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Demonic activity and exorcism

Anthony Hopkins in The Rite

The Catholic News Agency has an article on it's website of an interview with a trainee exorcist, who never imagined himself doing exorcisms when he first became a priest. It was something that must have been inspired by Our Lord Himself, for he says that when he was consecrating the bread and wine during Mass one time, he prayed the following:

“At the moment of consecration of the precious blood I asked the Lord to shower his blood upon the youth and to help any young men who may have a vocation to the priesthood.”

The instant reaction of one 13-year old boy shocked the young priest, “he fell backwards and started growling. And I thought, ‘I wasn’t expecting this!’”

I don't think anyone quite expects an overt manifestation like that. I had my own experience of overt diabolic activity many years ago when I was still dabbling in New Age stuff. I had the thought that an old building, such as the one I was wandering through at the time (the old Grace Bros Building in Sydney city, no longer standing) must have a lot of "energy" in it that might be felt if one opened themselves up. Stupidest thing I ever did, and I've done some stupid things, but this beat everything else. Once I gave the ascent, I felt a rushing at me from everywhere. The pressure on me was amazing, especially the pressure into my head. I immediately changed my mind and yelled out an internal no and it stopped. But I had an immense headache and I was physically sick for two days. Even now, just remembering it, I feel like I have to remain closed to whatever it was, because that capacity to open in that way is still there.

“It is not the devil or the exorcist who is at the center of this but a person is suffering a lot and who is in need of certain liberation through Christ.”

Confession, confession, confession has worked for me - it's the greatest protection against the devil. I think most (hopefully all) demonic influence beyond that which we are normally allowed to experience was removed last year after a Catholic retreat I went to. Thankfully, I was never actually possessed, though I could have been.  It was so close.

As for correct terminology, is it a demon or a devil? “Demon comes from Greek, devil comes from Latin, either is okay,” he explained. What you are dealing with “are fallen angels who were created good.”

The early Church Fathers, including St. Jerome and St. Augustine, speculated that these angels rebelled “because of the revelation to them of God’s plan of incarnation” and their “repulsion at the notion that God, who is pure spirit and infinite, should become a man.”

For this reason, the priest observed, they have a “fascination with physicality” and “making people suffer.”

“So once the rite begins, normally he starts to manifest himself in the suffering person different ways - violence, changing of the face, changing of the voice is different,” he said, recalling recent exorcisms.

“He just wants to intimidate, but you basically have to ignore him and say ‘Hey, I am the one giving orders around here, buddy,’” he laughed.

I can just imagine our resident atheists disbelieving that this sort of thing is possible.

The demon’s angelic knowledge, he said, also means they are aware that God only permits their diabolical activities to bring about the salvation of people through “expiating suffering.”

“These suffering people are becoming saints (by) the offering of their sacrifices” which God then receives and “blesses large parts of the Church around the world.”

“When you remind the Devil of that it makes him furious,” because he knows he is losing and hence “he wants to get what he can, while he can. If he can’t win these peoples’ souls, he wants to at least make their lives miserable.”

Expiated suffering is the hardest thing to explain to people. Even thought it's difficult, it really does make you stronger as well. Seriously.

The American exorcist-in-training explained that the causes of demonic influence vary from case to case and the impact of participating in evil practices also changes with each case.

But one factor that seems to be a common foundation for people coming under the sway of the Devil is “deep wounds in their lives and, above all, in their family,” particularly where “parents have made really bad choices” and in doing so “have invited evil influence into their home.”

He lists such things as “marital infidelity, abortion, doing things that break the family apart.”

“What is the family?” he asked rhetorically, “A family is an icon; it’s an image of the blessed Trinity, and so the devil hates the family.”

Same-sex marriage is one of the ways that the devil can attack the family. You add same-sex marriage to cohabitation, infidelity and divorce, and you get total confusion as to what the family is. The devil must be very pleased today with NZ and the same-sex marriage bill that has been drawn from the ballot!

