THE
FACTS Reviewed
by Joseph
Robert Jobe/EXORCIST and Tara
Weston - Ciampa/EMILY ROSE
Is
the Exorcism ritual abused by sick minds? Are people dying as a result?
You will find some answers when you read
the following actual accounts of these exorcims that went very
bad... Emily Rose's,
for example:
Born: September
21, 1952 1968: Diagnosed
with Grand Mal Epilepsy
1970: Devilish
Voices and Visions
1973: Parents
requested exorcism/rejected
1974: Pastor
Ernst requested exorcism permit/rejected
June 30, 1976: Final
Exorcism Performed by Father Arnold
Renz and Pastor Ernst Alt July 1, 1976: "Beg
for Absolution" Anneliese's final words
1978: Priest
and family indicted for negligent homicide
..The
idea for the movie arose from the true life and death story of
German/Catholic woman, Anneliese
Michel, who died in 1976 after unsuccessful
attempts to cure her from the alleged state of demonic possession
with the
means of psychotropic drugs.
Writer and Director
of the movie, Scott Derrickson states, "The
research phase was horrible. I am glad that I know so much about
it...I also feel
that for me, as a Christian, it is good to have that knowledge,
but I will never do that again." The movie was released
in two different DVD versions, and this review is based on the unrated version.
I noticed very little, if any
difference between the unrated version and the theatrical version.
THE FILM IS BASICALLY A MURDER TRIAL,
the accused just happens to be a priest who is charged with murder
because the performed Exorcism
by said priest resulted in a death.
The court accepted the version according
to which she was epileptic, refusing to accept the idea of supernatural
involvement in this case. Two priests involved in the exorcism
on her, as well
as her parents, were found
guilty of manslaughter resulting
from negligence and received sentences.
..Actress -Jennifer
Carpenter- plays the part of Emily
Rose. She bares
quite a close resemblance to the actual Anneliese. They cast
the perfect actress for this role. Her performance was convincing
without
being
over the top. Her portrayal of Emily's erratic behavior which
was on a downward spiral was executed quite well
I thought...
it looks
like she had to be quite the
contortionist for some of the more
dramatic scenes. Born on December 7, 1979 in Louisville, Kentucky,
she attended the Walden Theatre Company and The Juilliard School
in New York City. Her other credits included Lethal Eviction,
White Chicks and Ash Tuesday. To date, she is best known for
her role
in The
Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005),
yet she
took home the 2006 MTV Movie Award for 'Best
Frightened Performance,'
and
also
received
a Hollywood
Life
Breakthrough
Award, as well as having a recurring role in the 2006 series "Dexter".
..Tom
Wilkinson plays the part of Father Moore as a character that
is both strong willed and intense - pretty good choice for
the role of Father Moore. Joe, our WEBMASTER and Guru of Research,
also tells me that he played the Carmine Falcone' character in
Batman Begins,
as well as in 2007 he played attorney Arthur Edens in the film Michael
Clayton along side George Cloony: and with that
performance received a nomination for the academy award for Best
Supporting Actor - not too shabby! One of his lines in the movie
while talking
to Attorney Bruner is, "Demons Exist
Whether You Believe in Them or Not." This statement
sends a powerful, but not so easily received message to the agnostic
defense attorney played by actress Laura Linney. You may remember
her from
The
Mothman
Prophecies (a
favorite movie of mine). In my opinion she didn't
bring enough emotion to the part and I didn't really enjoy her
performance... she's just plain DULL- how she keeps getting acting
jobs, one right after the other, is a bigger mystery to me than
Emily's Exorcism itself!!.
..Anneliese
was enjoying a normal life in a very religious household where
she was raised with three sisters. In 1968 her
life went into a downward spiral as she starting having
seizures which led to the Psychiatric Clinic
Wurzburg diagnosing her with
epilepsy. Depression
followed increasing epileptic fits. She had to be admitted for
treatment (the movie did not depict
her
being admitted for treatment at any facility outside of the UNIVERSITY
HOSPITAL where she supposedly, as per the move, some of the most
violent attacks occurred). I feel this was a critical omission
since it did not show that medical
treatment
was
administered
repeatedly and failed repeatedly. In 1970 she
was hearing voices and seeing horrific visions - this was a turning
point that made
her and her family realize the medication was not improving her
condition and that possibly she could be cured via faith in EXORCISM..
EPILEPSY / SEIZURES:A
generalized tonic-clonic seizure is a seizure involving the entire
body, which usually involves muscle rigidity, violent muscle
contractions, and loss of consciousness. Generalized tonic-clonic
seizures (also called grand
mal seizures) are the type of seizure that most
people associate with the term "seizure," convulsion,
or epilepsy. They may occur in people of any age, as a single
episode or as a repeated, chronic condition (epilepsy).
