Some weeks ago, we ran an episode about the
Vatican City State in our sister channel, Geographics. In that video, I mentioned one of the tiny
state’s most peculiar residents, and many of you asked me to expand on his life here
at Biographics. I am talking about Father Gabriele Amorth,
the most experienced and prolific exorcist in force at the Vatican. Between the start of his career in 1986, until
shortly before his death in 2016, Father Amorth claimed to have exorcised 300 subjects per
year. Let’s get into it then! How did Gabriele Amorth become a priest, and
more importantly, an exorcist? Fighter, Student, Priest. Gabriele Amorth was born on May 1, 1925 in
Modena, Northern Italy, now famous for being the home of Ferrari. Modena also had a high concentration of alleged
witches and wizards, especially from the 15th through the 18th Centuries. Some of them were just experts in herbal remedies,
but they still had to face the local Inquisition, active from the 13th to the 18th Century. One of these occult individuals deserves a
special mention: Father Guglielmo Campana. A renowned local priest, Campana was an exorcist,
but also a womanizer, a sorcerer, and a necromancer. He was duly tried by the Inquisition in 1517. We don’t know if young Gabriele was aware
of these stories. What we do know is that he grew up in a household
that was both religious and involved in politics: his father was an early supporter of the People’s
Party, a faction inspired by Catholic ideals and the precursor to the eventual Christian
Democrat Party. In 1943, Gabriele turned 18 and was drafted
into the Fascist army, but he went AWOL and joined a resistance unit headed by a Catholic
activist. For the following two years, Amorth fought
against Fascist loyalists and German occupation forces, rising to the rank of Battalion Commander
within the resistance. That’s equivalent to an Army Major. All at the age of 20! It’s reassuring to know that your local
demon hunter was also handy with a Carcano rifle and a STEN sub-machine gun! Amorth reported being arrested and sentenced
to death more than once, but he always managed to escape. After the end of the war, Amorth was awarded
the War Cross for Military Valour. After returning to civilian life, Gabriele
moved to Rome to study law. He also became active in politics: in 1947,
he joined the recently founded Christian Democrats as vice secretary of the Party’s youth organisation. The secretary in charge was one Giulio Andreotti,
a controversial figure who later became a cabinet Minister and eventually Prime Minister. But Gabriele didn’t pursue politics. Since the age of 17, Amorth had considered
joining the Church and so, after earning his law degree, he enrolled in a seminary to become
a man of the cloth. In 1954, Gabriele attained a second degree
in theology, and was ordained as a Catholic priest. Black Dog
During his first years in priesthood, Father Amorth did not practice exorcisms, nor was
he probably even aware of these rituals. At that time, the number of exorcist priests
in Italy could be counted on two hands. However, Amorth did dedicate himself to some
of the most miraculous, supernatural and even controversial aspects of the faith. A long devotee of the Virgin Mary, Amorth
studied the Marian apparitions and miracles at Medjugorje, in modern-day Bosnia. He firmly believed these to be true-life events,
a point of fact not endorsed or agreed upon by all the clergy members. In 1959, he visited another site famous for
miracles attributed to the Mother of Jesus: Fatima, in Portugal. In a spectacular enterprise, Father Amorth
organised a ‘pilgrimage in reverse’ -- he arranged for a statue of the Virgin to travel
from Fatima to all of Italy’s main cities. His old pal Andreotti, now Minister of Defence,
assisted by loaning Amorth some military transport helicopters! During this tour Father Amorth took the statue
to the Convent of Padre Pio, or Father Pius, now a Saint. [Note: ‘Pio’ is pronounced ‘Pea-aw’,
not ‘Pie-aw’] This mystic friar is widely believed to have
performed miracles during his lifetime and after his death. He was also beset with stigmata: unexplained
bleeding marks which appear on the ribs, wrists, hands or feet, matching the wounds that Jesus
Christs received on the cross. It was Father Pio who first introduced Father
Amorth to the mysteries of the Devil and its presence among humans. Often the Prince of Darkness would torment
Pio, disguised as a huge, snarling black dog. While the friar prayed alone in his convent
cell, the hell hound would attack him, forcing him into vicious, all-night-long fights. Father Pio died in 1968 and was canonised
