A summary of Demonic Activity

This is a summary of demonic activity as taught by Fr. Armoth, the exorcist of Rome. As Catholics we must be aware of this activity. However we must remain also aware, first and foremost, of the power to overcome evil through Christ, "I can do all things in Him who strengthens me" (Phil 4:13). The first type of demonic activity is called ordinary. This is "temptation", which is the most common activity of the demons, and it is directed against all men. Even Jesus allowed Satan to tempt him, he accepted our human condition.
The second kind of demonic activity is called "extraordinary", and can take place as the first one only if God so allows, but not all humans experience any of the forms of this extraordinary activity. It can take six different forms:
1. External physical pain caused by Satan. We know of this from many lives of the saints. We know that Saint Paul of the Cross, the Curé of Ars, Padre Pio, and many others were beaten, flogged, and pummeled by demons. This external form of persecution does riot affect the soul; therefore with this type there has never been the need for an exorcism, only for prayers.
2. Demonic possession. This occurs when Satan takes full possession of the body (not the soul); he speaks and acts without the knowledge or consent of the victim, who therefore is morally blameless. It is the gravest and most spectacular form of demonic afflictions, and it attracts the attention of producers of movies such as The Exorcist. According to the Ritual for exorcisms, some of the signs of possession include: speaking in tongues, extraordinary strength, and revealing the unknown. The man of Gerasa is a clear Gospel example of possession. To fix a set "model" for demonic possession would be a serious mistake; the affliction runs the gamut of symptoms and severity. For instance, Fr. Armoth has exorcised two totally possessed persons who remained perfectly still and silent during the exorcism.
3. Diabolical oppression. Symptoms vary from a very serious to a mild illness. There is no possession, loss of consciousness, or involuntary action and word. The Bible gives us many examples of oppression; one of them is job, He was not possessed, but he lost his children, his goods, and his health. The bent woman and the deaf and dumb man who were cured by Jesus were not subject to total possession, but there was a demonic presence that caused physical discomfort. Saint Paul was most certainly not possessed by a demon, but he had a demonic oppression that caused an evil affliction: "And to keep me from being too elated by the abundance of revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to harass me" (2 Cor 12:7). There is no doubting the evil origin of the affliction.While possessions are still relatively rare today, we exorcists run into a great number of people who have been struck by the devil in their health, jobs, or relationships. We must make it clear that to diagnose and heal an oppression-related illness is not any easier than to diagnose and cure a person afflicted by full possession. The degree of gravity may be different, but the difficulty of the diagnosis and the amount of time involved in healing are the same.
4. Diabolic obsession. Symptoms include sudden attacks, at times ongoing, of obsessive thoughts, sometimes even rationally absurd, but of such nature that the victim is unable to free himself Therefore the obsessed person lives in a perpetual state of prostration, desperation, and attempts at suicide. Almost always obsession influences dreams. Some people will say that this is evidence of mental illness, requiring the services of a psychiatrist or a psychologist. The same could be said of all other forms of demonic phenomena. Some symptoms, however, are so inconsistent with known illnesses that they point with certainty to their evil origins. Only an expert and well-trained eye can identify the crucial differences.
5. Diabolic infestation. Infestations affect houses, things, or animals. Fr. Armoth does not use this term in referring to persons.
6. Diabolical subjugation, or dependence. People fall into this form of evil when they voluntarily submit to Satan. The two most common forms of dependence are the blood pact with the devil and the consecration to Satan.

Satanism

Fr. Hardon during his lifetime wrote an interesting piece on Satanism. I think one of the reasons why satanism is growing in our days is precisely because people are trying to fill the void left by a culture that is secular and materialistic, devoided of all spirituality. The prevalent materialism, hedonism, secularism are perfect seedbeds for satanism to flourish and appeal to the inordinate passions of the human being. According to Fr. Hardon there are three main forms of satanism. The first one is philosophical, that is the kind of satanism by which evil is deified, such was the case of the Manicheans. St. Augustine himself was a Manichean before he converted to Christianity. In this kind of satanism one does not offer worship to the Deity per se, but it is more about a matter of beliefs, where one sees that there are two uncreated deities that are in opposition to one another, the good god and the bad god. The other kind of satanism is the one prevalent in most polytheistic religions whereby a person offers sacrifices to the deities that represent evil, mostly out of fear, so the person tries to appease them by different rituals. Fr. Hardon mentions that in Africa is very difficult for Christianity to make inroads because the people in Africa after becoming Christians blame any evil or accident to the anger of the evil deities that somehow are not being satisfied in their thirst for offerings and sacrifices. The third kind of satanism is the cultic type that involves the recognition of satan as powerful and shrewd, and as a being that is to be worshipped for personal gain or in order to bring an evil on another person.
Satanic churches are growing in number and also in membership. More young people have more experiences with the occult than ever before, and satan uses many ways to attract young people into his abode. Some of those means can include the promises of material rewards, and the rewards of sensible pleasure under the forms of uninhibited sex, drugs, even sadistic and masochist practices. All is fair game, and satan appeals to our wounded nature and our desire for immediate gratification. Another common by which satan continues to enter into the minds of many young people is through the porn industry by which satan continues to corrupt the minds and the hearts of many young people, in many cases creating such powerful addictions that these young people cannot follow the call of the Lord to the consecrated life or the priesthood, nor can they remain faithful to their spouses and their commitments. Satanic influence is also seen in the cult of freedom, undetermined freedom, my choice is my god. The worship of choice can imply the death of my own son or daughter in the womb. Indeed there is something very diabolical about the whole abortion industry. The cult of choice can also entail the type of sexual relationship I am going to engage, from bestiality to homosexuality and anything in between, is the cult of indulgence which is one of the premises of the satanic manifesto. Heavy metal music is also another means that satan uses to corrupt the minds of young people. Fr. Gabriel Armoth, the exorcist of Rome wrote about the fact the heavy metal music recordings are consecrated to the devil in particular acts, and that many music bands such as Black Sabbath, Deicide, and others are openly satanic in nature. Finally books that delve into the occult like Harry Potter are also seedbeds for the potential opening of the soul of the child to the fascination with witchcraft, incantations, or any other desire to manipulate others and control others through the power of evil.

Satanism oddly enough is growing by leaps and bounds in Italy. In fact the largest followers of satanic sects are found there. Colombia is the second country with the largest number of satanic followers and the USA comes third with the greatest concentration in the state of California, particularly the city of San Francisco, no surprise there either. So this is the phenomenon that we must face constantly, St Paul reminds us "For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens." (Ephesians 6:12).

As Christians we cannot be afraid of the devil, but we must be aware of his treacheries. In fact as long as we remain in Christ we have power over all evil spirits, thus, the evil spirits are the ones that should be afraid of us. However, the devil is real, and we cannot underestimate his cleverness and power, although his power is limited and ultimately the devil remains a creature, entirely dependent on God from whom he derives his existence and power. God is the only one that is Almighty, God is the only one that is to be worshipped, and it is in God that we find peace, joy, love, and all the other fruits of the Holy Spirit. We rejoice in Christ because as Scripture tells us "For the accuser of our brothers is cast out, who accuses them before our God day and night. They conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony" (Rev. 12:10-11).