If it is  not correct to have statues -- and a devotion to saints, as so many non-Catholics assert -- why is it that demons react so violently against such objects?

For react violently they do, as explicated in a powerful little pamphlet written in large part by an exorcist in the 19th century -- a time when evidence indicates a new surge of evil entered the world. In it he reveals details of various exorcisms -- and the dynamics, as in the case of a possessed girl, of the underworld.

"I was called to a certain home to which the mother had previously brought a statue of a saint to be used as an ornament in a room," recounted the priest, who remained anonymous but whose work was promulgated by Father Theodor Geiger, rector of the cathedral in Bamberg, Germany. "At the sight of this statue the daughter became raving mad and, taking a hammer, pounded it into pieces.

"An aversion to holy things is a further sign of possession," explained the esteemed exorcist (in a work called Mary Crushes the Serpent). "The sight of a devout picture annoys him. The possessed will notice within himself a constant disposition against all prayer and frequently will be incapable of praying at all. He feels a dislike towards all pious practices.

"All this resistance, disturbance, and annoyance is brought on by the demon possessing the person and anything that pertains to God and religion causes him intense pain. And because he smarts under these circumstances the demon causes the possessed person to turn intentionally away from all holy things."

Added the exorcist, "As soon as you pronounce the name of Jesus, or say a part of a prayer, or place a Crucifix on the eyes of the possessed, or show him a holy picture, or if the priest touches him with his anointed hands, or with the stole, a painful movement is at once noticeable upon the body of the possessed, frequently accompanied with forceful contortions, gnashing of teeth, or screams."

So we see: it isn't just in the movies. And it informs us of the real power of what is blessed. These are not just quaint rituals!

"The touch, the sight, merely the presence of anything blessed, holy, or consecrated to God causes the demon terrible pains," said the exorcist. "One can see what an abhorrence the demon has for all holy things especially during the rite of exorcism."

Moreover, said the priest, "it was impossible to bring Holy Communion to them" -- once more indicating the power of  what Catholicism affords.

Especially, there is an aversion to the Blessed Mother.

"Towards the end of one of the exorcisms, the demon was filled with trembling and fear," wrote the priest. "He fell upon his knees and said with a quivering voice that the Blessed Virgin was present."

In that case, Our Blessed Mother made the evil spirit return a paper upon which the possessed woman had written when she was a girl of only eleven -- a note wherein she had dedicated herself to the devil!

Significantly, the exorcist, in one of the more telling works on deliverance, reported at least six cases that doctors had declared as incurable psychiatric problems -- problems that were resolved, however, during exorcisms.

Published with the permission of St. John's Abbey in Collegeville, Minnesota, the pamphlet asserts that evil spirits began a special assault upon humanity "since the pontificate of Pius IX."

Pius died in 1878 -- and was succeeded by Pope Leo XIII, who had the famous vision of evil infiltration (and later wrote the Prayer to St. Michael because of it).

"The militant Church has to suffer under a twofold evil," said the priest. "Externally, through the persecution of her enemies, and interiorly, through the corruption of her members."

Demons name themselves in accordance with historical figures whose lives symbolize that specific demon's intent. The demon leading its forces against the Church, he said, calls itself "Caesar."

Other spirits have gone by names such as "Judas," "Voltaire" or "King Herod."

"The forces of hell also try to corrupt the priests," said the exorcist (long before the current abuse crisis). "The demon who brags about ruining Judas and who parades under that name is planning with his associates to bring about deception, corruption, and destruction of priests."

Fascinating stuff!

But if the Virgin came to terrorize evil spirits -- to crush them, as happened time and again during these exorcisms -- she also came to console the afflicted.

"In the midst of the diabolical manifestations causing terrible physical and moral suffering, the victim heard the sweet voice of the Blessed Virgin," wrote the exorcist, who said the victims of possession are often purified by the experience and experience also holy manifestations.

[resources: Mary Crushes the Serpent and Begone Satan!]

11/4/06