Distressed after mass

MizzLolly

Hey Christians,

Posting here for some clarification on something. My grandmother went to Medjugorje last week and since returning she's been very distressed. At a mass she witnessed what the priest called a 'possession/exorcism'. Personally, I don't believe in them but I respect that others do. The priest told everyone in the church to pray for protection as 'it' would ''latch onto anyone it could''. Since her visit she's been having nightmares and waking up crying.

Religion aside, I obviously feel very angry about this. I am aware however that I am posting in the Christian forum and I'm not here to insult/challenge anyones beliefs at all. I would just like to know, from a Christian point of view, why the priest figured everyone was in danger of this 'it' and how come he couldn't offer some comfort to these distressed onlookers?

I know very little about possessions etc as I said above, I don't believe in them. All I know is that my gran went away on what was supposed to be a nice trip and came back devestated.

Please can people offer some clarity on it.

Thank you

robindch

MizzLolly wrote: »

I obviously feel very angry about this.

My sympathies to you and your gran. Have you thought about contacting the priest and asking him to apologise to your gran for scaring the bejesus out of her?

Also, you could also ask this question in the A+A forum here where people will be less guarded about criticizing this kind of behaviour.

seanybiker

I dont believe in all that meself but it must be very frightening for your poor grandmother. I thought it was excocisms where kinda shunned upon by a lot of the priests etc? Might be wrong but thats what I thought.

MizzLolly

robindch wrote: »

My sympathies to you and your gran. Have you thought about contacting the priest and asking him to apologise to your gran for scaring the bejesus out of her?

Also, you could also ask this question in the A+A forum here where people will be less guarded about criticizing this kind of behaviour.

Personally, it sounds like a cheap 'fear tactic' to me. That's not a slur to Christianity or anything of the sort. Otherwise, I wouldn't be here asking them for their advice. I do feel that the priest was wrong, very wrong, to say this though. I want to hear a Christian explanation of it. I suggested to my gran that it was possibly staged and that it wasn't real in order to comfort her but she said it was too scary and 'animal-like' to be staged. She also said that when she tried to pray that she couldn't remember the words. Again, I tried to reassure her that this was simply fear but I know that she's frightened still.

seanybiker wrote: »

I dont believe in all that meself but it must be very frightening for your poor grandmother. I thought it was excocisms where kinda shunned upon by a lot of the priests etc? Might be wrong but thats what I thought.

As far as I know, priests believe in possessions and 'exorcisms' are carried out frequently.

testicle

The divil has possessed her.

MizzLolly

testicle wrote: »

The divil has possessed her.

Very helpful, testicle.

kelly1

MizzLolly wrote: »

Hey Christians,

Posting here for some clarification on something. My grandmother went to Medjugorje last week and since returning she's been very distressed. At a mass she witnessed what the priest called a 'possession/exorcism'. Personally, I don't believe in them but I respect that others do. The priest told everyone in the church to pray for protection as 'it' would ''latch onto anyone it could''. Since her visit she's been having nightmares and waking up crying.

Hello MizzLolly, this is disturbing and I'm sorry to hear your grandmother is distress like this.

In the first place, I don't think exorcisms should be performed publicly. Sounds like showmanship to me! Also I doubt if the priest had permission from his bishop to perform said ritual. I wonder had he ever met this person before. Normally it takes a long time before the Church decides that a person is posessed. Psychological routes are normall pursued first and tell-tale signs must be present.

MizzLolly wrote: »

Religion aside, I obviously feel very angry about this. I am aware however that I am posting in the Christian forum and I'm not here to insult/challenge anyones beliefs at all. I would just like to know, from a Christian point of view, why the priest figured everyone was in danger of this 'it' and how come he couldn't offer some comfort to these distressed onlookers?

Possesion is only possible when God allows it to happen. It's extremely unlikely that you gran is posessed especially if she's in a state of grace (goes to confession and Mass etc).

