Can the devil (or demons) know your thoughts?

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Our God is Almighty. If God honors our intentions and free will, he will protect us from the intrusion of evil spirits if we desire this. When a person is in the state of Grace, this protection is in force.
Outside the state of Grace, we have turned our back on God’s protection and are susceptible to the intrusion of the evil one.

As to the saints and angels–yes, they hear our silent prayers because it is our intention that they hear them. They do not however read our minds without our permission.
 
I know that this is an old thread. I am new to the forum and was drawn by this topic.

The posts are very thoughtful.

I am not a scholar and can only speak from my own experience. Angels can “hear” our silent prayers. I have silently prayed to angels and had my prayer answered immediately. Angels are here to help us. It is a good idea to ask them directly.

Demons can definitely hear what we say out loud. Furthermore, I suspect that they can read our thoughts. They can either read our minds, or they are incredibly deductive and can accurately guess our thoughts and subsequent actions.
 
MtnDwellar said:
I know that this is an old thread. I am new to the forum and was drawn by this topic.

The posts are very thoughtful.

I am not a scholar and can only speak from my own experience. Angels can “hear” our silent prayers. I have silently prayed to angels and had my prayer answered immediately. Angels are here to help us. It is a good idea to ask them directly.

Demons can definitely hear what we say out loud. Furthermore, I suspect that they can read our thoughts. They can either read our minds, or they are incredibly deductive and can accurately guess our thoughts and subsequent actions.
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Hi MtnDweller, Do you live on a real mountain or are you referring to that spiritual mountain. I try to live on that mountain, though living on a real amountain would be real nice too! Actually, I live in a valley, which is pretty nice.

Anyway, yes, my guardian angels hear my silent prayers. Either they hear them or God “transmits” them for me the moment I say them. I don’t believe the Demons can listen to our thoughts, but I agree, they are intelligently dedcutive and can guess and anticipate. But the Lord is our shield and our buckler. And I think about Him, and about heavenly things. Because the evil one is just a speck compared to God. As long as I am trusting in Him, I have His vast protection.

Silent prayers are so important, especically when you are in the middle of a conversation or something. Recently I got a court summons for a relatively minor matter from my ex, and soon I started to get sick to my stomach because it brought on feeling memories of the ordeal of divorce and custody battle some years before. Even though I know this will be much more expediant and manageable, the memories it evoked made me feel truly sick, like I did so much of that time before. I couldn’t shake it, or reason it away, and was about to resign myself to the fact that I was going to have to live with the sick feeling for some weeks or months now. Then I caught myself and thought: I must at least give God a chance to take it away from me. So I made a quick silent plea to our loving merciful Lord Jesus to take it away. Minutes laer I realized it was gone. And it hasn’t come back!

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Many of our thoughts come from demonic provocation, and from these derive our evil outward actions. If with the help of Jesus we instantly quell the thought, we will avoid its corresponding outward action. We will enrich ourselves with the sweetness of divine knowledge and so will find God, who is everywhere. Holding the mirror of the intellect firmly towards God, we will be illumined constantly as pure glass is by the sun. Then the intellect, having reached the term of its desires, will in Him cease from all other contemplation.

Because every thought enters the heart in the form of a mental image of some sensible object, the blessed light of the Divinity will illumine the heart only when the heart is completely empty of everything and so free from all form. Indeed, this light reveals itself to the pure intellect in the measure to which the intellect is purged of all concepts.

According to the Fathers, if the inner self is watchful it can protect the outer self. But we and the demons combine in commiting sins. The demons work through evil thoughts alone by forming in the intellect what fanciful pleasures they wish; while we sin both inwardly through evil thoughts and outwardly through our actions. Lacking the density of physical bodies, the demons through deceitfulness and guile are purveyors of torment, both to themselves and to us, by means of evil thoughts alone. If they did not lack the density of physical bodies, they would always be sinning through outward actions as well, for their will is always disposed to ungodliness.

