There seems to be a lot more exorcisms these days. The internet and the movies are replete with this sacramental rite of the Catholic Church. This article will delve into just what an exorcism is, and what it is not. There are rules and a rite which must be followed for an exorcism to be valid. If not done correctly, the possessed person will more than likely continue to have demons inhabit his body.
Confession and Exorcism
Any exorcist will tell you that one sincere, contrite confession by a penitent is more powerful than an exorcism, albeit not as spectacular. I doubt Hollywood would be eager to make a film called “The Confessor,” about a priest who hears confessions. There would be no spinning heads and dirty words in a movie like that. But confession, or the “ministry of reconciliation” as St. Paul calls it, is more powerful than an exorcism because it is a sacrament of the Catholic Church, while exorcism is merely a sacramental (a rite that leads to sanctifying grace, rather than imparting it). Frequent confession of serious sins we have committed will certainly reduce the need for an exorcism, if not eliminate it. The devil hates confession, because then he cannot use your big sins as an entry point to either possess you, or drive you crazy through obsession (weird thoughts that won’t go away), or oppression (nothing you do ever turns out right, no matter how “good” you are). These things can lead to serious depression and/or suicide.
How One Can Become Possessed
While very rare, anyone can become possessed. The entry point that the devil uses to inhabit us can vary. Serious sins, such as viewing pornography, adultery, doing illegal drugs, fornication, abortion, etc., all give the demons permission to enter our bodies (not our souls, and not our wills). This is why confession of these sins is so powerful because it closes the door to the demons. Some possessed persons claim these particular sins in their lives happened a long time ago, but were never confessed. Only when they tried to become a “good person” and turn their lives around, the demon manifested. While this confuses some people, the reason for this is that as long as the person refused to amend their life, the demon had no reason to make himself known, as he already owned that person and there was no need to scare him. However, when the person turned their life around, the demon had to come after him, to make him wish to return to the “bad person” he used to be. In other words, when the demons felt like they were losing him to God, they attacked.
It’s important to remember that a demon can’t do anything without God’s permission. So why would God allow a demon to possess someone? The answer MAY be for the greater good of that person. If the person won’t love God through his own free will, then God allows the demon to take some of that free will away through possession, with the hope that he will eventually come to his senses through the experience of hell on earth. It seems to work for most!
Other demonic gateways to possession include voluntary subjugation (telling the devil to come take possession of you, in exchange for worldly pleasures and money), and curses. Yes, curses are real, and there are witches out there who will curse you for money. For example, jilted lovers can get their former partner cursed, or a parent who didn’t want their child to marry someone can have the marriage cursed. The bible warns against this type of thing, and for sure, the bible doesn’t warn against things that do not exist!
Freemasonry, which promises you salvation (to that great lodge in the sky) without Jesus, without the bible, and the sacraments, is another way that the devil can break into your family tree. If anyone in your family has been a Freemason, then you need to pray against that, as demons can attach themselves through the generations to descendants. While this is not “official” Catholic teaching, the exorcists all say that it is true.
Finally, dabbling in the occult with horoscopes, ouija boards, palm reading, crystals, new age gibberish, and tarot cards is a surefire way to open a door for possession. In the 1973 movie, “The Exorcist,“ the young girl and her aunt used an Ouija board and contacted a spirit named “Mr. Howdy,” a seemingly fun spirit who later turned out to be truly evil. The story was a true story, although a young boy was the original victim, not a girl. Never, ever give your horoscope in the paper a second look, and always steer clear of anything to do with witchcraft and spells. Barnes and Noble is full of these evil books. Once you attract a demon, it is really hard to get rid of him/them. And even if you aren’t fully possessed, your life will take a downward spiral over time through oppression or obsession.
How the Exorcist Knows if You Are Truly Possessed
Four basic things are apparent in a possessed person. The first is a total aversion to blessed holy objects like holy water, praying, or going inside a Catholic Church. The second is speaking a language the person wouldn’t know, like Greek or Latin. The third is abnormal strength, where a very small person can throw people around the room and the fourth is knowing things the person should have no way of knowing, like the priest’s secret sin, or what is happening far away at present.
