Instead of amulets, wear sacred objects as protection against evil.
After a week that saw many children and youths donning costumes mimicking demons and other dark creatures for fun, an official of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) gave this advice especially to teenagers, who he said are vulnerable to rising cases of demonic possessions here and abroad.
“Wear sacred objects which are very powerful, instead of amulets,” said Fr. Francis Lucas, executive secretary of the CBCP Episcopal Commission on Social Communications and Mass Media.
“Always carry with you sacred objects such as a scapular, a rosary or St. Benedict’s medal, which are truly effective especially when blessed by a priest,” he said in an interview.
According to Lucas, the number of incidents linked to evil spirit possessions in the country has been on the rise lately. “In the Philippines, if you ask experts on exorcism, they’ll tell you that the cases have been increasing,” he said.
Most of the reported victims were teenagers, he said.
“Maybe because they easily get depressed, they idolize or worship other things and some of them don’t attend Mass,” he noted.
On June 28, classes were disrupted in a Mandaluyong City school when around 20 students aged between 12 and 16 screamed, fainted or had a convulsive fit for no apparent reason. The strange behavior was first observed in two girls in one classroom, then later in other students from other sections.
The incident which went unexplained fueled speculations that the students were briefly possessed by evil spirits, though skeptics thought it was more of a case of mass hysteria or just a well-staged campus prank.
Lucas said people easily become open to malignant spirit possession when they feel lost or are in despair, “when you disown God, when you do not pray.”
“When you cut your connection with God, how can you get protection? When you get possessed, it’s your physical body that is being made to suffer so that you’ll become weak. That’s why to get rid of Satan you must return to the Lord,” he said.
Lucas also warned the faithful against “opening up avenues” for evil spirits or Satan.
“That’s why we’re being warned against playing the Ouija board and the like. Do not tempt the devil, do not open avenues, especially now that there are many cases of possession all over the world,” he said.