Lessons From Fr. Gabriele Amorth’s First Exorcism

Father Gabriele Amorth’s very first exorcism remained especially impressed in his mind. He spoke of it in various interviews and in his book The Last Exorcist: My Battle against Satan, in which he narrates in depth what happened with so many other important exorcisms.

His first solo exorcism was very particular, because he immediately clashed with Satan himself. After having as­sisted Father Candido Amantini for many years, he exorcised a simple man. The man was very young and slim and came accompanied by a priest and a third person, a translator.

Initially, Father Amorth did not understand the reason for the translator, so the priest explained to him that when the demoniac was under possession, he spoke in English, and therefore it would be useful to have the translator present in order to understand what he was saying.

Once the exorcism began, the young peasant did not com­municate with words or gestures; it was as if nothing affected him, not even when Father Amorth invoked the help of the Lord. But after the invocation, when the exorcist priest asked specifically for the help of Jesus, the young man fixed his gaze on him and began to yell in English. 

His curses and threats were aimed solely at the exorcist; then he began spitting at him and preparing to attack him physically; only when Father Amorth arrived at the prayer Praecipio tibi (I command you), did the demon seem to placate himself a bit. But then, screaming and howling, the de­mon burst forth and looked straight at him, drooling saliva from the young man’s mouth. The exorcist, at that point, continued with the rite of liberation, asking and ordering the demon to tell him his name and reveal who he was. Because this was his first exorcism, 

Father Amorth did not expect to receive such a ter­rifying response: “I am Lucifer.” 

This article is from the book The Devil is Afraid of Me. Click image to learn more.

Thus, with great stupor, Father Amorth discovered that who he had in front of him in those moments was Lucifer in person, but at that point, he certainly could not give up or end the exorcism, so he engaged himself even more. He was convinced that he had to keep going as long as he had the strength.

So, while he continued with the prayers of liberation, the demon resumed his shrieks, making the possessed turn his head back and his eyes roll; and he remained like this with his back arched for a quarter of an hour. Who could imagine what Father Amorth felt in those moments? Changes also occurred in the environment. All of a sudden, the room became extremely cold and ice crystals formed on the windows and the walls. The exor­cist, refusing to give up, ordered Lucifer to abandon the peasant. But almost in response, the young man’s body stiffened so much that he became hard and at a certain point began to levitate; and for several minutes, he remained hovering three feet in the air. Meanwhile, the exorcist continued with the prayers of liberation. Then, at a certain point, the possessed fell down onto a chair, and a little before disappearing, Lucifer announced the day and the exact hour that he would leave the body of the peasant.

Father Amorth continued to exorcise the young man each week until the fatal day arrived. Then he let another week pass, and he rescheduled him. Upon his arrival, the young man seemed very tranquil, and in the course of the exorcism, he did not make any objections to the liberations, and indeed, he prayed tranquilly. Father Amorth asked him to explain how Lucifer left him, and he replied that on the day and at the hour that the devil had indicated he would leave, he began to howl like never before. Then, at the end of this, he felt new and light.

Father Amorth Speaks of the Good Angels

Since exorcism must also be understood in the context of the good angels, Father Amorth wrote one of his columns in the weekly Credo on the good angels:

The angelic creatures who chose to remain faithful to their nature and to the goal for which they were cre­ated — that is, to praise God eternally — did a very simple thing: they remained obedient. They accepted being submissive to God the Creator, and they made their choice in the just view, not the diabolical view of feeling humiliated by this act of submission. To the contrary, in choosing to remain faithful to God, the angels were true to their nature and their end. It was an act of fidelity to the truth for which they were created by God, which is to love Him. This attitude does not humiliate them, because it does not infer a lack of something; rather, it reflects a fullness. The angels have continued to be faithful to their nature, which refers them directly to God the Creator, the one who has inscribed in creation the laws that He considers best for the good of the creature. Thus, the way we read it in the book of Revelation (12:7 and further on) is the way it occurred. There was a giant war between the angels who remained faithful to God and those who rebelled against Him; in other words, the [good] angels against the demons. In those passages, the Bible tells us that the Archangel Michael led the angels into battle, and the rebel angels were guided by the dragon (the devil) and at the end were defeated. As a result, and I cite from memory, “for them there was no longer a place in heaven.”

Something happened here that the Bible does not declare, but that I have no reason to doubt: the demons created hell — that is, they put themselves in a situation, in a state, that placed them in opposition to God, and in doing so, harmed themselves. Their new condition, known in the Bible as “hell,” means that the dev­ils are forever excluded from paradise — that is, the vision of God, and the goals of enjoyment and eternal happiness for which they were created. 

