Deliver Us From Evil

I've been curious about exorcisms for a long time. After reading the book Diary of an American Exorcist I found the St. Michael Center for Spiritual Renewal website. The Center holds Deliverance Sessions lead by Msgr. Rossetti that have attracted thousands of people. Msgr. Rossetti is an exorcist and holds a PhD in Clinical Psychology. He leads the traditional deliverance prayer session online for free once a month.

A deliverance prayer session contains the Litany of the Saints, a Bible reading, and a series of prayers asking God to deliver someone from any influences the evil spirits may have over them. Msgr. Rossetti prays for those attending and uses various prayers to break any ties to the occult. There is a prayer for those involved in the Masonic movement, witchcraft, and ties or bonds given to others through certain sins. The sessions are supported by a staff of laity that aid in the intercessory prayers.

For anyone wanting to understand the unseen spiritual world, the Deliverance Sessions are quite interesting, and healing in ways not always apparent at first. The hour of praying comforts, uplifts, and teaches those attending how much God loves us. There is nothing more liberating than knowing we have power to reject Satan.

Some things I've picked up about possessions: the evil spirits can't just point at someone and say, “I'd like to possess that one over there.” They have to be invited in or be able to claim an association or attachment to the person that they possess. Sometimes innocent people who haven't done anything wrong can become possessed through the authority of another over them (like a parent giving a child over to demons).

Why do the evil spirits want to possess a person? It seems there is a sort of relief that they get when they possess a person or thing. The evil spirits are in a hierarchy and when a person is possessed there are many spirits that enter. When they grow weaker during an exorcism, the lower ranking ones leave first. The exorcist sticks to a few questions such as the demon's name, what the role was that they refused to fulfill when they rejected God, and when they will depart. Since demons lie, the exorcist doesn't get into any discussions with them. The reason they were permitted to enter the person also is discovered. In the cases involving witchcraft, those possessed usually made a deal with the demons to obtain some sort of power or knowledge. It takes about a year or so to free possessed people. It takes a great deal of prayer and resolve by the possessed person to grow closer to Jesus and return to the Sacraments in order to become free.

The St. Michael Center has a wonderful website with a list of prayers, podcasts, and Msgr Rossetti's blog. The blog is really educational.

The good news is Jesus gave us the gift of exorcism to free us from the aftershocks of sin. While the deliverance session is a sacramental, and making a good Confession is more powerful than the Rite of Exorcism (according to exorcists), these prayers do help. In the same way as the Rosary helps us live an holy life, the Deliverance Session Prayers help us turn to Jesus.

The next Deliverance Session is Monday, June 17, 2024 at 7 pm EST. In order to attend there is a button to register. The rosary is said beforehand. I encourage anyone who wants to see what an exorcist does to attend this session!

Link:

https://www.catholicexorcism.org/