And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him (Rev. 12:9).
Notice that this verse does not say the demons were cast into hell, but rather to the earth. In the book of Job, when God asks Satan where he has come from, the latter replies, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it” (1:7; 2:2).
We may wonder why God allows the demons such latitude in our world. Wouldn’t it make more sense to confine them in some place where they can do no harm, whether hell, or the constellation Horologium, or the bottom of Lake Huron? God wills that angels contribute to our good in two ways, directly and indirectly. In the direct sense, he helps us to do good and to avoid evil, and the good angels take part in this. Indirectly, God wills our good by allowing demons to tempt us; by resisting them, we become spiritually stronger and grow in holiness. The result is that even though they are fallen, the demons continue to be of service to humanity.
In any event, the demons are here and we must deal with them. St. Augustine used a fascinating Latin phrase to describe where the demons are in this world: the aer caliginosus. This has been translated variously as dark atmosphere, misty air, or murky vapor. Keeping in mind that angels—and demons—are said to be in the place where they exert their power, it appears that Augustine is describing the temptations of the demons as they try to darken our intellects to what is good and true.
Recall the “Legion” of demons that possessed the man at Gerasene. The Gospel includes an interesting detail: when Jesus was about to cast them out, they “begged him eagerly not to send them out of the country,” asking leave to enter a nearby herd of swine instead (Mark 5:10-12). This sounds odd. Was there something in particular they liked about the geographical location?
They may have simply wanted to stay in order to further torment human beings. But it still leaves us wondering what they liked about the place. It may be a form of the devil mocking God: since God has places that are sacred to him, the devil mocks him by doing evil in particular places. Those who believe in haunted places often attribute the haunting to evil or tragedy that took place there; it could be that these are the very places that demons are more active.
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