as a Saint in June 2002. During the ensuing years, Father Amorth did
not have direct contact with any demons. The closest he got was was his acquaintance
with Father Candido Amantini, who for much of the 1960s, ‘70s and ‘80s, was the only
sanctioned exorcist in Rome. But things were about to change. In 1986, Father Amorth was 61 -- an age close
to retirement for most people! And yet, his true career was just about to
start. On June 6, 1986, Father Amorth was summoned
for a meeting with Cardinal Poletti, the highest-ranking clergyman in Rome, besides the Pope. During a casual conversation, Poletti asked
if Amorth knew Father Amantini, the exorcist. As Amorth answered that yes, he had met him
previously, he noticed that Poletti was scribbling on a piece of paper. At the end of the conversation, the Cardinal
handed him a note -- it was an official appointment as assistant to Amantini. Just like that, Amorth had become assistant
exorcist for Rome, which essentially made him the deputy-chief exorcist of the Vatican. He understood immediately that he was going
to become more than an assistant -- he would soon become Amantini’s successor, as the
current chief exorcist was in poor health. Amantini held on for another six years, dying
in September 1992. From 1986 to 1992, Amorth learned from his
mentor all the tricks of that terrifying trade that is the casting away of demons. I will now ask you to step into Gabriele’s
shoes, as I take the role of Amantini and take you through a quick apprenticeship on
how to become a Demon Slayer. First lesson: what is possession? By Demons Be Driven
According to the official Catholic Catechism, demonic possession is the act by which the
Devil, a demon, or a spirit takes over a victim’s physical activity, as well as their mental
and spiritual energies. By exerting physical violence upon the hosts,
which manifests for the victim as illness or pain, the demons can coerce humans into
committing unholy sins. What exactly is the ultimate goal of these
malignant entities? In most cases, it’s just to spread chaos
for the sheer pleasure of it. The possession cases that Amantini and Amorth
involved themselves in mainly belonged to a category defined as ‘peripheral pathogenic’
by modern anthropology. Anthropologist I.M. Lewis makes a distinction
between central and peripheral types of possession. [Editing note: Show a graphic on screen, two
text boxes would be sufficient to illustrate the two categories of Central and Peripheral]
In the case of Central Possession, a member of the religious elite becomes possessed by
spirits during an official ceremony in which he or she fulfils a political, religious,
or moral function. Peripheral possession, on the other hand,
indicates an invasion of evil spirits: unwanted, immoral, dangerous. Anthropologist Emma Cohen further subclassifies
peripheral possession into ‘executive’ and ‘pathogenic’. [Editing note: The Peripheral box splits into
the two subgroups, Executive and Pathogenic] Executive possessions involve the complete
replacement or transformation of the host’s personality with that of the invading entity. In pathogenic cases, the spirit or demon will
cause abnormal and deviant behaviour, illness, pain or misfortune to the victims, while their
identity is largely intact. It’s the alternating of normal and abnormal
behaviour that leads the victims’ social circle to seek help. The world’s largest religions all have their
interpretations of what entities may cause these peripheral pathogenic possessions. According to the Talmud, a sacred book of
Jewish tradition, possession is called Dybbuk: this is when the soul of a dead person is
‘grafted’ onto a living person’s soul. This may happen out of revenge, sheer malice,
or total randomness. In Islam, those who are greedy for earthly
pleasures, have low self-esteem, or struggle for acceptance may be possessed by a Jinn. According to the Quran, these are entities
made of smokeless, scorching fire and are not necessarily malevolent. In Hindu lore, unwelcome possessions manifest
as physical or mental illnesses, mainly affecting women and children. These are caused by a number of evil forces,
such as bhutas, or ghosts, curails, blood-sucking witches, pisacas, flesh-eating demons, and
many more. Going back to Catholicism, the Catechism identifies
possessing entities a either the Devil himself or, much more commonly, his demons. These are fallen angels, which means that
their strength, intellect, knowledge, and cunning are superior to that of humans. Nonetheless, they are still God’s creatures
and are ultimately subject to His will. That is why an ordained member of the Church
can perform exorcisms. These are simply defined as acts or rites