Therefore, the demons are definitively condemned; for them, there is no longer any possibility of salvation. Why? Because their intelligence, which is much superior to ours, since they are pure spirits, makes their choice definitive, because it was done with full awareness and is therefore not retractable. But the demons do not wish to take back such a choice. 

The same is true, but to the contrary, for the angels who have chosen God and enjoy Him in eternity; and it is also true for the saints, those who are already admitted to the eternal vision of God. And this is true also for us, who are called to sanctity here on earth and, if necessary, in purgatory.

How the Demon Enters Souls

The journalist Marco Tosatti asked Father Amorth which are the paths preferred by the devil when entering the soul of men. Amorth responded:

There are four methods the demon utilizes to enter souls; one regards saints, and two are extremely rare. When the demon tempts a person who seems holy, he attempts to make him renounce his godly ways. This case is extremely rare. The other extremely rare case is that of leading a person into a complex of extremely serious sins in a way that is nearly irreversible. In my view, this was the method [that Satan used] with Judas Iscariot. . . . The most frequent case — and I put it at 90 percent — is that of the evil spell. It happens when someone sustains an evil caused by the demon that has been provoked by some person who has turned to Satan or someone who has acted with satanic perfidy. The remaining, 10 to 15 percent — I do not have an exact number — regard persons who have participated in occult practices, such as séances or satanic sects, or have contacted wizards and fortune-tellers. These forms of Satanism are widely diffused, and I think that today they are spread by stars and celebrities who have a huge following… I have nothing against rock music; it is very respectable music; I am against satanic rock.

https://catholicexchange.com/lessons-from-fr-gabriele-amorths-first-exorcism

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This article is adapted from Fr. Stanzione’s introduction to a chapter in The Devil is Afraid of Me: The Life and Work of the World’s Most Popular Exorcist. It is available as an ebook or paperback from Sophia Institute Press. 

Check out Fr. Stanzione’s previous article “Fr. Gabriele Amorth: Exorcist Par Excellence” here on Catholic Exchange.

To learn more about Fr. Amorth, see K.V. Turley’s article, “The Exorcist’s Last Testament.”

By Fr. Marcello Stanzione

Don Marcello Stanzione, a priest, pastor, angelologist, and author of more than two hundred books on ecology and spirituality, was born in Salerno (Campania) in 1963. In 2002, he re-founded the Militia of St. Michael the Archangel in order to spread devotion to the holy angels and their prince, St. Michael: man’s guardian in the battle against the devil. Each Michaelmas, in Rome, the Militia holds a three-day national meeting on the angels. The Ecology and the Angelic World was presented by Don Marcello Stanzione at the national meeting in 2018.

The real-life exorcism that inspired ‘The Exorcist’

The popular 1973 film was based on a haunting exorcism that occurred in St. Louis.

Philip Kosloski

In 1949, a young 13-year-old boy in Maryland was hearing and seeing strange things in his house after playing with a Ouija board. His family didn’t know what to do, so they contacted their Lutheran pastor.

According to an historical account of the events, the pastor said, “Go to a Catholic priest; the Catholics know about this kind of thing.”

They visited a local priest who later asked permission to perform an exorcism at Georgetown University Hospital. It didn’t end well, with the boy breaking off a spring from the mattress and slashing the priest.

Supernatural events persisted and so his parents felt they needed to do something more. The boy’s mother was from St. Louis and thought it would be good to find a priest there who could help.

The family ended up staying at a relative’s house, who graduated from St. Louis University. They were familiar with the Jesuit priests at the university and asked them for advice. After getting permission from the local bishop the Jesuits performed an exorcism that spanned almost 2 months.

Initially the exorcism was performed at the house, but it was later moved to St. Louis University as well as the Alexian Brothers Hospital.

According to a Jesuit seminarian at the time, “I got in on the business with the prayers of exorcism, and the little boy would go into a seizure and get quite violent. So Father Bowdern asked me to hold him … Yes, he did break my nose.’

The Jesuit exorcist who was chiefly responsible for performing the Rite of Exorcism fasted on bread and water throughout the entire span of events and took his role very seriously. It was a spiritual battle and he was poised to do everything necessary to defeat the assaults of the evil one.

Surprisingly, many of the events portrayed on film did happen, including a vomit that shot across the room at one of the priests. Yet, the boy never remembered any of it and woke up in the morning with no recollection of the great struggle that happened the night before.

St. Louis University relates on its website, “The exorcism continued on almost a nightly basis, even though the boy seemed to be get­ting worse. The priests asked his family for permission to teach him about Catholicism and con­vert him as a way to strengthen the fight against the supposed demonic possession. As he got closer to conversion and making his first holy Communion, his episodes become increasingly violent.”

