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What is exorcism? -

Exorcism is the religious or spiritual ritual of evicting demons from a person, or an area. The Catholic Church authorizes the use of exorcism for those who are believed to be the victims of demonic possession.

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The establishment of exorcism - The first official guidelines for exorcism were established in 1614. However, the foundations for combating heresy were laid by the Catholic Church with the Inquisition circa 1250.

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When is an exorcism needed? -

According to modern-day Vatican guidelines, "the person who claims to be possessed must be evaluated by doctors to rule out a mental or physical illness." Catholic officials regard genuine demonic possession as an extremely rare phenomenon.

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What are the signs of demonic invasion? -

Signs of demonic invasion include a change in the person's voice, unnatural bodily postures, cutting, scratching, and biting of skin, supernatural physical strength, and the levitation and moving of objects and things.

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Recorded cases of exorcism -

Saint Castrense is seen performing an exorcism in this 13th-century mosaic located at Monreale Cathedral in Sicily, Italy.

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The exorcism of Nicole Aubrey -

Nicole Aubrey was a young French woman who was publicly exorcised in 1566 in the French city of Laon. Known as the "miracle of Laon," the rite took place during the French Wars of Religion. For Catholics, the exorcism was proof of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. For Protestants, the event was an obvious hoax.

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Witch-hunt of Labourd -

The 1609 witch-hunt of Labourd, France saw some 70 people burnt at the stake, among them several priests. The havoc was overseen by Pierre de Lancre in an attempt to end the practice of witchcraft and halt Satan's mission to deliver demonic children, thus spreading evil throughout the community.

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Louviers possessions -

Sister Madeleine Bavent was 18 years old in 1625 when she became the subject of a public exorcism after supposedly being married to the Devil. Other nuns were implicated. So too was Father Thomas Boulle, the vicar of Louviers. Sister Bavent would be imprisoned for life in the church dungeon, while Father Boulle would meet his fate at the stake.

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Loudun possessions -

In 1634, a convent of nuns in Loudun in France claimed they had been visited and possessed by demons. A local priest, Father Urbain Grandier (pictured), was accused of summoning the evil spirits and later burned at the stake. 

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George Lukins -

Englishman George Lukins is infamous for his alleged demonic possession and the subsequent exorcism that occurred in 1788, and which took place in Bristol’s Temple Church (pictured before it fell into ruin). When the ceremony was over, Lukins recited the Lord’s Prayer and thanked the priests—one of the few recorded exorcisms with a happy ending. 

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"Jesus is Victor" -

In 1842, a German woman, Gottliebin Dittus, claimed her house was haunted. Soon afterwards, she endured blackouts and trances. A pastor performed an exorcism, during which she became violent and had to be restrained. Two days later, the demons were declared banished. Theologian Johann Blumhardt (pictured) later wrote a book about the two-year-long demonic possession and famously summarized the event with the statement "Jesus is Victor."

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The Clara Germana Cele case -

Believed possessed by a demon after making a pact with Satan, 16-year-old South African Clara Germana Cele started to speak in languages of which she had no previous knowledge. She demonstrated clairvoyance and extraordinary strength and ferocity. In a case that reverberated around Natal in 1906 and 1907, two priests were summoned to perform an exorcism. After a "noxious smell" was observed leaving her body, the young woman was declared free of evil.

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The Anna Ecklund case -

Anna Ecklund (born Emma Schmidt) was an American woman who at age 14 began exhibiting signs of possession, including revulsion of holy objects and an inability to enter churches. Ecklund underwent two lengthy exorcisms: the first in 1912, the second in 1928. In February 1936, the case was profiled in Time magazine.

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The real exorcist -

In 1949 in the United States, priests performed a series of exorcisms on a 13-year-old anonymous boy, documented under the pseudonym "Roland Doe." The youngster had begun hearing and seeing strange things. As his condition worsened, he began speaking in a guttural voice and exhibiting an aversion to anything sacred. Allegedly, during one ceremony, the teenager’s bed began to shake. The supernatural events were used as elements in the 1971 novel 'The Exorcist' by William Peter Blatty and the 1973 film adaptation. 

