Spiritual Deliverance Introduction


In our modern times, it has become painfully apparent that we are in a cycle of increased paranormal activity. And, whether you are a believer or not, evidence from both the professional circle, via photographs, video recordings, and audio recordings called EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomena) and the secular circle, via witness testimonies and written accounts, prove that the paranormal not only exists, but is currently active on a scale as never before. And as clergy, we are faced with a difficult decision. If we do not believe, despite the evidence presented in the Bible, then how are we to render service when we are called upon to rid a home of terror? And if we do believe, what are the means of providing effective help during such a crisis? This booklet was written as a guide for the minister who decides to act, as well as providing methods that have proven true in the field, which is where we should be as part of our ministry. In this handbook, we will present not only the means to render a deliverance, which includes both the homeowner and the entity as well, and the types of activity that are accepted as existing. If this work is taken seriously, as it should, then you as minister will have your eyes opened and be more effective in your ministry, and you will also join the ranks of those of us that suddenly have our hands full combating actual evil, and not just the stuff of sermons. This booklet was written to equip you for the task at hand, and you will soon discover that spiritual warfare is real, necessary, and highly in demand. 1 Types of Activity There are several types of activity that you may encounter in the field, but for purposes of general distinctions, we will break it down to these few; the ghost, the spirit, demonic activity, the elementals, and projecting or poltergeist activity. These are the kinds of activity that you have heard and read about, and virtually every account of paranormal activity concerns one of these. I wish to assure you that these things are very real, and that I have had personal dealings with most of them. To begin with, you must understand that there really is such a thing as a ghost. Ghosts are the remaining force of will that a person leaves behind after death, and the presence of a ghost is easily verified. Ghosts are present due to a variety of conditions, and strong feelings such as guilt, self-hatred, self-abuse such as suicide, a deed left undone, acting as a guardian, and being earth-bound such as is the case of a ghost haunting a piece of land name a few of the reasons that a ghost may haunt. It is important to note that not only does a ghost not know it is dead, but may be either trapped, or lost. Ghosts can be documented with an EVP. This can be done by setting up a cassette or digital recorder in a suspected place such as a haunted room, and telling the ghost that the recorder is there-even though this sounds far fetched, a polite person gains more EVPs than a rude one-and letting the recording run from fifteen minutes to half an hour. The recording is collected, the ghost is thanked, and the recording is listened to. Another method for a recording is to begin to record, ask a question, wait for thirty seconds, and ask another question, thus getting the information that you need in order to plan on how to proceed. If a ghost responds to your presence or questions, then you can rest assured that you have a genuine haunting. But if your EVP contains odd words and disconnected sentences, then your activity may be what is called residual, which is nothing more that a bit of conversation from the past, much like an old recording. If this is the case, simply blessing the home will cause the residual energy to fade away. However, if you have a ghost, finding out what it wants or needs is important if you are to free it and end the haunting. The EVP may provide answers, and if you remember that the entity is trapped or lost, you can help the homeowner and the ghost by freeing it. The first method that my group, Northwoods Spiritual Deliverance, uses, is absolution, which is addressed to the entity or entities, and simply goes something like this; “Listen carefully, because I have something important to say. If you are heartily and genuinely sorry for your sins, and if you accept Christ Jesus as your Lord and Savior, then through Jesus Christ your sins are forgiven you, and you can go on.” Now of course this method’s wording is not cast in stone, as differing denominations have different wording. The point is that we have had tremendous success with this, and there are many examples of ghosts leaving then and there, quietly and in peace. If this does not work, as in the example of a ghost that has so much self-loathing that it prefers to suffer, you can convince it to leave by simply telling it that it is no longer in the physical world, it has died, and the house is no longer its. It must understand that it no longer lives, and this can be very difficult in the cases of very old people and children, who