In the face of a resurgence of attacks against places of worship, it is the duty of the faithful not to turn a blind eye to the reality of spiritual combat. The International Association of Exorcists (AIE) recently broke its silence with a statement of exceptional gravity. Far from being isolated incidents, these sacrileges in churches reveal a profound hatred of the sacred. According to experts in the ministry of exorcism, these acts "seem almost organized and, in any case, are inspired by the father of lies, the enemy of God and humanity".
An Abominable Desecration in Ostia
The AIE's statement, titled "Abominable Sacrilege in a Church in Ostia. And Others", recounts events that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. In the parish of Saint Nicholas of Bari, within the Diocese of Rome, a "very serious and repugnant sacrilegious act" was perpetrated.
Individuals, whom the term vandals fails to adequately describe as the act surpasses mere degradation, entered the holy place. The horror is described without euphemism: they defiled the building with human excrement, not hesitating to profane "the altar where the Eucharistic sacrifice is celebrated". Confronted with this ignominy, Cardinal Vicar Baldo Reina and Bishop Renato Tarantelli Baccari condemned this "act of spiritual violence against the faith and religious sentiment of believers".
An Organized Strategy Against the Sacred
What particularly concerns the International Association of Exorcists is that this phenomenon is "increasingly widespread". It is no longer a matter of simple thefts, but of a deliberate will to defile. In Casale Monferrato, in the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, a sacred text was burned and garbage was scattered in the nave. The exorcists note that "the opportunity was undoubtedly offered by Halloween, an event which, unfortunately, is dangerously underestimated".
The lack of fear of God reaches frightening heights. In Salsasio di Carmagnola, near Turin, a couple was surprised by the parish priest committing impure acts within the parish church itself, necessitating the immediate celebration of a reparatory liturgy for this "shameful sacrilegious act".
France and the Scandal of Halloween
Impiety knows no borders and also touches France, the land of Saint Louis. In Montpellier, once again taking advantage of the Halloween period, an event called "Ex Tenebris Lux" was held in a deconsecrated church. Under the title "Dark Halloween," it was in practice a "horrible masquerade with representations of a black mass".
The Objective: To Provoke Scandal Among the Faithful
The analysis of the exorcists is definitive: we have moved from the theft of hosts and sacred vessels, as at the Monastery of Saint Margaret in Bevagna, to a "new strategy: the profanation of the sacred place". These acts, sometimes committed in broad daylight, follow an "explicit plan to provoke the greatest scandal among the faithful".
The statement finally recalls with sorrow the "thoughtless acts committed not so long ago, even on the altar of the Confession in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican", calling it an "unacceptable act of profanation". It is urgent for pious souls to realize that these attacks, these sacrileges in churches, are the work of the Enemy, seeking to wound the Heart of God and the faith of His Church.