The Exorcist

MADISON  Father Vincent Lampert, a Vatican-trained exorcist, has faced many of the terrifying signs of demonic possession in people up close and personal: the voice gets deeper, the body contorts, the eyes roll back, the back arches or perhaps the jaw drops down and moves to the side. Evil spirits, the priest said, also have been known to take control of the body — moving the legs to walk, the mouth to talk and the hands to make gestures or strike out — all in vain attempts to demonstrate their power and frighten everyone, even devout Catholics.

But Father Lampert told an enthusiastic audience on Oct. 24 at St. Paul Inside the Walls here that he has felt no fear in waging spiritual battles against the devil and his demons in his 12 years as the exorcist for the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, armed with God’s power to defeat all evil spirits. The mild-mannered priest spoke about some of his experiences performing exorcisms — including once listening to an evil spirit recite the “Hail Mary” in a disturbing child-like voice — and casting out evil in less-dramatic ways in his presentation, “The Exorcist,” at the diocesan evangelization center. He emphasized holiness over Hollywood, explaining to the almost 300 audience members the detailed process that his ministry involves. He helped dispel some of the mystery and sensationalism about demonic possession at exorcisms as often depicted in such movies as “The Exorcist.”

“Exorcism is not a game or a pastime [to the exorcist]. It has to be done well,” said Father Lampert, who urged the audience that filled St. Paul’s auditorium more than a week before Halloween to trust in the power of the Lord to conquer evil, as he has demonstrated as an exorcist. “Never believe that God and the devil are on the same plane. God is the Creator and the devil is merely a creature. Our guardian angels are more powerful than the devil. Jesus wants us to focus on the power of God in our lives and get in a right relationship with him to feel his mercy,” he said.

Father Lampert noted that the priest-exorcist of the local diocese, under the authority of the local bishop, follows a detailed process that could lead him to determine whether or not a person suffers from one of the four following spiritual afflictions:

• Demonic infraction: the presence of evil in a location or object, which might have been cursed — commended to the devil or an evil spirit. Any priest can recite a prayer to remove the invading spirits.

• Demonic infestation: physical attacks on the body of the person, as demonstrated by cuts, burns, bites, swelling or fractures.

• Demonic obsession: mental attacks, which affect a person’s senses or produce thoughts in them of suicide or homicide. Evil spirits cannot read our thoughts or inhabit our souls but they can deduce our thoughts by offering us temptations.

• Demonic possession: taking control of the body, including legs, arms and mouth. The person’s body might contort, the back could arch, the eyes might roll back, the voice could get deeper and the jaw might drop down and move to one side. The demons also might give the person superhuman strength, the power to levitate or the ability to speak, understand languages that they did not know previously and knowing information that they did not know before, said Father Lampert.

The priest advised that people who believe that they might be afflicted by evil first visit their parish priests and start a conversation by asking, “Could you help me sort out what’s going on in my life?” The priest can administer the sacraments of Penance and the Anointing of the Sick, but might call the diocese if he has further concerns, Father Lampert said.

Faith-filled but natural skeptics, exorcists determine a person’s possible affliction by following seven steps in the official protocol of the U.S. Church. They are: ordering a psychiatric evaluation to rule out a psychiatric disorder; ordering a physical exam; taking the person’s life history, including his or her experiences with drugs or the occult; determining if the person wants to resume — or start — a relationship with Christ; looking for signs of the demonic; following diocesan and Church procedures; and then writing up the case and submitting it to the local bishop. He will determine whether to proceed with an exorcism — the “last line of defense” against evil — if deemed necessary, Father Lampert said.

During the rite of exorcism — only recently updated since the 1400s — the exorcist recites special prayers to communicate with the evil spirit and orders it to exit the body of the afflicted, under the local bishop’s authority, and armed with the power of God. Eventually, the demon complies with God’s orders, but often not without much screaming; insults; physical, spiritual and psychological torment; and other resistance, said Father Lampert.

Ultimately, everyday Catholics can ward off evil in their lives by avoiding the practices of the occult, such as witchcraft, and movies that focus on evil and strengthen their own faith by receiving the Eucharist weekly and availing themselves of the Sacraments of Penance and Anointing of the Sick. The faithful also can read Bible verses, pray devotions to the Blessed Mother and the Divine Mercy and use religious images and sacramentals, he said.

The night before, Father Lampert had met at St. Paul’s with a gathering of priests from the Diocese, as encouraged by Bishop Serratelli. The exorcist spoke about the “reality of evil and spiritual maladies, distinguishing them from psychological illness and the pastoral care of those beset by evil spirits,” said Father Paul Manning, St. Paul’s executive director and diocesan vicar for evangelization.

In his introduction to Father Lampert’s talk, Father Manning noted that the speaker continues the healing work of Christ, who “voiced strong opposition to the devil,” expelled evil spirits in his ministry, warned us of “Satan and how he operates” and then commanded his Apostles to cast out demons as well.

“Surely Father Lampert is one of us [priests], practicing a ministry on behalf of all of us that most of us would shy away from. Undoubtedly, he is an unsung hero and one of God’s quiet champions,” Father Manning said.

After the presentation, audience member Gabriela Andrade of St. Peter the Apostle Parish, Parsippany, called it “reaffirming.”

“Father Lampert’s talk was not as terrifying as I expected,” Andrade said. “He told us that Satan tries to cause fear, but God has more power than evil spirits. We have the power [in our faith] to love and not give into fear of the devil,” she said.