do not understand absolution. In cases such as these, telling the ghost to go and join its family in Heaven normally does the trick. Either way, a ghost is not the horrific monster of the movies, but a once upon a time person that needs your help to go on. The spirit, on the other hand, knows that it is dead, and this brings with it a whole new set of problems. It is the spirit that we hear so much about, and it is the spirit that we must remove one way or another. Granting absolution works quite well with the spirit, and if it does not, talking to it to convince it that it has suffered long enough may well do the trick. I have spoken at length to spirits, not getting any answers of course, at least none that I could hear without the aid of an EVP, and I have had suicides that did not want to end their suffering. I told the spirit that we knew what it had done, and once in a while this is enough to work, the knowledge that someone else knew its story. Other times, I told the spirit that it was time to rest, and that Jesus forgave it. I’ve even told a spirit that it was discharged. What I’m saying here is that you must FEEL which way to go, just as you would when counseling a living person. The right words will come to you by the Holy Spirit, and when the breakpoint comes, which is when the spirit surrenders, you can feel the air grow lighter. Evil spirits are those that enjoy bringing terror to the household, and revel in the misery they create. The evil spirit feeds from the negative energy created, and will encourage the home residents to fear, fight, argue and bicker, all to gain more of a hold on the household. The absolution will not work on the evil spirit, but the 1964 Roman Rite of Exorcism does. If you are faced with an evil spirit, it may be dominating other entities, as is the case of a multiple haunting. The dominating spirit will hide while using the other entities to confuse you, and make no mistake; they are masters of cunning and misdirection. The 1964 Roman Rite of Exorcism is a very powerful tool, and should not be used under the following circumstances; If you do not have faith. If there is nothing present. If there are children or pregnant women present. If you are unsure. The Rite of Exorcism should be used if the spirit is of an evil nature, and you determine this easily enough, either by an EVP or a manifestation, the presence of foul odors, thrown objects, possession, and other signs. If you have faith in it you must understand that as a Christian, you have the power and the authority to use the Rite, through Jesus Christ, and as a minister, you are being looked to for deliverance. The Rite, once it is started, must not be stopped, and you may be faced with any number of distractions. Keep reading, keep your faith, and at some point during the reading, you can actually feel it give way. This is the breakpoint. It must be understood that there is no destruction or casting out per se. It is binding the entity through the power of the Holy Spirit being done, and as for demonic influence, it is putting the demon on oath. The binding is perhaps the most interesting portion of the Rite. I have done this before, and I have absolutely no control over where the entity is bound to. This is entirely up to the Holy Spirit. And, once the entity is bound, it cannot escape, no matter what. Only repentance and forgiveness can free the spirit, and that too is up to the Holy Spirit. You must always remember that you are merely an instrument, and that you do not possess a super power of any kind. One more note regarding spirits. Whether you want to accept it or not, it is nonetheless a fact that spirits can and do possess such things as pictures, dolls, pets, and many others, and I not only have personal experience with this, but have photographic proof as well. Should you decide to take up the cause and start a deliverance ministry, be sure to purchase anointing oil for blessing the things that are possessed. I have seen with my own eyes a possessed doll, and blessing it with anointing oil forced the spirit out so that binding could take place. The next type of activity that you may encounter is demonic activity. Demonic activity is perhaps the most misunderstood of all paranormal subject matter, and as such we will spend some time with it. We all have seen the Hollywood version of demonic possession, in which the victim speaks in another voice, spins her head around, and somehow has the time to put in really cool contact lenses. This could not be further from the truth. Demonic activity is very real. There are definite stages involved, in which the victim falls further and further under demonic control. We cover the various stages in our course on exorcism, available through Lutherbrook School of Divinity, and will not belabor the point here. However, demonic possession, which we are concerned about, has four symptoms involved in it, which are accepted by the Vatican. Knowledge of secret or hidden things. This is where the demon demonstrates knowledge that it could not possibly know, such as your