Four decades after the profession gained popular prominence in the gory horror flick “The Exorcist,” the Catholic Church is training a new legion of demon-fighting priests.
The Rev. David Fleming of St. Pius X Catholic Church in Urbandale is one of 50 U.S. priests recently chosen to train in the rite of exorcism. Fleming was named the official exorcist of the Diocese of Des Moines.
It is the church’s first effort in the United States to coordinate a “comprehensive and systematic formation process for this particular ministry,” Fleming told the Catholic Mirror, Des Moines’ diocesan newspaper. Contacted Saturday, Fleming declined to be interviewed by The Des Moines Register.
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It is a big moment for exorcists. Dioceses in Italy and Spain are also increasing their ranks because of an “unprecedented rise” in demonic possession, Madrid Archbishop Antonio Maria Rouco said last year, after nominating eight priests to undergo training to rid people of their demons.
Church leaders attribute the rise in possessions to people who are dabbling in the occult: practicing witchcraft, visiting a psychic, even playing with a Ouija board.
“Diabolical possessions are on the increase as a result of people subscribing to occultism,” the Rev. Francesco Bamonte, the president of the International Association for Exorcists, told Italian newspaper La Repubblica in December.
Iowa priest chosen to become exorcist | Iowa City Press Citizen | press-citizen.com
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