The Intercession of the Saints
The saints in heaven intercede for us with great power and efficacy. We must pray to them often. As we profess in the Creed, with them and with the suffering souls in purgatory we are building up what we call the community of saints. It is worth the trouble to read what Vatican II has declared regarding this subject: “Until the Lord shall come in His majesty, and all the angels with Him [cf. Matt. 25:31] and death being destroyed, all things are subject to Him [cf. 1 Cor. 15:26–27], . . . all in various ways and degrees are in communion in the same charity of God and neighbor and all sing the same hymn of glory to our God. For all who are in Christ, having His Spirit, form one Church and cleave together in Him [cf. Eph. 4:16].”32
Here is an important motive for hoping to win the struggle against the devil but also to overcome the anguish and suffering that entangles us at times. With those who already enjoy the vision of God in paradise, an intense exchange of spiritual benefits takes place. Because of their more intimate union with Christ, the inhabitants of heaven do not cease to intercede for us with the Father, offering Him the merits that they acquired on earth through Jesus Christ. Thus, our weakness is greatly helped by their fraternal solicitude.33
For the one who is troubled by a demon, the invocation of the saints during the rite of exorcism manifests this trust of the Church in their presence. But apart from this, I counsel, in personal prayer, the frequent recitation of the litanies of the saints, choosing one’s own patron or those to whom one is particularly devoted. Their presence is also mediated through devotion and through the use of their relics, which disturb many demonic actions. As I outlined not long ago, it is necessary to remember that the souls in purgatory can also intercede for us and are also called upon for liberation from the influences of the demon. To offer one’s spiritual sufferings in order to shorten their purification is another meritorious work.
Which particular saints should those who suffer from spiritual evils call upon? I advise invoking those saints who have experienced the same disturbances; for example, Blessed Eustace (in the secular life, Lucrezia Bellini), a Benedictine nun from Padua who lived in the fifteenth century. She died at the age of twenty-five after having been possessed by a demon from the age of four. Her religious life, begun at eighteen, was also heavily conditioned by that grave possession, which she tolerated, offering her sufferings to expiate the sins of those who caused her tribulations. Even her own consecrated sisters mistreated her, annoyed by the disturbances her possession caused the communal life of their convent. Only shortly before her death did they understand that they had been living with a saint. Even today many pray before her tomb in the church of St. Peter, imploring the grace of liberation.
As for me, when I practice exorcisms, I feel the very powerful presence of St. Pio of Pietrelcina, St. Catherine of Bologna, and St. John Paul II. Of this last, I know for certain that he personally practiced at least three exorcisms in his private chapel in the Vatican. When I pronounce his name, the demons are literally infuriated.
I have been asked if, during the exorcism, the demon will pronounce the name of the saint. Normally he does not. It can happen that demons will make a reference to God, to the Virgin, and to some saints, although they have an authentic terror of them, but it never happens that they are able to use their names directly; if they must mention them, they use substitutions. Jesus is referred to in reference to the priest who is performing the exorcism, such as, “your leader” or “your superior”; our Lady is “that one there” or “the thief of souls”; the saints are “assassins.” They oppose [the saints] because, by their prayers, [the saints] steal souls from [the demons’] claws. This is in confirmation of all that we have said.
The Help of the Angels
What role do the angels have? We have already spoken of their choice for or against God in the third chapter. The word angel derives from the Greek angelos and means “messenger of God.” The angels are spiritual creatures, without matter. They are pure forms and have a nature different from that of men, who have a material and spiritual nature together. The angels are subdivided into angelic hierarchies according to the mission that is entrusted to them by God. They cannot reproduce or die: in fact, they have been created directly by God.
At the moment of our birth, Divine Providence assigns each of us a guardian angel, with the specific task of protecting us, assisting us, and interceding for us so that at the end of life we can arrive at our destination, which is paradise.
We have already seen that entire legions of angels have chosen the tragic road of rebellion against God, refusing to obey and to adore Him and, indeed, they tried to substitute themselves for Him. As a consequence of their choice, the devils radically changed their mission: now, in fact, they use their superfine intelligence for the unique objective of destroying men and making them their companions in misfortune. As Revelation tells us, that gigantic war that was fought in the heavens among the angels and the demons has another battlefield here on earth: they are in a continuous battle for our lives and our hearts.
From all this, one can affirm that the angels who remained faithful to God have a certain degree of power against ordinary temptations as well as extraordinary spiritual evils. Why? Because they are of the same nature as the devils, and they fight with the same spiritual arms. The angels intercede with God in favor of the one being tempted; for this reason, we exorcists always invoke them during the prayers on the obsessed. Among the angels we give precedence to the three archangels, in particular to St. Michael, the most powerful in the struggle against demons. Incidentally, I am among those who regret that, after Vatican II, the prayer of protection to St. Michael the Archangel, recited after Mass, was eliminated. It seems to me to have created an impoverishment, a void. It is true, however, that one can freely say it privately.