address or middle name. Aversion to the things of God. This is a sure sign, except for the fact that the demon may well be able to outquote you on the Bible. However, Holy Water, anointing oil, and Communion Bread are enough to cause a retreat. Superhuman strength. There have been numerous examples of this, such as the possessed man in the Bible who could break chain, etc. The ability to speak in a language unknown to the victim. If any of these things are present, demonic possession might be the cause. However, it is important to be able to distinguish between mental issues and demonic possession, and this is critical. Not everyone that appears possessed is. And, there is the gray area of demonic oppression to consider, in which the victim is sliding further and further from reality, hears voices, and begins to undergo control by the demon. As ministers, it is very important to read up on the stages of demonic influence, because the demon is ruthless, cunning, deceptive, a master of Biblical content, and is also, except for Satan himself, one of the most powerful beings on the planet, with all of the angelic abilities plus pure evil. You cannot “take on” a demon and hope to win. However, as Christians, we have much more power than the most vile denizen from Hell through our Lord and Savior. We have the right and the authority to rebuke the demon in the Name of Christ. The demon is also a master of disguise, so be on your guard should you ever encounter a demon. And, there is the possibility of a physical attack as well. But if you are on your guard, don the full Armor of God, keep your faith, and not back down, you will prevail. It may take more than one session, but eventually the demon will give up, and that is when things get interesting. When the demon realizes the full power of Christ, and when it knows that it is defeated, watch out. The demon can lash out with its full power, and a crescendo of sounds, smells, horrible sights, and objects being flung about will signal the breakpoint. The racket may eventually recede, or just stop, and the victim may or may not remember the experience. It becomes crucial for the minister to stay in touch with the victim. Lest the behavior that caused possession in the first place be repeated. Now for a warning from the chief exorcist of the Vatican; “If you read about demons and look for demons, you will find demons.” What this means is that like any other paranormal activity, if you obsess about it, you actually attract it. Don’t make the mistake of dwelling on it. If you do, something will happen to you eventually. Being prepared to act is not the same thing as hanging around in haunted houses and cemeteries or reading about demons constantly. Be smart, know what to do, and keep your head. This way all things will be all right. Elementals are ancient spirits that are comprised of the medium that they inhabit. These are the classic spirits spoken of in the Bible, and even today. Ask any Wiccan or Native American, and they can tell you about the spirits of the air, earth, fire, and water. In the course of your deliverance ministry odds are that you will never encounter one of these beings, but if you do, keep in mind that they are very ancient and wise. Even if they are evil, they still are governed by the same rules, set forth by God, that govern even the demon, and that they must and are compelled to bow before our Lord. The next thing we will look at is projecting, or poltergeist activity. Projecting, better known as poltergeists, is when a person, usually a young lady entering her adolescent years, lashes out mentally and causes haunting like activity to occur. This is caused by mental anguish as her body undergoes changes, and her natural first rebellion takes place. However, adults have been known to project, as is the case of someone that has psykenesis, sometimes called telekenesis, and it is in its latent form. In either case, the person, for whatever reason, undergoes an event in which this latent ability suddenly manifests, and haunting activity begins. An EVP yields nothing, pictures show no orbs or spheres, which are what ghosts and spirits look like of film, and even after blessing the house, the activity continues. If you suspect that the activity present might be caused by projecting, the easiest way to get it to stop is to get the person to talk about their feelings, and this means lending a sympathetic ear. The only other way to stop the activity that I know of is to make the person realize that they themselves are doing it, and this need not be as difficult as one might think. Sitting them down and explaining that this kind of thing is not unusual is not that hard. Once the person realizes what they are doing, normally it will stop. If it does not, bless the person. Blessing the home is our next subject, which we will cover in chapter two. 2 Blessing The Home In blessing the home, we are not only sealing the home from unwanted activity; we are dedicating the home to God. A blessed home will never become the target of paranormal activities UNLESS IT