In the world of psychology, therapy and science, there are still some phenomenon which cannot be explained with the help of logic, and certain occurrences which can only be remedied with the help of priests. There have been some truly horrifying cases of people who make weird sounds, hurt themselves or have supernatural powers. In the XXI century, exorcism has become a very serious and important thing. Today I have decided to approach a delicate subject, that of God and the Devil, and more precisely, Satan’s power to posses our souls. Although the orthodox religion doesn’t accept exorcism, there are certain catholic priests which are especially trained for this daunting task. Let’s take a look at ten of the most popular cases of exorcism in the world.
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Danielle
From a normal young girl, Danielle transformed into a satanist passioned with demonology and the occult. She soon started to conjure demons, and although she had no proof of their existence, she soon purchased an Ouija board and used it to communicate with them. She said that she managed to connect with three demons, Belial, Malphas and Legion. Because she got very scared she went to a church with a friend, but as soon as she entered she started to feel like she was suffocating. She yelled „ get out of me!” and she started to suffocate again. A priest saved her life and managed to drive the spirits away after he recited texts in Latin and English.
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Antoine Gay
Although this isn’t really a case of exorcism, because there was no attempt to cure the person in cause, it is still an interesting one to talk about. It is said that Antoine Gay, was accepted at the La Trappe d’Aiguebelle Abaty when he was 46 years old. He left the sanctuary because of a mental illness, which priests believed was due to him being possessed by demons. The interesting thing about this case is that one day, a monk named Chiron was present at a meeting between Antoine and a woman who was thought to be also possessed. He said that a violent dialog in an unknown language was held between the two. Antoine Gay died in June 1871 in Lyon.
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Anneliese Michel
Anneliese Michel lived in Germany, and she claimed that her soul was occupied by demons when she started to have epileptic attacks and hallucinations. At the age of 16 she reported the first strange occurrences. When her parents realized that the medicine and doctor’s care showed no results, they took her to a Catholic exorcist bishop who managed to free her from possession, at least or a while. After a few years, at the age of 23, she drew her last breath. The Official cause of death was believed to be malnutrition and dehydration.
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Gina
Some priests consider that the Devil is real, his evil is spreading and exorcisms approved by the church is used to rid some people from Satan. Although exorcism has always found itself in a contradiction between medical science and religion, psychology and logic, it seems that the remarkable claims about it are true. One case that a father received, was that of the 16 year old Gina who claimed to see demons. She had violent seizures, she vomited and had visions of demons. In an attempt to stop the outburst, her parents took her to healers, but in the end she had to be saved by the priest.
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George Lutkins
Another peculiar case is that of George Lutkins, an English Taylor from the city of Mendip, Yatton, who was often described as being extremely strange. The strange behavior meant that he would sing in changing voices, and unknown languages. Although he was examined by physicians, no conclusive reports were made. George claimed that he was enslaved by seven demons and needed the help of exorcists to be cured. After a few exorcism sessions, which were supposedly successful, the man became very quiet and normal.
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Emily Rose
The catholic Church has officially acknowledged the case of demonic possession on a 19 year old girl. There was also a movie made after this story, called „The Exorcism of Emily Rose” in which the process is narrated. Emily becomes inexplicably ill, and she starts to have hallucinations and painful convulsions which destroy her fragile body. As her symptoms worsen, and she becomes epileptic, she is taken to a catholic priest, who doesn’t manage to save her. In the end the girl dies and father Moore is accused of negligence.
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An Exorcism by Father Mathieu
The story starts with a man who used to practice black magic. He started to have stomach pains, and although the medics made attempts to alleviate his pain, things only became worse. He accepted a few sessions of exorcism, but every-time he became unconscious. The priest talks about the case in an interview. He says that on the first sign of the cross the man became frozen, and he was torn from his chair by an invisible force and pushed to the opposite side of the room. Mathieu felt that he isn’t strong enough to handle the demon, so he called a few nuns and monks to help him. The convulsions and invisible hits continued to destroy the man’s fragile body. Even after he received the help of ten men he could not take the demon out of him.
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Case 2272182
This case is about an adopted girl, who was thought to be possessed. Her adoptive parents asked an exorcist priest to save her. Although she was only 20 year old, her skin was badly wrinkled, and she had an extremely violent behavior, and she would even hurt herself. Some witnesses said she could even levitate. On the last exorcise session, her demon revealed his true name, „Destruction” and in the end he left the girls body.
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Michael Taylor
Michael Taylor was part of a local group called Christian Fellowship Group, which was implicated in some possession cases. Apparently the boy attacked the leader of the group, and he became more and more violent. After a session of exorcism which was extremely hard for the priests, it was determined that the boy cannot be saved. Taylor killed his mother and dog, and he later committed suicide.
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Robbie Mannheim
It is said that this is the exorcism case that inspired William Peter Blatty two write his novel, „The Exorcist”. Rumor has it that in 1949, a boy from Washington DC was possessed and taken into a house in Missouri after the name „St. Luis” appeared on his chest. The family of the boy interpreted this a a sign for them to move in St. Louis.
I want to stress out that for me it is not a matter of believing in the Devil or not. I was fascinated by these cases, and I thought they should be brought to our attention. It is important to have faith in God, but it is also normal to keep our eyes open and learn about the supernatural things in our world. If you’ve enjoyed this article you will definitely like our Top 10 Reasons to Believe in the Paranormal.