by which priests use their authority to demand that a person – or even an object - is rid
of the influence of Evil. Father Amantini introduced his pupil Gabriele
to the strictly codified procedures to conduct an exorcism, as defined by Ecclesiastical
Law and the Roman Ritual. This is the official collection of sacred
rites and prayers to be used during the Sacraments. But before you can start to exorcise a patient,
how can you be sure that a demon is lurking within? Scorpions and Serpents
Amorth learned how to approach every potential case of possession with a process called nment. First, patients must present with clear symptoms. Besides irrational changes in one’s behaviour,
including performing acts of violence and self-harm, there are some physical symptoms:
the white of the eyes may appear red, as in a case of conjunctivitis. The pupil will be excessively and constantly
dilated. The patient’s face will appear longer and
darker than normal. So far, all of these symptoms are compatible
with known physical and psychiatric ailments. But others stand out much more clearly. Some patients would display immense, inexplicable
physical strength. Their voice may become unnaturally hoarse
and deep. They will speak, or understand, languages
previously unknown to them, such as Latin, Ancient Greek, or Aramaic. They will react violently to the presence
of sacred objects or the mention of religious figures. In extreme cases, just thinking about Jesus
or Mary may throw patients into a fit of rage. If patients carried these symptoms,
[Editing note: let’s add some captions specifying the steps of the Ritual, so it is clearer
for viewers. The caption here is: Step 1 – Identification
of symptoms of possession] Amorth and Amantini would organise a prayer
service with them, also known as a ‘diagnostic exorcism’. [Caption: Step 2 – Diagnostic Exorcism]
If patients were to react adversely, suggesting an actual possession, the exorcists would
refer them to a medical team for further evaluation. [Caption: Step 3 – Medical Referral and
Evaluation] This is a very important step, as Father Amorth
– and all exorcists in general – recognized the importance of proper psychiatric evaluation. If no medical explanation or remedy were found
for the victim's suffering, the priest would then decide whether to proceed with the exorcism
and seek permission from his local Bishop. [Caption: Step 4 – Authorisation from Local
Bishop] By shadowing Amantini, Father Amorth perfected
his exorcism rites. According to the Roman Ritual, these must
be conducted by a priest, in Latin or another Vatican-approved language, while standing
on sacred ground,. [Caption: Step 5 – The Exorcism Begins]
The Roman Ritual is rigidly codified: priests are meant to follow a pre-ordained sequence
of prayers, psalms, and exhortations intended to expel demons from the hosts’ body. Amorth largely followed the Ritual during
his apprenticeship, but he eventually introduced some personal touches. For example, he always wore a purple stole,
which he ensured was wrapped around both his and his patients’ shoulders. He always made sure he was carrying Holy Water
and a bearing a medal of Saint Benedict of Nursia. This Saint is mostly known for his lasting
influence on monastic life and education, but he is also famous for defeating Satan
on at least three occasions. Over time, Amorth realised that more than
90 percent of his cases that made it to Step 5 turned out not to be real possessions. That is why he developed a further screening
method, which worked only once an exorcism was under way. Amorth claimed that during the ritual, many
patients would close their eyes during specific prayers. In turn, Amorth would have their eyelids forced
open. In the case of real possessions, the eyes
appeared completely white. In an interview with British broadcaster Giles
Brandreth, Amorth specified that if the pupils are completely rolled upwards,
“ … then the demons in possession are scorpions. If looking down, they are serpents”
Amorth did not elaborate on this distinction. But serpents, or snakes, are a common incarnation
of Satan or his demons in Christian art and literature. Scorpion demons are more interesting, though,
as they belong to the Mesopotamian mythology that pre-dates any description of Judeo-Christian
demons. It was a Mesopotamian demon, Pazuzu, that
appeared as the main antagonist in The Exorcist. After a period in which Father Amorth closely
shadowed his mentor, he finally had the chance to perform his first exorcism as the lead. This case related to a 14-year-old girl, who
after attending a Satanic ritual in central Rome, immediately presented with symptoms