IS INVITED. What this means is that the behavior which caused the activity in the first place is repeated, and you can be assured that the second performance will be much, much worse than the first. Playing, even dabbling, especially dabbling, with Ouja boards, Tarot cards, and witchcraft does and will attract beings of an unsavory nature, and I have run across this type of thing so many times I have lost count. And, as much as I hate to rain on the kids, books like Harry Potter that show how nifty it is to use magic and cast spells can bring a truck load of trouble. I have to tell this story because it simply blew me away. On a newscast not too long ago, they were talking about a new item in a certain well-known name brand bookstore. Right at the end of the isle that carried the Harry Potter books was a cool new Teen Witch Kit, complete with all the goodies for the kiddies to cast their first spell! I actually grimaced when I saw this, largely due to the “Aw, it can’t do any harm” attitude from the parents questioned. I must scream it to the top of my lungs that it is far from harmless, and that it can lead to damnation or worse, including possession. You might as well give a baby a loaded .45 and tell it to go play. In order to combat this trend, and to clean up the mess left after those spells have been cast, we need to learn how to bless people, homes, and how to renounce any participation in such foolish madness. To begin with, included in this handbook is the Rite for making Holy Water from the Roman Ritual. The container that you will store the Holy Water in must be blessed, as well as the container that you carry the Holy Water in. To do this, invoking the Holy Spirit and asking God through Jesus Christ to inhabit and bless the containers with His Divine Presence is sufficient. Once the containers are blessed, do not use them for anything else, ever! In the making of Holy Water salt and water are used, and there is no restriction that says that the container of salt must be kept separate from other salt. In fact, blessed and exorcised salt has healing and health benefits, so using it as everyday salt is fine. I usually make enough Holy Water to last a while, and I use it in Baptisms, Unction, which is healing the sick, purifying, exorcising, and other uses, the chief one which is blessing, so I make a quantity. Once you have your Holy Water, and I must remind you not to abuse it, the next thing you will need is anointing oil. This must be a product of the olive, and should also be blessed after purchase. A quick note here is NEVER, NEVER ANOINT YOURSELF. This is a big and dangerous mistake. Anointing oil can be purchased from a Christian goods store or over the Internet. Roman Catholic stores are the best source, and the oil I prefer is made with Frankincense and Myrrh, which gives off a delightful Sandalwood type of scent. I carry my little bottle in a screw down steel cylinder made for camping matches and available at Wal Mart for a little over a dollar. This keeps my bottle from breaking, and I can carry it in my pocket along with a small vial, again steel, of Holy Water to be used in an emergency. Anointing oil costs around seven dollars a bottle, but lasts an incredible amount of time and use. Now that you have your Holy Water and anointing oil, the next step is to bless the building. We will assume that you have a positive EVP and pictures to boot, all proving that an entity is present. Or, that you found nothing and that the homeowner wants their house blessed. Moving from room to room, sprinkle Holy Water in the shape of the Cross, saying “In the Name of the Father, (sprinkle), the Son, (sprinkle), and the Holy Spirit (sprinkle).” The form of the Cross depends again on denomination. With a Lutheran background, I make the Cross from top to bottom, then left to right, and back to the middle, forming the classic Three-Fold Cross. In any case, go to each room, repeating the gesture. If there is paranormal activity present, the entity will retreat as you advance. Once all the rooms are covered, the next thing to do is to seal every single window with anointing oil, making a Cross on the frame, and saying, “I seal this window in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” The next thing to do is very important. Each and every mirror, no matter how small, must be sealed in a like manner. Mirrors are gateways through which beings can come and go as they like, and sealing the mirror cuts off the escape route of the entity. You must also bless the attic, the basement, walls, and the most important doors, especially front and back doors. Use Holy Water to do this, and make the Cross nice and big. It will serve as a barrier through which no evil can pass. Once all this is done, the house has been blessed, and the next thing can be done. I have had success with invoking the Holy Spirit, which is a tradition that takes its roots in an early Christian baptism ceremony, wherein all presences, principalities, entities, ghosts, spirits, minions of Satan, and personalities are commanded not by you but