Catholics are not the only ones who make use of their Smartphones to communicate with spirits. While on stage in front of hundreds of (undiscerning) fans, Shawn Bolz, who supposedly has a prophetic and healing anointing, uses his phone to foretell a person’s future. He claims he can see deceased folks in heaven and pass down messages from them. If you’re thinking, “That’s spiritualism,” you’re right. Evidently Shawn Bolz isn’t aware that spiritualism is expressly forbidden by God. (Deuteronomy 18:9-14)
But this is not about John Edward wanna be Shawn Bolz.
In a piece from Reuters we learn that some Catholics have taken to their Smartphones to perform exorcisms on people who are allegedly possessed by demons. Philip Puella has the story:
About 200 aspiring exorcists gathered on Monday for a week-long course in casting out demons – including by cellphone if necessary – amid increased demand for the service among Roman Catholics.
Participants, many of them priests, will attend lectures and talks on a range of topics including witchcraft in Africa, how to tell the difference between demonic possession and mental illness, and a step-by-step guide to casting out demons.
Cardinal Ernest Simoni of Albania drew strong interest in the first session by citing the use of cellphones in exorcisms.
“They call me and we speak and that’s how I do it,” the 89-year-old Simoni told Reuters after his address, explaining how he would read the prayers of exorcism in Latin over the phone just as he would if performing the lengthy rite in person.
Although no official figures are available, Catholic Church officials say the number of demonic possessions is on the rise.
“The number of exorcisms has definitely increased over the years, as the requests to carry out exorcisms has increased,” said Professor Giuseppe Ferrari, an organizer of the “Course on Exorcism and the Prayer of Liberation” at the Vatican-approved Pontifical Regina Apostolorum University in Rome.