Spiritual Protection: Call On Warring Angels And Put Shield Over Your House

By Michael H. Brown

One of the most crying needs in the Church is for deliverance. We have gotten to the point -- in this age of the scientism -- of not even recalling what Jesus said. He told us that defeating evil was the very reason He came down from Heaven -- and demonstrated deliverance by casting away evil spirits.

There is tremendous evidence that, 2,000 years later, such spirits still cause untold grief, oppression, and even maladies. This is the point of a new and potent book by a Catholic named Robert Abel, who is one of the more perceptive "warriors" we have come across recently. Robert lives in Denver, where he has a homeless ministry and holds healing seminars. Once a construction worker and self-described "lady's man" (even dating Miss California), Abel converted, cast the lust demon out, and learned a whole lot about spiritual protection.

That's why we recommend the book, despite certain significant problems. It seems a time-honored rule that when someone writes in this field -- especially as profoundly as  Abel -- there is a little twist that can muck things up. In Abel's case, it's his misunderstanding of the role played by certain saints (such as Jude) and devotions.

As sometimes happens, we have to overlook such disagreements and instead focus on the heart of the book itself, which seems to be 95 percent on target. Our suggestion: just turn the pages quickly where he veers off into what sounds like Pentecostal opposition to devotions. Fascinating is Abel's account of how we can be infested by evil from sinfulness, from the occult, from alternative spirituality, from addictions and emotional wounds and unhealthy "soul ties."

This is valuable stuff. It helps us evolve. Haven't we all gone through this -- people or situations or things we have done that seem to bring evil? There are simply times when darkness walks in with certain situations, people, or events. Abel sees angels with flaming swords as the answer.

First recognize the problem. Ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten you. Then go about -- through prayer, through fasting, through Confession -- getting rid of it.

"If the evil intruder doesn't leave, it means war," he writes in The Catholic Warrior. "You will need to get your spirit-man fired and send him into battle. In the same way the Israelites blew the ram's horn around the walls of Jericho, I usually begin the battle singing praise. Demons hate it when glory and praise are given to God.

"Next, I search for an open door. I perform an inner diagnostic check to find out how evil has gained access to my inner sanctuary. I ask myself, how did I sin? Did something in my daily events trigger an emotional wound? Was I being passive in my worship to God?"

These are crucial questions -- and can save us much emotional trauma. For once evil takes hold, it can be difficult to root out. Start, says Abel, by purging darkness through examination of conscience, the sacrament of Confession, and devotion to the Eucharist.

He emphasizes the Eucharist. At the consecration, writes Abel, "When the priest says the anaphora, an angel takes the offering to the altar in Heaven and in the sight of God's Divine majesty, the bread and wine are transformed into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. The actual Presence of Jesus enters the elements and they become spiritual food."

This purifies. It also protects. "Every time a warrior goes to Confession, even over the smallest sins, he receives graces and power from God that add inches of steel plating to his armor," declares Abel. When a person worships God, this adds a shiny coat of bullet-proof wax to the armor. "Demons hate praise," says Robert. "It hurts their ears and makes them scurry like cockroaches in a dark room when the lights are turned on. It is especially powerful under the worst of circumstances."

As warriors, we also strengthen ourselves by reading the Holy Bible. Evil spirits hate being around the Word. We also strengthen ourselves by watching every thought. It's not a sin to have a tempting thought (such is a trial of life) -- but the sin is when we latch onto such a thought and keep it as our own -- when we make an "agreement" with it.

That can allow demonic entry.

Have you seen darkness drop like a curtain? Do you wonder why a good day turns bad -- inexplicably? Have you not noticed how sometimes your entire mood and what's occurring around you suddenly changes?

It can be the influence of spirits, and so we need to build a fortress.

"All Catholics are surrounded by their guardian angels and each warrior has the right to call upon the Heavenly host for assistance," Abel correctly writes. "In the same way the strong man called the local law enforcement agency to have the thieves arrested, all a warrior has to do is speak the words, 'Lord Jesus, please send down warring angels to destroy anything demonic in, on, or around me.'"

To do this, Abel marks the four corners of his property with rocks blessed by anointed oil and with these corners as "moorings," he asks in prayer that a spiritual "canopy" of spiritual protection -- a shield against demons -- be erected over his house.

"I establish it with the principles of faith and ask the Lord to wash everything inside the canopy with His precious Blood," he explains. "I invite the Holy Spirit to dwell with me inside my spiritual canopy and ask God to assign warring angels to stand guard over me day and night. I pray the angels are given ongoing orders to strike down and destroy anything evil or demonic that enters the outer perimeter."

As Abel says, "every Catholic is surrounded by holy warring angels of God," and they must be put into place. He quotes Elisha: "Do not be afraid, for there are more with us than there are with them." And he recalls that when Elisha's eyes were opened by the Lord, the biblical figure saw that "the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire" all around him.

And so it is with us. God is by our side. His warring angels -- His chariots -- are with us. What we must do is pray: "Lord Jesus, please send down warring angels to destroy anything demonic in, on, or around me!"

We don't need fear, says Abel, but love; love cuts through the darkness. Greater is He Who is in us than he who is in the world! If we have Christ, no weapon can stand against us. Abel has other terrific prayers in the book, and insights. If he had the Rosary, he'd really have it going on all cylinders!

[resources: The Catholic Warrior and other spiritual warfare books]

May 2004