Deliverance
from Evil Spirits
by Francis MacNutt, Do evil spirits oppress people
today, including Christians? This practical manual is written by one of the
foremost practitioners of Christian healing and deliverance. Highly
recommended. Full of brilliant facts. If you want to know the ins and outs
of casting away foul spirits -- and how they haunt us to begin with -- this book
will provide those insights and examples.
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WHEN EVIL ATTACKS PERSONALLY, A SHIELD IS
BUILT THROUGH THE SACRAMENTS AND LOVE
In the last installment, we covered some of
the spiritual dangers posed to our society by the evil in our age, as
spelled out in an intriguing new book by a priest, Father Joseph M. Esper,
from the Detroit area, who has the approval of his bishop for this work.
He spoke of human monitoring. He spoke of the
"microchip." He spoke of potential abuse and persecution via societal
means.
We don't know what to make of every aspect,
but we do know that his major point -- the rise of evil -- is obvious all
around us. People are speaking to each other sharply. Evil has infiltrated
everywhere. There are apparitions that may be deceptions -- demonic. There
is the New Age. It's difficult to turn to any secular website without
being hit with links to something occult or something sexual. Our children
face an onslaught!
What about spiritual attack on a more personal
level?
Here, Father Esper is especially intriguing.
Evil spirits, he notes, come at us
in many ways. They may come through those who are jealous. They may come
from past transgressions. They may come through the generations.
We must wage war with them, says the priest:
combat.
"God has given us powerful spiritual weapons
-- and these can be discussed in terms of what we might call 'spiritual
guerilla warfare,'" he writes in
Spiritual
Dangers of the 21st Century. "Guerillas of course are
resistance fighters who are used to being outnumbered and outgunned;
rather than letting themselves be overwhelmed in a head-on fight, they
choose their battles carefully.
"In a spiritual sense, this is
what Jesus was talking about when He called His followers to be as 'shrewd
as serpents and innocent as doves' (Matthew 10:16)."
"I suspect one of the things that will
surprise us when we get to Heaven is the discovery of how truly dangerous
hatred and sin are, and how infinitely much more powerful love is.
"In this regard, there are such spiritual
realities as curses, spells, hexes, and other negative influences, and
these can take on a life of their own, sometimes lasting for several
generations or more [our emphasis].
"They always end up hurting the people who
use, utter, or initiate them, for the simple reason that we can never
upset God's Order of Creation by doing evil without paying a painful
price.
"However, if we're the innocent targets,
sometimes curses can also have a negative effect on us, even if we don't
believe in them or are unaware of what's happening."
"The only defense is to follow Jesus' command
to love your enemies, pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew
5:44).
"When we love others in Christ's Name --
especially persons who may be trying to hurt us -- we limit their ability to
do us any spiritual harm.
"We can spiritually protect ourselves from
people who hate us and who may seek to do us spiritual harm simply by
loving them and, of course, by remaining in a state of grace, receiving
the sacraments regularly, and by frequently praying for God's guidance and
protection.
"Love becomes something like a spiritual
mirror, reflecting any negative energy back to its sources."
The more we love, the less we fear.
Love, in other words, says the priest, becomes
a "shield."
But we should not love for that reason.
We should love simply to love (not
looking for a result).
"Praying
each day, reading the Bible, attending Mass, receiving Communion
and Confession regularly, spending time in Eucharistic Adoration, learning
more about our faith, promoting and defending the truths of Catholicism,
associating with other people of strong faith and morals, giving a good
example to others, helping others in need, faithfully fulfilling our
duties in life without grumbling or complaining, offering up our
sufferings and struggles as sacrifice for the conversion of sinners,
practicing the corporal works of mercy, accepting every opportunity life
presents to us with patience and humility, and striving to overcome our
faults and to grow in virtue" cause more protection around us, says Father
Esper, who offers advice on going to Confession, sacramentals, and prayers
to the saints.
Much of this we know much about. But how
often do we focus on
love?
Can we love those who dislike or hate or are
jealous of us?
The great success is when we can do so from
the heart.
Then, we are truly in His Will -- and then, too,
we can move a mountain; we can slay the lion.
Let us add the assistance of the Blessed
Mother, who crushes the serpent (as her name at Guadalupe implies) and who
clears evil debris from around us.
Many have forgotten
the Hail Holy Queen -- which brings special power when power
is needed.
We also forget that spirits incite us to
emotions because they draw actual energy from it.
"Satan is counting on us responding to his
servants in a spirit of fear, anger, and hatred, for this will end up
increasing his power," says the book, which has the ecclesiastical
approval of Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron of Michigan. "If instead we
respond with love, peace, and trust, the devil's plan is thwarted."
[resources:
Spiritual Dangers of the 21st
Century]
[see previous article]
[Hail,
Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy,
our Life, our Sweetness, and our Hope.
To Thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve.
To Thee do we send up our sighs mourning
and weeping in this valley of tears.
Turn then, most gracious Advocate,
Thine Eyes of Mercy toward us,
and after this our exile show us the
Blessed Fruit of thy Womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.
Pray for us O Holy Mother of God
That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.]
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