• Quick note - the problem with Youtube videos not embedding on the forum appears to have been fixed, thanks to ZiprHead. If you do still see problems let me know.

Catholic priests and exorcisms

Temporal Renegade

Last of the Time Lords
Temporal Renegade
Joined
May 26, 2003
Messages
1,890
Recently, while catching the TV ad for "The Exorcism of Emily Rose" (and listening to Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells , used for "The Exorcist" ), I started to wonder:

Why are Catholic priests seemingly the ONLY ones of any religion, who can perform an exorcism? If Satan and His demons so universally known & reviled throughout so many religions, shouldn't just about any Holy Person of any faith be able to 'cast them out'? Why are priests the only one with the exorcism concession?
 
Hmm.. hadn't thought of that. :)

It's just taht, almost any time one's mentioned somewhere, Catholics seem to be the ones doing them. Raised a Catholic, it's one of the mysteries I can't figure out.
 
I'd be happy to, in my capacity as promulgator of the cult of the monkey gods, to perform an exorcism. Basically the monkey way is to sit down with the demon, get it liquored up, have some pizza, maybe invite some people over, put on some music...wait. That's not an exorcism. That's a party. Okay, the monkey cult likes to party with demons. At least afterwards the demon will be in a better mood, which must translate to relief for the possessed. Or the demon's hangover will keep it quietly in bed for a while.
 
Certain Protestant preachers purport to perform exorcisms on a fairly casual basis. Exorcisms are also ostensibly performed in such religions as Islam and Santeria.

Why do we associate exorcism with Roman Catholicism? I think part of the answer is Hollywood. It is interesting how film characters, regardless of religious persuasion, tend to turn toward Rome when the occult stuff hits the fan. There seems to exist an unspoken assumption that such matters are part of the Catholic bailiwick. The apostolic succession claimed by the Catholic Church may be relevant to that expectation, as well as its presumed institutional knowledge, history and perhaps even gravitas perceived as lacking in some other religions. Mostly, however, I suspect that Hollywood simply views Catholicism, with its ancient and elaborate rituals, as a rich source of religious drama.

Ironically, Catholic exorcisms are very rare in real life, whereas if you tune in to your favorite fundy televangelist you might just catch an exorcism before the next commercial break.
 
I think it's a question of style. Which is more picturesque, a sweating televangelist striking people on the forehead while screaming "demon, be GAWN! Praise Jeeeeeezus!", or the panoply of a churchy ceremony with men in antique costumes and funny hats and censers and albs and croziers and aspergillums and Latin?

I'm sure they're both equally effective, but one's more fun to watch.
 
TragicMonkey said:
I think it's a question of style. Which is more picturesque, a sweating televangelist striking people on the forehead while screaming "demon, be GAWN! Praise Jeeeeeezus!", or the panoply of a churchy ceremony with men in antique costumes and funny hats and censers and albs and croziers and aspergillums and Latin?
Click to expand...
Yup. That's part of what I was getting at.
 
ceo_esq said:
Yup. That's part of what I was getting at.
Click to expand...

Yeah, but "aspergillum" is a fun word to say. I try to drop it into casual conversation at least once a day. It's surprisingly difficult to work it in.
 
TragicMonkey said:
I'd be happy to, in my capacity as promulgator of the cult of the monkey gods, to perform an exorcism. Basically the monkey way is to sit down with the demon, get it liquored up, have some pizza, maybe invite some people over, put on some music...wait. That's not an exorcism. That's a party. Okay, the monkey cult likes to party with demons. At least afterwards the demon will be in a better mood, which must translate to relief for the possessed. Or the demon's hangover will keep it quietly in bed for a while.
Click to expand...

Man, now THIS is an exorcism!:D
 
Temporal Renegade said:
Why are Catholic priests seemingly the ONLY ones of any religion, who can perform an exorcism? If Satan and His demons so universally known & reviled throughout so many religions, shouldn't just about any Holy Person of any faith be able to 'cast them out'? Why are priests the only one with the exorcism concession?
Click to expand...
Any fundie will be happy to cast demons out of you. Just tell them that you're gay, or that you used to play Dungeons & Dragons.

Or that your avatar's a transvestite, that should do it.

Etiquette --- What Do You Do When People Cast Demons Out Of You?
 
The Devil in You?

I don't think that exorcisms are necessarily Catholic, but they certainly get the press, don't they. They have W.P. Blatty to thank for that.

I've seen programs of exorcisms conducted by Baptists (they were hilarious) and other denominations and they were really silly. I wonder how a evangelical minister can tell when one of his flock is possessed? I mean, they act the same way as they do when they're "speaking in tongues," or dancing with snakes. Do "holy" spirits make them flop around differently than "unholy" spirits?

;)
 
Dybbuks, golems, and such are Jewish folklore. Not really part of the religion as practised today by the even most Orthodox.

You'll notice there are no demonic posession stories in the Old Testament, though there are demons.

It's really a very common belief across many cultures. So the Jews picked it up somewhere along the line twice.

Most recently in central Europe.

Before that, those Jews who became Christians picked it up from ???
 
LibraryLady said:
Actually, they aren't There are Jewish exorcisms of spirits known as dybbuks. I.B. Singer has written a lot of stories about this and also Paddy Chayefsky wrote a play called "The Tenth Man" which is about a dybbuk who, oddly enough, shares the name and region of origin with my grandmother.
Click to expand...

Dig out a picture of Paddy and see if he looks anything like you.

Let us know the results!
 
TragicMonkey said:
Yeah, but "aspergillum" is a fun word to say. I try to drop it into casual conversation at least once a day. It's surprisingly difficult to work it in.
Click to expand...
Okay, now that I had to look up. But it looks as though aspergilla is the preferred plural form - out-googlefighting aspergillums by a factor of two to one - and has the added benefit of being easier to find rhymes for. Now get yourself over to the Limerick Thread.

:D
 
By the way, I just saw The Exorcism of Emily Rose. Here is my two-second write-up: It turns out to be a courtroom drama with theological overtones. It has several foolish plot points, was asinine from a legal perspective, and ventures some dubious metaphysical assertions (e.g., that the existence of evil spirits implies the existence of God). A couple of decent performances are turned in by the leads, though, and there are a handful of dramatic and/or visually interesting sequences. Possibly worth renting on DVD a few months hence if you're a Laura Linney fan.
 
Re: The Devil in You?

Mephisto said:
I don't think that exorcisms are necessarily Catholic, but they certainly get the press, don't they. They have W.P. Blatty to thank for that.

I've seen programs of exorcisms conducted by Baptists (they were hilarious) and other denominations and they were really silly. I wonder how a evangelical minister can tell when one of his flock is possessed? I mean, they act the same way as they do when they're "speaking in tongues," or dancing with snakes. Do "holy" spirits make them flop around differently than "unholy" spirits?

;)
Click to expand...

I guess when you've got any spirit in ya, the floppin' just takes ya over!:bgrin:
 
See, and the perception that the Catholics are the only ones that perform excorcisms bugs me. They don't even do it right.

*I* however do perform excorcisms, and I do it the proper way.

I happily excorcise the demonic productions of crap bands from my hard drive after I have recorded/mixed/mastered them.

I will happily excorcise the demon of chastity from any woman aged 18 years and up in the name of my noodly appendage.

I forthrightly cast out the demonic tales of ID in the name of HIS noodly appendage.

Screw the Catholics and their starchy upper ritual. Crank up bad rock, get laid and give the finger to the Discovery Institute all in the name of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.

Can I get an AMEN?!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top Bottom