Famous exorcist: 'The devil loves to take over those who hold political office'

Rome, Italy, Jun 6, 2008 / 09:10 am

In an interview with the magazine “Maria Mensajera,” famous Italian exorcist Father Gabriele Amorth said, “Everybody is vulnerable to the work of Satan” and that “the devil loves to take over those who hold political office.”

The Spanish daily “La Razon” published the interview in an article by Alexander Smoltczyk in which the 82 year-old priest describes what happens in an exorcism.  He said he has performed more than 70,000.

“Evil exists in politics, quite often in fact,” Father Amorth said.  “The devil loves to take over business leaders and those who hold political office.  Hitler and Stalin were possessed.  How do I know? Because they killed millions of people.  The Gospel says: ‘By their fruits you will know them.’  Unfortunately, an exorcism on them would not have been enough, since they were convinced of what they were doing.  We can’t say it was a possession in the strict sense of the word, but rather a total and voluntary acceptance of the suggestions of the devil.”

“I tell those who come to see me to first go to a doctor or a psychologist,” the priest continued.  “Most of the time there is a physical or psychological basis for explaining their suffering.  The psychiatrists send me the incurable cases.  There is no rivalry.  The psychiatrist determines if it is an illness, the exorcist if it is a curse,” Father Amorth explained.

Nobody, he went on, not even himself, is “safe from the devil.  Everyone is vulnerable.”  “The devil is very intelligent. He retains the intelligence of the angel that he was.”

“Suppose, for example, that someone you work with is envious of you and casts a spell on you. You would get sick. 90 percent of the cases that I deal with are precisely spells. The rest are due to membership in satanic sects or participation in séances or magic. If you live in harmony with God, it is much more difficult for the devil to possess you,” Father Amorth stated.

“The Pope supports exorcists,” he explained, but “satanic sects are proliferating,” and for this reason Father Amorth said his calendar for the next two months is full.  “I work seven days a week, from morning until night, including Christmas Eve and Holy Week,” he said.