Demons respond to the authority of natural law and divine positive law.
QUESTION? / COMMENT!
This concerns a particular dear friend of mine with deliverance needs. I am contacting you because you may have more direct connections. The particular priest assigned to her case from the Archdiocese, who was fairly new to all this initially it seems, is wavering in his belief in the case or the severity of the matter. As I know the woman closely, since even before her baptism a couple years or so ago (she converted from being an agnostic Jew to a Catholic because holy water and the Saint Michael prayer were among the few things that relieved her from her afflictions!) and I am one of the few people she is close enough with and can trust to speak with about this stuff, I assure you she is enduring much.
Some time ago she reached out to the Doloran Fathers. She did not hear back, but it may have been an old contact. I understand she must remain under the care of those with proper jurisdiction, so I am not sure if she can receive help elsewhere without the proper measurements, and I do not want to make anything more complicated for her. She was recommended to do the Auxilium Christianorum prayers from the Catholic Psychologist assigned her, and they help her significantly, but things continue. What advice might you give? She is oppressed and afflicted physically. Can she get help elsewhere? She is at peace and full of trust, knowing this will pass. She has become quite holy. I hate to know what she endures in the meantime though.
ANSWER! / COMMENT!
You just answered your question. God allows diabolic affliction, even possession to make the person holy and to save their soul. Only God determines when the demon will leave the person.
The Catholic Church is a paramilitary structure, that is the way God set it up. Demons respond to the authority of natural law and divine positive law. If someone in your family is diabolically afflicted, they have to go through the proper channels (that’s the way everything in life functions). When you call the Police, you get a young Patrol Officer to respond, not the Chief of Police. Most people will never meet the Chief of Police in their city.
1st step, If she is an adult have her petition the Parish Priest. This is why it is important for every Catholic to be part of a Parish and have a relationship with the Pastor. The Pastor operates as a General Practitioner. The Pastor should do spiritual direction, counseling, the sacraments and offer minor prayers of exorcism. If the situation is more mental illness than the Pastor will recommend a Catholic therapist, counselor, psychologist or psychiatrist. She has to pursue all of this herself. You can’t do it for her. Here is an example of what I mean.
You can't work out for him in a gym and have her receive the benefits, you can't diet for her and have her receive the benefits. If she is diabolically afflicted she must petition for help herself from the Parish Priest. Generally, demons afflict people that don't know their faith and choose to live in mortal sin.
Your second question - where is her father? Her father has power and authority to bless her and to pray liberation/deliverance prayers over her and drive out the demon. He will have to do this night after night and it may take a long time but the demon will eventually yield to his authority. Also, her husband, if he is in a state of grace and a practicing Catholic, he can also pray over her prayers of blessings and deliverance from demons as well, the holier you are the more effective your prayers will be (cf. James 5:16).
Third, if your Pastor determines it is something above his ability to deal with than he will contact the diocesan exorcist. It is at this level that the diocesan exorcist would contact Liber Christo and collaborate in her case.
If she contacted Liber Christo they would send her to her Parish Priest for confession, spiritual direction and for blessings and deliverance prayers. Why? Because her Pastor has spiritual authority over her and the demon will yield to his prayers. The only way Liber Christo will take a case is once the diocesan exorcist and Bishop both agree to transfer the case to Liber Christo. Barring this, Liber Christo has NO jurisdictional authority over the diabolically afflicted person.
I know many people that liberate from diabolic affliction, they become serious prayer warriors, daily communicants, daily rosary, weekly adoration - holiness is what drives the demon out of a person.
Saints on Exorcist prescription – Live in a State of Grace
“…a soul in the state of grace has nothing to fear from demons, who are cowards capable of running away from the look of a child…” - St Therese of Liseux (Doctor of the Church, from ’The Story of a Soul’ Chapter 1).
“…1st state of protection against demons – live in a state of grace…” - Fr. Chad Ripperger F.S.S.P. - Exorcist).
“…the best shield and armor against the attacks of the Evil One is prayer, the Sacraments, good works and living a spiritual life” (Fr Antonio Fortea - Exorcist).[i]
“Certainly, a person who prays and lives in God’s grace will be protected by God” (Fr Antonio Fortea - Exorcist, Spain).[ii]
Fr Gabriel Amorth (Rome – Exorcist): “Just as the demon fights against us daily, so we must battle against him. Through the strength of the Spirit that was given to us, we are certain of the victory. To live in a state of grace means always to say Yes to Christ and No to Satan, according to our baptismal promises: if we do not, we fall into sin…Safeguarding and increasing the state of grace is a victory against ordinary activity of the demon (temptation), and, at the same time, it is the best prevention against his extraordinary activity…Again, we must remember that the best means of prevention is to abide in the grace of God, pray, receive the sacraments, and ask for the intercession of the Virgin Mary, the angels and the saints.”[iii]
Fr Gabriel Amorth (Rome – Exorcist): It is very rare that a person who is in a state of grace can become possessed; however, it could occur only through divine permission by God.[iv]
Msgr Leon Cristiani (French Exorcist) – “…one of the most urgent tasks of the exorcist is not only to ‘cure’ the possessed person, but also to lead him towards sanctity. There is nothing which can so surely diminish the power and dominion of satan as the conversion of the victim…” (Evidence of Satan in the modern world - p.72).
[i] Fortea, Jose. "Chapter 5: Demonic Oppression and Possession." Interview with an Exorcist: An Insider's Look at the Devil, Demonic Possession, and the Path to Deliverance. West Chester, Penn.: Ascension, 2006. Print.
[ii] Fortea, Fr Antonio. "Curses, Spells, Evil Eye." Curses, Spells, Evil Eye. Web. 8 Dec. 2015.
[iii] Amorth, Father Gabriele. "Exorcisms and Prayer of Liberation." An Exorcist-- More Stories. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2002. 94-95, 99. Print.
[iv] "The lives of many saints include examples of this affliction. Among modern saints, I can cite two who have been beatified by Pope John Paul II: Father Giovanni Calabria and Sister Mary of Jesus Crucified (who was the first Arab to be beatified). In both cases, and without any human fault, they were subjected to periods of true satanic possession. During those periods, the two saints did and said things totally incompatible with their holiness without the least fault, because it was the devil who acted through their bodies" (cf. An Exorcist tells His story, p. 57).