Exorcism

(See also DEMONOLOGY, DEMONIACS, EXORCIST, POSSESSION.)


As the name sufficiently indicates, demonology is the science or doctrine concerning demons.
 Both in its form and in its meaning it has an obvious analogy with theology, which is the
science or doctrine about God. And with reference to the many false and dangerous forms of
this demonic science we may fitly adapt the well-known words of Albertus Magnus on the subject
of theology and say of demonology, A daemonibus docetur, de daemonibus docet, et ad daemones ducit
("It is taught by the demons, it teaches about the demons, and it leads to the demons").
For very much of the literature that comes under this head of demonology is tainted with errors
that may well owe their origin to the father of falsehood, and much of it again, especially those
 portions which have a practical purpose (what may be called the ascetical and mystical demonology)
is designed to lead men to give themselves to the service of Satan.

The idea of demonic possession by which a man becomes demonized, that is possessed or controlled by a demon, was present in many ancient ethnic religions, and in fact it is found in one form or another wherever there is a belief in the existence of demons, and that is practically everywhere (cf. DEMONOLOGY). Here, however, we are chiefly concerned with the demonic possession in the New Testament, for this is in many ways the most worthy of special attention, and serves as a standard by which we may judge of cases occurring elsewhere. Further questions in regard to these other cases and the general practice of the Church in dealing with those who are possessed by evil spirits will be treated in other articles (EXORCISM, OBSESSION).

Exorcism is (1) the act of driving out, or warding off, demons, or evil spirits,
from persons, places, or things, which are believed to be possessed or infested by
 them, or are liable to become victims or instruments of their malice; (2) the means
employed for this purpose, especially the solemn and authoritative adjuration of the
demon, in the name of God, or any of the higher power in which he is subject.


Man is in various ways subject to the influence of evil spirits. By original sin he brought himself into "captivity under the power of him who thence [from the time of Adam's transgression] had the empire of death, that is to say, the Devil" (Council of Trent, Sess. V, de pecc. orig., 1), and was through the fear of death all his lifetime subject to servitude (Hebrews 2:15). Even though redeemed by Christ, he is subject to violent temptation: "for our wrestling is not against flesh and blood; but against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the world of this darkness, against the spirits of wickedness in the high places" (Ephesians 6:12). But the influence of the demon, as we know from Scripture and the history of the Church, goes further still. He may attack man's body from without (obsession), or assume control of it from within (possession). As we gather from the Fathers and the theologians, the soul itself can never be "possessed" nor deprived of liberty, though its ordinary control over the members of the body may be hindered by the obsessing spirit (cf. St. Aug., "De sp. et an.", 27; St. Thomas, "In II Sent.", d. VIII, Q. i; Ribet, "La mystique divine", Paris, 1883, pp. 190 sqq.).





Different religions take varying approaches to exorcism.

For Catholics, any exorcism must involve certain key principles.

Preparation is a significant part of the ritual, with priests undertaking prayers for repentance, divine intervention and protection before engaging in the ceremony. Post-ritual, the victim must also go through counselling to enhance his spiritual life.

The act of exorcism itself is simple and involves commanding the demon out of its host by invoking the power of God.

Father Goh said: "They may use words like 'In the name of Jesus, I command you to leave this creature of God.' It is a command, not a request."

He stressed that they do not physically restrain the possessed person.

Buddhists take a different line. Said Mr Shen Shi'an, chief editor of the Web and library departments at the Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery: "Buddhist exorcism does not aim to kill, trap, hurt, or chase away harmful unseen beings."

The prayer and meditation is carried out for the purpose of persuading the spirit to leave the body.

"Buddhist exorcism aims for win-win situations for the involved human and spirit - who are seen as two parties negatively affected by grudges that require peaceful negotiation," he said.

Taoists, meanwhile, mainly use chanting, prayer and physical movements to fight the evil spirit.

Master Tan Kok Hian, vice-president of the Taoist Federation (Singapore), said: "We believe that there is good and there is evil, and the evil spirits will usually run away when they are faced with good."

Among Muslims, belief in possession is not universal.

Mr Nazirudin Mohd Nasir, head of the Office of the Mufti at the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore, said: "We believe there are unseen creations of God such as the 'jinn'." Jinn are similar to spirits.

"One could possibly be possessed by the unseen, but one should not simply blame everything on this. In fact, some people do not believe in possession, although they believe that the unseen exist."

The important thing for Muslims, said Mr Nazirudin, is "to enhance their spirituality, so that they have a strong spiritual self to thwart all forms of disturbance".

For Muslims who do believe, however, he said there were those in the community who specialised in the exorcism ritual.

One 47-year-old teacher, who did not want to be named, told The Sunday Times of her encounter last year with possession.

"Half an hour before it happened I felt something inside me, like I was pregnant," said the mother of three daughters.

"When it happened it was like somebody was trying to suffocate me from the inside. Then it was like I had no control of my body. I could see out, but I was caught in this box."

Her family remembered her screaming for hours on end and then abruptly going quiet. Yet, when they took her to the hospital, all her vital signs were normal. "The doctor told us to look for other treatment," she said.

That was when they called a spiritual healer. The ritual, which involved reading passages from the Quran, seemed to cure her. All in, the ordeal lasted a day.

