The demand for exorcists is at record levels, claims a leading demon-hunter who blames human nature as much as the devil for the trend.
Rev. Chad Ripperger, a Catholic priest in the Archdiocese of Denver, told The Post there aren’t more demons running amok on Earth.
The blame lies primarily with people themselves. They blatantly disregard the church’s teachings and act on their own dark impulses instead.
“The demons are empowered as more and more people commit evil deeds,” Father Ripperger said. “If a person willingly becomes involved in these evil deeds, Satanism or witchcraft, the actions lead to a susceptibility to Satan’s influence so that he or she is easily manipulated and can be incited to do more evil things.
“Unfortunately, people today do not believe their actions have consequences.”
During an exorcism, the priest — armed with holy water, the crucifix and a bible — reads prayers and scriptures to the “possessed” while commanding the demon to depart. The person may need to be restrained during the session as the priest’s presence may anger the demon, said Ripperger, but “only a small percentage — about 10% — of cases are as dramatic as portrayed in Hollywood.”
The 1973 film “The Exorcist” terrified audiences worldwide. In it, a girl named Regan MacNeil, portrayed by Linda Blair, underwent an exorcism in which she famously projectile-vomited a disgusting green substance, levitated, rotated her head to face backwards, spoke in ancient tongues, developed startling facial scars, and talked in a demon’s voice.
Today, Catholic Church experts said there are roughly 150 priests in the US trained to practice exorcism.
That number has increased an astonishing 650% since 2020 — when only about 20 priests were trained for the position, said Ripperger.
On March 13, Pope Leo XIV hosted the world’s most senior exorcists at the Vatican. They reportedly warned him of the terrifying global rise in “occultism, esotericism and Satanism.”
The priests of the International Association of Exorcists called on him to ensure that every diocese in the world has one or more adequately trained exorcist priests, according to EWTN Vatican.
The new exorcists are already being trained to handle the growing number of desperate families seeking help for disturbing and inexplicable behavior, according to reports from Catholic priests and church officials.
Other Catholic priests involved in the phenomenon — Rev. Vincent Lampert, the designated exorcist of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, and Monsignor Stephen Rosetti, a Washington, DC-based expert on psychological and spiritual wellness — are also seeing an uptick in cases.
During 2018, Lampert said he received a staggering 1,700 calls for help. CNN contacted all 196 Catholic dioceses and archdioceses in the US for a recent report. Of the 48 that responded, 25 dioceses — over 50% — reported a recent increase for exorcism requests.
Rev. Dan Todd, a trained exorcist at Our Lady of Divine Mercy Anglican Church in High Bridge, NJ, told The Post, “The devil is out there, but people do bad things as well. Also, psychiatric disorders like schizophrenia and dissociative identity disorder can mimic demonic possession.
“About 99% of cases are due to mental illness.”
In that event, mental health consideration must be given “to make sure they get the help they need,” he added.
Signs of possession, according to leading exorcists, include:
- Speaking in languages they do not know. Having knowledge of ancient Latin, Hebrew, or Greek, without having studied them.
- Knowledge of the unknown. A demonically possessed person will somehow know personal details never revealed publicly.
- Immense strength. “I’ve seen a woman throw a refrigerator across the room,” said Todd.
- Psychological manipulation. Demons will attempt to unsettle exorcists.
- Aversion to religious symbols like crosses and holy water.
- Sudden and extreme rage, obscene hand gestures and excessive profanity.
- Hallucinations, obsessive thoughts and suicidal ideation.
The experts also give advice on how people can protect themselves from demons.
- Prayer and fasting.
- Attend church services and take communion.
- Study the Bible.
- Confession and repentance.
- Stay away from persons you know to be evil or commit crimes.
- Call upon your Guardian Angel, who is more powerful than the devil himself.
“Confession is the most powerful way to keep your soul clean. Even in the middle of an exorcism, if a person confesses their sins, the demon will vanish,” said Todd.
