Luke as "Legion".
The story was interpreted by Saints Augustine of Hippo and Thomas Aquinas to mean that Christians have no duties to animals. It has been a point of contention in discussions of Christianity and animal rights.Narratives
Mark
The earliest account, assuming the theory of Marcan priority is correct, is in the Gospel of Mark (Mark 5:1–20). Jesus goes across the sea into the "region of the Gerasenes". There, a man "possessed by a demon" comes from the caves to meet him. People had tried to tie him down but he was too strong to be bound, even with chains, for he would always break out of them; night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones. Jesus approaches and calls the demon to come out of the man, who replies "What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you in the name of God never to torment me!". Jesus asks the demon for his name and is told "My name is Legion, for we are many". The demons beg Jesus not to send them away, but instead to send them into the pigs on a nearby hillside, which he does. The herd, about two thousand in number, rush down the steep bank into the sea and are drowned. The man is now seen, dressed and restored to sanity: he asks to be included among the disciples who travel with Jesus, but he is refused and instructed to remain in the Decapolis region, to tell of "the great things the Lord has done ... and [how he] has had compassion on you". Theologian Tom Wright calls him "the first apostle to the gentiles".
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