Demonic Fascination

Over the years since this website (fspp.net) has existed, the most commonly viewed section is far and away the one on demonology. In one sense, I think that is a positive thing. However, I am sometimes left to wonder if the site might now be better off without it. You see, the most hits belong to the “Warning Signs of Demonic Possession.” In and of itself that is understandable and even expected. It is a fascinating subject and an area many people sometimes foolishly get into. What bothers me is they don’t read the red scrolling warning before they do. The reason for having it there is warn people what to stay away from and to be able to rule out demons which appears to be on so many people’s minds these days. The truth of the matter is that if you live a good life, especially one that is prayerful, avoid anything that even smells like the occult and avoid doing bad things to others, the odds are you will win the Mega-Millions before you meet a demon. It is that simple.

Yet there is such a fascination for the subject these days. I am somewhat at a loss to understand why this is so. I have had some people whole heartedly agree with me. I have had others tell me I’m maybe too old for this. Many have scoffed at the mere mention of demonology. One person said something that I fear may be true: Satan sells. He also smells but I won’t go there; I face his wrath more than enough. That comes with the territory. But why do others want to take that risk? Fascination is one thing; obsession another. I receive many, many e-mails as part of what I do. What bothers me is that probably close to 90% believe they are possessed or knows someone who is. You have to write off some percentage to cover those who are mentally ill. I do not know how to calculate that number. Is it most of them? I just do not know. What is so disturbing to me is that however you slice the pie, there are many out there who believe it. In truth, if they were indeed possessed, they would not be able to contact me, another priest or minister. It just is not going to happen. It is a problem that needs to be fixed and I will not insult anyone’s intelligence by saying I have the answer.

Is there a rise in possession? There is no way to calculate that either. The Catholic Church is not about to give out numbers and what we hear from “Deliverance Ministers” is so over the top as to lose all credibility. Don’t get me wrong here. I’m not trying to mock those who do work for God. I just get so annoyed when the number of “deliverances” performed tally higher than the number of people who eat at McDonalds. However, I think we can safely say that there is a rise in the number of those demonically possessed. I cannot put a number to it but with the rise in popularity or maybe it is better to say there is a reawakening In things occult. Ouija boards, spell books, tarot cards and all the rest can cause problems. Certainly not everyone who uses an Ouija board finds themselves possessed. Ditto for the other things I mentioned. However, just imagine of one percent of people who use them have a problem. The numbers would be staggering. So we have some there. Look at the evil all around you. Rape, murder, robbery. Sure that has been going on since the dawn of time but you have to think some of this is demonic. The breakdown of morals is at an all time high as well.

So am I speaking out of both sides of my mouth? You are saying it is almost impossible to come into direct contact with a demon, then you talk about why there is a rise of it. What I am saying is that it is still a rare phenomenon that most people will not experience directly but there is a rise in it and frighteningly also a rise in fascination. It is that fascination that bothers me. If you look for something long enough, you are likely to find it. People do not realize that. I will soon be publishing an article about people who work in this field or I should say worked in this field. They have paid their dues and they have also paid the price. Some more dramatically than others. I would love to do an interview with some of them. Some of them declined because they did not want their names and experiences out there. Most refused to discuss the events at all for fear of making it happen again. Others just don’t want to get into it.

My hope going forward is that the fascination with the world of the demonic will slow down but history suggests otherwise. For my end of it, I want my stuff read because I believe everyone should know what is out there. However, I really wish they would read the warnings and other articles instead of diagnosing themselves, especially when that diagnosis points towards possession. 

Historic (And Haunted) Biltmore Hotel Gets A Stay Of Execution

After closing in 2009, the infamously haunted Belleview Biltmore hotel has long sat in a state of limbo, with the owners swearing they're going to tear it down and preservationists lobbying to rescue it. Now, it appears the haunted hotel has evaded destruction... for awhile.