Everything culminated with the celebration of Easter, when the priests were finally able to expel the demonic influences.

The day after Easter Sunday the extraordinary events ceased and the boy went on to lead a normal life, getting married, having children and a successful career. The Jesuits believed the exorcism was a success.

While The Exorcist may seem like a work of fiction, it was inspired by real-life events and remind us all that the devil is real and the only way to defeat him is through a life of prayer, united to the sacraments of the Church.

https://aleteia.org/2018/06/12/the-real-life-exorcism-that-inspired-the-exorcist/

An Exorcist Describes Death, Judgement, and Our Everlasting Life Fr. Gabriele Amorth

An Exorcist Describes Death, Judgement, and Our Everlasting Life

Fr. Gabriele Amorth

Heaven, the Kingdom of Love

I wish to include some basic notions of Christian eschatology, which, because of the Resurrection of Christ give a reason for great hope to everyone — in particular, to those who suffer from evil spells. Our life, our earthly pilgrimage, and our suffering are not the fruit of a blind randomness; rather, they are ordered for our greater good and definitive friendship with God.

Let us begin, then, precisely from paradise, the final goal and the reason for which we have been created. “Those who die in God’s grace and friendship and are perfectly purified live for ever with Christ. They are like God for ever, for they ‘see him as he is,’ face to face,” (CCC 1023).

Our Faith guarantees that in paradise we shall enjoy the vision of God; that is, we shall become participants in that same happiness that the divine Persons enjoy among themselves:

“The life of the blessed consists in the full and perfect possession of the fruits of the redemption accomplished by Christ. He makes partners in his heavenly glorification those who have believed in him and remained faithful to his will. Heaven is the blessed community of all who are perfectly incorporated into Christ” (CCC, no. 1026).

A question arises spontaneously: What need did the Trinity have for creatures, for men and angels, when It was already perfect and absolutely sufficient in Itself? The Trinity did it solely out of love, gratuitous and unconditional love for us. The advantage is solely ours: love, joy, and happiness, for all, in paradise.

There are degrees of participation in the joy and love of God. This degree of rank is given according to the level of sanctity each person has reached during his lifetime: the joy of St. Francis of Assisi, for example, will be different from that of the good thief. There is a difference between men on earth, and there will be a difference in paradise.

It is similar to what happens with the stars in heaven: there are those that shine brighter and those that shine a little less. So also it will be with men in the glorious resurrection: all of us shall be resplendent, but each one with a different proportion. Each one will have that maximum of splendor and happiness that he is personally capable of, based on how he has lived his life. Some will have a greater capacity and others less, but without envy or jealousy toward each other.

Indeed, each one will know complete joy. A verse from Dante’s Divine Comedy comes to mind: “In his will is our peace.” In paradise there is no jealousy; each one is in the will of God, and in His will there is peace. Eternal peace is definitive, where each tear, each sorrow, and all envy will be wiped away.

The Souls in Purgatory

Purgatory is the place, or, better, the state to which come the souls that have need of a purification and therefore have not been immediately admitted to contemplate the face of God. This purification is necessary in order to arrive at sanctity, the condition that heaven requires. The Catechism speaks of the souls in purgatory: “All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven” (no. 1030).

This article is from a chapter in An Exorcist Explains the Demonic.

We can understand that there are gradations or diverse states in purgatory; each one accommodates the situation of the soul that arrives there. There are the lower strata, more terrible because they are closer to hell, and the more elevated that are less terrible because they are much closer to the happiness of paradise. The level of purification is linked to this state.

The souls in purgatory are in a state of great suffering. We know, in fact, that they can pray for us and that they can obtain many graces for us, but they can no longer merit anything for themselves. The time for meriting graces finishes with death.

Purged souls can, however, receive our help in order to abbreviate their period of purification. This occurs in a powerful way through our prayers, with the offering of our sufferings, paying attention at Mass, specifically at funerals or at Gregorian Masses, celebrated for thirty consecutive days.

This last practice was introduced by St. Gregory the Great in the sixth century, inspired by a vision he had of a confrere who died without confessing himself and, having gone to purgatory, appeared to him, asking him to celebrate some Masses in his favor. The pope celebrated them for thirty days. At that point, the deceased appeared to him again, happy for having been admitted to paradise. One must take care: this does not mean that it will always work this way: that would be a magical attitude, unacceptable and erroneous toward a sacrament. In fact, it is solely God who decides these matters when He wills it through His divine mercy.

