{"id":325536,"date":"2026-03-31T06:04:57","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T06:04:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/?p=325536"},"modified":"2026-04-01T08:57:54","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T08:57:54","slug":"demand-for-exorcists-at-a-record-high-but-this-demon-hunter-doesnt-blame-the-devil-for-the-trend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/?p=325536","title":{"rendered":"Demand for exorcists at a record high \u2014 but this demon hunter doesn\u2019t blame the devil for the trend"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jeanne Erickson \u2013 New York Post March 28, 2026<\/strong><\/h1>\n

The demand for exorcists is at record levels, claims a leading demon-hunter who blames human nature as much as the devil for the trend.<\/p>\n

Father Chad Ripperger, a Catholic priest in the Archdiocese of Denver, told The Post there aren\u2019t more demons running amok on Earth.<\/p>\n

The blame lies primarily with people themselves. They blatantly disregard the church\u2019s teachings and act on their own dark impulses instead.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe demons are empowered as more and more people commit evil deeds,\u201d Father Ripperger said. \u201cIf a person willingly becomes involved in these evil deeds, Satanism or witchcraft, the actions lead to a susceptibility to Satan\u2019s influence so that he or she is easily manipulated and can be incited to do more evil things.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnfortunately, people today do not believe their actions have consequences.\u201d<\/p>\n

During an exorcism, the priest \u2014 armed with holy water, the crucifix and a bible \u2014 reads prayers and scriptures to the \u201cpossessed\u201d while commanding the demon to depart. The person may need to be restrained during the session as the priest\u2019s presence may anger the demon, said Ripperger, but \u201conly a small percentage \u2014 about 10% \u2014 of cases are as dramatic as portrayed in Hollywood.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Scene from The Exorcist. Click to enlarge<\/p><\/div>\n

The 1973 film<\/a> \u201cThe Exorcist\u201d terrified audiences worldwide. In it, a girl named Regan MacNeil, portrayed by Linda Blair, underwent an exorcism in which she famously projectile-vomited a disgusting green substance, levitated, rotated her head to face backwards, spoke in ancient tongues, developed startling facial scars, and talked in a demon\u2019s voice.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Today, Catholic Church experts said there are roughly 150 priests<\/a> in the US trained to practice exorcism.<\/p>\n

That number has increased an astonishing 650% since 2020 \u2014 when only about 20 priests were trained for the position, said Ripperger.<\/p>\n

On March 13, Pope Leo XIV hosted the world\u2019s most senior exorcists<\/a> at the Vatican. They reportedly warned him of the terrifying global rise in \u201coccultism, esotericism and Satanism.\u201d<\/p>\n

The priests of the International Association of Exorcists called on him to ensure that every diocese in the world has one or more adequately trained exorcist priests, according to EWTN Vatican<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The new exorcists are already being trained to handle the growing number of desperate families seeking help for disturbing and inexplicable behavior, according to reports from Catholic priests and church officials.<\/p>\n

Other Catholic priests involved in the phenomenon \u2014 Rev. Vincent Lampert, the designated\u00a0exorcist of the\u00a0Archdiocese of Indianapolis, and Monsignor Stephen Rosetti, a Washington, DC-based expert on\u00a0psychological and spiritual wellness \u2014 are also seeing an uptick in cases.<\/p>\n

During 2018, Lampert said he received a staggering 1,700 calls for help. CNN<\/a> contacted all 196 Catholic dioceses and archdioceses in the US for a recent report. Of the 48 that responded, 25 dioceses \u2014 over 50% \u2014 reported a recent increase for exorcism requests.<\/p>\n

Rev. Dan Todd<\/a>, a trained exorcist at Our Lady of Divine Mercy Anglican Church in High Bridge, NJ, told The Post, \u201cThe devil is out there, but people do bad things as well. Also, psychiatric disorders like schizophrenia and dissociative identity disorder<\/a> can mimic demonic possession.<\/p>\n

\u201cAbout 99% of cases are due to mental illness.\u201d<\/p>\n

In that event, mental health<\/a> consideration must be given \u201cto make sure they get the help they need,\u201d he added<\/p>\n

Signs of possession, according to leading exorcists, include:<\/p>\n