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Exorcist: Devil Influences Abortion Industry
By John P. Connolly, The Bulletin
Fr. Thomas Euteneuer, president of Human Life International and an exorcist, spoke at a luncheon hosted by In His Sign Network (IHS). He is an exorcist authorized to perform exorcisms in several states, and highlighted the connection between the abortion industry and demonic influence.
“Abortion is a demonic industry,” he told The Bulletin. “Abortion is blood sacrifice of innocent blood to the devil. The clinics are like temples, the doctors are like priests, the medical table is like their altar. It’s a ritualized sacrifice. They have a dogma called choice, a hierarchy called Planned Parenthood, and guardian angels in the form of police guards that will arrest you if you try to stop them.”
He said that there have been abortionists who have called abortion “their sacrament.” Fr. Euteneuer advocates prayer as a necessary step to successfully fighting abortion.
“Abortion is a spiritual evil,” he said. “If we are to beat it, we
can’t just fight it in the political realm. It
derives its power from below. To confront a force
this strong, you need a massive amount of prayer.
That’s why I like the 40 Days For Life group,
because they bring us what we need where we need
it.”
Fr. Euteneuer explained the basic exorcism
procedure, and the tactics the devil uses to
possess a person. The first tactic relies on
seduction, trying to get the victim to invite him
into their lives.
“Most people with demonic problems have opened a
door somewhere,” said Fr. Euteneuer. He cited the
popularity of the occult in bringing people closer
to demonic interaction, primarily through the
growth of the New Age movement and other
paraphernalia. He said that even Hasbro markets
Ouija boards to children.
“I’m very set against Harry Potter,” he said.
“It’s pumping into our children’s minds the
language and imagery of the occult. It’s extremely
spiritually dangerous.”
He also called attention to a growing fascination
with the cult of the vampire, especially through
the popularity of books and movies like Twilight,
where the main character falls in love with a
vampire.
“I predict that in the next 10 years or so, we’ll
see an explosion of occult activity,” said Fr.
Euteneuer. “The number of soft-core occultism in
the form of things like Harry Potter, Wicca and
the New Age is on the increase. These are the
gateways to the hardcore stuff. Ask any inner-city
police department if they’re seeing evidence of
Satanism. They’re organizing whole task forces to
deal with crimes having to do with these things.
As society becomes more faithless, this wickedness
comes and fills the vacuum.”
Fr. Euteneuer said the other tactic a devil uses
is victimization of a person. The person in
question doesn’t always need to invite demonic
activity, but can have it placed on them by other
groups or people.
Nevertheless, Fr. Euteneuer stressed that exorcism
is not often the dramatic thing the movies make it
out to be.
“The devil doesn’t have the power you see in the
movies,” he said. “He cannot hold onto a state of
possession for a given length of time. The movies
glorify his power. They do a good job in showing
the priest coming to care for these people, but
the priest carefully binds that devil, and he is a
prisoner in that person.”
Exorcism requires prayer and fasting, and requires
a long period of discernment to determine if the
problem is not, in fact, psychological.
“A report is made to the diocese, and then the
bishop must authorize a solemn exorcism,”
explained Fr. Euteneuer.
The priest will then use a ritual in Latin where
he binds whatever demonic entity is troubling a
person and commands him. Fr. Euteneuer told the
audience that the process is not unlike a trial,
where the priest is the prosecuting attorney and
the demon is trapped. The word “exorcism” itself
means to put somebody on trial. The devil is
required to answer any demands the priest makes to
him in the name of Christ, because of the
authority that the priest has from Christ.
“Exorcism is a pastoral ministry of the Church,
and it’s an important ministry,” said Fr.
Euteneuer. “But confession is a much more
important ministry, because it pulls out the sins
which are the conditions for a possession.”
IHS Network Serves As Radio Ministry
The In His Sign Network (IHS) has been a
listener-supported radio ministry for over 30
years.
IHS broadcasts a daily show on WTMR 800 AM, out of
Trenton from 5 to 6 p.m.
“We put on retreats or events that are topical to
issues going on in the Catholic Church,” said
Kathleen McCarthy, president of IHS. “I see our
mission as bringing the fire of God’s love to the
world.”
Ms. McCarthy’s son, Brian, spoke about its mission
at the luncheon on Sunday.
“One way or the other, media will guide and shape
society,” he said. “That society has a lot of
weaknesses, fears and anxieties. [But] Christ has
already won the victory. The IHS Network is
proclaiming that victory.”
For more information on IHS, readers may visit
their Web site at www.inhissign.com
John P. Connolly can be reached at jconnolly@thebulletin.us