On the subject of Masses, it is necessary to say that they can be applied to a particular deceased, but, at the last moment, it is God who destines them to those who have a real need. For example, I often celebrate Masses for my parents, whom I believe in my conscience are already in paradise. Only God in His mercy will destine the benefits of my Masses to those who have more need, each one according to the criteria of justice and goodness reached during his life.

Regarding all that I have said, I wish warmly to advise that it is better to expiate suffering in this life and become a saint than, in a minimalist way, to aspire to purgatory, where the pains are long-lasting and heavy.

The Pains of Hell

The book of Revelation says that “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).

Why were they hurled down to the earth? Because the punishment they were given is that of persecuting men, trying to lead them to eternal hell, rendering them their unfortunate companions for an eternity of suffering and torment.

How can this drama, which involves everyone, enter into the plans of God? As we have said, the next reason is the liberty granted by God to His creatures. Certainly we know that the mission of Satan and his acolytes is to ruin man, to seduce him, to lead him toward sin, and to distance him from the full participation in divine life, to which we have all been called, which is paradise.

Then there is hell, the state in which the demons and the condemned are distanced from the Creator, the angels, and the saints in a permanent and eternal condition of damnation. Hell, after all, is self-exclusion from communion with God. As the Catechism states: “We cannot be united with God unless we freely choose to love him. But we cannot love God if we sin gravely against him, against our neighbor or against ourselves” (no. 1033). The one who dies in mortal sin without repenting goes to hell; in an impenitent way, he has not loved. It is not God who predestines a soul to hell; the soul chooses it with the way [the person] has lived his life.

We have some stories about hell that, because they are taken from private revelations or experiences, do not bind the faithful, but, nevertheless, have a notable value. I have spoken on more occasions in my books and in my interviews of the experience of St. Faustina Kowalska, who in her diary writes of her spiritual journey to hell.

It is shocking.

Stories and visions like these have to make us reflect. For this reason Our Lady of Fatima said to the seers: “Pray and offer sacrifices; too many souls go to hell because there is no one to pray and offer sacrifices for them.”

Being in the kingdom of hate, damned souls are subjected to the torment of the demons and to the sufferings they reciprocally inflict on one another. In the course of my exorcisms I have understood that there is a hierarchy of demons, just as there is with angels. More than once I have found myself involved with demons who were possessing a person and who demonstrated a terror toward their leaders.

One day, after having done many exorcisms on a poor woman, I asked the minor demon who was possessing her: “Why don’t you go away?” And he replied: “Because if I go away from here, my leader, Satan, will punish me.” There exists in hell a subjugation dictated by terror and hatred. This is the abysmal contrast with paradise, the place where everyone loves one another and where, if a soul sees someone holier, that soul is immensely happy because of the benefit it receives from the happiness of another.

Some say that hell is empty. The response to this affirmation is found in chapter 25 of Matthew’s Gospel, where it speaks of the Last Judgment: the upright will go to eternal life and the others, the cursed, will go to the eternal fire. We can certainly hope that hell is empty, because God does not wish the death of a sinner but that he convert and live (see Ezek. 33:11). For this He offers His mercy and saving grace to each one. In the Gospel of John Jesus says: “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained” (John 20:23); thus He insists on our continuous conversion supported by the grace of the sacraments, in particular the sacrament of Penance.

Returning to the question of hell, whether it is empty or not: unfortunately, I fear that many souls go there, all those who per­severe in their choice of distancing themselves from God to the end. Let us meditate often on this. Pascal said it well: “Meditation on hell has filled paradise with saints.”

The Judgment on Life

The Catechism speaks of the particular judgment: “The New Testament speaks of judgment primarily in its aspect of the final encounter with Christ in his second coming, but also repeatedly affirms that each will be rewarded immediately after death in accordance with his works and faith” (no. 1021).

And further on it adds: “Each man receives his eternal retribution in his immortal soul at the very moment of his death, in a particular judgment that refers his life to Christ: either entrance into the blessedness of heaven — through a purification or immediately — or immediate and everlasting damnation” (no. 1022). Then it adds the criterion with which this judgment will occur, taken from the writings of St. John of the Cross: “At the evening of life, we shall be judged on our love.”

The first thing that I would emphasize is precisely this last: the final criterion of our judgment will be the love that we have had toward God and toward our brothers and sisters. How, then, will this particular judgment occur?

At times, I run into persons who are convinced that immediately after death they will meet Jesus in person and that He will give them a piece of His mind for some of their dolorous affairs. Frankly, I do not think that it will happen like this. Rather, I believe that, immediately after death, each of us will appear before Jesus, but it will not be the Lord who will review our lives and examine the good and the bad each of us has done. We ourselves shall do it, in truth and honesty.

