Exorcism. Deliverance. Two words that essentially mean the same thing - casting out demons. In pop culture, it’s normally something associated with The Exorcist movie and the Catholic Church, but most major religions have factions that believe demonisation is a real thing and that people can be possessed.
In this episode of The Feed, we focus on self-styled exorcists who’ve formed their own ministries and who advertise online. It’s something you often see in the US, with the likes of televangelist Bob Larson, but it turns out there’s a thriving bunch of suburban exorcists right here in Australia.
It’s very real and people do get demonised and sometimes fully possessed
Pastor Maurice Chapman wears a baseball cap that reads C.I.A – Christ Is Alive. He’s born again, and carries out deliverance in a church he hires in Melbourne’s suburbs.
“It’s very real and people do get demonised and sometimes fully possessed,” he tells me.
I watch on as he exorcises Dermott, a troubled man who has travelled all the way from Sydney. Pastor Maurice stands over Dermott, apparently trying to lure out the demons by naming them - “Spirit of lust, pornography, out in the name of Jesus” he shouts. Dermott writhes and twists and makes guttural noises. He’s been undergoing exorcism for a week now, and still believes he has more demons to evict. Things like doing yoga, meditation or even reading Harry Potter can all invite demons in, according to exorcists.
It said I am the Spirit of Masturbation
I also meet Yul who says he was successfully ‘set free’ by Pastor Maurice. He’s 28 years old, has a good job, a wife, a house and seems pretty average. But what he tells me is quite extraordinary. He says when he truly became Christian, he felt guilty looking at porn and doing, well, what many others do when they look at it. His talks me through his deliverance experience – “My body started shaking uncontrollably and at one point this thing came out and he spoke and it called its name – (it said) I am the Spirit of Masturbation”.
There’s a whole list of quite obvious demons, the kinds of things that people often feel shame or guilt around. Sarah Ferber, from the University of Wollongong, has studied exorcism for nearly 30 years. “Exorcists see their role…as part of a militant battle against the kind of sins that they have decided are the worst sins in the world, she tells me. “It's a way of enforcing religious dogma.” She also points out that since the heyday of 'The Exorcist', dozens have died undergoing deliverance, including an Australian woman, Joan Volmer.
An exorcist's first concern is to serve God
As I travel across the country, meeting others who’ve been told they’re possessed, there are reoccurring stories - of people feeling depressed, or guilty or physically unwell. When I bring up the idea of seeing a doctor or psychologist, they tell me that an exorcist should be viewed as a third option. This doesn’t sit well with Sarah Ferber who says “an exorcist's first concern is to serve God, and only secondarily does it relate to the mental or emotional health of the person who they are interacting with.”
As we wrap our shoot, I mention to Pastor Maurice all the demonising things I’ve done in my own life like reading my horoscope and browsing in new age shops. Where does that leave me? He looks at me straight on and asks, “Have you got demons in you?”