Just a year before its closure, the Biltmore's haunted history paid off when it hosted the first annual TAPSCON festival, the official fan convention for SyFy's popular reality show Ghost Hunters, an event that supposedly saw almost a dozen camera broken by Robert the Haunted Doll. Still, even the famous phantom chasers from television and a spooky history of paranormal activity couldn't save the building from closure.

After over 2 hours of debating on Tuesday night, city commissioners voted to postpone a zoning change that would have allowed the current owners of the Biltmore Hotel to raze the building. The vote comes after years of legal limbo that have resulted in the hotel becoming a haven for urban explorers and paranormal investigators alike.

Today, the building is mostly frequented by people risking a breaking and entering charge in exchange for a glimpse at a ghost, but if preservationists and historians have their way, the building will not only be preserved, it will be restored - a duty that officials say they must uphold since the building technically qualifies as a historic site.

"Our ordinance and law is very clear that we have to preserve the hotel. We really don't have an option," Vice Mayor Stephen Fowler said Wednesday.

Until the next vote, The Bellevue Biltmore lives to haunt another day.

Exorcism: Facts and Fiction About Demonic Possession

The belief that demons exist and can possess people is of course the stuff of fiction and horror films — but it is also one of the most widely-held religious beliefs in the world. Most religions claim that humans can be possessed by demonic spirits (the Bible, for example, recounts six instances of Jesus casting out demons), and offer exorcisms to remedy this threat.

The idea that invading spirits are inherently evil is largely a Judeo-Christian concept; many religions and belief systems accept possession by both beneficent and malevolent entities for short periods of time as uncommon — and not especially alarming — aspects of spiritual life. Spiritualism, a religion that flourished across America in the 1800s and is still practiced in a few places today, teaches that death is an illusion and that spirits can possess humans. New Agers have also long embraced a form of possession called channeling, in which spirits of the dead are said to inhabit a medium's body and communicate through them. Hundreds of books, and even some symphonies, have been allegedly composed by spirits.

Hollywood, of course, has been eager to capitalize on the public's continued fascination with exorcism and demonic possession with films often dubbed "based on a true story." There are countless exorcism-inspired films, including "The Last Exorcism," "The Exorcism of Emily Rose," "The Devil Inside" and "The Rite" — wildly varying in quality, originality, and scariness. The greatest cultural influence, of course, came from the classic "The Exorcist." In the weeks after the film came out in 1974, a Boston Catholic center received daily requests for exorcisms. The script was written by William Peter Blatty, adapted from his best-selling 1971 novel of the same name. Blatty described the inspiration for the film as a Washington Post article he’d read in 1949 about a Maryland boy who had been exorcised. Blatty believed (or claimed to believe) it was an accurate account, though later research revealed the story had been sensationalized was far from credible.

Michael Cuneo, in his book "American Exorcism: Expelling Demons in the Land of Plenty," credits Blatty and "The Exorcist" with much of the modern-day interest in exorcism. As for historical accuracy, though, Cuneo characterizes Blatty's work as a massive structure of fantasy resting on a flimsy foundation of one priest's diary. There really was a boy who underwent an exorcism, but virtually all of the gory and sensational details appearing in the book and film were wildly exaggerated or completely made up.

Real Exorcisms

While many Americans think of real exorcisms as relics of the Dark Ages, exorcisms continue to be performed, often on people who are emotionally and mentally disturbed. Whether those undergoing the exorcism are truly possessed by spirits or demons is another matter entirely. Exorcisms are done on people of strong religious faith. To the extent that exorcisms "work," it is due to the power of suggestion and psychology: If you believe you're possessed (and that an exorcism will cure you), then it just might.

The word exorcism derives from the Greek word for oath, "exousia." As religious studies scholar James R. Lewis explains in his book "Satanism Today: An Encyclopedia of Religion, Folklore, and Popular Culture," "To exorcise thus means something along the lines of placing the possessing spirit under oath — invoking a higher authority to compel the spirit — rather than an actual 'casting out.'" This becomes clear when the demonic entity is commanded to leave the person, not by the authority of a priest but instead, for example, "in the name of the Father, and the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."

