Does Exorcism Work?

Does Exorcism work?

The Church has had 2000 years’ experience since Christ overcame the power of Satan.

Do people become possessed? Most unfortunately, yes, it does happen. Padre Pio – S. Pio of Pietrelcina – (and he was only repeating the words of much more ancient saints) said, “The devil is like a mad dog on a chain. If you keep away from him, he cannot reach you. But if you approach him...”

How do we approach the devil? If we drift into a life of habitual sin, we weaken the power of God’s Grace over us. That is why frequent confession is necessary for nearly all of us weak mortals. Then some are so foolish as to dabble in the Occult. Certain types of fortune-telling and related practices are known to invoke the power of the devil. Some Rock music and Rock concerts definitely call on Satan. Whether the people involved think they really mean it or not, it is like opening a cage where there is believed to be a lion. If we indulge in these things, God will not necessarily step in by a miracle to save us, any more than he does if we walk blindfolded along a railway line. (Why would He not do so? Perhaps because “it wouldn’t be right ”). Each year, people do find themselves possessed. Some of them are successfully exorcised.

Yes, exorcisms do work – but only if carried out by a properly qualified and authorised Catholic priest. There is a prescribed procedure. In principle, every priest is given the power of exorcism along with the power of the priesthood. In practice, only certain priests are delegated the task. Their qualifications include: *Physical stamina. The procedure is very taxing physically, and may be protracted. *Unshakeable faith in God. The devil will exploit any weakness. *A scandal-free life; because the devil has a habit of shouting out the unconfessed sins of the priest to the bystanders, as a way of attacking him. *He must also have been present at an exorcism as an onlooker, so that he will not be put off by the sheer shock of it.

What happens if an unauthorised person attempts an exorcism? Our Lord warned of that [and notice that Jesus, on numerous occasions, speaks almost casually about supernatural things as though He had first-hand knowledge: He was certainly nothing like any other of the Good Men and Women who have been our human teachers through the ages: He really did speak like the Son of God]: (Matt. 12: 43-45): “When the unclean spirit has gone out of a man, he walks through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. Then he says, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he finds it empty, swept, and garnished. Then he goes, and brings with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.”

There have been reports in national secular newspapers of non-priests attempting to cast out devils: the person so “liberated” has then gone home and committed a horrifying murder.

This is written for you only to warn you never to attempt to dabble in these things.

The Church does prescribe the following prayer, composed by Pope Leo XIII in 1884 for general use; in the Old Latin Mass it was said, in the vernacular, after every Mass, and it is recommended as a daily prayer:

Prayer to St Michael

Holy Michael the Archangel, defend us in the hour of conflict. Be our safeguard against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God restrain him, we humbly pray, and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host, by the Power of God thrust Satan down to Hell, and with him all the other wicked spirits who wander through the World for the ruin of souls. Amen.

There has been a steep rise in cases of possession in recent decades, such that there are now two exorcists, appointed by the Vatican, working full time in each of several major Italian cities, and in other places worldwide.

The Other Side