The majority of seizures that do occur as just a single episode
are generalized tonic-clonic seizures rather than other types.
Generalized seizures are caused by abnormal electrical activity
at multiple locations in the brain and/or over a large area of
the brain. This results in loss
of consciousness and body stiffening, which is followed by shaking
of the arms and legs.
..Abnormal
electrical activity may start in one part of the brain and cause
isolated symptoms (see partial
seizures). Sometimes this abnormal electrical activity
spreads through the brain, resulting in a generalized seizure.
Seizures can be caused by a specific area of the brain that is
injured or inflamed, or they can be due to stress on the brain
from a more widespread systemic process, such as severely low
blood sugar.
Some
of the more common causes of seizures include:
1 Idiopathic seizures have no identifiable cause. They usually
begin between ages 5 and 20, but can occur at any age.
There are no other neurological problems, but the patient
often has a family history of epilepsy or seizures. 2 Congenital defects (present
from before birth) and injuries that occur near
the time of birth can cause seizures to begin in infancy or early childhood. 3 Febrile seizure (in
children) are usually caused by rapidly rising fevers in
children. 4 Acute severe infections of
any part of the body, chronic infections (such as neurosyphilis), and complications
of AIDS or other immune disorders can cause
seizures. 5 Seizures related to metabolic problems can occur at any age, and may be due
to: 6 Diabetes mellitus complications 7 Electrolyte imbalances 8 Kidney failure, uremia (toxic accumulation of wastes) 9 Nutritional deficiencies 10 Phenylketonuria (PKU)-- rarely causing seizures in infants 11 Low blood sodium or glucose 12 Brain injury usually causes seizures 2 years after the injury. Early seizures
(within 2 weeks of injury) do not necessarily indicate that chronic seizures
(epilepsy) will develop 13 Tumors and brain lesions (such
as hematomas) are more common after age 30.
They most commonly cause partial (focal) seizures at first, then progress to
generalized tonic-clonic seizures. 14 Other causes include: 15 Use of alcohol or other recreational drugs, or withdrawal from alcohol or
drugs 16 Disorders affecting the blood vessels (stroke,
TIA), a common cause of seizures
after age 60. 17 Degenerative disorders (senile dementia Alzheimer type)
Risk
factors include: Any
injury to the brain, Family
history of seizures,
Severe medical problems that affect electrolytes,Using
recreational drugs and certain medications, Heavy
alcohol use.
Many patients have an aura (sensory
warning sign) preceding the seizure. This can include
a visual, taste, smell, sensory, or other hallucination
or dizziness. Almost all people lose consciousness, and
most people have both tonic and clonic muscle activity.
The
seizure itself involves:
After
the seizure, the person usually has:
1 Loss of consciousness or fainting, usually lasting between
30 seconds and 5 minutes 2 General muscle contraction and rigidity (tonic
posture), usually lasting 15-20
seconds 3 Violent rhythmic muscle contraction,
relaxation (clonic
movement), usually
lasting for 1-4 minutes 4 Biting the cheek or tongue, clenched teeth or jaw 5 Incontinence (loss of urine or stool control) 6 Stopped breathing or difficulty breathing during seizure 7 Blue skin color
1 Normal breathing 2 Sleepiness lasts for one hour or longer 3 Loss of memory (amnesia) regarding events
surrounding the seizure episode 4 Headache 5 Drowsiness 6 Confusion, temporary and mild 7 Weakness for 24-48 hours following seizure (Todd's
paralysis)
Diagnosis
of a grand mal seizure is based on the symptoms and excluding
other medical problems that can look like a seizure (such
as heart arrhythmia). A neuromuscular examination may or
may not reveal neurologic deficits (decreases in brain
functions) when the person is not actively having seizures.
An EEG may show characteristic changes and in some cases
may show the focus (location of the cause of the seizure).
An EEG can be normal in between seizures and a normal EEG
does not rule out a seizure disorder.
The Rituale Romanum
..In
1973 an exorcism was sought out by Anneliese
Michel's parents.
Their request was met with rejection. The Church recommended
Anneliese continue
to be treated by the medical profession. The Church did not believe
she fit within the guidelines of The
Rituale Romanum (exorcism
ritual) originally sanctioned in 1614 under Pope
Paul V. The Ritual text urged caution against performing The
Ritual upon persons whom
were not truly possessed. Those that were previously thought
to be possessed by a demonic entity are now
being diagnosed with such
things as multiple personality
disorder, hysteria, schizophrenia,
paranoia, sexual
malfunction and other neuroses.
..In
1952 there were revisions to The Rituale Romanum. The wording
changed that symptoms of a possession are signs of the
presence of a demon “might be.” States other than
possession, originally described as “those who
suffer from melancholia or any other illness” became “those
who suffer from illness, particularly mental illness.” These
changes are the result of those Christians that do not believe
in demonic possession.
