Upvote:1
Which churches or denominations teach about spiritual spouses (succubus,incubus and/or “marine spirits”)?
To my knowledge no denomination or Christian Church officially teach that such demons exists, be that of Pentecostal, Catholic or any other denomination. What individual Christians may hold on the reality of such beings is another matter.
For example, the Catholic Church teaches that demon can not take on a physical form. Thus the fallen angels are incapable of sexual intercourse with with human being. I am not addressing the possibility of a real diabolically possessed person as being able to have sexual intercourse with another individual, since this question does not address this issue and that possibility is obviously a straight forward yes.
St. Thomas Aquinas, who is respected and honoured as a great theologian in other denominations than the Catholic Church says that angels do not have a body attached to their spiritual beingness. This goes for the fallen angels as well.
The angels have not bodies naturally united to them. For whatever belongs to any nature as an accident is not found universally in that nature; thus, for instance, to have wings, because it is not of the essence of an animal, does not belong to every animal. Now since to understand is not the act of a body, nor of any corporeal energy, as will be shown later (I:75:2, it follows that to have a body united to it is not of the nature of an intellectual substance, as such; but it is accidental to some intellectual substance on account of something else. Even so it belongs to the human soul to be united to a body, because it is imperfect and exists potentially in the genus of intellectual substances, not having the fulness of knowledge in its own nature, but acquiring it from sensible things through the bodily senses, as will be explained later on (I:84:6; I:89:1). Now whenever we find something imperfect in any genus we must presuppose something perfect in that genus. Therefore in the intellectual nature there are some perfectly intellectual substances, which do not need to acquire knowledge from sensible things. Consequently not all intellectual substances are united to bodies; but some are quite separated from bodies, and these we call angels. - Question 51. The angels in comparison with bodies
The Devil and his demons may nevertheless inspire someone towards committing evil acts regarding human sexuality, but they can not of their nature do so because they are spiritual beings and do not possess a body of their own.
Demonic "spiritual spouses" as you ask (usually a succubus/incubus and "marine spirits” are generally considered as part of Jewish/Christian folklore or mythology and will remain as such.
Marine spirits is a phrase used in some expressions of the Charismatic faith, and it’s associated with beliefs related to demonic oppression and possession. So-called deliverance ministries may seek to exorcise “marine spirits” and other types of evil spirits about which they speculate.
In most cases, marine spirit is meant as a generic term rather than as a reference to one, unique, named demon. In this way the term is different from other supposed oppressive spirits, which may be given individual names such as Jezebel, Leviathan, Absalom, Python, and so forth. Even so, leviathan and python spirits are sometimes grouped as “water spirits” or “marine spirits.” Other names sometimes associated with this class are Rahab and even Merman or Mermaid.
Those who teach the existence of a special class of “marine spirits” trace those demons’ origin to the great flood of Noah’s day. Supposedly, the “marine spirits” live in water and do not feel comfortable being dry—Jesus’ reference to the “dry places” in Luke 11:24 is used as a supporting proof text. Also, the Legion that Jesus exorcised from the man in the tombs were “marine spirits” because they caused the pigs to rush into the sea (Luke 8:26–33). A “marine spirit,” according to the lore, often comes as a succubus or incubus in order to make a person a “spiritual spouse”; and they are sometimes called “husband spirits” or “wife spirits.” Their effect is sexual lust and perversion.
Belief in “marine spirits” is based on extra-biblical information, so there is an extraordinary variety of teaching about what a “marine spirit” is and what it does. Any given deliverance ministry or demon chaser could hold a set of beliefs concerning “marine spirits” that differ from another. It is hard to find consistent teaching about “marine spirits” or other types of demons within the Charismatic movement.
Scripture gives no reason to believe there is a specific class of demon called a “marine spirit” or that Christians today have a specific ability to rebuke or exorcise them. Whether or not some demonic entity is directly involved in a person’s struggle with lust, the Bible never addresses the concept of a “marine spirit.” The remedy for lust and other besetting sins is not to rebuke a “marine spirit” but to pray, seek discipleship, and submit oneself in obedience to God (James 4:7). It is no use blaming mermaids, speaking to evil spirits, or inventing a new mythology.
A succubus is a demon or supernatural entity in folklore, in female form, that appears in dreams to seduce men, usually through sexual activity. According to religious traditions, repeated sexual activity with a succubus can cause poor physical or mental health, even death. In modern representations, a succubus is often depicted as a beautiful seductress or enchantress, rather than as demonic or frightening. The male counterpart to the succubus is the incubus.
An incubus is a demon in male form who, according to mythological and legendary traditions, lies upon sleeping women in order to engage in sexual activity with them. Its female counterpart is a succubus. Salacious tales of incubi and succubi have been told for many centuries in traditional societies. Some traditions hold that repeated sexual activity with an incubus or succubus may result in the deterioration of health, an impaired mental state, or even death.
Addendum:
As for the Nephilim, they are the offspring of the “sons of God” and the “daughters of men”!
Let us start by seeing who the Nephilim of the Scripture may truly be:
The Nephilim (Hebrew: נְפִילִים) were the offspring of the "sons of God" and the "daughters of men" before the Deluge, according to Genesis 6:1-4.
A similar or identical biblical Hebrew term, read as "Nephilim" by some scholars, or as the word "fallen" by others, appears in Ezekiel 32:27.1
When people began to multiply on the face of the ground, and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that they were fair; and they took wives for themselves of all that they chose. Then the Lord said, "My spirit shall not abide in mortals forever, for they are flesh; their days shall be one hundred twenty years." The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went in to the daughters of humans, who bore children to them. These were the heroes that were of old, warriors of renown. — Genesis 6:1–4, New Revised Standard Version
The word is loosely translated as giants in some Bibles and left untranslated in others. The "sons of God" have been interpreted as fallen angels in some traditional Jewish explanations.