St. Hesychios the Priest

The passions lying hidden in the soul provide the demons with the means of arousing impassioned thoughts in us. Then, fighting the intellect through these thoughts they force it to give assent to sin. When it has been overcome, they lead it to sin in the mind; and when this has been done they induce it, captive as it is, to commit the sin in action. Having thus desolated the soul by means of these thoughts, the demons then retreat, taking the thoughts with them, and only the spectre or idol of sin remains in the intellect. Referring to this our Lord says, ‘When you see the abominable idol of desolation standing in the holy place (let him who reads understand). . .’ (Matt. 24:15). For man’s intellect is a holy place and a temple of God in which the demons, having desolated the soul by means of impassioned thoughts, set up the idol of sin. That these things have already taken place in history no one, I think, who has read Josephus will doubt; though some say that they will also come to pass in the time of the Antichrist.

There are three things that impel us towards what is holy: natural instincts, angelic powers and probity of intention. Natural instincts impel us when, for example, we do to others what we would wish them to do to us (cf. Luke 6:31), or when we see someone suffering deprivation or in need and naturally feel compassion. Angelic powers impel us when, being ourselves impelled to something worthwhile, we find we are providentially helped and guided. We are impelled by probity of intention when, discriminating between good and evil, we choose the good.

There are also three things that impel us towards evil: passions, demons and sinfulness of intention. Passions impel us when, for example, we desire something beyond what is reasonable, such as food which is unnecessary or untimely, or a woman who is not our wife or for a purpose other than procreation, or else when we are excessively angered or irritated by, for instance, someone who has dishonoured or injured us. Demons impel us when, for example, they catch us off our guard and suddenly launch a violent attack upon us, stirring up the passions already mentioned and others of a similar nature. We are impelled by sinfulness of intention when, knowing the good, we choose evil instead.

St. Maximos the Confessor

‘The demons can look into your memory even in this life, and see the sins you’ve committed and bring them into a form of temptation. . . but in the next life they can bring that into your imagination to torture you more. In Hell you have no control over your imagination. Now in certain circumstances… people are sick or unwell… they have no control… but in Hell… no control, constantly like that. Satan plays with those images, it is a nonstop horror.’

Fr. Chad Ripperger, ‘Hell’

St Francis, being one day in prayer in the Convent of the Portiuncula, saw, by the revelation of God, that all the convent was surrounded and besieged by devils, as by a great army; but none could penetrate into the convent, because the brothers were so holy that the demons could not enter into any of them. They remained, however, on the watch, until one day a certain brother being offended by another, thought in his heart how he could accuse and do him harm. Having yielded to this evil thought, the devil, seeing a way open to him, entered the convent and took possession of the brother. On this St Francis, like a vigilant pastor, ever watching over his flock, seeing the brother, and commanded him to confess immediately the hatred he had nourished in his heart towards his neighbour, which had caused him to fall into the power of the enemy. The brother, much alarmed, and seeing that his saintly father had penetrated into his deepest thoughts, confessed the evil feeling which had entered into his heart, and humbly asked pardon and penance. When he had done this, and being absolved of his sin had accepted his penance, St Francis beheld the devil to flee away; and the brother, being freed from such a cruel monster through the charity of his good shepherd, thanked God, and returned to the little flock of the saintly pastor corrected and strengthened, and lived afterwards in great sanctity.

The Little Flowers of St. Francis
 
Then the Lord said to the devil: “Tell me what you feel in your heart and how you like this great love I have for her.” The devil replied and said: "I have two eyes, one of them corporeal, although I am not corporeal, by means of which I perceive temporal things so clearly that there is none so hidden or so dark that it can hide itself from me. The second eye is a spiritual one with which I see every pain no matter how slight and can understand to which sin it pertains. There is no sin so tenuous and slight that I do not see it, unless it has been purged by penance. However, although there are no organs more sensitive than the eyes, still I would much rather have two burning torches uninterruptedly penetrate my eyes than for her to see with the eyes of her spirit.

I also have two ears. One of them is corporeal, and no one speaks so privately that I do not hear and know it with this ear. The second is a spiritual ear, and no thinks of or aims at any sin, be it ever so hidden, that I do not hear it with this ear, unless it has been blotted out by penance. There is a certain punishment in hell that is like a bubbling torrent, streaming out of a terribly hot fire. I would rather suffer this to flow in and out of my ears with out cease than that she should hear anything with the ears of her spirit. I also have a spiritual heart. I would let it be ceaselessly cut to pieces and constantly renewed to be punished again just in order for her heart to grow cold in your love. But, now, since you deal straightly, let me ask a question for you to answer me: Tell me, why do you love her so much, and why did you not choose someone holier, richer, and prettier for yourself?" The Lord answered: "Because that is what justice demanded. You were created in me and beheld all justice in me.

