Matt C. Abbott column
Demonic possession, free will, and 'Theology of the Body'
Matt C. Abbott
Regarding Father Tom Euteneuer's recently-released book Exorcism and the Church Militant, a reader inquired (edited): I get a little confused when I hear exorcists, most recently Father Tom Euteneuer, state that possession is when the devil is in the body, but the soul is still free. That makes no sense. I know this is his field, but the statement is meaningless. Peter Kreeft stated in his book on angels and demons that the devil can posses our soul if we invite him in. The late Malachi Martin was always emphatic that the devil does not 'physically inhabit' the body — he controls minds and wills in a possession and, of course, controls the body. But that does mean he is 'in' matter. (Father Gabriele Amorth said the devil can possess thousands of people at one time.) Martin also said in the cases he wrote about, all five possessed persons said they felt that an alien presence was 'inside' them in some way, and he did speak of a demon 'gaining entry,' not to the body, but to the individual.
Possession, as I understand it, is control and domination of a person's will, personality and mind — hence the changes in the possessed person's personality. I'm not talking about 'obsession,' such as Padre Pio experienced. And even he said the devil can get to us only through our free will.
Read Father Euteneuer's response:
Matt C. Abbott is a Catholic columnist with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication, Media and Theatre from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, and an Associate in Applied Science degree in Business Management from Triton College in River Grove, Ill. He has worked in the right-to-life movement and is a published writer focused on Catholic and social issues. He can be reached at mattcabbott@gmail.com Posted via email from deaconjohn's posterous
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