Each one will have before himself the complete vision of his life, and he will immediately see the real spiritual state of his soul and will go where his situation will bring him. It will be a solemn moment of self-truth, a tremendous and definitive moment, as definitive as the place where we shall be sent. Let us consider the case of the person who goes to purgatory.

It will involve the sorrow of not immediately going to paradise that will make him understand that his purification on earth was not complete, and he will feel the immediate need of purifying himself. His desire of acceding to the vision of God will be strong, and the desire for liberation from the weight of the pains accumulated during his earthly life will be compelling.

The Last Judgment: It Will Be Love That Will Judge Us

Let us end with the universal judgment:

The Last Judgment will come when Christ returns in glory. Only the Father knows the day and the hour; only he de­termines the moment of its coming. Then through his Son Jesus Christ he will pronounce the final word on all history. We shall know the ultimate meaning of the whole work of creation and of the entire economy of salvation and understand the marvelous ways by which his Providence led everything towards its final end. (CCC, no. 1040)

This is one of the most difficult realities to understand. The Last Judgment coincides with the return of Christ; however we do not know the precise time it will occur. We know that it will be preceded immediately by the resurrection of the dead. In that precise moment, the history of the world will definitively and globally end. The Catechism again specifies: “In the presence of Christ, who is Truth itself, the truth of each man’s relationship with God will be laid bare [cf. John 12:49]” (no. 1039).

The essential question is: What is the concrete rapport that each man has with God? As I have mentioned, the solemn response is found in the Gospel of Mathew. The saved and the damned will be chosen on the basis of their recognition or rejection of Christ in the infirm, in the hungry, and in the poor (Matt. 25:31–46). Two essential elements emerge from this. The first is a division, a schism, between those going to paradise and those going to hell, between the saved and the condemned. The second regards the manner in which this judgment will be accomplished — with love. God’s Commandments and every other precept are summarized solely in one commandment: “[L]ove one another as I have loved you” (John 15:12).

We can easily understand that this command is addressed to each human conscience in every age, including those who lived before Christ and those, who today, as in centuries past, never heard anyone speak of the Son of Man. Therefore, the finale of this stupendous passage is the beautiful passage from Mathew: “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me” (Matt. 25:40).

If each man — apart from his religion, his culture, his epoch, and any other circumstance — has loved his neighbor, he has also loved the Lord Jesus in person. Any rapport with our brothers and sisters in any locality, any age, or any situation is, all in all, a rapport with Jesus Christ in person. Each human creature who achieves fulfillment in his human relationships is, at the same time, relating to God. For this reason, the love of neighbor is the fundamental precept of life. John the Evangelist helps us to understand that we cannot say that we love God, whom we cannot see, if we do not love our brother, whom we can see (cf. 1 John 4:20).

The love that will judge us will be the same love that we have (or have not) practiced toward others, the same love that Jesus lived in His earthly experience and taught us in the Gospels, the same love to which we are entitled through the sacraments, through prayer, and through a life of faith. The ability to love comes from grace, and it is much reduced in those who do not know Christ; and even more so in those who know Him but do not follow Him, a choice that assumes a serious sin. Indeed, Jesus said: “He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:16).

On the other hand, in announcing the extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy, Pope Francis reminds us that the other fundamental aspect of the question is that the love with which we shall be judged will be the Love of mercy. “Mercy is the ultimate and supreme act by which God comes to meet us.” This mercy, he says, “is the bridge that connects God and man and opens our hearts to the hope of being loved forever despite our sinfulness.”

God’s compassionate glance and His desire to live in total communion with us opens our hearts to the hope that each sin and each failure inflicted on man by his great enemy, Satan, will be looked upon with the eyes of a loving and accepting Father. Therefore, let us live full of hope, because we know that, even in the difficulties of our life’s journey, God will wipe away all the tears from our eyes. On that day “death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away” (Rev. 21:4).

Editor’s note: This article is adapted from a chapter in Fr. Amorth’s An Exorcist Explains the Demonic: The Antics of Satan and His Army of Fallen Angels, which is available from Sophia Institute Press.

Find more of Fr. Amorth’s work on Catholic Exchange by clicking here.

https://catholicexchange.com/exorcist-describes-death-judgement-everlasting-life

“Padre Pio is often with me during exorcisms, and the devil fears him”

Gelsomino Del Guercio

He came to the attention of the media because he was the leader, on December 4, of a meeting at the Telesio Grammar School in Reggio Calabria, Italy, to discuss the “horror game” that has been popular online for quite a while, the “Charlie Charlie Challenge.”

