“Exorcisms ‘R’ Us” is bad idea down at Vatican corporate
When you see a headline like “Pope’s exorcist squads will wage war on Satan,” you have to wonder who, if anybody, is running the PR department down at the Vatican.
Granted, this particular headline, which appeared in Britain’s Daily Mail, is a wee bit sensational, but that’s what the Brit broadsheets tend to do when red meat is served up on a silver platter. And one of the many forms of journalistic red meat is anything that makes religious people look like superstitious primitives.
On the other hand, in this particular case, if the shoe fits . . .
Reportedly, each of the Pope’s bishops have been told to have in his diocese a number of priests who are trained to fight demonic possession. This so-called “exorcist squad” initiative was revealed by 82-year-old Father Gabriele Amorth — widely considered an exorcism “expert” — to the online Catholic news service Petrus.
“Thanks be to God, we have a Pope who has decided to fight the Devil head-on,” the feisty father said. “Too many bishops are not taking this seriously and are not delegating their priests in the fight against the Devil. You have to hunt high and low for a properly trained exorcist.”
Yep, I’m sure a “properly trained exorcist” is as hard to find these days as a good alchemist or catapult repairman, which must be rather disheartening to old school demon casters-out like Father Amorth.
Look, I’m no Catholic basher. And when it comes to the question of whether or not demons really exist, far be it from me to presume that I can provide the definitive answer. Let’s just say I maintain a healthy skepticism on the subject, even though surprisingly, at least to me, recent Gallup polls consistently show that some 70% of the population believe in the devil. But does that automatically convert to a 70% belief in the legitimacy of exorcisms? I have trouble believing that it does.
In any case, my intuition tells me that headlines involving “exorcist squads” are to be considered mini-PR disasters by the Vatican. And as if to confirm my intuition, the day after the story first appeared, the Vatican was already denying it.
Father Federico Lombardi, the director of the Vatican press office, flatly stated: “Pope Benedict XVI has no intention of ordering local bishops to bring in garrisons of exorcists to fight demonic possession.”
Huh. So which holy father are we to believe, this one or the other one? Maybe it was just a case of ecclesiastical miscommunications. Or maybe it was an extreme case of wishful thinking on the part of Father Amorth, an old-school devil fighter, who misinterpreted some lesser edict like, say, a call for a few remedial courses on the basics of demonic possession.
Whatever it is, the last thing the Vatican needs these days, especially after the pedophile priests scandals of recent years, is headlines which place the church squarely back in the Dark Ages. How about a headline instead that says something positive, sensible and jet-age contemporary, like “Vatican drops senseless ban on contraception and joins the 20th century.”
Joining the 21st will be a bit more of a chore.
Greg Strange provides conservative commentary with plenty of acerbic wit on the people, politics, events and absurdities of our time. See more at his website: http://www.greg-strange.com/.
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Stumble It!
January 4th, 2008 at 12:04 pm
Whether or not one believes in the devil isn’t as important as understanding where d-evil one’s exist in modern day societies. One only needs to look at witchcraft, feminist, and the socialist arenas to see d-evil abound. We should all work to exorcise these demons (devils) from our societies.
January 4th, 2008 at 7:30 pm
Dear Mr. Strange,
I have just finished reading your commentary on the news regarding what Fr. Amorth explained was plans to install exorcists in every diocese worldwide.
As someone uninformed about the Catholic faith, and clearly taking a secularist view of it, you have unfortunately also overlooked what is central to the Christian faith, and that is that we are on a spiritual journey on the physical plane, and for those who believe the tenets of Christianity, this journey entails intense spiritual warfare, both for those of us in the temporal world, and those of the angelic realm.
Certainly, since Christ walked the earth, there have been changes. Medicine and technology have come a long way, for example. However, the human journey remains essentially unchanged. And that is that we are each called to choose eternal truth over the world and its enticements. As we are each created with free will, that makes us free to respond to God’s love for us and choose to walk the narrow path, or reject it in favor of the fleeting pleasures of the world.
The joy experienced by those who truly know Christ and endeavor to walk closely with Him, far exceeds anything that can be purchased or experienced originating from man. But in order to know the difference, one must have previously lived a carnal life and subsequently chosen the higher path. May the grace to make that transition be yours.
“Getting with the times” is something teenagers try to compel their parents to do, but when the children become parents themselves, they come to realize their own parents were far wiser than they ever dreamed. May you be blessed with a wisdom that transcends your present worldview, and transforms your life into something holy and beautiful, and pleasing to The One who created you, loves you infinitely, and has a purpose for your life; something you have yet to fulfill.