Confession

 

Confession : Sacrament of Healing and Deliverance

 

“If we say we have no sin in us, we are deceiving ourselves, and refusing to admit the truth, but if we acknowledge our sins then God who is faithful and just will forgive us and purify us from everything that is wrong”. To say that we have never sinned is to call God a liar and to show that His Word is not in us. (1 John 1:8-10)

 

“Sin speaks to the sinner in the depths of his heart... He so flatters himself in his mind that he knows not his guilt.” (Psalm 35)

 

“To you Lord all flesh will come / with its burden of sin.

Too heavy for us our offences / but you wipe them away.” (Psalm 64/65)

 

“Some were sick on account of their sins and / afflicted on account of their guilt.” (Psalm 106/107)

 

“See how he falters, he whose soul is not at rights with God.” (cf. Habakkuk 2:4)

 

Psalm 31:1-7    The Hiding Place

 

1.  Happy the man whose offence is forgiven,

     whose sin is remitted.

     O Happy the man to whom the Lord

     imputes no guilt,

     in whose spirit is no guile.

 

2.  I kept it secret and my frame was wasted.

     I groaned all the day long

     for night and day your hand was heavy upon me.

     Indeed, my strength was dried up

     as by the summer’s heat.

 

3.  But now I have acknowledged my sins;

     my guilt I did not hide.

     I said: ‘I will confess

     my offences to the Lord’

     And you, Lord, have forgiven

     the guilt of my sin.

 

4.  So let every good man pray to you

     in the time of need.

     The floods of water may reach high

     but him they shall not reach.

     You are my hiding place, O Lord;

     you save me from distress.

 

See www John Michael Talbot tosf. singing “The Hiding Place” Psalm

 

Do you have a sin virus?  - unconfessed sin not forgiven?

 

Signs of Sin Virus:

 

The Spiritual life slows down and becomes a drag as in a computer with a virus. There is lukewarmness and spiritual cooling, listlessness or torpor even acedia (the “noonday devil”). St Francis of Assisi said “when the spirit is lukewarm and gradually cooling to grace, flesh and blood needs seek their own. What is left, when the soul finds no delight in spiritual things, but that flesh turns to its own kind? And the animal appetite uses the argument of necessity as an excuse. Then the carnal sense shapes a person’s conscience.” (2 Celano 69)

 

There are frequent crashes with a sin virus not from the computer frame but from your frame!: “I kept it secret and my frame was wasted.” (Psalm 31:7). Unknown or unfamiliar programmes start up when you turn on your mental computer especially when you dream at night!

 

                 Q: What is the answer?

                 A: The Sacrament of Confession!

 

Adam Blai says “Confession undoes stuff before it manifests and undoes the [legal] rights given to demons by sin.” (1)

 

Blai maintains that “confession can close many doors to the demonic and frees more people than exorcism by far.” (2)

 

Fr. Jeremy Davis the Westminster Exorcist would concur:

 

          “in the wise words of Fr. Amorth, exorcism is only ‘10% of the cure; the remaining 90% is the responsibility of the individual... there is a need for much prayer, frequent reception of the Sacraments, living a life according to the Gospel, using sacramentals... asking others to pray for a cure... many Masses... pilgrimages and charitable works... active participation in parish or prayer groups.’ He also says that the best exorcism is the Sacrament of Confession.” (3)

 

Spirit World Legalistic:

 

Blai maintains that the “Spiritual world is legalistic – meaning that there are rules or spiritual realities that spiritual beings operate under; these rules were created by God.” Demons are limited to whatever legal rights people have given them by their free will choices. Since God does not violate people’s free will, they can choose to form a relationship with demons, even if they are baptised Christians. Once legal rights have been given to demons, those rights must be removed before the demons can be cast away.”

 

“The freewill choices of parents for their children can give legal rights for interaction. The good version of this is baptism; the bad version is when parents consecrate their children to the enemy. The freewill choices of ancestors for their family line can give legal right for interaction. Legal rights in these cases can be renounced by the current generation on behalf of the one that caused the problem in the past. (4)

 

The American Adam Blai gives an example: “I reject anything my ancestors did that was sinful or opposed to God’s will.” (5)

 

The great expellers of demons in Church history were not official exorcists but confessors... e.g. St John Vianney, Padre Pio etc. The priest in confession operates in persona Christi as with all the sacraments. Exorcism is just a sacramental. So we don’t need cleverly crafted deliverance and penitential services with, for example, sins written out on paper to be burnt, but we do need the more powerful Sacrament of Confession by a priest acting in persona Christi.

 

The priest in confession can lead the penitent in this renunciation, and renunciation of all other things that were not God’s will.

 

Psalms

 

The following Psalms can be prayed with the suffering person:

 

Do not hold the guilt of our fathers against us. Let your compassion hasten to meet us.

We are left in the depths of distress.

O God our saviour, come to our help, come for the sake of the glory of your name.

O Lord our God, forgive us our sins;

rescue us for the sake of your name.

                                                            Ps. 78(79)

 

              We acknowledge our wickedness, O Lord,

              and the iniquity of our fathers,

              for we have sinned against you.

              Do not spurn us, for your name’s sake,

              do not dishonour your glorious throne;

              remember and do not break your covenant with us.

                                                                  (Jeremiah 14:20-22)

 

Blai with all his experience in deliverance/exorcism maintains: “In exorcism work, we see that the psalms cause a particular rage and fear in the demons, likely because they encourage the reader to stay close to God and trust Him”. (6)

 

In confession a priest can do deliverance by asking the person to pray as follows over every single serious misdemeanour: I reject everything my ancestors did (by witchcraft, free masonry, oaths, lust leading to sexual ties or bondage etc.)

 

 

Minor Exorcisms:

 

Any validly ordained   priest can do minor exorcisms but obviously not major exorcisms, as only a bishop can give permission for this. Some priests can be fearful at first and need to remember St Paul: “God has not given us a spirit of fear”, (2 Tim 1:7). We are exhorted 365 times in Scripture not to be afraid. We have to take control and rebuke the spirit of fear in the name of Jesus.

 

To repeat when we commit a mortal sin the demons have legal rights over us.   When you go to the Sacrament of Confession for a sincere confession, the bonds or chains they have on you are broken.

 

Manifestations:

 

Some demons manifest and some don’t. Demons like to remain hidden. When they manifest they can begin growling like an animal or begin to shake or cause people to fall on the ground or manifest extraordinary strength or speak in strange tongues. Sometimes they seem to divulge future events.

 

N.B. “Demons do not know the future but predict things they then arrange” (7)

 

Only God can tell the future and read our minds. St John Vianney has an interesting take on demonic activity: “The devil only tempts those who wish to abandon sin... those who are happy in sin, he does not tempt as they already belong to him”. (8)

 

“To lead a sinful life is to belong to the Devil” (1 Jn. 3:8) and “anyone not living a holy life is not a child of God” (1 Jn. 3:10). To be in a state of grace is top priority for both priests and people then nothing can separate us from the love of God “neither angels or demons... nor any powers can separate us from God’s love”. (Rom. 8:38).

 

Examination of Conscience:

 

Pope Pius XII said that “the sin of the twentieth century [and now!] is the lack of a sense of sin”. Priests should provide a good examination of conscience to those preparing for confession because “what we do not disclose does not get healed”.

         

 See: Sine-glossa.blogspot.com article on Demons, Appendix 6:

           Examinations:

       1. Based on the Ten Commandments.

       2. Excellent list of occult items by Ugandan priest/exorcist Fr Joseph

           Ssemakula, now resident in the U.S.A

 

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that we must confess each mortal sin, confessing both the type of sin and the number of times we committed that sin. “What we do not disclose, does not get healed”. If we deliberately conceal a sin then none of our sins confessed will be forgiven and we exit the confessional with another sin: that of deceit!

 

“It is important to recognise that sin which is not brought to the Sacrament of Penance can induce spiritual weakness and susceptibility to demonic activity. Every Catholic should take seriously the need for regular Confession as a means of being strengthened to resist temptation. The Confessional is also the place where a person struggling with particular temptations can receive not only forgiveness for failures, but the grace to be stronger in maintaining the spiritual struggle. The confessor can also assist the person with sound spiritual advice.” (9)  (Bishop Julian Porteous)

 

REFERENCES:

 

1.                  Adam Blai, Exorcism  in the Modern Church and How to keep the Doors to  he Demonic Closed (EWTN-Youtube)

2.                  Adam Blai, Hauntings, Possessions and Exorcisms, Emmaus Road, 2017, p.34.

3.                  Fr. Jeremy Davies, Exorcism, CTS, 2009, p.51

4.                  Blai, Hauntings ... pp.5-6

5.                  Blai, Exorcism ...

6.                  Blai, Hauntings, p.113

7.                  Blai, Hauntings, pp. 53,71

8.                  Nicky Gumbel, Alpha. Questions of Life, p.177

9.                  Bishop Julian Porteous, Manual of Minor Exorcisms, CTS London, p.20

 

 

Appendix 1.

 

The Danger of Falling Away: Keeping Clearance from the Demonic.

 

“Those whom He begot unblemished have become crooked, false perverse” (Deut. 32:5)

 

“You have been called and chosen: work all the harder to justify it. If you do all these things there is no danger that you will ever fall away.” (2 Peter 1:10)

 

“Jesus said:  1. “I have said these things to you to keep you from falling away” (John 16:1)

 

                     2. “Once the hand is laid on the plough no one who looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62)

 

                     3. “Enter by the narrow gate since the road that leads to damnation is wide and spacious and many take it; but it is a narrow gate and a hard road that leads to life and only a few take it.” (Matthew 7:14)

 

“Take care brethren lest there be in any of you an evil unbelieving heart leading you to fall away from the living God.” (Hebrews 3:12)

 

“If anyone lets himself be dominated by anything, then he is a slave to it; and anyone who has escaped the pollution of the world once by coming to know our Lord and saviour Jesus Christ, and who then allows himself to be entangled by it a second time and mastered, will end up in a worse state than he began in. [cf Matthew 12:43]. It would even have been better for him never to have learnt the way of holiness, than to know it and afterwards desert the holy rule that was entrusted to him. What he has done is exactly as the proverb rightly says: The ‘dog goes back to his own vomit’

 

and, ‘when the sow has been washed, it’ wallows in the mud.’ (2 Peter 2:22)

 

“As for those people who were once brought into the light and tasted the gift from heaven, and received a share of the Holy Spirit. and appreciated the good message of God and the powers of the world to come and yet in spite of this have fallen away - it is impossible for them to be renewed a second time.” (Hebrews 6:4-6)

 

“Those [brethren] came out of our own number but... they left us to prove that not one of them ever belonged to us.” (1 John 2:19)

 

“Struggle with all your might to enter by the narrow gate because many will try to enter and will not succeed.” (Luke 13:24)

 

“The violent are taking the Kingdom of God by force.” (Matthew 11:12)

 

Jesus said: “When an unclean spirit goes out of man, it wanders through waterless country looking for a place to rest, and cannot find one. Then it says, ‘I will return to the home I came from.’ But on arrival, finding it unoccupied, swept and tidied, it then goes off and collects seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and set up house there, so that the last state of that man becomes worse than the first.” (Matthew 12:43-45).

 

“Many will be rejected on the last day not because they did not try, but because they did not try hard enough.” (Anonymous)

 

Appendix 2.

 

Quotes from Charles D. Fraune, Slaying Dragons: What Exorcists See & What We Should Know, 2^nd ed. Rev. & Expanded

 

This book takes the great wisdom of some of the leading exorcists in the Church, including Fr. Chad Ripperger, Fr. Gabriele Amorth, Fr Jose Antonio Fortea, Fr. Gary Thomas, among others, and packages it into an approachable and intriguing book that conveys, to today’s Catholics, critical insights into the activity of the diabolical and spiritual warfare tactics with which we must be familiar. These exorcists pull their teachings from the sacred traditions of our Faith, the teachings of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church, the wisdom of exorcists under whom they were trained, and their own extensive experience in the realm of spiritual warfare, deliverance, and exorcisms.

 

“When the possessed goes to Confession, which exorcists say is much more powerful than the exorcism itself, it does great damage to the hold that the demon has on the possessed, but does not always cause the liberation.” p. 78

 

“Sin involves rejecting the commands of God, and, as a consequence, placing ourselves out of the proper structure of authority and in a state where we are vulnerable to evil. Remember how many times Israel was punished by God for infidelity. Israel created a vulnerability by pushing God, and His powerful protection, away. Their enemies were then able to easily make their approach and Israel suffered grave harm. When we go to Confession, we place ourselves back into fidelity to God’s covenant and under His protection again.”

 

“All exorcists say that Confession is more effective than an exorcism. Confession remedies our spiritual lives on multiple levels, all of which make us less inviting to demons. The demons are rendered unable to hold the guilt of our sins against us, the soul becomes radiant with sanctifying grace, our disordered passions are partially corrected, our hatred for sin is increased, and we are supernaturally drawn to think of God due to an increase in the  theological virtues.” (105)

 

“Sin causes damage to us in every way: physically, intellectually, and in the power of our will. Sin can damage and kill our bodies. Sin can train us to think that evil is good and good is evil. Sin can train us to love and desire evil, and to detest and avoid good. Sin wounds us, and these wounds can come to us through our own sins and through the sins of other people. St. Louis de Montfort says that “the actual sins we have committed, whether mortal or venial, even though forgiven, have intensified our base desires, our weakness, our inconstancy and our evil tendencies, and have left a sediment of evil in our soul.” These weaknesses and wounds become the focal points of the devil’s temptations.

 

Some demons are referred to as “clinging spirits”, which attach to our wounds and seek to prevent the healing that they require. These spirits can also attach themselves to the wounds that have come through sinful sexual contact or emotionally abusive relationships. In addition to being a grave sin, these behaviours have also created deep but unhealthy bonds to people. After these have been brought to Confession, and “although our sin is forgiven, the demons want to prevent deep emotional and spiritual healing.”

 

Grudges and grievances and refusals to forgive others can prevent exorcisms from progressing as they should. As Fr. Ripperger points out, “everyone in Heaven has forgiven everyone, but the opposite is the case in Hell.” If we hang on to hatred, we make the demons feel at home, and they will not want to leave as easily. (116-117)

 

“As part of that life of grace, frequent Confession must be central. Fr. Ripperger says that Confession “is one of the most effective things to ward off or break demonic influence.” If a man is trying to conquer a mortal sin, he should go to Confession weekly. If he is trying to avoid mortal sin, he should be going at least once a month. Fr. Amorth adds that Confession, as a Sacrament, is more efficacious than an exorcism, which is only a sacramental. Further, as Fr. Fortea says, “Exorcism only drives out a demon from one’s body; Confession drives out evil from one’s soul.” St. Alphonus Liguori says regarding Confession, “In the house which is often swept, there is no uncleanness.” Not only does confession purify the soul through the remission of sins, but it also gives help to resist temptations in the future. (125)

 

Fr. Ripperger recommends paying attention to the sins which may be motivating the sins you confess, as these may be more important than the ones you notice more easily. He also recommends, repeating the teaching of Pope Leo X, to confess the sins of your past life in order to make reparation and to stay out of them in the future. He says, “Exorcists note that confessing the defect, even with that sin, calms it down so it cannot function.” He cautioned, too, that many priests may resist your desire to do this, but it truly is a good thing to do.

APPENDIX :    EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE

 

CONSCIENCE THROUGH THE COMMANDMENTS

 

(SOUTHERN CROSS 27/02/2013)

 

 

1st:      Do I give God time every day in prayer?

            Do I seek to love Him with my whole heart?

            Have I been involved with superstitious practices, or have I been involved with the  occult?

            Do I seek to surrender myself to God’s Word as taught by the Church?

 Have I ever received Communion in a state of mortal sin?

Have I ever deliberately told a lie in confession, or have I withheld a mortal sin from the priest in confession?

 

2^nd:      Have I used God’s name in vain: lightly or carelessly?

            Have I been angry with God?

            Have I wished evil upon another person?

            Have I insulted a sacred person or abused a sacred object?

 

3^rd:       Have I deliberately missed Mass on Sundays or holy days of obligation?

            Have I tried to observe Sunday as a family day and a day of rest?

 

4^th:       Do I honour and obey my parents?

            Have I neglected my duties to my spouse and children?

            Have I given my family a good religious example?

            Do I try to bring peace into my home life?

            Do I care for my aged and infirm relatives?

 

5^th and 8^th:   Have I quarrelled with anyone?

                    Have I cursed anyone or otherwise wished evil on them?

            Have I taken pleasure in anyone’s misfortune?

            Is there anyone to whom I refuse to speak or be reconciled?

            Have I lied about anyone?

            Have I rashly judged anyone of a serious sin?

            Have I engaged in gossip or spread scandal?

            Have I listened to scandal about my neighbour?

            Have I been jealous or envious of anyone?

 

6^th and 9^th:   Have I been faithful to my marriage vows in thought and action?

            Have I engaged in any sexual activity outside of marriage?

            Has each sexual act in my marriage been open to the transmission of new life?

            Have I been guilty of masturbation?

            Have I respected all members of the opposite sex, or have I thought of other people             as objects?

            Did I wilfully look at indecent pictures or watch immoral movies?

            Have I been guilty of any homosexual activity?

            Do I seek to be chaste in my thoughts, words and actions?

 

7^th and 10^th:  Have I stolen anything?

            Have I damaged anyone’s property through my own fault?

            Have I cheated or defrauded others?

            Have I refused or neglected to pay any debts?

            Have I neglected my duties or been lazy in my work?

            Have I refused or neglected to help anyone in urgent necessity?

            Have I failed to make restitution?

 

            I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against  heaven and before you;  I am no longer worthy to be called your child....”

           The prodigal son – Luke 15:18-19

 

Prayer before Confession.

 

“O Lord, may I know myself; may I know you!” (St. Augustine).  May I know my own selfishness, ignorance, and weakness, and know too, that you are ready to lift me up and sustain me as I climb towards the spiritual heights you call me to attain.  May 
I distrust myself and trust in you!

Enlighten my mind, that I may see all my sins clearly; soften my heart, that I may be truly sorry for them; give me the grace and courage to confess them sincerely, and thus obtain your pardon, through Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour.  Amen.

 

Examination of Conscience.

 

1.         Roughly how long is it since my last confession? (Only sins committed since then             need be confessed).

2.         Have I committed any mortal sins?  These must be confessed by type and            approximate number.  A mortal sin is one which involves serious matter, full consent             of the will, and full awareness that the act is seriously sinful.  Some examples of   objectively serious sins (mortal if the other two criteria are present):

            -  Missed Sunday Mass (or Holy Day Mass) without a serious reason.

            -  Received the Eucharist in the state of mortal sin.

            -  Committed impure acts with self (masturbation).

            -  Committed adultery, or fornication (sexual intercourse outside marriage).

            -  Kissed or touched someone passionately for arousal (unmarried).

            -  Committed a homosexual act.

            -  Practised contraception.

            -  Dwelled on impure thoughts (sexual fantasies for arousal).          

   (Note: sexual sins are ordinarily not the worst serious sins, but they are quite         common).

            -  Had an abortion or paid for one.

            -  Promoted abortion rights.

            -  Withheld a mortal sin in confession.

            -  Took or sold cocaine or other dangerous drugs for recreation.

            -  Got drunk.

            -  Refused to help any of God’s poor or needy when able.

 

3.  Some sins which may be mortal or venial depending on the matter or the   situation.            -  Lied, or cheated.

            -  Stole ------------ (must be returned).

            -  Used the Lord’s name in vain or cursed (“damn.....”, etc) or used foul language.

            -  Fought with others.

            -  Did unnecessary work on Sunday.

            -  Was selfish, or lazy, or proud.

            -  Spoke unkindly to others.

            -  Told harmful lies about others.

            -  Told harmful truths about others without serious reason to do so.

            -  Was excessively critical about others.

            -  Became unreasonably angry.

            -  Wilfully delayed forgiving.

            -  Failed to accept God’s forgiveness.

            -  Dressed immodestly.

            -  Was late for Mass or left early without a serious reason.

            -  Was disrespectful to parents.

            -  Failed to fulfil duties of own state in life (specify which duties).

            -  Gave scandal to children and others.

            -  Was irreverent in Church.

            -  Ate or drank too much.

            -  Wilfully angered others.

            -  Watched TV shows or movies which promoted immoral sex or violence.

            -  Watched excessive TV or wasted time.

            -  Drove car too fast or carelessly.

            -  Violated (a just) law (specify which law).

            -  Failed to care for own health.

 

4.         Smaller sins/imperfections for mention by spiritually advanced:

            -  Failed to pray enough.

            -  Failed to make God first always.

            -  Had unkind or prideful thoughts.

            -  Failed to be loving or kind to others.

            -  Failed to trust in God always.

 

----oOo----

 

 

Act of Contrition.

 

O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended You, and I detest all my sins, because of Your just punishments, but most of all, because they offend You, my God, who are all good and deserving of all my love.  I firmly resolve, with the help of Your grace, to sin no more and to avoid the occasions of sin.

 

 

 

OCCULT

 

EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE

 

 

“When you come into the land Yahweh your God gives you, you must not fall into the habit of imitating the detestable practices of the natives.  There must never be anyone among you, who practices divination, who is a soothsayer (isangoma), augur or sorcerer, who uses charms, consulting ghosts or spirits, or calls up the dead.  For the man who does these things is detestable to God:  it is because of these detestable practices that Yahweh your God is driving these nations before you”.  (Deuteronomy 18:9)

 

“Do not practice divination or soothsaying... Do not go to mediums or consult fortune-tellers, for you will be defiled by them.  I, the Lord, am your God”.  (Leviticus 19:26, 31)

 

 

 

Occult Questionnaire

 

Have there been any occult contacts or involvements in your personal life or family history?  Please check those questions to which you answer is the affirmative.  Consider the questions carefully, for they may be blocking your ability to hear from Jesus and may also be the doorway to your deliverance from occult oppression. In each category, circle the issues that apply to you.

 

Prayer recipient:  Come, Holy Spirit.  Please bring to my mind every involvement I have ever had with the occult.  I choose to humble myself and allow you to guide, direct, and help me to be completely honest as I consider the questions.  I submit myself to you.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen.

 

1.         Have you ever visited a fortune-teller or psychic who used cards, tea leaves, palm            reading, or crystal ball?

 

2.         Have you ever followed or read your horoscope or had a chart made to predict your             future?

 

3.         Have you ever had a tarot card reading or used cards to predict the future?

 

4.         Has anyone ever hypnotized you?

 

5.         Have you ever practiced yoga or done exercises related to yoga, or practiced       transcendental meditation?

 

6.         Have you ever attended a séance, spiritualist meeting, or New Age seminar?

 

7.         Have you ever had a life or reincarnate reading?

 

8.         Have you ever played with a Ouija board or other fortune-telling “game”?

 

9.         Have you consulted a medium or numerologist?

 

10.       Have you ever acted as a channel or medium?

 

11.       Have you ever practiced automatic writing?

 

12.       Have you read or do you possess books on astrology, fortune telling, or New Age             practices?

 

13.       Have you played with occult games such as ESP, Telepathy, Kabala, Dungeons and            Dragons?

 

14.       Have you ever “thought” at a person or tried to make them call or write you by your             thoughts?

 

15.       Have you ever sought healing through magic, charming, or crystals, psychic-healing, hypnosis, metaphysical healing, use of the pendulum or trance for diagnosis, or any   other occult means?

 

16.       Have you been to a chiropractor who treats through the use of ying and yang, the             universal life forces in the spine?

 

17.       Have you ever sought to locate missing objects or persons by consulting someone            who has psychic, clairvoyant, second sight, or psychometric powers?

 

18.       Have you practiced table-lifting or levitation?

 

19.       Have you sought or communicated with apparitions that were not of God?

 

20.       Have you worshipped in a pagan shrine or temple?  Have you gone in any temple or            building that was not Christian (Buddhist temple, Mormon temple, Masonic temple)?