MizzLolly wrote: »

Personally, it sounds like a cheap 'fear tactic' to me. That's not a slur to Christianity or anything of the sort. Otherwise, I wouldn't be here asking them for their advice. I do feel that the priest was wrong, very wrong, to say this though. I want to hear a Christian explanation of it. I suggested to my gran that it was possibly staged and that it wasn't real in order to comfort her but she said it was too scary and 'animal-like' to be staged.

Inhuman growls are a tell-tale sign but I still think she would have nothing to worry about. It probably just frightened the life out of her and it's still affecting her.

MizzLolly wrote: »

As far as I know, priests believe in possessions and 'exorcisms' are carried out frequently.

Actually no, exorcists and exorcisms are very rare.

MizzLolly

kelly1 wrote: »

Hello MizzLolly, this is disturbing and I'm sorry to hear your grandmother is distress like this.

In the first place, I don't think exorcisms should be performed publicly. Sounds like showmanship to me! Also I doubt if the priest had permission from his bishop to perform said ritual. I wonder had he ever met this person before. Normally it takes a long time before the Church decides that a person is posessed. Psychological routes are normall pursued first and tell-tale signs must be present..

That's exactly what I thought too. It sounded a little to 'staged' for my liking. That's very reassuring, thanks.

kelly1 wrote: »

Inhuman growls are a tell-tale sign but I still think she would have nothing to worry about. It probably just frightened the life out of her and it's still affecting her.

Yeah, she said the girl was crawling on the floor, growling and vomiting. Exactly like in that film The Exorcist.

kelly1 wrote: »

Actually no, exorcists and exorcisms are very rare.

Opps, sorry. Thought they were supposed to happen quite often. Thanks again.

Dades

Assuming your gran goes to mass, can you suggest to her she have chat with the PP afterwards? (Or arrange for a "chance" meeting?)

Assuming he isn't a whackjob he can assure her - with the authority of the cloth - that she isn't possessed and hopefully put her mind at rest. It sounds to me like she needs to hear that from someone with 'authority', the poor lady.

robindch

MizzLolly wrote: »

Personally, it sounds like a cheap 'fear tactic' to me.

Well, the person was either sick or wasn't sick. If they weren't, then they were acting and shouldn't be taking advantage of people's trust in that way. If they were sick, then they should be seeing a doctor and not being paraded around in public like that.

MizzLolly wrote: »

I want to hear a Christian explanation of it.

The answer you'll get will depend on the person you ask. Some will say that possession doesn't happen, but in my experience, there are few in this boat. Kelly1's viewpoint that possession happens, but is rare, seems to be fairly mainstream. And there is a reasonable minority of christians who hold that all illness is caused, at least in part, by demonic attack of one kind or another.

I recall reading somewhere that the current pope has asked for more exorcists. I can't imagine why he thinks this, but frankly, it's a bit scary in the 21st century.

Anyhow, if you can't get a hold of the guy from Medjugorje, then Dades suggestion is worthwhile -- a comforting word from a less excitable priest may be what she needs.

Goduznt Xzst

I find it weird the amount of Christians I talk to that strongly believe that angels fly about helping people and doing God's work but don't accept that inversely there must also be as many Demons flying about possessing people and doing Satans work.

I was raised to fear demons and as a child I would have frequent nightmares that shadows cast on the wall where demons or if it was cold and my feet where out from the covers that the chill on my toes was demons breathing on them.

When you are told by people you respect, trust and admire, in your mothers case the priest and in my case my parents, that something you viscerally fear exists and you are in the presence of it of course it is going to wreak havoc with your psyche.

I think in your mothers case though, being a believer, it will be difficult to qualm her fears now that she has them. Demons and Satan are aspects of Christianity that a lot of believers tend to ignore and put in the back of their mind. I doubt very much that most Christians walk around imagining the myriads of demons flying in the skies above them. But if you awaken this realization that demons exist and are in your house and are watching you it will be very hard to put it to sleep again.

