Fr. Vincent P. Lampert - Exorcism: The Battle Against Satan and His Demons

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Barna Research Group released a startling survey showing more people, some 56%, believe in Satan than they do in God. As troubling as that statistic is, this could be yet another one of those Romans 8:28 situations, where God uses all things to work for good. Perhaps the many troubles of our country and worldincluding illness, civil unrest, and unemployment, just to name a fewwill cause folks who havent taken faith matters seriously to give more thought and prayer to the reality of good and evil, both God and the devil. Thats why Fr. Lamperts book is not only so timely but so badly needed in a world that knows little about the source of gloom and doom or how to fight it. He brilliantly outlines how the answers can be found in Jesus, Scripture, and the teachings of the Church.

TERESA TOMEO

Syndicated Catholic Talk Show Host and Bestselling Catholic Author

Fr. Vincent Lampert has been in the trenches of deliverance for fourteen years and speaks from experience.

FR. GARY THOMAS

Exorcist for the Diocese of San Jose, California

Most who write about exorcism are fascinated by demons. Fr. Vincent Lampert is fascinated by Christ. His focus on the Lord of Love who goes in search of every lost sheep gives proper context to his dramatic stories of exorcism. It is a context of gratitude and hope rather than fear and obsession.

CY KELLETT

Host of Catholic Answers Live

In this book, Fr. Lampert gives us a very balanced presentation of the Churchs ministry of exorcism. It has the benefit of validation from his extensive experience, but to his great credit he never dogmatizes his own experience. On the contrary, he teaches from the Scripture as it is authentically interpreted by the Churchs authority. He introduces us to the rites of the Church and her official teaching. Furthermore, Lampert neither presents this teaching abstractly, nor seeks to spice it up like a Hollywood drama, but offers a very useful pastoral application to help us deepen our own relationship with Jesus Christ. For those who are wondering about the Churchs ministry of exorcism, this is the book to consult for the most balanced and dependable teaching.

FR. BONIFACE HICKS, OSB

Host of We Are One Body and Co-Author of Personal Prayer: A Guide for Receiving the Fathers Love

In Exorcism, Fr. Vincent Lampert has provided an insightful primer by which to better grasp the machinations of the devil in real time, not only for priests in their sacerdotal ministry but also for anyone seriously journeying the course of faith. Thoughtfully drawing from Sacred Scripture, the tradition of the Church, and his own vast experience, Fr. Lampert speaks to the spiritual battles prevalent in our day while reassuring the reader of the great love God has for each of us. A useful resource for the spiritual journey.

VERY REVEREND JEFFREY GROB, JCD

Judicial Vicar, Archdiocese of Chicago

LIVING FAITH

SERIES EDITOR: FR. DAVID VINCENT MECONI, S.J.

Fr. David Vincent Meconi, S.J., is a Jesuit priest and professor of theology at Saint Louis University where he also serves as the Director of the Catholic Studies Centre. He is the editor of Homiletic and Pastoral Review and has published widely in the areas of Church history and Catholic culture. He holds the pontifical license in Patristics from the University of Innsbruck in Austria, and the D.Phil. in Ecclesiastical History from the University of Oxford.

ABOUT THE SERIES

The great Christian Tradition has always affirmed that the world in which we live is a reflection of its divine source, a place perhaps torn apart by sin but still charged with busy and bustling creatures disclosing the beautiful presence of God. The Living Faith series consists of eminent Catholic authors who seek to help Christians navigate their way in this world. How do we understand objective truth in a culture insistent on relativism? How does one evangelize in a world offended when invited to something higher? How do we understand sin and salvation when so many have no real interest in becoming saints? The Living Faith series will answer these and numerous other questions Christians have today as they set out not only to live holy lives themselves, but to bring others to the fullness of life in Christ Jesus.

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Holiness and Living the Sacramental Life
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The Joyful Mystery: Field Notes Toward a Green Thomism
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Spirituality of the Business World
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Sanctity and Scripture
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Catholic and at College
Anne Carson Daly

Living Grace & Deadly Sin: A Guide to Getting Our Souls Straight
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The Adventure of Discipleship
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EXORCISM

EXORCISM

THE BATTLE AGAINST SATAN AND HIS DEMONS

FR. VINCENT LAMPERT

Steubenville, Ohio

www.emmausroad.org

Emmaus Road Publishing

1468 Parkview Circle

Steubenville, Ohio 43952

2020 Vincent Lampert

All rights reserved. Published 2020

Printed in the United States of America

Library of Congress Control Number: 2020944023.

ISBN: 978-1-64585-061-8 (pbk) / 978-1-64585-062-5 (ebook)

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are taken from The Revised Standard Version Second Catholic Edition (Ignatius Edition). Copyright 2006 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Excerpts from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, second edition, copyright 2000, Libreria Editrice VaticanaUnited States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, D.C. Noted as CCC in the text.

Cover design and layout by Emily Demary

Cover image: Archangel Overwhelming the Demon by Antonio Vivarini, (ca. 1432 ca. 1499)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

O ne of my favorite definitions of the Church is that it is the guardian to the tree of life. Ever since Adam and Eve were banished from paradise, the human person has been on a journey to arrive at the tree of life and be united with God for all eternity in heaven. In the Book of Genesis, the first book of the Bible, we read, Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken. He drove out the man; and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life (3:2324). In the Book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible, we are told, Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates (22:14). What these passages teach us is that all of us are on a journey, with the ultimate destination being the tree of life and union with God.