Dear Jessica:

Personal sin is not the only way a person can become demonized or even possessed. As we all know, we suffer not only from the consequences of our own sins, but also from the consequences of other people's sin perpetrated upon us.

For example, we all suffer from the consequences of the sin of Adam and Eve. A friend of mine was killed by a drunk driver two days after Christmas, two weeks before his wedding. He was 31.

Because God loves us He has created us in His image. His image includes the ability to choose. We we not limited by instinct and environment. We have free will to make free choices. It is not possible for us to love God until we have the freedom to choose to love God. 1 Corinthians 13 says that love does no demand its own way. God does not force us to love him, because forced love is not love. Love must be free chosen and given.

Without free will and a rational soul the human race would only be sophisticated apes.

Freedom to choose, however, brings the risk that a person will choose to reject God. Our Lord takes that risk because otherwise we, his children, could not love Him at all.

When people, like that drunk driver, choose to sin, others suffer.

Perhaps the most famous case of possession was a woman in Earling, Iowa in the 1920s. She did nothing to bring on a possession. The reason Satan went after her was that her father cursed her and gave her to Satan. God could not stop the father from doing this because God refuses to intrude upon free will. We either have free will or we don't. One cannot have 99% free will. One cannot be 99% pregnant. Either you is, either you ain't.

In God's mercy, the woman came to the attention of local priests and the Bishop authorized an exorcism. The story of this exorcism is recorded in the book, Begone Satan!

Here are some excerpts:

She was a very pious and respectable person. Throughout her youth she led a religious, fervent and blameless life. In fact she approached the sacraments frequently. After her fourteenth year some unusual experiences manifested themselves. She wanted to pray, wanted to go to church and as usual receive Holy Communion. But some interior hidden power was interfering with her plans. The situation became worse instead of improving. Words cannot express what she had to suffer. She was actually barred from the consolations of the Church, torn away from them by force. She could not help herself in any way and seemed to be in the clutches of some mysterious power. She was conscious of some sinister inner voices that kept on suggesting most disagreeable things to her. These voices tried their utmost to arouse thoughts of the most shameful type within her, and tried to induce her to do things unmentionable and even to bring her to despair. The poor creature was helpless and secretly was of the opinion that she would become insane. There were times when she felt impelled to shatter her holy water font, when she could have attacked her spiritual adviser and could have suffocated him. Yes, there were suggestions urging her to tear down the very house of God.

During the 23-day exorcism [St. Therese,] the Little Flower of Jesus also appeared to the woman during these crucial days and spoke these consoling words to her: "Do not lose courage! The pastor especially should not give up hope. The end is soon at hand."

This girl was a good and devout Catholic, but she suffered the consequences of her father's choices.

One might ask, "Okay, she was suffering by her father's actions, but why allow her to be possessed for so long?"

That is a fair question, but one that no one can definitively answer. Sometimes a person is not delivered right away because either the person or the priest needs to learn something or it may that this suffering is for a great grace.

As has been said many times by saints that the more the suffering the greater grace is possible. Certainly St. Paul reminds us that, (Rom 8:28) We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him, who are called according to his purpose.

The Bible gives us an example of a person harassed (not possessed) by demons to which refused to deliver the man. The man was St. Paul:

(2 Cor 12:7-10)  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, to keep me from being too elated. Three times I besought the Lord about this, that it should leave me; but he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." I will all the more gladly boast of my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities; for when I am weak, then I am strong.

In this case, we know why God said no to St. Paul -- to keep him humble. Also, St. Paul learned great things from his experience that benefits us all:

1. He learned that Christ's grace is sufficient for us. We do not need to be healed or delivered. Rather we need to allow the grace of Christ to be sufficient for us.
2. He learned that the power of Christ is made perfect in weakness
3. He learned to abandon himself, to resign himself, to God thus to be content with "weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities"

I advise everyone to read our pamphlet, Christian Resignation as a Prerequisite to Deliverance

We must trust in God's providence. He does what is best for us. We may not understand His ways, but to borrow from the famed quote, "It is not for us to wonder why, it is for us but to do or die."

Concerning possessed people and their state of soul: Possessed people usually are not under direct control of the demons 24 hours per day. During those times when the demons are exerting control the possessed person may receive the Eucharist or even attend Mass in a parish Church, prayer and practice devotions. A possessed person's ability to to practice religion depends upon the nature and intensity of the possession.

A possessed person can indeed be in a state of grace. The demons may control the body and even part of the mind, but the demons cannot touch the soul. Only God can possess the soul. We never lose our soul from possession. We lose our soul by refusing God's grace (refusing a state of grace) at the moment of our death.

As for the story of Annaliese it is hard to know which of the many stories about her are true. The story that suggests that she accepted suffering on behalf of others is a "praise God" moment. In doing this she joined her suffering with Christ for the benefit of others. This is what martyrs do. It is act of love. We, too, should offer up our suffering to God instead of complaining out it. Saints throughout time have offered their suffering up to God. If this is what Annaliese did, then she enjoyed a very great privilege and her reward in heaven will be great.

Possession is rare, but increasing in recent decades. Possession of an innocent person is very rare, but it happens. Lower levels of demonization (harassment, obsession, oppression), however, is pandemic in our society. This should not be too surprising given the ungodly atmosphere of our culture.

I am amazed at the ignorance of so many Catholics and other Christians who practice new age nonsense, go to shamans, psychic healers, and all the things that can open the door to demonization.

If we open the door, the enemy will be happy to walk in. Unfortunately, friends and family can suffer the consequences of our stupidity. Our ancesters can open the door for a family line, effecting generation to generation. Our first parents, Adam and Eve opened the door to the enemy for the whole human race. That door is closed by Baptism. The doors opened by our parents, grandparents, etc, can also be closed.

God Bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary