Mexican priest Father Cesar Truqui is flying to Rome this April to teach new priests how to perform an exorcism. As a former assistant to the late Father Gabriele Amorth, who claimed to have performed over 100,000 exorcisms during his lifetime, Truqui said that the practice is rooted in the Gospels.
Truqui, who is actually based in Switzerland, has been working as an exorcist priest for at least a decade. He never witnessed anyone levitate but he has had his share of odd experiences while performing exorcism rituals.
The priest is aware of the criticisms about the practice of driving supposed demons from possessed individuals but he says it is helping people with mental struggles or other ailment that medical science cannot diagnose.
"Christ was the first exorcist," the priest said. "The power of casting out demons was one of the signs that Christianity was a true religion."
Truqui further explained that demonic possessions are very rare in actual and real-life exorcisms, despite the Hollywood myths. In most cases, the individuals he has healed suffer from "demonic vexation" that makes them appear as if they have unusual strength or power, or a feeling of immense discomfort around places of worship or religious people like priests.
The Vatican announced in February that it is planning to revive exorcism training in the Catholic priesthood because of a rising demand in Italy. According to Friar Benigno Palilla, there are at least 500,000 cases linked to exorcism every year but there are not enough priests trained to carry out the practice.
Exorcism is outlined in the Canon Law of the Catholic Church but before it has to be performed, priests who have had proper training need to seek permission from higher-ranking church officials. The Vatican also licensed members of the International Catholic Association of Exorcists, which has existed since the 1990s, to carry out exorcisms.