by Jesus Christ to leave and make room for the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit is present, the house is filled with a deep peace that will last forever. Another tradition that is still in use among many people, especially Native Americans, is to use sage to drive out any remaining negative energy. As crazy as it sounds, smudging is effective, and actually does clear the air, leaving a fresh, clean smell. Now some will say that only a Native American can perform the rite, while others insist that anyone can do it. I leave it up to you. In any case, smudging means using a sage stick, again available on the Internet, lighting it, blowing it out so that it smolders, and going from room to room, wafting the smoke around until the air is heavy with it. Then a window or door is opened, and as the sage smoke clears, so too does the negative energy. Next, blessing people. To bless someone, tradition dictates that you sprinkle him or her with the sign of the Cross in Holy Water. However, I prefer to seal them with anointing oil, using my thumb to inscribe the Cross both on the forehead and upon the breast (For women, the collarbone is fine) in token of Jesus Christ. This is again an old Lutheran tradition, but sometimes the old ways really are the best. I only recommend doing this either during a baptism or on people that are already baptized, and I really do not think that doing it for an unbaptized person is a good idea. Usually after a house blessing I serve Holy Communion to those that are baptized. There have been many times that in blessing a house and deliverance, a person will ask to be baptized then and there, so I recommend being prepared for that. Because of donations to our church, I have use of a portable Mass set in a briefcase, which includes an altar, linens, a bottle for Holy Water, candles, a Cross, and a bottle for wine (we use unsweetened grape juice. It doesn’t matter what you use, as we believe that the Host actually becomes the Body of Christ and the juice becomes the Blood of Christ). The kit also contains a Host box, a small dish for a finger bowl, and a chalice for the juice. I have done deliverances where we serve Holy Communion, and the former victim has an epiphany, in which the Holy Spirit comes on them. This is a wondrous thing, and cause for celebration, which of course we do not do. Once the Holy Spirit has entered into someone’s life, not all the powers of Hell can prevail, and as long as the person stays with the Holy Spirit, the deliverance is complete. On the flipside, I have been involved in cases where several sessions are required, and a multiple haunting is underway. It turned out later that the former residents were dabbling in the occult, and it took four grueling visits before the house was completely clear. This is so serious that I implore you to have them rebuke these things, which brings us to the next. In order for a deliverance to succeed, several elements are needed. First and foremost, you must have the faith to carry out your work, and you must trust completely in Christ Jesus and the Holy Spirit, as well as the Word of God. Secondly, any attachments to cults, the occult, or any other demonic influence must be stopped at once, and the victim needs to pray not only for forgiveness, but also for these things in their life to be renounced. Ouja boards and Tarot cards actually open portals through which demonic influence can take place. Have the people of the house collectively destroy these things, saying as one “I renounce you in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit”. Burning them works really well. If the family renounces the above, and accepts baptism, then you can anoint them. Anointing them seals them to our Lord, while baptism seals their souls. If someone in the home is involved in a cult, you as the minister on the scene need to study counseling. Vampire cults, werewolves, witchcraft, Enochian and other cults are springing up everywhere, and even the forbidden Theban magic is being practiced by children all across our country. I recommend doing some heavy reading and studying so as to prepare to help a family member break free of cult influence. Unfortunately, too many ministers deliver the home and then forget all about the family afterwards. We need to stay in touch, follow up, and guard the family from more attacks. It is not only our duty to combat the paranormal, but also our duty to help guide the victims back on the right path. We hope that our little booklet helps you decide to become involved in the ongoing struggle. For that is what it is, a conflict that the other side hopes will reap souls as trophies. As you gain experience in your deliverance ministry, so too will you gain confidence. The enemy is not as strong as he makes himself out to be, but he succeeds in luring defenseless people into his web. We as ministers must stand ready to repel his efforts, and help safeguard our fellow man, aiding the Holy Spirit in stamping out evil no matter where it lay.

Cardinal William C. Mayo, PhD.

Northwoods Spiritual