Halloween and Demonic Phenomena

"Many people are desensitized by true evil just because they are daily exposed to silly evil." Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Well, our celebrations for Halloween are upcoming, and while we're at it scaring the hell out of some folk or watching some freaky show on the movies or on TV, why not let's review some basics on demonic phenomena...
if we're not that careful enough!

 Basics of Demonic Phenomena

Satan is indeed present in our modern age. Here, the Pope exorcises a
supposedly possessed person by simply laying hands on him. Officials
from the Vatican confirm that it indeed was an exorcism.

The devil normally acts in us through temptation, he calls and seduces us to do the bad by trapping us especially that what we are about to do wrong is really good. We may welcome it, but we must fight it out through a devoted Christian life.

And now to extraordinary demonic phenomena.

First thing, a demonic infestation does not mean you will spin your head for 360 degrees and do the crazy climb down the stairs like the one possessed in "The Exorcist". It does not mean too that your mind will  suddenly go bonkers and you will act as if you were inhabited by something else. Nope, but if you are reckless enough, that will lead you towards "it".

Demonic infestation is a phenomena wherein the Devil enters your life via a "doorway" and sets part of your life kaput. That is, he will scare the hell out of you or make your life a bit "hellish" if you knowingly or unknowingly let him in. And for a formal definition: " [Infestation] is a phenomena in which the Devil affects you indirectly  via things, places or animals." (Fr. Gabriele Amorth, An exorcist tells his story).

Next, demonic obsession. It occurs when one's mind is infested by the Devil. Thoughts of murder, suicide and otherviolent things may come to you. Normally, one who is under this state is constantly depressed, agitated or suicidal.

Third, is everyone's "favorite" sort of phenomena. Seen usually in movies like the 'Exorcist", "Deliver us from Evil", "The Rite" and more, demonic possession is a state where a person's body is possessed by Satan himself. Things like hidden knowledge, aversion to sacred things and displays of violence and hate are normally seen in a possessed person.

Some of these cases are healed by deliverance prayers and conversion to an active Christian life. Others need an official rite of the Church, a sacramental called Exorcism, which is administered by an exorcist-priest.

Not really a trifle....

Fr. Gabriele Amorth, exorcist of the Diocese of Rome,
famous for effectively doing THOUSANDS of exorcisms.

"The battle against the devil, which is the principal task of Saint Michael the Archangel, is still being fought today, because the devil is still alive and active in the world. The evil that surrounds us today, the disorders that plague our society, man's inconsistency and brokenness, are not only the results of original sin, but also the result of Satan's pervasive and dark action." (St. John Paul II, Message on his visit to Santuario San Michele in Mt. Gargano, May 1987)

Well, why am I discussing these things? It is to show all of you that Satan is alive and kicking in our world, and not only in the figments of our heads only to be displayed during Halloween.

For one thing, I can tell everyone that the Devil exists, just as God plainly and simply exists in this world. And I know he hates those who are loved and those who love God. He hates those who stay away from him and "loves" those who offer themselves to his service.

Things that we usually try from the occult as a joke like Ouija boards, necromancy, divining, occult activities and paraphernalia may seem harmless like an ordinary drink, but we do not know that like a harmless cup of water, it is already poisoned by Satan a means of bringing down his evil spells around us.

Are we temples of the Holy Spirit? Or are we just potent devils
fooling around a world that belongs to God's children? Hmmm...

Going on, we notice that all of the things we usually do at Halloween like dressing up as ghouls, monsters and foul creatures, do not serve as a means of achieving our true purpose: that is glorifying God by our bodies. We instead praise the side which we must avoid and prevent: the forces of Evil that lurk in our society and is the cause of our own downfall.

Thus, we must be wary of opening up avenues for the Devil to enter into our lives. Fr. Francis Lucas of the CBCP reminds the faithful; "Do not tempt the Devil, especially now that there are many cases of demonic possession." Numerous saints, blessed and exorcist-priests can tell us that Satan exists in the world, and we are fighting against him tooth-and-nail in the name of God.

And so...

Arm yourself up with these!

Instead of thinking about horrifying your Halloween, why not be sane enough to live out the real meaning of its name 'Hallow-eve" or "blessed night"... You can maybe read up on a life of a saint you like, or watch a movie about them. You can dress up yourself or your children as their favorite saints at a party. You can begin preparing yourself for a trip to the cemetery or pray for your dear departed. As long as you do not make yourself a target by the Devil and his many schemes of entering you.

This is fun and informative. Dress your kids up as a saint/blessed and let the example
of the Saint they represent inspire them to push for greater holiness!

(For these days, I instead plan to visit cemeteries and pray for the dead, venerate some relics I cherish in my possession (to solve my "freaky" side), and to double up my reading of some saint's lives.)

Finally, "It is also clear that the believer must be faithful to God and must fear sin. This is the basis of our strength, as Saint John tells us:"We know that any one born of God does not sin, but He who was born of God keeps him, and the evil one does not touch him"(I Jn 5:18). If sometimes our weakness leads us to fall, we must immediately pick ourselves up with that great gift of God's mercy: repentance and confession." (Fr. Gabriel Amorth, An exorcist tells his story).