The Vatican first issued official guidelines on exorcism in 1614, and revised them in 1999. According to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, signs of demonic possession include superhuman strength, aversion to holy water, and the ability to speak in unknown languages. Other potential signs of demonic possession include spitting, cursing, and "excessive masturbation."

Along with a handful of Vatican-sanctioned exorcists, there are hundreds of self-styled exorcists around the world. After attending 50 exorcisms during research for his book, Michael Cuneo states that he never saw anything supernatural or unexplainable: No levitation or spinning heads or demonic scratch marks suddenly appearing on anyone's faces, but many emotionally troubled people on both sides of the ritual.

While most people enjoy a scary movie, belief in the literal reality of demons and of the efficacy of exorcism can have deadly consequences. In 2003, an autistic 8-year-old boy in Milwaukee, Wis., was killed during an exorcism by church members who blamed an invading demon for his disability; in 2005 a young nun in Romania died at the hands of a priest during an exorcism after being bound to a cross, gagged, and left for days without food or water in an effort to expel demons. And on Christmas Day 2010 in London, England, a 14-year-old boy named Kristy Bamu was beaten and drowned to death by relatives trying to exorcise an evil spirit from the boy.

Inside the Mind of a Paranormal Intelligence Agent

Got a Big Foot or space alien in your backyard? 

Government agents in black helicopters? 

Sheepsquatch? 

Just call Jack Cary, founder and director of the Paranormal Intelligence Agency.

Jack Cary is in the business of mystery solving, but he’s no regular detective. As the founding director of the Paranormal Intelligence Agency (PIA), the 40-year-old has dedicated his life to cracking some of the world’s most bizarre cases.

The “agency,” which consists of Cary and 15 investigators across the United States, is privately funded and not affiliated with any other organizations, government or otherwise. To some extent, it works like a real intelligence agency, gathering intel and monitoring event patterns to form educated hypotheses. But the PIA focuses most of its investigative powers on life’s big mysteries, like Sasquatch (he’s real), UFO sightings (happen all the time), animal mutilations (possible government agency doing this), werewolves (their existence is still under investigation), and sudden, world-changing incidents known as “black swan” events (9/11, catastrophic solar flares).

In one recent report on his website, Cary speculates that the newly launched Chinese moon rover might discover the secret U.S. military base on the moon. (Remote viewers have already detected both people and buildings on Mars, FYI.)

Because paranormal activity is so unpredictable, Cary is always on call, ready to dispatch an investigator or rush to the scene himself. In addition to his 15 years of experience investigating the paranormal, Cary says he has a background in the U.S. Navy working on special operations intelligence on a submarine, with top-secret security clearance. We chatted with Cary about the PIA, meeting his first ghost, “cryptid” animals (species studied in the field of cryptozoology), and his views on the apparently astronomical amount of cattle mutilations happening these days. Spoiler: Vampires aren’t real. Sorry, girls.

Teen Exorcists: Women Who Expel Demons On Stage

Brynne Larson and Tess and Savannah Scherkenback are all-American girls from Arizona, who enjoy martial arts and horse riding. But something sets them apart from most teenagers - they perform public exorcisms and often appear on TV chat shows.

Eighteen-year-old Brynne met sisters Tess and Savannah about eight years ago at a karate class.

"We just really hit it off," says Savannah, aged 21. "I don't know what happens but somehow you bond when you're punching one another and throwing knees. We were working out together, learning how to fight and how to defend ourselves and defend others."

They are now karate black belts, but because of their particular Christian beliefs, they have also decided to do battle - they say - against evil spirits or demons. They believe that these demons can possess a human being and cause suffering, depression or addiction.

"A demon can't just come into anybody whenever it chooses to - God doesn't allow that," says Brynne.

The teenage exorcists are skilled in martial arts and black belts in karate

"What happens is when someone sins or does something, or something's done to them that allows the demon to come into them, that's called the legal right or the reason that it's there."