A conference with the Focolarini

Fr. Piero Catalano, disciple of Fr. Gabriele Amorth, the famous exorcist of the diocese of Rome who died in 2016, is a priest and exorcist of Reggio Calabria, explained why he uses the relics of saints during exorcisms and invokes Saint Pio of Pietrelcina against the devil to good effect.

After a life dedicated to volunteer work with the Gen Movement (connected to the Focolari Movement founded by Chiara Lubich), on December 8, 1988 he became consecrated to God in the priesthood. He has been the pastor of two towns on the Jonica coast of Reggio Calabria—Roccaforte del Greco and Saint Pantaleone—and today is the pastor of the Parish of Saint John Nepomucene and Saint Philip Neri in Arangea.

The demons fear even to say his name!

Fr. Piero studied for years to be an exorcist and is a spiritual son of Fr. Amorth. He started practicing prayer of liberation at the age of 18, and was named an exorcist three years ago.

In his office, he has many relics of saints. “I use them during my exorcisms,” he explains to Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera (last December 19). “Which saint do I invoke most often? I have a special love for Saint Pio of Pietrelcina, who often makes himself present during exorcisms. The possessed person becomes afraid. He’ll say, ‘The one with the beard is here!’ And I reply, ‘By any chance, is he named Saint Pio of Pietrelcina?’ The demon will respond, ‘No, his name is Francesco Forgione.’ The devil fears even to name him.”

From nausea to cold

Fr. Piero says that he becomes aware of a demonic presence, a possession, or a vexation, through typical reactions of the demon. “For example, as soon as I put my hand on the person’s head, he or she pulls back, turns very cold, feels like he or she is choking, or becomes nauseated, etc.” If it’s not a case of demonic presence, then the exorcist limits himself to a prayer of liberation.

“Do you want to come over to my side?”

“The demon,” Fr. Piero observes, “does everything possible to tempt us exorcists. Once, he asked me, ‘How much money do you want to come over to my side?’ I started to laugh, because I’ve made a vow of poverty. I don’t have money to pay for my own funeral if I die, and I share everything with the poor. And the devil said, ‘If I could, I’d kill you instantly.’ Then I replied, ‘But you can’t because I belong to Jesus!'”

https://aleteia.org/2018/02/14/padre-pio-is-often-with-me-during-exorcisms-and-the-devil-fears-him/

How Satan seduces the soul, and how to stay protected

“The devil’s greatest trick is making us think that he doesn’t exist.” These aren’t the words of a theologian, or even those of a saint: they were written by the French poet Charles Baudelaire. Satan’s silent but active presence is like an undetected cancer that, in a devious and unperceived way, corrupts a body and takes up residence in as many of its organs as possible through a lethal metastasis.

Fr. Paolo Morocutti knows this all too well. He is an exorcist of the Diocese of Palestrina, one of Rome’s suburbicarian dioceses [six of Rome’s suffragan dioceses, with bishops who are cardinals and a special historical status – translator’s note]. He is also a member of the AIE (International Association of Exorcists, abbreviated from its name in Italian), and the teacher of various courses for exorcists.

Many people would perhaps like to meet an exorcist so they could learn more about the devil. Here is some of what we learned when we sat down with Fr. Morocutti.

Some theologians are of the opinion that biblical exorcisms—including those performed by Jesus—were simply healings of illnesses which, at that time, were considered spiritual influences. What do you think about this subject?

Actually, this question was resolved long ago. Above all, it’s a matter of intellectual honesty. Careful biblical exegesis, and serious theology, recognize clearly the difference in the Gospels between the way that Christ deals with people who are sick and the way he deals with people who are possessed. He uses two totally different approaches.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church contains a clear teaching on this subject, and no good Catholic can leave it aside. Finally, I would like to refer to the teachings of the saints, who, with their life of union with Christ, lived within the Church, have done nothing but confirm the Magisterium clearly and unequivocally.

Some people would eliminate the ministry of exorcists, because they consider it a usurpation of the work of psychologists. How would you respond to this?

I teach General Psychology at the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, and I understand the difference between the two disciplines quite clearly. According to Christian anthropology, human beings are always and everywhere to be understood from an integral and united perspective. The two disciplines are not, in fact, in competition; rather, they are closely connected. A spiritually disturbed person almost always needs qualified human support in order to interpret the situation and go forward peacefully. When the spirit is affected, the flesh is affected too, and vice versa. The problem arises when psychology, especially psychotherapy, builds its convictions on unlikely anthropological concepts, or on ones that are far from Christian humanism; in that case, dangerous—or at the very least, inconvenient—dichotomies can arise.

What are the criteria for discerning psychological cases from spiritual ones?

