Excerpted from: American’s Requesting Exorcisms Continues to Rise; by Megan Bailey, Beliefnet News
Over the past 10 years in the United States, the number of official priest exorcists has more than quadrupled from 12 to 50.
For many of these priests, such as Father Gary Thomas who trained in Rome, it is an ongoing struggle to keep up with the demand.
Father Thomas, along with Father Vincent Lampert, discuessed with The Telegraph how the increase in drug and pornography addiction, failure of the mental healthcare system and a rise in popularity of “pagan activities”, such as using a Ouija board to summon the dead, are among the factors contributing to the huge increase in demand for exorcisms.
An expanding spiritual void in the lives of Americans, and the diminishing authority of the Church, are to blame as well, they stated.
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