But the Church is so divided on this question, it seems like it is suffering from multiple personality syndrome.
Back in December, when a priest in Germany praised the benefits of pornography, an American priest and exorcist for 15 years responded by warning that pornography can open souls to demonic activity. Monsignor Stephen Rossetti, an exorcist for the Archdiocese of Washington and a licensed psychologist, said that “a pornography addiction, like any serious sin, is an opening to the demonic.”
But the schizophrenia gets worse. Last November, Swiss Bishop Joseph Maria Bonnemain of the Diocese of Chur abolished the office of exorcist in his diocese. Bonnemain said in an interview that there would be “normal solutions” for most problems that people have, and that he has “never been confronted with a person” who needed a major exorcism.
According to the report by Swiss Radio and Television SRF, the bishop claims to have received the task from Pope Francis to solve the dispute between “arch-conservative” and “moderate” Catholics in his diocese, and said that not having an exorcist was a step toward “normalization.”
On the opposite side of the spectrum, and in line with traditional Catholic thought, in July 2022 the Archdiocese of Manila in the Philippines began construction of a large exorcism center, as exorcists have revealed they now face 10 cases needing exorcism every day.
In May, Cardinal Jose Advincula and Father Francisco Syquia, director of the Archdiocese of Manila’s Office on Exorcism, led the groundbreaking ceremony to begin construction of Saint Michael Center for Spiritual Liberation and Exorcism in Makati City. Father Syquia said the center would “minister to those in bondage to the devil who are therefore the poorest of the poor and are usually overlooked.” He added they are now looking to increase the number of exorcists in the country, even though there has already been a “dramatic” growth in exorcists. At that time, there were already 171 exorcists in various diocese in the Philippines.
As I said, exorcism and the demonic is no joke, and Father Carlos Martins is about to reveal that in his new podcast. Have a listen:
Up next on The John-Henry Westen Show is Father Carlos Martins himself. Listen below, or scroll to the top of the article to watch.
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