The exorcist never just takes the word of the possessed concerning being possessed but will test the person by offering them a glass of water (holy water). If the person shows abhorrence to it, then that is a pretty good indicator of possession. The priest may barely touch the back of the person with a holy relic of some saint, or a blessed crucifix to see the reaction. If the person is not possessed, there would be no reaction whatsoever but if he is, then he will react very adversely to the light touching. Once a positive determination has been made, the exorcist will proceed. Of course, NO exorcism can be performed without the permission of the bishop of the diocese, so the exorcist will have to fill him in on the details and get permission before beginning.
The Rite Stuff
There is an approved Rite of the Catholic Church that the exorcist uses. The exorcist never carries on a conversation with the demons, but can demand (not ask) questions of the demon, like “What is your name?”, or “When are you leaving?”, or “How many of them are you inside her?” Carrying on a conversation with the demon is what got Eve into trouble, so, instead, the priest just commands the demon in the name of Jesus Christ to answer truthfully. And although the demon is a liar, he can be commanded to tell the truth, even when he hates it.
Only a duly authorized priest can talk to the demon. A layperson should NEVER talk to a demon. What that means is that talking to a long-deceased relative during a séance is talking to a demon who is pretending to be that long-gone loved one. Seances and spiritism were all the rage in the 19th century. One of the greatest men of that period was Bartolo Longo, who became a high priest of Satanism in Italy. He began in seances and the like and was soon possessed. However, a priest friend of his asked him, “Bartolo, do you want to go mad, commit suicide, and then wind up in hell forever?” To this, he wisely said no, and was soon freed of his demons (through an exorcism) that were causing him so much misery. He went on to be an apostle of the rosary (the demons’ nemesis) and erected a huge basilica in Pompeii in Mary’s honour.
Lay people can be involved in deliverance ministry, where we pray against the demons in the name of Jesus, but we never talk directly to them. We only pray for them to be rebuked, in Jesus’s name, and to go to the foot of the cross to await instructions from Jesus.
Online Exorcists
Several great exorcists are online, for all of our benefit. Amazingly, these exorcists seem like regular guys who are not in the least bit afraid of the devil. They come out in the open to talk about what they do for a living, in the hope that people will wake up to what is happening in the world. The devil knows his time is short, and is now in a full-court press to fool as many gullible humans as he can. How? By convincing people that abortion, transgenderism, and homosexuality are great things, instead of the pure evil that they are; by convincing people that all priests are pedophiles, rather than the 2% to 4% who are (96% are not!); by convincing people that porn is great; that being rich is the goal of life, and that our pleasure here on earth is what we should be seeking, rather than Jesus Christ. In these things, he has been very successful. There are so many exorcisms today because as people turn away from Jesus, the devil has our permission to take over our lives.
Father Steven Rossetti, who has a website called “Catholicexorcism.org”, offers online deliverance sessions once a month, through a webcast. All you have to do is sign up, get the link in your e-mail, and then participate in the online session, which consists of a rosary, prayers, and a Q and A session. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS. Additionally, on his website, there are specific recorded video prayers that he prays with you to release you from any suspected bondage from the evil one.
Father Carlos Martins has a website called “The Exorcist Files,” where he re-creates past exorcisms through very intense audio recordings. The names are changed of course, but if you want to know what a real exorcism is like, this is your chance. He has an assistant who occasionally lightens the load through comedy relief, so it isn’t all dark and depressing. Father Martins has hundreds of saints’ relics that he uses during the Rite. He also answers a lot of questions about the demons’ tactics, which you might find useful during your daily spiritual warfare.
Father Dan Rehill is all over YouTube and has a lot of fascinating things to say about the demons.
Father Vincent Lampert is on both YouTube and Twitter.