Related links: American exorcist in training shares his experience ~ Catholic News Agency
Prayer and Suffering ~ Fr. John A. Hardon, The Real Presence Association

Comments

  1. I never cease to be amazed at the bigotry shown by so called Christians filled with god's love.

    This is a classic case. D4j spends just about all his time on the interweb hurling abuse and christian love at all and sundry. Meanwhile, in the aftermath of Christchurch's earthquakes, while d4j is sucking up to god, Sam Johnson organises a volunteer workforce to come to the aid of quake victims.

    If d4j had needed help, Sam Johnson and the teams he organised, would have given that help, willingly and without any conditions attached.

    Hey, d4j, isn't it amazing what a "faggot" can do when he is filled with love for Humanity?

    ReplyDelete
  2. As for my faith, it clearly says in the Bible homosexuality is vile and wrong.

    Yes, it does. But that doesn't make you right. Why do you accept that homosexuality is wrong, according to the bible, but do all the other things it prohibits?

    Do you eat ham? You are vile and evil.

    Got a tattoo? God will condemn you to hellfire and damnation.

    Ever worked on the sabbath? You made little baby jesus cry.

    How about a seafood platter? Ever eaten oysters, squid, prawns, lobster? Bad bad boy!

    And what are you wearing? I've got on a top made of a cotton and wool blend. I hope god doesn't notice, or he might not give me that bicycle I prayed for in another thread.

    And what about the things god says you should do that you don''t? Why don't you own slaves?

    Admit it - you just use the bible to reinforce your hatred of the other, and ignore anything that you don't like. Just like all the others, you're a cafeteria christian.

    ReplyDelete
  3. LRO,

    As you well know, there are a number of rules on the OT that were specific to the Jews for that time period, while as there are other standards of behaviour that transcend time and place.

    The Ten Commandments transcend time and place, and so does anything classed as an "abomination". Homosexual acts (not the temptations) come under "abomination", along with bestiality (Lev 18:22-23).

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hmmmmm......

    Lev 11:10:

    And all that have not fins and scales in the seas , and in the rivers , of all that move in the waters , and of any living thing which [is] in the waters , they [shall be] an ABOMINATION unto you.

    God Bless

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi Chris,

    Thanks for that passage. I suppose you've noticed that it tells that anything that doesn't have fins or scales in the seas should be treated as an abomination, in relation to:

    Lev 18:22 You shall not lie with mankind as with womankind: because it is an abomination.

    Which is an abomination.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi Lucia,

    This would be a better place to start for a scriptural perspective on this (especially Fr Raymond Brown who was appointed to the Pontifical Biblical Commission by Pope Paul VI and again by Pope John Paul II).


    For example, the world’s most influential scholar on Paul currently is E. P. Sanders. He
    originated what is now called the “New Perspective on Paul.” In his book Paul, (Oxford University Press, 1991, 1992. Pp. 110-113), he very strongly defends the conservative position on homosexuality as he does in his other writings.

    The most celebrated American New Testament scholar is probably Raymond E. Brown. He was
    an editor of the Anchor Bible Dictionary and was called by some America’s foremost New
    Testament scholar. Brown is respected by both liberals and conservatives alike since he is usually seen as holding the middle ground between liberals and conservatives. But even Brown comes
    out defending the traditional position on homosexuality (Brown, Raymond E. An Introduction to
    the New Testament. New York: Doubleday, 1997 pp. 528-530). Brown’s article is one of the best
    on the subject because he summarizes the positions by both sides and then explains why the
    traditional side has more weight.

    Now Brown and Sanders are just two of the most prominent
    scholars. There are many others who support the traditional side: R.B.Hays, N.T. Wright,
    Coleman, M.L.Soards, D. F.Wright, Gagnon, and J.Dunn, just to name a few.


    God Bless

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi Chris,

    Does that mean you agree with my last comment?

    ReplyDelete
  8. Heh, I embarassed an atheist on Kiwiblog yesterday by asking him where the Bible banned gentiles from eating shellfish.

    Of course, as you and I know there is no such ban. But he missed the "gentile" part and I had to point him at Acts 15.

    Then he launched on another tack which I'd already covered by the quote...

    ReplyDelete

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