In brief, it is good to invoke the angels often, even apart from their help with extraordinary spiritual evils. I always advise imploring their assistance. Our guardian angels have a special power of intercession with God, which is always the beginning of liberations (from demons). The angels help, they intercede, but they themselves do not have the power to liberate the possessed from the terrible effects of demons.
Sacred Objects and Blessings
One can also use blessed objects in the struggle against Satan. This practice is advisable for everyone, not only for those with specific spiritual problems. It is always appropriate to keep sacred images, statues, or blessed niches in the home; sacred objects are a sign of our fidelity and belonging to God. They constitute a protection from the Evil One because they are a constant reminder of our consecration to the Trinity in baptism. But they are also important because they are a form of visible testimony toward those who live with us and those who visit us in our home.
It is also a good thing to keep some blessed objects with you in a purse or a backpack or in a briefcase. Those that come to mind are the St. Benedict medal, which is placed in crucifixes, and the Miraculous Medal, presented to St. Catherine Labouré in 1830, on which Mary is configured with the inscription: “O, Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you.” On the other side there is a large M, which signifies Mary, and two hearts — those of Jesus and Mary — that signify (as would be revealed in 1917 at Fátima) that it is the will of God that Mary and her Son be prayed to together.
We can also cite other objects: scapulars and the images of the saints and their relics. It is necessary to specify that these objects have no value if they are not sustained by a concrete faith, based on charity. They must not be a means of indulging in superstitions or carried as a talisman or good-luck piece, which would be falling into a magical attitude, something that is gravely contrary to faith. Pope Francis confirms all this in the encyclical Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel), which encourages everyone to seek a “renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ each day. . . . I ask all of you to do this unfailingly.”34 This is the Faith, the personal encounter with Je
sus, the only one who can change our lives and liberate us from our egoism.
Let us return to the blessed objects. There is a passage in the Bible that confirms their importance: “And God did extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that handkerchiefs or aprons were carried away from his body to the sick, and diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them” (Acts 19:11–12). My exorcistical experience confirms that demons have a natural repulsion toward all sacred objects but also toward the instruments of daily life that have been blessed — automobiles, utensils, et cetera — because, as such, they extract all or part of their power. For this reason, also it is a good rule to have them blessed.
Usually, whoever has been affected by an evil spell immediately perceives that an object has been blessed. On this subject, a case was made known to me of a mother who suffered much from the furious attitudes and cursing of her son, a young man who was a mechanic by profession. This behavior began suddenly in the life of the youth: he grew up serene in a sane family and never displayed any particular anxiety, much less violence. One day the mother had some of his casual clothing blessed. When he returned from work, after taking a shower, he put on those clothes. It took only a few seconds for him to take them off in a hurry, nearly ripping them off, and put on his dirty overalls. Well, he never again put on those clothes, and he always kept them separate from the unblessed clothes in his closet. Evidently that young man had need of an exorcism.
Can these objects be blessed preventively? Yes, certainly. Here also, the sense of the benediction is not that of conferring a magical protection or a super power on an object. Rather, it is a prayer of supplication pronounced by the priest, asking God to increase grace in our daily life and to obtain the protection and the intercession of the person represented or invoked in the object. I am always taken aback when, in automobiles, in public localities, and in private houses, I see a sacred image and a superstitious object, a horseshoe or something similar, close together. What does one have to do with the other?
I recall a case that I related many years ago on Radio Maria. I was called to bless a house because the persons living in it felt strange presences there. Once I entered, I did not see any sacred images on the walls. Rather, hanging on the door was an enormous red “horn” [an object employed to keep away the “evil eye”] . . . and I reprimanded the persons who had invited me. “How,” I said, “can you seek protection from evil and [at the same time] hang amulets on your door? Don’t you know that, as signs of superstition, these are evil objects?”
In conclusion, having objects and persons blessed by priests, but without ceding to superstition, is appropriate. For this reason, I always invite my priestly confreres to bless the objects of the faithful whenever they request it.
Blessed Salt, Water, and Oil: Allies in the Struggle against the Evil One
Salt, oil, and water blessed or exorcized according to the regulations of the Benedictional are sacramentals.35 They are useful instruments if their action is sustained by faith. Exorcists often avail themselves of them. Blessed water, moreover, in substitution of the penitential act, can be used in the Eucharistic celebration to sprinkle the people.
Who can bless and exorcize these elements? Any priest who recites the prescribed prayers of the Benedictional can exorcize and bless water, salt, and oil. In the prayer of benediction, one prays to God because, through the aspersion with the blessed water, one obtains pardon for sins, the defense from the Evil One, and the gift of divine protection. The prayer of exorcism together with the water eradicates the power of the demon and chases him away. In fact, how could the devil and holy water get along?
The blessed oil, applied to a person, has the same protective effect. I use it and find it very efficacious with the demoniacs who have submitted to evil spells through ingesting food or cursed beverages. These persons often manifest external signs such as stomachaches, sobbing, and wheezing while they are in a situation of spiritual stress — that is, during the exorcism, during Mass, while praying, and so forth. The cure in these cases is manifested concretely with the expulsion of the objects or organic substances that have incorporated the spell. The anointing with blessed oil and the ingestion of blessed water are very useful in these difficult situations. The blessed salt is used, above all, to protect the localities — houses, stalls, et cetera — from the influence of the Evil One. Usually, as we have already explained, it is placed on the threshold of the house and in the corners of the individual rooms that are reputed to be infested.