..A possession
is believed to be the case if the following signs/symptoms
are present: shows superhuman
strength,
exhibits paranormal capacities,
above all, displays knowledge of
previously unknown languages,
then they may be a candidate for a demonic exorcism. The Church
may consider the person possessed if the above signs are accompanied
by extreme revulsions for sacred
texts and religious objects. After
getting permission from a Bishop, the priest is able to perform
the ancient exorcism Rituale. Exorcism is not a sacrament of
the Church, but a rite. The Rituale acts as a guideline but does
not
designate a definite procedure by witch to perform the Rituale.
The Rituale can and may vary according to the priest’s
own discretion. Being most important is that the individual receiving
the exorcism is truly possessed.
..Annaliese’s
behavior was much more drastic than the movie portrayed. She
insulted, beat and bit members
of her family. She
refused to eat because the demons inhabiting her would not allow
it. She slept on the floor and ate spiders, flies, coal and drank
her own urine. She was heard screaming throughout the house for
hours while she would break religious objects. She also committed
acts of self mutilation, tore off her clothes and urinated on the
floor. (The movie depicted her eating
spiders, but the rest of what I mentioned was left out and the
movie became unnecessarily
sanitized due to these important omissions).
..Ideally,
the exorcist does not perform the Rituale alone. Most times,
three other people
assist the exorcist.
One such person
would be a younger priest that is being trained. His duty being
to assist in the exorcism and even to take over if the exorcist
dies. The second person is usually a physician. He would be
in charge of helping the Exorcist with the victim. Under no
circumstances
is the Exorcist to give the victim any type of medication.
A third person would be a member of the victim’s family
who is physically strong. A female would be preferred if
the victim is a female to avoid allegations
from arising. (During the movie
those present for the exorcism were: the priest, a physician,
the victim’s
father and boyfriend).
..Before
the ritual the priest is to make his confession and ask
for absolution from
his sins since the demon may try to use this
information against him or her. The Exorcist will question
the victim in an attempt to discover the name of the demon (or demons) as
well as the nature of it. The demons named in the movie were
slightly different than those said to actually
be invading Anneliese. (The
movie named six...she uttered “I am the one that dwelt
with Cain, Nero, Judas and then went onto name Legion, Belial
and Lucifer”).
The actual
demons invading Anneliese were Lucifer,
demons who influenced
Judas,
Nero, Cain, Hitler and Fleischmann,
a disgraced Frankish Priest from the 16th century, and some
other damned souls which had manifested
through her. From September 1975 until July 1976, one or two
exorcism sessions were held each week. (The
movie only showed one exorcism.)
This was a critical
omission. Anneliese’s attacks were
at times so strong that she would have to held down by three
men,
or even chained up. Anneliese denied all food. Her knees ruptured
due to 600 genuflections she performed obsessively during the
daily exorcism. Over 40 audio tapes were made recording the
process,
thus preserving the details. (The
movie only referred to
one exorcism and one tape. Anneliese was much
more fragile than the movie portrayed
Emily Rose. The condition of her knees alone would have made
her severely handicapped.).
..During
the The Rituale Romanum there are certain prescribed prayers to be said
during the Exorcism.
These prayers are: The
Litanies of the
Saints, The Pater Noster (The
Lord’s Prayer) and the 54th
Psalm. Saying these recitations in Latin are said to be more effective.
Each recitation is accompanied by more prayers such as the Ave
Marie (Hail
Mary), the Gloria Patri (Glory
Be to the Father, the Anima Christi (Body
of Christ) and the Salve Ragina (Save
us, Merciful Mary). During these recitations the sign of the cross is made,
scripture are read and hands may be laid on the victim. The Exorcist
calls out to the demon or spirit to make itself known and then
to succumb to Jesus Christ and depart the victim and leave the
person in peace. If and when the spirit does go, the Priest will
pray for the Church to help and protect the person. If the spirit
does not depart the victim the rituale is repeated again until
the demon (or demons) leave.
..Its
interesting to note that a commission of the German Bishop-Conference
later
declared that Anneliese
Michel was not possessed, but this
did not keep believers from supporting her. Her corpse
was exumed 11 ½ years after her burial, only to find
that it did decay and that there was nothing miraculous taking
place. Today her grave
is a place of pilgrimage for those who believe that Anneliese
courageously battled with Lucifer himself. (This was left out of the
movie; a very critical omission).
..While
I was doing the research of the actual exorcism account I truly
was shocked at how much of Anneliese's suffering was
minimized. She weighed under 70 pounds when she died and
her knees were severely damaged from the 600 or so genuflections
she performed. Its ashame they only portrayed one exorcism
when there were numerous failed exorcism taking place. The
rare photographs of her on her last days of this ongoing,
relentless
attempt to save her soul resulted in someone so emaciated
that death, just from seeing the photographs, one could see her
death was inevitable. These photographs are so disturbing
my webmaster was relectant to post them in this article.