Summary
Jesus himself performed exorcisms in the Gospels, so it is a real thing, even “in the 21st Century,” as our atheist friends are constantly reminding us. Just because we live in modern times does not mean that the devil has morphed into a disease or a germ, as they allege. No, the devil and his minions are real, but they are outnumbered 2:1 by the good angels. So ask St. Michael to pray for you, along with the Blessed Virgin Mary, and your guardian angel. The devil would have you believe he is the opposite of God, but God has no opposite. The devil, like St. Michael and Mother Mary, are created creatures, so rely on them to fight him. You will never win a mind game with satan due to his superior intellect, but with humility of heart (he doesn’t have a heart!), you will beat him every time. And for the record, the Immaculate Heart of Mary is yours for the asking! Just start praying the daily rosary!
10 thoughts on “Lots of Exorcism These Days”
L.O. L.Yes I heard that story. Thank you for sharing. That’s the thing about today’s society, nobody really believes that an actual devil exists. Very sad and very dangerous situation.
Fr. Ripperger is very clear. The strength of the Ministry of Exorcism is contingent upon the spiritual strength of the church. The last time the Exorcists had relative strength against the demons was in the last year of the reign of Pope Benedict 16th. About 6 months into the papacy of Pope Francis, exorcists began to notice again how long it would take to liberate from possession. At this point, if the possessor is of the highest 3 choirs, regardless of the many exorcisms performed, the possessed is likely NEVER to be liberated.
Father Carney’s devotions to the Holy Face are clise to being a cure-all for these alarming times and the menace of Communism. I hope the devil’s time is short at the rate things are going!
Father Carlos Martins has been touring with the St. Jude relic along with authoring that short book on the saint. And yes, he seems renown for his exorcist work, I will look that website up some time.
The late Father Gabriel Amorth has received much acclaim for his work but the one book I read by him was not very accessible to me.
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In the Holy Name of Jesus Christ
And in the Holy Name of His Mother
The Blessed Virgin Mary,
I Command You to Be Gone, Satan,
You and All Your Minions!
Jesus has Defeated You
Forever…
On the Cross!
Be Eternally Confined to Hell,
As Your Permanent Abode,
After Saint Michael the Archangel,
Vanquished You in Battle!
It Has Been Revealed by the Father,
That, in the End, Once Again, You Lose!
Amen
In your comments about the number of priest sexual abusers you fell into the trap of repeating the ongoing myths which is continually being promulgated by the media. Bill Donahue of the Catholic League provides excellent reviews and a book of the abuse crisis. I would suggest you review them. Some of his conclusions are as follows .
Myth number one is that Catholic priests were pedophiles. The research from two studies conducted by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice showed that only 5% of the cases reported would be considered pedophilia (abuse against pre-pubescent children). 80% of the victims were post pubescent males which means that the accused priests were gay (adult men sexually abusing teenage boys) and the abuse is homosexual predation.
Myth number two is that it is still a large problem. The data showed that the majority of abuse occurred during the 1950s-1980s. The data indicated that 4% of priests during that period were accused. Since many of the accused priests were dead, judgement had to be made about the credibility of those accusations with approximately half (2%) of the accusations were considered credible. Very few are able to be actually adjudicated. Most of the recent “investigations” are a rehash of these last data.
The Church has since put in many measures with the Dallas Charter and since 2002 an average of less than 6.6 priests (.01 % of current priests) have been accused each year. So many more than the 96% as you quote (like 99.9%) priests are not abusers. All this does not dismiss the seriousness of clergy abuse. One case is one too many. However, the misinformation must be confronted at every turn.
Pope Francis called a conference of exorcists in 2014. Some of the things said during that conference have to be heard to be believed. Especially Fr. Truqui’s account.
What did Fr Truqui comment? I know Fr Truqui, he is a great exorcist. Last I heard he was assigned to Switzerland
“. . . [T]he Rev. Cesar Truqui, an exorcist based in Switzerland, recounted one experience he had aboard a Swissair flight. ‘Two lesbians,’ he said, had sat behind him on the plane. Soon afterward, he said, he felt Satan’s presence. As he silently sought to repel the evil spirit through prayer, one of the women, he said, began growling demonically and threw chocolates at his head.
“Asked how he knew the woman was possessed, he said that ‘once you hear a Satanic growl, you never forget it. It’s like smelling Margherita pizza for the first time. It’s something you never forget.’ ”