Ooooooo! Hexed objects, spells and curses offered for break-the-bank money, wrought by arrogant, spiteful occultists. And the more one says “Ooooooo!” the more money one has to pay. Of course, such a person paying all that money, and handing over the deed of his house, etc., will soon be saying “No! Aaarrgh!” for it only gets worse, and you will only have to pay more, and you will only end up with nothing but the sight of hell coming at you so fast that you will freeze in fear.
But then there is exorcism for free, offered by the Church in the goodness and kindness of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Instead of “Ooooooo!” and then “Aaarrgh!”, one is put into humble reverence and thanksgiving for abounding union in love with our Lord. Much better. Really.
Yet, people run to the occultists, afraid, I suppose, of the goodness and kindness of our Lord, because, after all, that would actually change one’s life for the better. People are afraid of true goodness because they don’t want to change their own selfish, arrogant ways. Carrying the cross, dying to one’s egoism, living for our Lord, living to manifest His goodness and kindness to others, is not something we of ourselves, under our own power, can do. In our weakness, we have to depend on Him. But people, in all hubris, want to depend on themselves, to be ‘in control’. We’re not very good at realism with ourselves, are we? But it is such a joy to live for the Lord, in good friendship with Him!
Now, to the point: since there are enough people in every age who run to occultists and get themselves into trouble – even today, of course – the new Ordinary Form of Exorcism ritual, that is, the first couple of sentences of Paragraph 15 of the General Premisses, speak to result of the phenomenon of people running after hexed objects, spells and curses. However, those first couple of sentences, because of the odd syntax and grammar and the scare-you-off-from-thinking-further digging sarcasm about the stupidity of human beings who run after such things even among the faithful , there are a great number of exorcists who have been thrown off as to what is intended by those sentences, including those who are internationally known and respected. These exorcists come away with the opposite meaning, which is catastrophic for so many among those who suffer harassment from Satan’s minions.
Since I have been used to using the Latin, I never bothered even to find out if there is presently an adequate English translation of this new form of Exorcism. Also, I tend to use the Extraordinary Form of Exorcism current in 1962 (whose form mostly comes from the version promulgated back in 1614), having become used to its wonderful rhythm of deprecation and imprecation occasioning humble reverence before Christ Jesus, Son of the Immaculate Conception. With the advent of Summorum Pontificum, there is no need any longer for the local bishop to seek permission for his exorcists to use the 1614 ritual from the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments. At any rate, here are those first couple of sentences of paragraph 15 in my quick paraphrase, just to get the idea of the content. They are an admonition to the exorcist:
Know how to distinguish well cases of diabolical aggression from those deriving from a certain credulity, which pushes some, even among the faithful, to hold oneself to be the target of hexed objects, spells [sortilegi] or curses made by others to come upon oneself, one’s kin or goods. Don’t deny them spiritual help, but absolutely avoid proceeding to an exorcism; one may pray with them and for them some appropriate prayers so that they might find the peace of God.
Most exorcists I’ve know understand all this to say that any mention of such curses or methods of cursing automatically means that it is absolutely impossible that a would-be candidate for exorcism is harassed by the devil. That kind of reasoning is illogical, but there it is. The way the paragraph is phrased might just lead one, if one is not careful, to such a faulty conclusion. In fact, the opposite of such a faulty conclusion is true.
The existence of such a paragraph averts to the fact that such curses or methods of curses take place frequently, as well as to the unstated because obvious fact that such curses or methods of curses have nothing to do with the discernment of whether or not Satan is bothering someone. It is superstition that is condemned here, not true diabolical aggression.
Let’s make some distinctions:
- Just because some knucklehead gets paid to curse someone, that doesn’t mean that someone is, in fact, cursed, or that Satan is bothering such a person. Satan is free to do what he wants, and is not bound by the stupidities of whatever occultist. It is these occultists who are in line for being the most punished by Satan in hell, even just for being so stupid, but surely because they thought they could command Satan around. Wrong!
- Just because someone comes to you so as to enquire about an exorcism, and carries with them a story about curses and occultists and such as all that, that doesn’t mean that they are not being harassed by Satan! People can be cursed and harassed by Satan at the same time!
- Just because some arrogant occultist takes money to curse someone, and just because Satan despises that occultist more than anyone else, doesn’t mean that Satan won’t do the will of that occultist to the letter of the curse. Why? Not because he’s bound to do this, but because he wants to make that occultist, and the one who paid him, and the one(s) to be harassed, go to hell in all despair. Don’t think that Satan doesn’t want people to go to hell! Don’t think that Satan all of a sudden becomes charitable and says: “Oh! Since an occultist cursed someone, I surely won’t bother such a person, since that would be uncharitable!” Sigh…
- Just because there is a bit of biting sarcasm in those couple of sentenses of paragraph 15 doesn’t mean that those who are faithful are to be despised for thinking that they are in need of an exorcism. Bad things happen to good people, and not infrequently in this way. They are just enquiring. They are being prudent. Satan is not someone to ignore if stupid people do stupid things with curses.
Of course, just as bad as any exorcism done for no good reason is any exorcist taking the advice that “one may pray with them and for them some appropriate prayers so that they might find the peace of God,” that is, if one doesn’t explain that the prayers are not at all intended to do away with any threat of any hexed objects, spells or curses, it having been decided that they are not possessed if that is truly the case.
O.K. So! There we are! Curses schmursches! Well, almost… A few more thoughts come to mind as I type as fast as I can…
I would bet that if you have before you any member of the faithful who has been cursed and is, in fact, suffering from Satan, and set out to explain to them that Satan has no obligation to follow any curse of any occultist, that that member of the faithful will just about jump out of his skin on the spot, interrupting your condescension so as to inform you that your words couldn’t be more obvious, but that, nevertheless, Satan can still freely choose to harass whomever he wants, even someone who has been cursed by Satan. I mean, how ironic would that be: an occultist can guarantee that no exorcism will be done over someone as long as that person knows that they have been cursed!
There are mean spirited people who will go to an occultist to pay extremely exorbitant amounts of money in order to have the occultist do his thing in having people cursed to the end of having those people harassed by Satan in a variety of ways, having them lose their jobs, their homes, their spouses, their children, their friends, their peace…
The Lord did not curse Adam and the woman in Genesis. The Lord cursed the ground and the Oracle-”Serpent”. That’s it.
People are said to curse themselves or others, as is reported in Scripture. But that doesn’t mean they can curse themselves or others. Who are we to do that? We don’t have that capacity. We can’t do that. We can the words, but the words mean nothing. We are not so significant anymore, not after original sin.
Accompany me, Father George David Byers, S.S.L., S.T.D., as I begin life as a Catholic Priest-Hermit by choice. Holy Souls Hermitage is dedicated to the sanctification of my fellow priests, bishops, deacons & seminarians going through the purgatory of this life or the next. Prayer and sacrifice go up, of course, for both Benedict XVI and the next Successor of Saint Peter. 