Zombrex

MizzLolly wrote: »

My grandmother went to Medjugorje last week and since returning she's been very distressed.

Get her to read up about Medjugorje ... most people, including a lot of Catholics, think it is a scam.

Thomas_S_Hunterson

I was at that mass about 3 years ago on a school trip. It's not an exorcism, just a blessing as far as I know although the priest was a bit of a nut-job.

djeddy

MizzLolly wrote: »

Hey Christians,

Posting here for some clarification on something. My grandmother went to Medjugorje last week and since returning she's been very distressed. At a mass she witnessed what the priest called a 'possession/exorcism'. Personally, I don't believe in them but I respect that others do. The priest told everyone in the church to pray for protection as 'it' would ''latch onto anyone it could''. Since her visit she's been having nightmares and waking up crying.

Religion aside, I obviously feel very angry about this. I am aware however that I am posting in the Christian forum and I'm not here to insult/challenge anyones beliefs at all. I would just like to know, from a Christian point of view, why the priest figured everyone was in danger of this 'it' and how come he couldn't offer some comfort to these distressed onlookers?

I know very little about possessions etc as I said above, I don't believe in them. All I know is that my gran went away on what was supposed to be a nice trip and came back devestated.

Please can people offer some clarity on it.

Thank you

Hi,

Sorry to hear what your gran went through,
Maybe if she got a blessing from a priest,

Way back in the seventies when the exorcist came out,a priest on tv said in stead of thinking of that kind of possession, we should be thinking of the possession of jesus christ and his love,

I read somewhere that pope benny is supposed to have said that medjugorje
was a SCAM

CDfm

MizzLolly wrote: »

Hey Christians,

Posting here for some clarification on something. My grandmother went to Medjugorje last week and since returning she's been very distressed. At a mass she witnessed what the priest called a 'possession/exorcism'. Personally, I don't believe in them but I respect that others do. The priest told everyone in the church to pray for protection as 'it' would ''latch onto anyone it could''. Since her visit she's been having nightmares and waking up crying.

Religion aside, I obviously feel very angry about this. I am aware however that I am posting in the Christian forum and I'm not here to insult/challenge anyones beliefs at all. I would just like to know, from a Christian point of view, why the priest figured everyone was in danger of this 'it' and how come he couldn't offer some comfort to these distressed onlookers?

I know very little about possessions etc as I said above, I don't believe in them. All I know is that my gran went away on what was supposed to be a nice trip and came back devestated.

Please can people offer some clarity on it.

Thank you

Hiya Miss Lolly

Sorry your Gran got scared. I know a young guy who had a similar experience at 20 which scared him no end - and was hoaxed.

I dont know how close you are to the local parish priest - but it seems to me that you should call him or call into him and explain the problem.They may ask if she is on any medication etc or if you have consulted her GP.

This kind of stuff would spook people and the general church view would be very cynical of such occurances.

A chat from the priest should do the trick - however if you feel your Gran is being treated like a loon or you are being told you are over reacting you should call the Dioscesan office - in Dublin that would be Archbishops house.

You dont say where you are based - but if there are Order based priests in your area such as a monastery or a person it could be the ticket.

In Dublin - the likes of the Whitefriars in the City Center or Capuchins in Raheny would be good guys.

If you have difficulty PM me and I can look up who you could contact.

CD

iMax

I've considered not posting in this thread, because my own personal beliefs are in conflict with most people's here & I wouldn't like to offend. I'm an NPRC & have very little faith (pun not intended) in the teachings of the church, however I do believe that there was a person called Jesus Christ & he was revered & he was what at that time what would have been referred to as a prophet. I also believe that he was ultimately crucified, but didn't die, but his body was smuggled out of the holy land & to another country where after recovering he went on preaching.

Anyway I digress, that's just some background to me. My godfather is a Vatican appointed exorcist (obviously he wasn't in the "trade" when he became my godfather, believe it or not he was a bus conductor!!). He travels the world performing exorcisms in mostly 2nd world countries, places like the Philippines & Cuba are rife for it.