The wisdom of the Church, developed over thousands of years through the formation of liturgical books—which, among other things, forms part of the official Magisterium for us Catholics—lays out a procedure through which a priest who is an exorcist can recognize the work and presence of the evil one. I think it is useful to mention that, in the latest version of the rite, the exorcist is invited to make use of medical and psychological science in order to discern better. Besides that, the rite indicates as criteria for discerning: speaking unknown languages, knowing or revealing things that are hidden, and demonstrating strength disproportionate to the age and natural state of the subject. These are not absolute criteria; they are signs which, if identified within a general picture with attention to details, can greatly help an exorcist to discern. It is necessary to dedicate a lot of time to listening to the person and making an attentive analysis of the subject’s behavior and habits of life. It is important to focus more on his or her moral life than on the signs, although the latter can always be a great help.

What are the main channels through which demonic obsession or possession can come about?

The main channel is definitely sin—in particular, a state of grave sin, lived deliberately and without repentance: this condition generally exposes the soul to the action of the evil one.

That said, the main extraordinary channels of action of the evil one are: esotericism, sorcery, the more or less conscious following of philosophical practices inspired in oriental religions or, in any case, incompatible with a Christian anthropological view, and lastly, participation in an openly Satanic group.

Often, these realities are hidden behind apparently innocuous ideologies; we must be cautious. Satan seduces us with false beauty, making things that are contrary to God seem good and harmless.

Still, at the center of the process of discernment is always a person’s moral action. If a person acts with moral rectitude and remains in a state of grace, seeking the truth, it is unlikely that he or she will be the object of extraordinary action of the evil one—who will, in any case, continue to act in his ordinary way. Obviously, the lives of certain saints are an exception; in some cases, due to special permission from God, they even experience combat with the devil in a bloody way.

What positive things have you learned from exercising this ministry, that you can leave with us as a lesson and advice for our readers?

That the love of Jesus Christ for our souls is something serious, and that the soul should be protected in a state of grace as the most beautiful and sublime gift that God has given us. Today, the sense of sin is fading more and more, due to a profoundly mistaken understanding of mercy. In this ministry, I have come to understand clearly that the Eucharist celebrated and adored, regular reception of the sacrament of Confession, and filial love for Mary Most Holy, are the most reliable means for walking always in grace and truth and for always enjoying the sweet presence of Jesus in our souls.
https://aleteia.org/2017/07/12/how-satan-seduces-the-soul-and-how-to-stay-protected/

This article first appeared in Aleteia’s Italian edition; the complete interview with Fr. Paolo Morocutti is here (in Italian).

What an exorcist can teach an evangelist :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Fr. Seelos

What an exorcist can teach an evangelist :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)
By Joe Tremblay *
The Devil may, of course, win the battles, even important battles, but he will never win the war.

-Father Gabriel Amorth, Vatican's chief excorcist

Knowing the Truth:

Evangelization and exorcisms are two kindred missions of the Church. After all, Church-approved exorcisms are but a dramatic expression of the titanic but often unperceived struggle between grace and sin in every individual. But good triumphing over evil depends on first knowing the truth about this conflict. 

Take for instance, The Rite, The Exorcist and The Exorcism of Emily Rose. These are movies that were inspired by true stories. Nevertheless, all three films were riddled with half-truths. In my opinion, none of them conveyed the clear sense that Christ won the battle. There lingered a kind of dreary overcast and a shadow at the end of each of these movies. From my vantage point, the victory of good over evil was neither decisive nor satisfying. The one rare exception to the rule is The Haunting in Connecticut; a well-done documentary by the Discovery Channel on a demon infested house that oppressed a family. These evil spirits were cast out by an Exorcism and a Mass in a convincing fashion. When the rite of exorcism was complete, it was as if light, peace and warmth permeated the house. Evil had been defeated. Christ had won just as he had in the Gospels so many times. And as for the family that had been oppressed for so many weeks, they had been finally liberated. 

The Conflict of Exorcisms:

The Discovery documentary on the exorcism in Connecticut, as with any exorcism, is instructive for Catholic evangelists and teachers. Exorcism is a microcosm of how Christ restores what belongs to him in the Church’s day to day mission. Ushering in the kingdom of heaven quite often presupposes a conflict that involves causalities. After all, purging evil is offensive to both demons and men. St. Paul reminded the Corinthians that they are the aroma of Christ for those who are being saved but the odor of death for those who are perishing. 

The exorcist, as well as the evangelist, must see through the hazards of the battle. To be sure, the reason is that with the eradication of evil there is opposition and resistance. But the failure to pull up evil from the roots is to endanger the seed of God from being firmly planted in the soil. Our Lord himself said to the Pharisees, “But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. How can anyone enter a strong man’s house and steal his property, unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house…” Indeed, every rite of exorcism performed in his name is an act of plundering, tying up the strong man and casting him out. This must take place before the return of God’s peace and his grace either to a soul or to a house. 