Obviously,
extreme liberties were taken with this story for mass market
entertainment, whereas in reality the true story that we
can research as much as we were able to is more extreme in nature
than one could really comprehend.
TRUE SHOCKING DEATHS as
a RESULT of EXORCISM
..Romanian
Priest Found Guilty in Nun's Death: Daniel Petru Corogeanu of the Holy Trinity Covenent
in Tanacu Village conducted an exorcism on a 23 year old nun,
Irina Cornici
in 2005. Father Corogeanu was assisted by 4 nuns. Sister Irina
died after being starbed and chained to a cross at the secluded
north east covenant. Father Corogeanu was sentenced to 14 years.
The nuns were given jail terms ranging from 5 to 8 years.
..Autistic
Boy Dies During Exorcism: Milwaukee,
Wisconsin -- An American school janitor who moonlighted as an evangelical
pastor was convicted of child abuse in the
death of an autistic boy during a "makeshift exorcism" ceremony.
Ray Hemphill faces up to five years in jail on the charge and
another five on supervised release. He was arrested in August
last year following the death of eight-year-old Terrance Cottrell
during a prayer service at a storefront church in Milwaukee in
the US Midwestern state of Wisconsin. The youngster's death came
at the end of a bruising two hour prayer service during which
Hemphill laid on top of the boy as he sought to expel the youngster's "demons," witnesses
told police. The boy's mother, who had been taking her son to
the Faith Temple Church of the Apostolic Faith for three weeks,
was one of a couple of observers who helped hold the his limbs
down as Hemphill ministered him. But it wasn't until the 46-year-old
janitor stood up, dripping in sweat, that anybody in the room
noticed that the youngster was not moving, according to witness
accounts collected by authorities. A coroner later ruled the
boy died by suffocation "due to external chest compression".
Assistant district attorney Mark Williams told jurors that Hemphill
was reckless in his actions that August day. "He chose to
get physical with the boy. There was no reason to do it, and
he did it." Hemphill's lawyer argued that the youngster
died because he ingested excessive amounts of prescription medications
before the ceremony. "I'm saying it's the drugs," said
Thomas Harris, citing findings from the autopsy report that the
eight-year-old had "toxic blood levels of at least two drugs" at
the time of his death. Mr Harris had put a toxicologist on the
stand who spoke to the cardiac side effects of one of those drugs,
the anti-psychotic ziprasidone. The other drug was an antihistamine.
(Source: news.com/July 2004)
..22yr.
Old Found Dead After Exorcism: Janet Moses,
mother of two, was believed to have been held under water
while trying to drive out an evil curse by a healing group.
Ms. Moses was found with grazes to her upper arms, forearms and
torso. Dr. Kaa said, in some cases, victims needed to be held
down by several people as the spirit fought, but he was not familiar
with injuries such as scratches and grazes being inflicted. Moses
died at a family home in Wainuiomata on October 12. One of New
Zealand's leading Maori priests says he's surprised and dismayed
by this exorcism gone wrong. Janet Moses, a mother-of-two, is
thought to have drowned when at least one member of her
'healing group' held her under water, while trying to drive
out an evil curse.
This afternoon,
Anglican Maori Church archdeacon Hone said he'd never heard
of anyone dying in a "maketu",
but acknowledged they were potentially dangerous ceremonies
if not conducted properly. "These
types of ceremonies, maketu's [lifting ceremonies] go on quite
regularly but you usually don't hear anything about
them publicly because they have achieved what they were meant
to," Dr Kaa said. "But
they can be very emotional, very tense, the healer must be in
total control. "If
there is any discord in maketu's I am involved with, I will ask
them [others in the healing
group] to leave, because
you can introduce unwanted spirits, the situation can become
very dangerous. "Like
I say, you have to be very careful. "You
have to pray greatly, it helps if the victim has family present
and you can create links with
their whakapapa (their
family)." Dr Kaa wouldn't comment on the specifics of the
Wellington case which police are now treating as a homicide. Police say Ms Moses died at a family home in Wainuiomata on
October 12. Police were called to the house by family members. Inquiry head Detective Senior Sergeant Ross Levy refused to
comment on the exorcism theory and said police were trying to
establish which individuals were responsible for the death. He said Ms Moses' paternal family was not involved in the ceremony. As many as 40 people were at the house during the ceremony and
more came and went throughout the day after she died, Mr Levy
said. More than 100 people have already been spoken to, and between
15 and 25 detectives have been working on the case. Police said she had been dead for about nine hours before they
were called and have since interviewed dozens of people in relation
to the death. The curse was believed to have been linked to a relative stealing
a taonga (treasure).(Source: nzherald.co.nz)