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'The Exorcist' (1973) -

The supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin and starring Max von Sydow is regularly voted the most frightening movie ever made.

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'The Exorcist' (1973) -

The story follows the demonic possession of a 12-year-old girl and her mother's attempt to rescue her through an exorcism conducted by two priests. 

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Anneliese Michel - Despite a history of epilepsy and depression, Anneliese Michel
was convinced she was possessed by a demon. So too were family members. As a result, an appeal was made to the Catholic Church for an exorcism. The first ceremony took place in September 1975, carried out by two priests. In all, 67 exorcism sessions took place. Eventually, Michel, a German woman born in Bavaria, died of malnutrition and dehydration due to being in a semi-starvation state for almost a year while the rites of exorcism were carried out.

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'The Exorcism of Emily Rose' (2005) -

The film 'The Exorcism of Emily Rose' (2005) is loosely based on the story of Anneliese Michel. It stars Laura Linney and Tom Wilkinson.

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Trial of Arne Cheyenne Johnson -

The trial in November 1981 of Arne Cheyenne Johnson in Connecticut is the first known court case in the United States where the defense sought to prove innocence based upon the defendant's claim of demonic possession. Johnson was ultimately convicted of first-degree manslaughter for killing his landlord. In an effort to prove Johnson was not personally responsible for the crime, his family had enlisted the aid of self-described demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren (pictured).

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The exorcism of Gina -

In 1991, the exorcism of an emotionally disturbed Florida teenager was aired on ABC. Identified only as Gina, the 16-year-old was believed to be plagued by demonic spirits. Strapped to a chair barking and screaming, the girl had a cross pressed into her face while medieval-style music played over the film. Ultimately, it was antipsychotic drugs that brought relief to the troubled young woman.

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Tanacu exorcism -

In a widely publicized 2005 case, Maricica Irina Cornici, an allegedly mentally ill Romanian nun, was killed during an exorcism led by priest Daniel Petre Corogeanu (pictured) and four Orthodox Christian nuns at a monastery in Tanacu.

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Tanacu exorcism -

The priest was jailed for seven years, one nun got six years, and the other three nuns got five years. Many of Tanacu's residents believed Maricica Irina Cornici to have suffered from demonic possession. However, the coroner maintained that the nun's cause of death was due to an overdose of adrenaline given in the ambulance.

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Rome's chief exorcist -

For 36 years, Father Candido Amantini (1914–1992) was Rome's chief exorcist. He often saw up to 80 people a day. According to his successor, Don Gabriele Amorth, "it was enough for [Father Amantini] to see a photograph to determine whether a person needed an exorcism or medical treatment…"

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'The Last Exorcism' (2010) -

Positively received by critics and a box-office success, 'The Last Exorcism' generated controversy after complaints that the movie poster was "offensive" and "distressing."

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The rite of exorcism -

The Catholic Church revised the Rite of Exorcism as late as January 1999. Demand for assistance has tripled since an alleged increase in demonic possession was reported by the Vatican (in 2018, there were half a million cases yearly in Italy alone).

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Lessons in exorcism - A member of the Vatican's team of anti-occult priests holds lessons of exorcism at the Regina Apostolorum Pontifical Athenaeum in Rome. Established after an increase in reported cases of demonic possession, the course helps deepen the understanding of exorcism in its theoretical and practical implications.

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Who can carry out an exorcism? -

An exorcism can only be carried out by an ordained priest or higher prelate, and then only with the express permission of the local bishop.

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Exorcism in art -

'Saint Verano with the angel and the exorcism of a possessed woman,' by an unknown 13th-century artist from Pisa, Italy.

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'Exorcism by bell, book and candle' -

In this 1816 print, a clergyman reads a prayer by the light of a candle held for him by a man trembling with terror, while the rest of the characters cringe in fear or tumble downstairs in panic.

See also: Europe's 'Devil Bridges': do you dare cross them?

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