I Smell God: 

This decisive victory in Connecticut reminds me of a story in what used to be my hometown. A young gentleman had attended a high school party where the Ouija Board was being played by a number of kids. It just so happened that this Ouija Board was pretty active that night. In fact, it was alleged that there was a spirit, if I remember correctly, by the name of "Sue" that they had supposedly contacted. This spirit said that she had died at age eight and began to reveal some other features of “her life on earth.” This is where the young gentlemen who told my family the story comes in. He had walked into the house and realized what was transpiring. Being well formed in the Catholic Faith he got a little concerned about the paranormal activity. He then went back into his car and retrieved his scapular (a necklace-like cloth piece which carries with it, our Lady's protection and our Lord's blessing) and put it on underneath his shirt. This, he did without telling anyone. He then proceeded back into the house. Lo and behold, the activity with the Ouija board abruptly stopped. Baffled over the abrupt silence, the teenagers petitioned the spirit why it had ceases to interact with them. The last words that were spelled out, supposedly from the once friendly spirit of “Sue,” was the following: “I smell God!” The Ouija board participants heard no more from Sue.

Prudence and the Criteria:

With every report of diabolic phenomenon, prudence must always accompany the discernment of its authenticity. It has been said that 80-90% of all cases that come before the Church have a natural explanation such as a psychological or physical disorder. But for those approved exorcisms, one or more of follow criteria must be met: bodily levitation, extraordinary strength, speaking foreign language or unfamiliar tongue or knowing things beyond the person’s natural capability, and demonstrating an aversion to sacramentals or to the name of Jesus and Mary. When a diabolic presence has been determined, an exorcist must approach the victim with a spirit of sacrifice and confidence. When the world’s leading Vatican exorcist, Fr. Gabriel Amorth, was asked if he was afraid of the devil, his response was: “Afraid of that beast? He’s the one who should be afraid of me because I work in the name of the Lord of the world. He is only an ape of God.”

The Attitude of an Exorcist:

In fact, 1952 rite of exorcism gives the following instructions: “Let the priest pronounce the exorcism in a commanding and authoritative voice, and at the same time with great confidence, humility, and fervor…with his intention fixed on God, whom he should entreat with firm faith and in all humility. And if he is all the more grievously tormented, he ought to bear this patiently, never doubting the divine assistance.” Every exorcist knows that the demons or the evil spirits will not willingly vacate. That is why the rite prescribes the following: “He [the priest] will pay attention as to what words in particular cause the evil spirits to tremble, repeating them the more frequently.” A real battle is anticipated. As such, the priest who engages in spiritual warfare of this nature cannot flinch if the victim soul is to be liberated. 

Spiritual Pacifism:

But many Catholic clergy and laity are flinching. In some cases are not fighting the war all together. For instance, Fr. Gabriel Amorth lamented that “casting out demons” and “tying up the strong man” is simply not being done in many European countries. In a 2006 interview he said, “Before this new Rite came out, the German Episcopate wrote in a letter to Cardinal Ratzinger that there was no point in a new Rite in that exorcisms should no longer be performed.” The he goes on to report the following: “We have countries completely devoid of exorcists, such as Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Spain and Portugal. This is a shameful shortfall.” 


Exorcisms and Evangelization: Two Kindred Missions

What does the evangelist take away from the exorcist? The fact that exorcisms and evangelization are kindred missions is not to suggest that evangelists and teachers should go around issuing commands or put on an air of militancy. But there is a general lesson to take away from exorcisms. And the lesson is that preaching the Gospel is a kind of exorcism in that evil is purged as God’s goodness is ushered in. In practical terms, it could mean the Church calling people to repentance before admitting them to the Sacraments; or it could mean issuing a public reprimand or warning to politicians and other celebrities who publicly oppose Catholic principles; or it could mean for dioceses and parishes to get the right people on the bus (Catholics who embrace the fullness of Christ’s teachings) and getting the wrong people off of the bus (nominal Catholics). Keep in mind, the unity of minds, the uniformity of action and speaking with one voice depends on it!

With that said, many twenty-first century Catholics refuse to drive away demons and tie up the strong man both in their personal spiritual warfare and in their ministries. However, there are two problems with this: First, it is diametrically opposed to the Gospel. Second, it doesn’t work! It obviously doesn’t work with exorcisms. And it does not work with the Church’s pastoral practices and her mission to evangelize! In terms of the last five decades, the Church’s diminished influence on culture, of lower church attendance and of a fewer priestly and religious vocations seem to suggest this.