Tell me, while she is listening, why it was just that you fell so far and what you were thinking when you fell!" The devil answered: “I saw three things in you: I saw your glory and honor above all things, and I thought about my own glory. Hence I was determined in my pride not merely to be equal to you but even greater than you. Second, I saw that you were the most powerful of all. Hence I longed to be more powerful than you. Third, I saw what was to be in the future and, since your glory and honor were without beginning and would be with out end, I envied you and thought that I would gladly be tortured forever with all manner of harsh punishments if only you could die. With such thoughts I fell. And in that way hell was created.”

The Lord answered: “You asked me why I love this woman so much. Assuredly, it is because I change all your evil into good. Since you became proud and did not want to have me, your Creator, as an equal, therefore, humiliating myself in every way, I gather sinners to myself and make myself their equal by sharing my glory with them. Second, since you had so base a desire that you wanted to be more powerful than I, therefore I make sinners more powerful than you and sharers in my power. Third, because of your envy toward me, I am so full of love that I offered myself up for everyone.” Then the Lord said:

“Now, devil, your heart of darkness has been shown in the light. Tell me, while she is listening, how I love her.” And the devil said: “If it were possible, you would readily suffer in each and every limb the same pain you once suffered on the cross in all your limbs together, rather than lose her.” Then the Lord answered: “If I am so merciful, then, that I do not refuse pardon to anyone asking for it, ask me humbly for mercy yourself, and I will give it to you.” The devil answered him: “That I shall do by no means! At the time of my fall, a punishment was established for every sin, for every worthless thought or word. Every spirit that has fallen will have his punishment. But rather than bend my knee before you, I would rather swallow all the punishments myself, as long as my mouth can open and shut in punishment and be forever renewed to be punished again.” Then the Lord said to his bride: “See how hardened the prince of the world is and how powerful he is against me thanks to my hidden justice! I could certainly destroy him in a second by means of my power, but I do no more harm to him than to a good angel in heaven. When his time comes, and it is now approaching, I shall judge him and his followers. So, my bride, persevere in good works! Love me with your whole heart! May you fear nothing but me! For I am the Lord over the devil and over everything in existence.”
  • The Revelations of St. Bridget
 
I heard that demons/fallen angels/bad spirits can only know or hear our thoughts if we direct those thoughs directly to them. I heard this from an exorcist priest that was on EWTN.
 
I’ve heard a lot of contradictory information on the subject, from exorcists from apologists, etc.

It is clearly established that they have knowledge of people’s thoughts, and exactly those thoughts, and that it is a grave error to say that it is only deduction, that this is I believe some modern thing apologists recently made up.

The full nature of their knowledge and how they deal with it I do not know.

Every sin places a person under the authority of the Devil, and so he gains some power and knowledge and so too his servants. So every sinful thought at least is known. What else? More often certainly than that too.

I am sure that prayer sometimes is sufficient (but not always) to shield thoughts.

Someone who is always thinking thoughts that are pure and for God’s sake perhaps would not be able to be understood. Certainly at least, they would not understand them in an interior fashion, but only by watching, since they cannot have such intentions themselves and are tormented by them.

The spiritual world is one of mental communication, that is how they all communicate with each other, mind to mind – God, angels, devils, all.

I have heard it said at the Last Judgement all of mankind’s interior life is revealed to one another, to show the Justice and glory of God.

There will be no secrets in the end, and there are none truly now. If you live a moral life, you don’t need secrets since there is nothing to be ashamed of or needing to be hidden.
 
The Angels can hear prayers because we direct the prayers to them.

Demons can only hear what we direct to them as far as thoughts go. We make a grave error when we attribute more power to Satan than he has. Satan is NOT equal to God, he does not have the attributes of God. The fallen angels only have the abilities that the angels have, no more.