The young women have been trained by Brynne's father, the Reverend Bob Larson, who says he has performed more than 15,000 exorcisms. They have appeared alongside him in America and overseas, including the UK.

"Every single country has a specific kind of demon," says Tess, 18, who loves music and reading.

They believe that the UK in particular is a hotbed for "witchcraft", because of the popularity of J K Rowling's Harry Potter books.

"The spells and things that you're reading in the Harry Potter books, those aren't just something that are made up, those are actual spells. Those are things that came from witchcraft books," says Tess.

The teens see themselves as "freedom fighters". During an exorcism they brandish silver crosses and Bibles while confronting the so-called demon to make it return to hell.

"I'd have to say my special skills [are] probably the enforcer or the lead exorcist. I can take on those demons," says Brynne.

The teenage exorcists are greeted on stage as if they were celebrities. There is applause and they announce to the audience that they look forward to "kicking some demon butt".

But Brynne denies that it's a theatrical performance.

"Honestly, I've never tried to do any showmanship at all, I'm just demonstrating the power of God," says Brynne. "We're not doing it to play up to the cameras. I've seen some amazing things in private with nobody there."

The young women's mentor, Brynne's father, disagrees with critics who say it's dangerous to teach teenagers to perform exorcisms.

"We think it's OK to train teenagers to get drunk and have sex, but to do moral things for God, oh let's not train them to do that," says Larson.

He asks for a voluntary donation of a couple of hundred dollars or pounds when he and the girls perform a one-to-one exorcism, and rejects the idea that spiritual services have to be free of charge.

"Money and motives, anytime someone is in God's work it always comes up," he says.

"People will pay thousands of dollars to go to drug rehab or to pay psychiatrists but there's this idea that spirituality needs to be for free.

"The average megachurch pastor in America, it's not uncommon for them to make up to $1m a year. Well I can assure you we are nowhere near that."

Brynne, Tess and Savannah perform an exorcism in Ukraine

Exorcism is an ancient practice and one that appears in many different religions, but many believers doubt the existence of demons.

Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis, saw spirit possession as a neurotic delusion, and demons as repressed "instinctual impulses".

Before undertaking a one-to-one exorcism, Larson says he asks clients to complete a psychiatric questionnaire to identify if they have any mental health problems. He says it is important for anyone with mental health problems to receive medical care and psychological support.

Continue reading the main story

“Start Quote

I don't really have time to go to school, but I'll just sit at my desk and work on calculus or read all my books”

Brynne Larson

Brynne's mother Laura Larson, says the girls are sincerely trying to help people.

"This is a family who lives by what they believe," says Laura, "and I think the teenage exorcists are making a difference, whether you believe in what they do or not, they are committed and they stand by what they believe."

She did not actively encourage her daughter Brynne to become an exorcist she says.

"Given the environment you would think that we would have been grooming them at the table, 'OK now how do you define this? What kind of demon is this?' But that really wasn't the approach.

"In fact I was the opposite, I didn't really keep her from doing deliverances but I didn't encourage her.

"Then her friends Tess and Savannah just started getting this training and she said, 'Mum can I please go along, I really want to learn,' and of course I mean I couldn't say no".

Tess, Savannah and Brynne have all been home-schooled. In Brynne's case it was because her father's profession led the family to travel widely.

"With going [to] over 20 countries and stuff, I don't really have time to go to school, but I'll just sit at my desk and work on calculus or read all my books," she says. "This is so much better than going to a stinky old school room."

Brynne and Tess have been awarded places at college this year, while Savannah is already a college student. But as well as continuing their education they are determined to continue their spiritual battle against what they see as the forces of evil.

What do the teenage exorcists believe?

• That exorcism can cast out a demon or evil spirit which has possessed a person
• That these demons have names like Abaddon and Jezebel
• That God cast the angel Lucifer out of heaven and he became Satan
• That the angels who were cast out of heaven with Lucifer became demons
• That a demon can be provoked to come to the surface, what they call "manifesting"

My Ghost Story S06E21 Bloodcurdling by ghostvid