of possession. Her parents took her immediately to Amantini,
but unfortunately the lead exorcist was ill. Amorth stepped forward. In a rare instance of disobedience, he disregarded
the discernment process and immediately started the ritual. In later interviews, he claimed that the girl
was healed after one single session. He explained this by citing the immediacy
of the exorcism, which had prevented the demon or spirit from
“Taking root, or burrowing, inside the victim.” This was an exception: in most cases, patients
were taken to Amantini and Amorth only after months of suffering from possession symptoms. According to Amorth’s new theory, this enabled
invading spirits to settle inside the hosts. This demonic fortification required exorcisms
to continue for multiple sittings, at least an hour long, over the span of months or even
years, until a patient was eventually liberated. Is liberation a given? Father Amorth became increasingly confident
about his odds of victory with each passing exorcism. The teaching of Amantini was that, regardless
of their power, demons will ultimately succumb to the power of Christ, if properly channelled
through an exorcist. Father Amorth once told a journalist that
“The Devil may win some battles. Even important ones. But remember:
He will never win the war” A Duel with Satan
Father Amorth indeed waged a constant war against the legions of Hell. Since his appointment in 1986, until his death
in 2016, the chief exorcist dealt with more than 300 cases of possession every year. That’s a rough total of 10,000 alleged possessions,
requiring him to perform about 70,000 exorcism sessions. However, Father Amorth always admitted that
the actual cases of demonic possession were in the hundreds, not the thousands. In most cases, exorcism didn’t work; patients
were referred back to psychiatric care and eventually cured by other means. In actual cases of possession, Father Amorth
estimated that 90 percent of them were due to the patient’s exposure to a spell, a
curse, or a satanic ritual. Amorth acknowledges that most self-described
witches, wizards, clairvoyants, or Satanist priests are harmless occult enthusiasts at
best, or mundane scammers at worst. However, he believes that a small minority
of them have actual dark powers. What are the effects of confirmed possession
on its victims? Let’s take the example of one of Amorth’s
youngest patients, a boy of 11. Halfway through the ritual, the boy – or
the demon within – flew into such a fit of rage that he had to be restrained by seven
grown men, and even then, the boy managed to send them flying through the room. Violent manifestations and attacks are not
uncommon, which is why exorcists often deploy physical restraints. On one occasion, a patient succeeded in attacking
Amorth directly, delivering a kick so strong that it broke his leg. The priest had to wear a cast for a month. Most attacks directed at the priest take a
different form: spitting. This is a manifestation of the scorn and spite
felt by demons against the exorcist and his prayers. In some cases, the projectile was more than
just saliva. In one particularly tough ritual, Amorth went
to cover the patient’s mouth while she was foaming and spitting. When he retracted his hand, he found it filled
with metal nails. This was not surprising to Amorth: spitting
or simply producing metallic items in the patient’s mouth is a common trick used by
devils to hurt and scare their victims. He recalled patients slowly ejecting from
their mouth large metal spikes, shards of glass, or even a radio, which came out one
piece at the time. During his career, Father Amorth has frequently
spoken about the film The Exorcist. While praising it for raising awareness about
the practice of exorcism, he pointed out that the ritual used was not the correct one, and
most of all that the symptoms displayed by victim Regan were exaggerated. So, can the head spin by 180 degrees? Absolutely no! What of people bending backwards in a bridge
position and walking like spiders? Well, victims can contort in unnatural ways,
angles and shapes, but they are unlikely to crawl like arachnids. How about green projectile vomiting? Vomiting does happen, but never with such
force. And can patients levitate? Well, actually Amorth confirmed that this
does happen, although he only experienced it twice in thirty years. On another occasion, he witnessed something
even more chilling: a possessed old lady was able to walk on walls like a reptile. Lastly: do patients’ voices sound ‘double’,
as though there is more than one entity within? That could be the most interesting one of