I’d really suggest you pick up a copy of “Screwtape”.
 
Cari said:
Citation, please? I’m more inclined to believe Michelle Arnold’s post, which specifically states they CANNOT.
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Same here. I trust a professional apologist over some random person on the internet any day! 👍
 
Shin said:
Then the Lord said to the devil: “Tell me what you feel in your heart and how you like this great love I have for her.” The devil replied and said: "I have two eyes, one of them corporeal, although I am not corporeal, by means of which I perceive temporal things so clearly that there is none so hidden or so dark that it can hide itself from me. The second eye is a spiritual one with which I see every pain no matter how slight and can understand to which sin it pertains. There is no sin so tenuous and slight that I do not see it, unless it has been purged by penance. However, although there are no organs more sensitive than the eyes, still I would much rather have two burning torches uninterruptedly penetrate my eyes than for her to see with the eyes of her spirit.

I also have two ears. One of them is corporeal, and no one speaks so privately that I do not hear and know it with this ear. The second is a spiritual ear, and no thinks of or aims at any sin, be it ever so hidden, that I do not hear it with this ear, unless it has been blotted out by penance. There is a certain punishment in hell that is like a bubbling torrent, streaming out of a terribly hot fire. I would rather suffer this to flow in and out of my ears with out cease than that she should hear anything with the ears of her spirit. I also have a spiritual heart. I would let it be ceaselessly cut to pieces and constantly renewed to be punished again just in order for her heart to grow cold in your love. But, now, since you deal straightly, let me ask a question for you to answer me: Tell me, why do you love her so much, and why did you not choose someone holier, richer, and prettier for yourself?" The Lord answered: "Because that is what justice demanded. You were created in me and beheld all justice in me.

Tell me, while she is listening, why it was just that you fell so far and what you were thinking when you fell!" The devil answered: “I saw three things in you: I saw your glory and honor above all things, and I thought about my own glory. Hence I was determined in my pride not merely to be equal to you but even greater than you. Second, I saw that you were the most powerful of all. Hence I longed to be more powerful than you. Third, I saw what was to be in the future and, since your glory and honor were without beginning and would be with out end, I envied you and thought that I would gladly be tortured forever with all manner of harsh punishments if only you could die. With such thoughts I fell. And in that way hell was created.”

The Lord answered: “You asked me why I love this woman so much. Assuredly, it is because I change all your evil into good. Since you became proud and did not want to have me, your Creator, as an equal, therefore, humiliating myself in every way, I gather sinners to myself and make myself their equal by sharing my glory with them. Second, since you had so base a desire that you wanted to be more powerful than I, therefore I make sinners more powerful than you and sharers in my power. Third, because of your envy toward me, I am so full of love that I offered myself up for everyone.” Then the Lord said:

“Now, devil, your heart of darkness has been shown in the light. Tell me, while she is listening, how I love her.” And the devil said: “If it were possible, you would readily suffer in each and every limb the same pain you once suffered on the cross in all your limbs together, rather than lose her.” Then the Lord answered: “If I am so merciful, then, that I do not refuse pardon to anyone asking for it, ask me humbly for mercy yourself, and I will give it to you.” The devil answered him: “That I shall do by no means! At the time of my fall, a punishment was established for every sin, for every worthless thought or word. Every spirit that has fallen will have his punishment. But rather than bend my knee before you, I would rather swallow all the punishments myself, as long as my mouth can open and shut in punishment and be forever renewed to be punished again.” Then the Lord said to his bride: “See how hardened the prince of the world is and how powerful he is against me thanks to my hidden justice! I could certainly destroy him in a second by means of my power, but I do no more harm to him than to a good angel in heaven. When his time comes, and it is now approaching, I shall judge him and his followers. So, my bride, persevere in good works! Love me with your whole heart! May you fear nothing but me! For I am the Lord over the devil and over everything in existence.”
  • The Revelations of St. Bridget
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This is all private revelations, it is not binding in any way and may or may not be true.
 
rinnie said:
Heck yeah, How do you think that the bad ones get in there. The devil knows your weakness and knows when to attack. Unfortunately the devil does have powers, evil ones.

