In Orthodoxy, the rite of exorcism is called a lecture. This ritual is the reading of a special prayer, overshadowing the possessed person with the sign of the cross, as well as fumigating him with incense. The prayer that casts out demons is the longest in the canon of the Orthodox Church - its duration is about 20 minutes. The text of the prayer has not changed for many centuries.
Exorcism history
In theological science, exorcism is called the expulsion from the human body of evil spirits, the henchmen of the Prince of Darkness, using a certain religious ritual. This rite is very ancient and goes back to the origins of Christianity.
The Gospel describes how Jesus Christ, while wandering through Galilee, repeatedly cast out unclean spirits from the suffering. One of the most famous biblical stories about the practice of exorcism tells of how Jesus drove demons out of a man and put them into a herd of pigs. The animals, possessed by demons, threw themselves into the abyss. "What is your name?" - asked the Savior of evil before exile. “My name is legion,” the demons answered. Thus, in the Holy Scriptures for the first time it is said that a person can be possessed by many demons.
The gift of casting out demons was originally possessed only by Jesus Christ. Subsequently, after the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles, they also received this gift. Theologians claim that it was through them, the founders of the Christian Church, that this ability was passed on to their followers - the priests.
The number of people who really know how to cast out demons was apparently small at all times. However, in the Middle Ages, a huge number of priests appeared among the ministers of the Church, confident that they could do it, although in reality they could do nothing to help the possessed. Naturally, their activities could not bring anything but harm, and "successes" in this field of the Inquisition led to the fact that the modern Catholic Church no longer officially resorts to exorcism.
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Reporting is a matter of a specialist
In Russia, the most ancient written source about exorcism is the instructions for driving out demons, set forth in the missal of the Kiev Metropolitan Peter Mohyla, which dates back to the XIV century. The Orthodox Church not only does not deny the casting out of demons, but also actively practices it. True, the priests who know how to lecture can be counted on one hand.
It is necessary to pay special attention to the fact that only a priest who has received a special blessing from the bishop has the right to scold, that is, cast out demons. The rest of the priests, if they want to help a person free themselves from demonic power, read the usual prayer for health. In some cases, it also helps.
By the way, the priests strongly advise the parishioners not to be present at the lecture - after all, no one knows who the evil spirit who has lost its victim will decide to move into.
Signs of obsession
Before leading someone close or acquaintance to lecture, people consult with a priest from their parish and receive his blessing. In addition, it is necessary to make sure whether a person is really possessed, since the early centuries of Christianity there are many signs of possession. Here are some of them.
The demon possessed is afraid of the church, at services he feels bad and often faints. Sprinkling with holy water, touching the cross can cause him physical suffering. The same thing happens when he inhales incense.
A demon possessed physically cannot receive any of the Christian ordinances. The sound of the church bell gives him a headache. However, obsession may not be so explicit. There are cases when it manifested itself in systematic pain throughout the body, loss of consciousness and feeling unwell outside the church.
A formerly calm person can become unusually hot-tempered, irritable and even aggressive if demons enter him. One can also talk about obsession if a person who was previously indifferent to alcohol and drugs suddenly goes all out and cannot stop.
Not to be confused with psychopathy?
It is not uncommon for obsession to be confused with mental illness. For example, the symptoms characteristic of one of the types of schizophrenia may resemble the behavior of a person who has become a victim of dark forces. The patient is completely sure that a demon has possessed him, and even during the chanting can behave like a possessed person. The priests are also aware of this phenomenon of the human psyche. Usually they come before the beginning of the service and talk with the sufferer, over whom the ceremony is to be performed. An experienced priest immediately sees whether a person is possessed or mentally ill. The ritual is contraindicated for sick people, because it can aggravate their condition.
How do priests distinguish the mentally ill from the possessed? First, one of the abilities of people who know how to cast out demons is the ability to feel the presence of evil spirits in a person. Secondly, some priests have a medical education and are familiar with the basics of psychiatry. In addition, many have been doing this difficult business for many years and almost every day, so their eyes, as they say, are trained.
In some churches, interviewees are held with those wishing to be lectured to find out if these people are really possessed. But in the past few years there have been so many possessed people that the priests simply do not have enough time for individual conversations.
Report in the Lavra
Now the most famous place of demons in Russia is the St. Sergius Lavra of Oitsk, located in the city of Sergiev Posad. This is one of the main centers of Russian Orthodoxy. The imperishable relics of the Monk Sergius of Radonezh, revered in Russia with special reverence, rest here. Every day hundreds of pilgrims from all over Russia and from neighboring countries come to the Lavra to venerate the relics of the holy miracle worker. Someone wants to pay tribute, someone wants to ask for good health, and someone comes to the saint for advice. But there are also those who come to the monastery hoping to get rid of the demons.
Almost every day, the abbot of the monastic brethren of the Lavra, Archimandrite German, gives a lecture. Several hundred sufferers invariably gather for this special service. The ceremony is held in the small church of St. John the Baptist, which is located on the territory of the temple complex of the Lavra. This church is small, so that people during the service sometimes have to stand even on the porch.
Father Herman is often ten to fifteen minutes late for a report. Connoisseurs of local customs say that he does it on purpose so that those who come will gain courage and strength: after all, a lecture is not an easy ceremony.
Before starting the lecture, Father Herman preaches an hour and a half sermon every time. “Sin is also a disease,” he says. - and the more we fall into sin, the weaker our spirit becomes, and the gates of our mind are opened for demons."
And when Father Herman begins to lecture, the terrible begins. The oppressive silence is replaced by a cacophony of sounds, many of which have nothing to do with human voices. Some people scream, others scream hysterically, children sometimes begin to speak in low male voices. It happens that people bark, grunt, wriggle, roll on the floor.
Once a man was brought to the Lavra, possessed by a demon, who was so violent that he had to be chained to a bed and carried directly to the temple on it. After the lecture, the man calmly got up and went home on his own.
Casting out demons is a rite that requires tremendous physical and mental strength. After the lecture, Father Herman looks as if he has been dragging heavy stones up the mountain all day. But the former possessed, having got rid of the devils that tormented them, feel the greatest relief.
G. Chernov