Consultant psychiatrist Brian Yeo is rather sceptical about possession. He said he sees one patient every two to three weeks who is supposedly possessed, and more during the Chinese seventh month.

For him, behaviour such as that described by the teacher could be explained medically as entering a hysterical trance state.

"The symptoms are the same, it's just the cause that is different. Such a state might be triggered by stress," he said.

"When I see someone levitating, speaking in fluent Portuguese and telling me tomorrow's 4D results, then I'll be totally convinced, but for now let's just say I won't rule out possession completely."

 What is an Exorcism?

So exorcism is a ritual that is as old as human society itself, and an exorcist is primarily someone of religious faith that is supposedly able to channel benevolent powers and cast out evil spirits form otherwise good people. There is a common belief that people can be possessed by evil spirits, demons; they are called many different things in many different cultures, but exorcism crosses cultural and historical boundaries.

Exorcisms in Different Religions

Islam has it's version of exorcism. The Jewish faith has it's version of exorcism and of course the Christian faith does, primarily the Catholic church which engages in this practice today. Depending on what your personal beliefs are, you may believe that people can indeed be possessed by demonic entities.

Being Possessed and Mental Illness

You may choose to look at it that the majority, if not all of these people actually undergo some kind of mental illness, such as dissociative disorder, bi-polar disorder, schizophrenia, and various other mental conditions. So what is going on here? Is it just human nature that when we have dark thoughts, when we have mental disorders, they tend to take this form of the demonic as a form of expression, or is there indeed something paranormal going on? That is and remains a question of personal belief.

What is the Process of an Exorcism?

So the actual process of exorcism itself usually involves restraining the victim, and I must call them a victim because they can suffer some pretty horrendous injuries on occasion. At least in the Christian version of the ritual, holy water is employed, religious scripture from the bible is read out, and the demonic entity is commanded in the name of Jesus Christ to depart the body of God's servant and return it to it's former ordinary state.

Who Performs Exorcisms?

Since the motion picture and the book the Exorcist came out, exorcism has exploded in popularity though out the western world, particularly the Christian faith. In order to truly be a legitimate exorcist in the west, you have to be a very well regarded experienced member of the Catholic clergy. Most exorcisms are lay exorcisms performed by priests, pastors, or well meaning individuals.

Exorcisms Gone Wrong

These rituals do not always go well. there are a number of cases in which people who were being exorcised have died. So you can look at the literature and see people that have undergone the most horrendous torment at the hands of so called exorcists. They have been bound, they have been beaten, they have been burned, they have been starved, virtually tortured, all because of this belief that they were possessed by the demonic.

Exorcisms and the Seizure State

Watching a person who is supposedly possessed, one thing that a medical professional may remark is that the state of so-called possession, looks a lot like the seizure state, looks a lot like major muscular seizures in certain patients. It's also true that some of them are undeniably acting, are undeniably seeking attention. There does seem to be a small core, when you remove the likelihood of mental illness, when you remove the likelihood of play acting, there does seem to be a small core of cases that defy apparent rational explanation.

In some religions, an exorcist is a person who is believed to be able to cast out the devil or other demons. A priest, a nun, a monk, a healer, a shaman or other specially prepared or instructed person can be an exorcist. An exorcist is a person who performs the ridding of demons or other supernatural beings who are alleged to have possessed a person, or (sometimes) a building or even an object.


ex·or·cism----1. The act, practice, or ceremony of exorcising.
2. A formula used in exorcising.


ex·or·cise (ksôr-sz, -sr-)
tr.v. ex·or·cised, ex·or·cis·ing, ex·or·cis·es
1. To expel (an evil spirit) by or as if by incantation, command, or prayer.
2. To free from evil spirits or malign influences.



nec·ro·man·cy (nkr-mns)
n.
1. The practice of supposedly communicating with the spirits of the dead in order to predict the future.
2. Black magic; sorcery.
3. Magic qualities.


thau·ma·turge (thôm-tûrj) also thau·ma·tur·gist (-tûrjst)
n.
A performer of miracles or magic feats.


wiz·ard (wzrd)
n.
1. One who practices magic; a sorcerer or magician.
2. A skilled or clever person: a wizard at math.
3. Archaic A sage.
adj.
1. Chiefly British Slang Excellent.
2. Archaic Of or relating to wizards or wizardry


ma·gi·cian (m-jshn)
n.
1. A sorcerer; a wizard.
2. One who performs magic for entertainment or diversion.
3. One whose formidable skill or art seems to be magical: a magician with words.


ma·gus (mgs)
n. pl. ma·gi (mj)
1. A member of the Zoroastrian priestly caste of the Medes and Persians.
2. Magus In the New Testament, one of the wise men from the East, traditionally held to be three, who traveled to Bethlehem to pay homage to the infant Jesus.
3. A sorcerer; a magician.

oc·cult·ism (-kltzm, kl-)
n.
1. The study of the supernatural.
2. A belief in occult powers and the possibility of bringing them under human control


witch doctor
n. Anthropology
A sorcerer, prophet, or shamanistic healer, especially among African peoples. Not in scientific use.


en·chant·er (n-chntr)
n.
1. One that delights or fascinates.
2. A sorcerer or magician.


thau·ma·turge (thôm-tûrj) also thau·ma·tur·gist (-tûrjst)
n.
A performer of miracles or magic feats.