UPDATED::As a psychiatrist, I diagnose mental illness. Also, I help spot demonic possession. - The Washington Post

So Gallagher is in the news again drumming up business and feeding the delusions of the delusional. 

UPDATE:: When exorcists need help, they call him

He also insists that he's on the side of science.

He says he's a stickler for the scientific method, that it teaches people to follow the facts wherever they may lead.

Growing up in a large Irish Catholic family in Long Island, he didn't think much about stories of possession. But when he kept seeing cases like Julia's as a professional, he says, his views had to evolve.

"I don't believe in this stuff because I'm Catholic," he says. "I try to follow the evidence."

Being Catholic, though, may help.

Gallagher grew up in a home where faith was taken seriously. His younger brother, Mark, says Gallagher was an academic prodigy with a photographic memory who wanted to use his faith to help people. 

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Wow!!  This makes me embarrassed to admit I at one time I was studying to enter the field of psychiatry. What Gallagher seems to miss and I find egregious, he is victimizing the people he is supposed to be helping.  Belief is a dangerous thing and Gallagher proves this point. 

I am really at a loss with this one,,,

Is it possible to be a sophisticated psychiatrist and believe that evil spirits are, however seldom, assailing humans? Most of my scientific colleagues and friends say no, because of their frequent contact with patients who are deluded about demons, their general skepticism of the supernatural, and their commitment to employ only standard, peer-reviewed treatments that do not potentially mislead (a definite risk) or harm vulnerable patients. But careful observation of the evidence presented to me in my career has led me to believe that certain extremely uncommon cases can be explained no other way.,,,

But I believe I’ve seen the real thing. Assaults upon individuals are classified either as “demonic possessions” or as the slightly more common but less intense attacks usually called “oppressions.” A possessed individual may suddenly, in a type of trance, voice statements of astonishing venom and contempt for religion, while understanding and speaking various foreign languages previously unknown to them. The subject might also exhibit enormous strength or even the extraordinarily rare phenomenon of levitation. (I have not witnessed a levitation myself, but half a dozen people I work with vow that they’ve seen it in the course of their exorcisms.) He or she might demonstrate “hidden knowledge” of all sorts of things — like how a stranger’s loved ones died, what secret sins she has committed, even where people are at a given moment. These are skills that cannot be explained except by special psychic or preternatural ability.

As a psychiatrist, I diagnose mental illness. Also, I help spot demonic possession. - The Washington Post

ADDENDUM::Vatican exorcist blames Halloween for increased possessions, calls for 'Holyween' | syracuse.com

The Daily Mail reports the International Association of Exorcists (also known as the AIE) held its first official conference over the weekend in Rome. More than 300 exorcists attended after being officially recognized by the Vatican this summer.

Father Aldo Buonaiuto told the British publication that his organization's emergency number receives hundreds of calls on Oct. 31, up from an average of 40 per day, due to concerns about increased occult activity.

"Many say Halloween is a simple carnival, but in fact there is nothing innocent or fun about it," he said. "There are always more evil rituals, animal sacrifices, desecrations of cemeteries and thefts of sacred bones... From here the door to the devil can be opened."
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"The battle against evil is becoming more of an emergency. We are calling for major vigilance," Cascioli added.

As a result, the Catholic Church in Italy wants to replace the night of costumes and trick-or-treating with a positive event called "Holyween."

"While most people are steeped in zombies and horror we put on our door or windows a light or an image evocative of the saints," Buonaiuto said in a statement. "And then there will be Masses, prayer vigils and worship to celebrate the saints and victory of good over evil."

Vatican exorcist blames Halloween for increased possessions, calls for 'Holyween' | syracuse.com

Pope Blesses Work of Exorcists

I have posted previously about the renewed efforts of the Vatican concerning its "push" for use of exorcisms in battling spiritual malaise. I find it quite disconcerting for numerous reasons, but a point made by Katie Engelhart writing over at Salon really is the crux of the matter for me.

But if we accept, as I do, that there is definitely no such thing as demonic possession — and, therefore, that this all crazy talk — we should take pause, and consider the effect that a push for exorcisms might have on vulnerable Catholics: the mentally ill, the developmentally impaired and the psychologically traumatized.
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In this light, the new exorcism push seems like an effort to demonize (quite literally) mental illness and psychological trauma. Indeed, some of the so-called symptoms of demonic possession — hearing voices, speaking in strange voices, feeling watched or haunted or possessed — seem a lot like psychiatric symptoms,,,

According to Pope Francis, priests devoted to the ministry of exorcism “manifest the Church’s love and acceptance of those who suffer because of the devil’s works.”

Francis wrote these words in a message addressed to Father Francesco Bamonte, the president of the International Association of Exorcists, which is holding a convention in Rome this week. Vatican Radio has reported that more than 300 exorcists from around the world have participated.

This was the first conference to be held by the International Association of Exorcists since the Vatican formally approved its statutes this past June 13.

Father Bamonte said that the approval of the organization was “cause for joy not only for the association, but for the whole Church” and said that “God calls some priests to this important ministry of exorcism and deliverance” to be able to “accompany the persons with humility, faith and charity.”

Pope Blesses Work of Exorcists