In the Catholic Church the practice of expelling demons from the body of a possessed person is called exorcism. While some people may think of the much-acclaimed 1973 film The Exorcist when they hear of exorcism, the practice is actually a step-by-step process and A clear description in which the clerics must follow specific steps to successfully perform the rite.
However, the Church considers demonic possession to be a very rare phenomenon and requires extensive examination to rule out possible mental or physical illness.
Most people don't know that both Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI performed exorcisms in the Vatican.
“When the Church issues a public and authoritative order in the name of Jesus Christ that a person or thing be protected against the power of the Evil Spirit and from its dominion, it is called exorcism” – Catechism of the Catholic Church.
According to the late Father Gabriele Amorth, exorcist of the Diocese of Rome, Pope John Paul II performed his first exorcism as Pope in the Vatican on March 27, 1982. Bishop Ottorino Alberti. of the city of Spoleto, Italy, brought a girl named Francesca Fabrizi to ask for the Pope's help. After he met the girl, she began to struggle on the ground unstoppable, sobbing, despite the intervention of Pope John Paul II. She only softened when he said, “Tomorrow I will give you Mass.”
A few years after the successful exorcism, the happy and peaceful Francesca Fabrizi returned to visit the Pope with her husband and children. In the private memoirs of Jacques-Paul Martin, Prefect for Internal Affairs during the reign of John Paul II, the Pope reported that the Pope said, “Never before have I seen a thing. like this. This is a biblical scene.”
John Paul II performed another exorcism in St. Peter's Square during a weekly General Audience in 2000. A woman named Sabrina was brought to the Vatican, and as soon as she entered the square. , she immediately began to scream and tried to rush to attack the Pope, it took 10 people to contain her. She started foaming at the mouth and shouted blasphemies. After concluding his weekly address, John Paul II asked to see Sabrina. According to Father Amorth, as soon as she approached the Pope her eyes widened and her head jerked back and shouted “No, leave me alone!” John Paul II performed an exorcism on the spot, blessing her several times. However, the initial attempt failed to completely cleanse her and Father Amorth was asked to perform several more times with Sabrina in order to free her from the demons.
While Father Amorth considers John Paul II to be one of the most powerful exorcists of the time, he considers Benedict XVI even scarier.
In May 2009, Father Amorth brought two men to Saint Peter's Square for a weekly general audience of Benedict XVI. The two men, Giovanni and Marco, began to tremble and their teeth clashed as the Pope approached them. As he got out of the papal car, both men threw themselves to the ground and began to bang their heads on the ground and howl. From a distance, Benedict XVI raised his hand to bless the two. Father Amorth said that the two men threw themselves 10 feet back (1 foot = 0.3048 m) and began to sob as they were freed from the demonic possession.
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