If people believe strongly enough in something, they can "experience" it.

He rarely talks about what he does & if he does happen to mention it gives very little information, but I do remember him flying off to Guatemala one time to do one & when he came back his hair was completely white, it never went back to it's brown colour & for that reason I believe that he believes in what he does. He would have a very dim view of theatrics.

I've just given him a call & asked him about the detail described in the OP. he said that unless confronted without preparation he wouldn't dream of attempting to perform, and in the event of something happening in a public place such as a church, he wouldn't be including the congregation, he would get them out as quickly as possible as exorcisms are sacred & not intended to be witnessed en-mass.

He advised that you have a word with a local PP & explain to them what is disturbing your grandmother & then have him talk to her in private.

I hope that she is able to resolve her issues as something like that would be very disturbing to someone elderly with much stronger beliefs than the likes of me.

dr ro

i suspect your godfather decided while he was in guatemala that he'd been dying his hair for long enough now!

Fanny Cradock

dr ro, you are trolling. Please contribute something useful or post nothing at all.

Cheers

MizzLolly

Thanks to everyone for your replies.

Just to clarify, a few people said things like, ''I'm sure your gran's not possessed''... well, I didn't think she was, lol!! :D She didn't think she was either. She was just terrified after seeing the 'exorcism'. I will reassure her again that it was a fake.

Thanks again for all the replies.

Gareth37

MizzLolly wrote: »

Thanks to everyone for your replies.

Just to clarify, a few people said things like, ''I'm sure your gran's not possessed''... well, I didn't think she was, lol!! :D She didn't think she was either. She was just terrified after seeing the 'exorcism'. I will reassure her again that it was a fake.

Thanks again for all the replies.

How do you know it was fake?

Nerin

Gareth37 wrote: »

How do you know it was fake?

From the point of view of the church,it probably was. When people contact the church worried about demons,the church has admitted they usually look for a scientific explanation. Very good short documentary on current tv a while back showing the life of an actual exorcist,and he admits that he comes at things as a sceptic. Should be up on current.com

MizzLolly

Gareth37 wrote: »

How do you know it was fake?

How do you know it wasn't?

Thomas_S_Hunterson

MizzLolly wrote: »

How do you know it wasn't?

Way to prove a point. Really.
:pac:

CDfm

MizzLolly wrote: »

Thanks to everyone for your replies.

Just to clarify, a few people said things like, ''I'm sure your gran's not possessed''... well, I didn't think she was, lol!! :D She didn't think she was either. She was just terrified after seeing the 'exorcism'. I will reassure her again that it was a fake.

Thanks again for all the replies.

Your Gran is lucky to have you

CDfm

Sean_K wrote: »

Way to prove a point. Really.
:pac:

Thats not the way it works in the church . So it sounds like a fake . People can experience reactions in religious environments - and this is what seems Mizz Lollys Gran observed.

Thats been posted here already. There is no need to make light of her distress.

CerebralCortex

CDfm wrote: »

Your Gran is lucky to have you

Nah ah. Blessed surely?

gramlab

If she is only bothered about what she witnessed and you can't get a PP to reassure her , then why not type up something official looking that would calm her fears. I'm sure that a little white lie like that wouldn't get you into any bother with the man upstairs.

Darragh29

I have an aunt who had a traumatic experience years ago in Tralee after a man who was apparently possessed came up for communion and when she offered it to him, he went beserk and started hissing and spitting at her and took the chalice thing off her and threw it across the church... I wouldn't dismiss the whole thing too quickly as drama OP...

toiletduck

Darragh29 wrote: »

I have an aunt who had a traumatic experience years ago in Tralee after a man who was apparently possessed came up for communion and when she offered it to him, he went beserk and started hissing and spitting at her and took the chalice thing off her and threw it across the church... I wouldn't dismiss the whole thing too quickly as drama OP...

Yeah, I've never seen a lunatic attending mass ever.