28 For example, see my book Esorcisti e psichiatri, 144–145.
29 Instruction on Prayers for Healing, no. 1.
30 Ibid., no. 3.
31 Ibid., no. 5.
32 Lumen Gentium, no. 49.
33 Ibid.
34 Evangelii Gaudium, no. 3.
35 The Benedictional is a book of benedictions and blessings collected from those in the Sacramentary (that part of the Missal containing the prayers and directions for the Mass and a number of sacramental formulas).
The Principles of Christian Eschatology: Death, Judgment, Heaven, Purgatory, Hell
Heaven, the Kingdom of Love
I wish to conclude this book with some basic notions of Christian eschatology,36 which, because of the Resurrection of Christ give a reason for great hope to everyone — in particular, to those who suffer from evil spells. Our life, our earthly pilgrimage, and our suffering are not the fruit of a blind randomness; rather, they are ordered for our greater good and definitive friendship with God.
Let us begin, then, precisely from paradise, the final goal and the reason for which we have been created. “Those who die in God’s grace and friendship and are perfectly purified live for ever with Christ. They are like God for ever, for they ‘see him as he is,’ face to face [1 John 3:2; cf. 1 Cor. 13:12; Rev. 22:4]” (CCC, no. 1023). Our Faith guarantees that in paradise we shall enjoy the vision of God; that is, we shall become participants in that same happiness that the divine Persons enjoy among themselves: “The life of the blessed consists in the full and perfect possession of the fruits of the redemption accomplished by Christ. He makes partners in his heavenly glorification those who have believed in him and remained faithful to his will. Heaven is the blessed community of all who are perfectly incorporated into Christ” (CCC, no. 1026).
Will we be modified? Will we always be ourselves? What of our identity? The elect — those who rise to paradise — will live in God but always conserving their true and definitive identity, that is, their own name. The Catechism clarifies that paradise surpasses our every capacity to understand and indicates that the Bible describes it with many simple and intuitive images: “life,” “light,” “peace,” a “wedding banquet” and the “heavenly Jerusalem” (see CCC, no. 1027). These are simple human experiences used as analogies, but they give us only a pallid image of what eternal life shall be. In fact, when we speak of it, we are able only to stammer and stutter.
Regarding the condition of the blessed, we can say very little: revelation speaks, as I have said, only through allusions and metaphors. Let us consider St. Peter and his experience in the episode of the Transfiguration (Matt. 17:1–8; Mark 9:2–8; Luke 9:28–36), of which he never speaks in his letters; or St. Paul, when he relates having been “caught up to the third heaven” (2 Cor. 12:2), but then he does not enter into details; he makes us understand only that it is a state of perfect beatitude (2 Cor. 12:4: “he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter”). What we do know is that our dear deceased, who by now live in God, see us from on high and follow us with love; and they are always near to us, interceding in our favor. When, out of divine mercy, we shall join them in the other life, we shall certainly recognize them, but our rapport with them will be different, because this will occur in God, in the total fullness of His love.
A question arises spontaneously: What need did the Trinity have for creatures, for men and angels, when It was already perfect and absolutely sufficient in Itself? The Trinit
y did it solely out of love, gratuitous and unconditional love for us. The advantage is solely ours: love, joy, and happiness, for all, in paradise.
There are degrees of participation in the joy and love of God. This degree of rank is given according to the level of sanctity each person has reached during his lifetime: the joy of St. Francis of Assisi, for example, will be different from that of the good thief. There is a difference between men on earth, and there will be a difference in paradise. It is similar to what happens with the stars in heaven: there are those that shine brighter and those that shine a little less. So also it will be with men in the glorious resurrection: all of us shall be resplendent, but each one with a different proportion. Each one will have that maximum of splendor and happiness that he is personally capable of, based on how he has lived his life. Some will have a greater capacity and others less, but without envy or jealousy toward each other. Indeed, each one will know complete joy. A verse from Dante’s Divine Comedy comes to mind: “In his will is our peace.”37 In paradise there is no jealousy; each one is in the will of God, and in His will there is peace. Eternal peace is definitive, where each tear, each sorrow, and all envy will be wiped away.
The Souls in Purgatory
Purgatory is the place, or, better, the state to which come the souls that have need of a purification and therefore have not been immediately admitted to contemplate the face of God. This purification is necessary in order to arrive at sanctity, the condition that heaven requires. The Catechism speaks of the souls in purgatory: “All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven” (no. 1030). We can understand that there are gradations or diverse states in purgatory; each one accomodates the situation of the soul that arrives there. There are the lower strata, more terrible because they are closer to hell, and the more elevated that are less terrible because they are much closer to the happiness of paradise. The level of purification is linked to this state.
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