 

21.       Have you ever been given or worn an amulet, talisman, or charm for luck or           protection?

 

22.       Do you read or possess occult or spiritualist literature, e.g. books on astrology,       interpretation of dreams, metaphysics, religious cults, self-realization, fortune-telling, magic, ESP, clairvoyance, psychic phenomena?

 

23.       Do you ever call the psychic hotlines or access psychic advice on your computer?

 

24.       Do you have any object or book in your possession that may bring an evil presence          or influence with it?  Has someone involved in the occult given you any amulet or        other object?

 

25.       Have you ever practiced any form of magic charming or ritual?

 

26.       Do you possess any occult or pagan religious objects, relics, or artifacts which may          have been used in pagan temples and religious rites, or in the practice of sorcery,        magic, divination, or spiritualism?

 

27.       Have you ever had your handwriting analysed?

 

28.       Have you ever listened to hard rock music for long periods of time?  Do you have             strong identification with a musician, dead or alive?

 

29.       Do you have strong identification with a movie star or famous figure, dead or alive?

 

30.       Have you, or any family member, present or deceased, belonged to the Mason,    DeMolay, Eastern Star, Rainbow Girls, Job’s Daughters, Shriners?  Have you been             involved in a lodge or organisation requiring rituals for membership?

 

31.       Do you see auras?

 

32.       Do you ever “feel” an evil presence?

 

33.       Have you ever been visited by a demon or an evil spirit?

 

34.       Do you ever have strong feelings of rage, a desire to commit suicide, or murder?

 

35.       Have you ever cursed anyone or wished them dead?

 

36.       Have you been involved in any group involved in rebellion, hatred, or terrorism?

 

37.       Have you been involved in Satan worship?

 

38.       Have you been involved in white magic – doing good things through the control of             psychic or supernatural powers?

 

39.       Have you been involved in black magic – psychic control through curses, use of   black arts, or any demon power for the purpose of harm?

 

40.       Have you made any blood pacts?

 

41.       Have you ever been involved in or attended meetings conducted by modern cults,            such as:  Theosophy, The Way, Children of God, Christian Science, Jehovah’s         Witness, Unitarian, Eckankar, Unity, Scientology, Worldwide Church of God?

 

42.       To your knowledge have any of your parents, grandparents, or great grandparents            ever been involved in any occult, cultic, or non-Christian religious practices?

 

43.       Have you ever belonged to or attended a meeting of a coven?

 

44.       Have you ever made a promise or pact with Satan?

 

45.       Have you ever made a blood pact with Satan?

 

46.       Are you a victim of Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA)?

 

47.       Have you attended witchcraft or voodoo services?

 

48.       Have you been in an intimate relationship with someone involved in witchcraft?

 

49.       Have you been involved in protracted or intense sinful or addictive activities that have       led to your being oppressed by a spirit of sin, such as pornography?

 

50.       Have you ever been on a drug trip that could have opened you up to an evil presence       when your spirit was “out there” and unprotected?

 

51.       Have you subjected yourself to literature or movies that are evil in nature?

 

52.       Do you have a propensity towards superstition or fascination with evil?

 

53.       Does the Holy Spirit bring anything else to mind?

 

 

Sins of the Flesh Questionnaire

 

1.         Have you ever used LSD, marijuana, cocaine, crack cocaine, or any mind-expanding      or mind-altering drugs?  Have you ever abused prescription drugs?

 

2.         Have you viewed abstract art while under hallucinogenic stimulus?

 

3.         Have you had problems with alcohol?

 

4.         Have you ever exposed yourself to pornography in magazines, Playboy pictures, TV        or stage shows, books, topless bars, or X-rated movies?

 

5.         Have you ever had a problem with habitual masturbation?

 

6.         Have you seen shows about sexual deviation, homosexuality, or lesbianism?

 

7.         Have you been involved in group sex or bestiality?

 

8.         Have you ever had sexual relations with a person who was not your legal spouse (Recall them by first initial)?

 

9.         Have you had an abortion, fathered a child who was aborted, been involved in       abortion in any way (viewed/witnessed one, assisted in one, performed one,       encouraged a friend to have one)?

 

(FROM:  THE HEALING OF FAMILIES, by Fr. Yozefu-B. Ssemakula)