Casting Out

Exorcism is the practice of expelling evil spirits, demons or malign supernatural influences from a person, place or object believed to be possessed or afflicted by them, usually through ritual command, prayer, or the invocation of a higher divine power. It rests on a widespread belief that human beings can be inhabited or oppressed by hostile unseen forces, and that trained specialists, drawing on the authority of God or the sacred, can compel those forces to depart. The practice is found across an enormous range of cultures and religions, from the spirit-mediums and healers of many traditional societies to the formal rites of the major world religions, and its forms vary from gentle prayer to dramatic confrontation.

Common elements recur widely: the identification of the possessing entity, often by name; the assertion of authority over it in the name of a greater power; the use of sacred words, objects and gestures; and the command to leave. The exorcist typically claims no power of their own but acts as the agent of a divine authority before which the spirit must yield.