all. Amorth always maintained that Satan, or his
demons, do not like to talk. This is because they hate being detected. However, when they are discovered, they may
engage in short dialogue with the exorcist, usually limited to verbal abuse or curt answers
to the priest’s questions. The entities may not reveal their name when
questioned; if they do, they often claim to be Satan, or Beelzebub. What they will easily reveal is how many of
them are within the host. Sometimes three, five, seven, perhaps even
a legion of demons. Even then, though, ‘double’ or ‘multiple’
sounding voices are extremely rare, but not impossible... For a full account of the battles of Father
Amorth, I can only advise that you look up one of the several books he published on his
experiences, including “An Exorcist Tells His Story”, “My Battle Against Satan”
or “Memoirs of an Exorcist”. Now, it is fair to wonder if the Exorcist-in-Chief
at the Vatican has ever felt fear during his daily occult struggles. Even if one does not believe in demons, we
are still talking about confronting patients who are deeply disturbed and potentially dangerous,
for several times a day. Journalists have asked him many times: are
you scared of Satan? His reply:
“Absolutely not. It is him,
who is afraid of me.” The Press and Father Amorth
Father Gabriele Amorth has always had an open and positive relationship with the press,
an important channel to raise awareness on exorcism. He believed that, prior to the three most
recent Popes, Vatican leadership has not done enough to support exorcism in the public consciousness. It is perceived as an ancient and outdated
practice of the Church, rather than a noble, very real fight against the Devil. Amorth has never been shy about his critical
view of top Church officials. He has accused them of trying to replace the
Roman Ritual of exorcisms with less powerful variations, and of trying to ban ‘diagnostic
exorcisms’, a key step in the discernment process. In 2012, Father Amorth successfully prevented
both changes from taking effect. Two years later, he scored another victory
-- receiving an official acknowledgement from the Vatican for the International Association
of Exorcists, which he had co-founded in 1990. These conflicts with the Vatican have been
exacerbated by a series of interviews in the 2000s in which Father Amorth stated that the
Holy See had been infiltrated by demons, and that the series of church sex scandals could
be attributed to satanic influence or downright possession. Amorth had partially toned down these claims
before his death, stating that Cardinals and other leaders were not immune from temptations
brought forward by Satan, who was more active than ever in his fight against Catholicism. It must be said that Amorth did not pull any
punches when it came to accusing pretty much everything and everyone of being an ally of
Evil. He went as far as calling yoga as a ‘satanic’
practice, as – according to him - it is linked to eastern religions, which are sometimes
centered around the belief of reincarnation. Perhaps his best-known target is the Harry
Potter franchise. In his view, the Wizarding World described
by J.K. Rowling encourages children to believe in
black magic and to distance themselves from Christian prayer. However, instead of denting his popularity,
these controversies have contributed to Father Amorth becoming the most famous living Catholic
exorcist. And so, it was only a matter of time before
he came face-to-face with the man behind the most famous fictional exorcist. Last Exorcism: Session 9
In 2016, filmmaker William Friedkin, director of The Exorcist, interviewed Father Amorth
for Vanity Fair. Friedkin took the occasion to ask permission
to join the priest in one of his exorcism sessions. His footage of the exorcism of a young woman
called Cristina formed the backbone of Friedkin’s latest release, the documentary “The Devil
and Father Amorth”. When Friedkin met Amorth, he had been exorcising
Cristina for nine months. It all began with another patient, a woman
in her thirties whose name has never been revealed. After a long depression, she was found one
day by her brother, Paolo, writhing on the floor, her twisting body shaken by convulsions. According to witnesses, she would be found
howling like a wolf and crawling on walls like a snake. This state continued for several days, and
a psychiatrist was not able to help. Amorth took charge, and the patient was healed
after four sessions. Following the experience, Paolo became one
of Father Amorth’s most trusted assistants. And it was Paolo who, years later, met Cristina
