Chief Exorcist: “The Devil Is at Work Inside the Vatican”
March 11th, 2010Via: Times:
Sex abuse scandals in the Roman Catholic Church are proof that that “the Devil is at work inside the Vatican”, according to the Holy See’s chief exorcist.
Father Gabriele Amorth, 85, who has been the Vatican’s chief exorcist for 25 years and says he has dealt with 70,000 cases of demonic possession, said that the consequences of satanic infiltration included power struggles at the Vatican as well as “cardinals who do not believe in Jesus, and bishops who are linked to the Demon”.
He added: “When one speaks of ‘the smoke of Satan’ [a phrase coined by Pope Paul VI in 1972] in the holy rooms, it is all true – including these latest stories of violence and paedophilia.”
He claimed that another example of satanic behaviour was the Vatican “cover-up” over the deaths in 1998 of Alois Estermann, the then commander of the Swiss Guard, his wife and Corporal Cedric Tornay, a Swiss Guard, who were all found shot dead. “They covered up everything immediately,” he said. “Here one sees the rot”.
Having read some of Malachi Martin’s books, it’s hard not to believe the accusations and easy to repudiate them at the same time. What I mean is, here is an intelligent, trained person, who, if one believes is making honest statements, witnesses otherworldly and unspeakable vile going ons. Yet I’ve seen no scientific investigation that holds water. In the article cited there’s this passage: “…Those possessed often yelled and screamed and spat out nails or pieces of glass, which he kept in a bag. ‘Anything can come out of their mouths – finger-length pieces of iron, but also rose petals.’…” Has no one filmed an actual exorcism and investigated these materials that Fr. Amorth says he has in his possession (no pun intended)?
Is there something there? Or is it, to quote the old saw, “to a person with a hammer, every problem looks like a nail”?
Lyrics (with apologies…after a few glasses of red :)…)
“Pleased to meet you
Hope you guess my name
But what’s puzzling you
Is the nature of my game”
-Rolling Stones
“I’m gonna make it dark before the dawn
Since no one believes in me anymore
Well now I used to have to sneak around
Now they just open up their doors
You know, no one watches for my tricks
Since no one believes in me anymore
Well I’m gaining power by the hour
They’re falling by the score
You know, it’s getting very easy now
Since no one believes in me anymore”
-Keith Green
@Dennis-
while reviewing lyrics today that seem appropos to this funny thing in the Vatican:
“A King of Men
it makes no sense.
I bow to the priest,
but believe in the witch.”
-Dave Matthews Band
@Eileen
I like ’em (the DMB lyrics).
From a more sober place than last night’s light-hearted and flippant post:
I’m no fan of institutional priesthoods as the concept riles me though I do believe there are kings (and queens) among us, all too often ignored and devalued in this upside down world. I think the masculine & feminine principles derive their essence from the oneness of God. The patriarchal and, at times, misogynistic behaviour often displayed by church and other religious or political institutions says more to me about how twisted our sense of the masculine is and little to nothing about the nature of God. As for the article, I thought it told us pretty much what we already know but I loved the image I got of some gnarled exorcist (Who knows? He really may wrestle with other-dimensional nasties) mouthing off at the top dogs like so many movie scripts where the battle-trained guy in the field ends up having to fight for his life against his corrupt superiors. Imagining his POV I was reminded of those lyrics.