According to Numbers 13:33, they later inhabited Canaan at the time of the Israelite conquest of Canaan.
The Lord said to Moses, "Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites" ... So they went up and spied out the land ... And they told him: "... Yet the people who live in the land are strong, and the towns are fortified and very large; and besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there." ... So they brought to the Israelites an unfavorable report of the land that they had spied out, saying, "The land that we have gone through as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants; and all the people that we saw in it are of great size. There we saw the Nephilim (the Anakites come from the Nephilim); and to ourselves we seemed like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them." — Numbers 13:1–2; 21; 27–28; 32–33. New Revised Standard Version.
And now let us look at what the Sons of God may mean:
Sons of the God (Hebrew: בני האלהים) literally: "sons of the Gods") is a phrase used in the Hebrew Bible and apocrypha. The phrase is also used in Kabbalah where bene elohim are part of different Jewish angelic hierarchies.
Hebrew Bible
Genesis 6
And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years. There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown. — Genesis 6:1–4, KJV
The first mention of "sons of God" in the Hebrew Bible occurs at Genesis 6:1–4. In terms of literary-historical origin, this phrase is typically associated with the Jahwist tradition.3
This passage has had two interpretations in Judaism:
Offspring of Seth: The first references to the offspring of Seth rebelling from God and mingling with the daughters of Cain are found in Christian and rabbinic literature from the second century CE onwards e.g. Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, Augustine of Hippo, Julius Africanus, and the Letters attributed to St. Clement. It is also the view expressed in the modern canonical Amharic Ethiopian Orthodox Bible. In Judaism "Sons of God" usually refers to the righteous, i.e. the children of Seth.
Angels: All of the earliest sources interpret the "sons of God" as angels. From the third century BCE onwards, references are found in the Enochic literature, the Dead Sea Scrolls the (Genesis Apocryphon, the Damascus Document, 4Q180), Jubilees, the Testament of Reuben, 2 Baruch, Josephus, and the book of Jude (compare with 2 Peter 2). This is also the meaning of the only two identical occurrences of bene ha elohim in the Hebrew Bible (Job 1:6 and 2:1), and of the most closely related expressions (refer to the list above). In the Septuagint, the interpretive reading "angels" is found in Codex Alexandrinus, one of four main witnesses to the Greek text.
Rabbinic Judaism traditionally adheres to the first interpretation, with some exceptions, and modern Jewish translations may translate bnei elohim as "sons of rulers" rather than "sons of God". Regardless, the second interpretation (sons of angels or other divine beings) is nonexistent in modern Judaism. This is reflected by the rejection of Enoch and other Apocrypha supporting the second interpretation from the Hebrew Bible Canon.
Using Scripture to interpret Scripture is a very common practice in our day and as such the New Testament in the person of St. Luke shows us that the Sons of God were the descendants of Adam.
According to Scripture “sons of God” means “persons who are begotten independently of any creature’s decision”. All angels can appropriately be called “sons of God”, but not all characters called “sons of God” in the Bible can appropriately be considered angels. The “sons of God” in Genesis 6:1-4 are undoubtedly human, and it is fitting to consider that they were created directly by God through transformation of human-like animals into persons.
Who was the son of Enos, who was the son of Seth, who was the son of Adam, who was the son of God. - Luke 3:38
Thus if the Nephilim were the descendants of the Sons of God (sons of Adam) and the "daughters of men" surely not all of them were evil. Some of them would have had good and upright souls.
Nota Bene: The question is: Which churches/denominations teach about spiritual spouses and marine spirits? What I have is basic Catholic thought on this topic that includes Catholic exorcists.
Upvote:2
The Got Questions article on “marine spirits” sets out to explain what it is and then goes on to show that it is demonic and unbiblical. It emerged from the Charismatic movement (see the second link below). The article concludes:
Scripture gives no reason to believe there is a specific class of demon called a “marine spirit” or that Christians today have a specific ability to rebuke or exorcise them. Whether or not some demonic entity is directly involved in a person’s struggle with lust, the Bible never addresses the concept of a “marine spirit.” The remedy for lust and other besetting sins is not to rebuke a “marine spirit” but to pray, seek discipleship, and submit oneself in obedience to God (James 4:7). It is no use blaming mermaids, speaking to evil spirits, or inventing a new mythology. https://www.gotquestions.org/marine-spirits.html
The Charismatic Movement started in the U.S.A. in the early 1900’s when people started speaking in tongues and performing miracles of healing. This was the beginning of the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement. Please be aware that this Got Questions article is not advocating what goes on in these churches. It is simply explaining how it started and what it is. It is not an endors*m*nt.
Today, we are witnessing a growing menace of demonic activity in the realm of the miraculous. Where Satan does not succeed in taking the Bible from us, he works hard at taking us from the Bible. He does this simply by getting Christians to focus their attention on the claims of men and women to some supernatural experience. As a result, those who seek after the experiences of others have neither time nor interest in searching the Scriptures for God’s truth. https://www.gotquestions.org/Charismatic-movement.html
I have no idea what the Catholic Church has to say about this, but the Bible warns against it.
Christians must exercise discernment and test every spirit and teaching that claims to be biblical. They do this by examining them against the Bible, God’s holy and inspired word. This is why Protestants uphold ‘sola scriptura’: https://www.gotquestions.org/sola-scriptura.html
Any denomination that introduces new teachings or deviates from the gospel that was once for all time given to the first century Christians (Jude verse 3) must be rejected. The only way to do this is to examine them in the light of God’s word. We must follow Christ, not men.
Additional sources of information:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirit_spouse#Europe