at Mass, and he noticed how she looked distressed, disoriented, and disturbed. Paolo brought her case to Amorth’s attention. According to Amorth, Cristina’s brother
and his girlfriend were members of a satanic cult, and they may have caused Cristina’s
plight after performing an occult ritual. Whatever the cause, it was clear to him that
Cristina needed his help. After following the discernment procedure,
the priest started to exorcise her in August of 2015. Friedkin was allowed to film the ninth exorcism
session in early 2016. Clips of the exorcism session are available
on Youtube, and you will find the links below. For the most part, I will leave it to you
to take your own conclusion; I will comment only on a couple of things. First, it’s remarkable just how calm and
unfazed Father Amorth appears. In one clip he thumbs his nose at the demon
inside Cristina. And, although the subtitles miss this, my
Italian researcher assures me that he tells the entity to
“Shut up! You ain’t worth a cigarette butt!” You may also notice Cristina’s behaviour. She appears to be in a trance-like state,
but she is alert and reactive to Amorth’s ritual. Very reactive. As she thrashes about on her chair, or sometimes
attempts to attack the priest himself, she is barely held down by two well-built men. Then, as Amorth orders the demon to leave
Cristina’s body, in Latin, the patient replies in Italian:
“NEVER!” According to Friedkin, Cristina had never
studied Latin at school. Finally, when Amorth asks how many demons
are there, Cristina’s voice turns different. She has been growling and snarling all through
the clip, but at this point, her voice sounds … ‘double’…as if many voices speak
from within. She first answers
“Eighty. Eighty Leaders!” And later
“We are Armies! Armies! Armies!” Then, Amorth concludes the ritual with the
Sign of the Cross. Amorth later confided to Friedkin that this
case was particularly unsettling. During a previous session, Cristina’s entity
had recited back to Father Amorth all his past sins. This was something that only the exorcist
and his father confessor could know. Amorth and Cristina were due to meet again
to conclude the exorcism, but her family kept postponing appointments. Friedkin saw Cristina and her relatives again
in August, but was threatened with legal action if he divulged his footage. Their concern was that making it public would
spread Satan’s work. As Friedkin brushed off the threats, Cristina’s
family cut ties with both the film maker and Amorth. Unfortunately, the chief exorcist would not
have been able to complete his work with Cristina, even if he was able to. Already in poor health throughout the summer,
Father Amorth contracted pneumonia and was hospitalised at the beginning of September. At the age of 91, Father Gabriele Amorth died
from complications of pneumonia on the September 16, 2016. According to his assistant, he remained alert
and jovial to the last moment, often removing his oxygen mask to blow raspberries at visiting
friends, whenever they started crying. Is any of this real? So far, I have presented possession and exorcism
from the point of view of Gabriele Amorth. Do I believe that demons and spirits can invade
and control an individual? I am not going to answer that. Sorry! What I will choose to highlight is the perspective
of medicine and psychiatry on demonic possession. For decades, since the beginning of modern
psychiatry and psychoanalysis, the official stance was that almost all possessions could
be explained as extreme cases of psychosis and schizophrenia. In recent years, the diagnosis has changed,
and the DSM 5 – the official ‘handbook’ of American Psychiatry – identifies demonic
possession as a form of Dissociative Identity Disorder. These are perfectly viable explanations; however,
some psychiatrists admit that mental illness cannot explain all observed phenomena, and
that exorcism rites can be considered as a legitimate therapy. For example, The British Journal of Psychiatry
published an article on the use of antipsychotic clopenthixol to treat
“Exorcism-resistant Ghost Possession”. Which acknowledges that exorcism may be a
cure. More recently, in an interview with the Telegraph,
Psychiatry Professor Richard Gallagher, of New York Medical College and Columbia University,
stated that demonic possessions are real and that patients seeking exorcism should be taken
seriously. While I could go on forever with arguments
and counter-arguments, I will leave it to you, in the comments: is possession a psychiatric
illness, or can evil spirits haunt a human soul? Conclusion
I really do hope you enjoyed today’s video. The power of Biographics compels you to hit
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