He will give you whatever you want as long as he can control you. then after he gives you what you want he watches you destory yourself with it. Then he sits back and laughs.

Think about it if he didnt know your thoughts how could he tempt you, How would he know what to tempt you with.

But he cant control you, only if you give yourself to him. thats why its better to stay with God, if Gods around he will not be there. Hes afraid of God. Because God is the Almighty and he knows it!
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I agree completely. Not only can Satin read our minds, but Satan can control our thoughts. Temptation often comes in the form of thoughts.
 
Angels and saints can read our thoughts when directed to them…why? Because God permits it!

So the same goes for the demon!
 
Purely on the subject of personal trust for a moment…

I’d trust a saint with revelations from God over Peter Kreeft or some other random Catholic apologist any day. 🙂 With all due respect towards some of his rather funny and interesting work.

Sorry, but, modern Catholic apologists don’t always get it right. They make a lot of ‘deductive logic’ assumptions that sound popular and reasonable to people, because that’s what apologetics is about to them. They do not often enough, research the saints and go with what the saints say because God said it.

I’ve seen plenty of bad apologetics put out in a ‘reasonable’ way from some very popular figures. The problem with this human reason is that it is all speculation, and one little fact missing and the whole thing falls apart. It’s like making up equations and pretending you know what X, Y, and Z are when they aren’t defined and the equation doesn’t let you solve for them.

So you sound reasonable when you put up your deductions but… no. That’s not how you approach these things trusting in yourself and your world view.

In other words, there’s a problem in these times with Catholic apologetics that leans towards a modern cultural world view rather than an actual Catholic world view and approach.

But it is up to you who you wish to think more reliable about these things. People who spoke to God and were canonized, or people who haven’t and aren’t.

If you want reliable, I will tell you frankly, go with revelation, and the saints. You will discover a great deal you did not know before, and did not know because you, yourself, would not have preferred or deduced it…

But that is what Revelation is. Not what we prefer, or deduce, but God’s truth.
 
We are down a rabbit trail here. The Church has no teaching on if deamons can read minds, so, it is open for debate.

One thing to know…

What does the CHURCH teach about private revelations???

**67 **Throughout the ages, there have been so-called “private” revelations, some of which have been recognized by the authority of the Church. They do not belong, however, to the deposit of faith. It is not their role to improve or complete Christ’s definitive Revelation, but to help live more fully by it in a certain period of history. Guided by the Magisterium of the Church, the sensus fidelium knows how to discern and welcome in these revelations whatever constitutes an authentic call of Christ or his saints to the Church.

Christian faith cannot accept “revelations” that claim to surpass or correct the Revelation of which Christ is the fulfillment, as is the case in certain non-Christian religions and also in certain recent sects which base themselves on such “revelations”.
 
A comment:

Padre Pio, and others, could read the minds of those in confession and bring up sins they had forgotten or meant to hide [so he could read their minds against the wishes of those people] and Padre Pio was just a human…with a spiritual gift…

Demons precisely torment exorcists and those being exorcised with their own fears and past sins…just read any true story of an exorcist…ANY they all do that!

As much as I love apologists, none of them has made it to Heaven yet…these people who have left us their ‘personal revelations’ [though optional] left us what guided them to make it to Heaven! The reason why they are canonized is precisely so that we will ‘emulate’ them…I certainly listen to their points! 👍
I believe the point that we are missing here is the difference between the power of the Intellect and the brain [where memories are stored].

The Intellect is a spiritual power, which along with the power of Free Will, make us Human and spiritual beings in the ‘image & likeness’ of God.

The brain is just a physical/bodily organ, if we have a car accident and a section of our brain is injured, some or all of our memories are affected or even erased, or at least not accessible. It’s a physical organ, similar to a CPU in a computer…when we die, the memories stored die as well, just as in an accident that injures the brain.

It may be that since the Devil is the lord of this ‘world’ for now, the physical world, that he has access to our bodies…but not our spiritual powers - the Intellect and the Free Will…

Demons can suggest, tempt, scare, threaten, and bodily hurt us [read on Padre Pio if you want proof] but cannot MAKE US SIN…because of our Free Will…so we cannot say, ‘the devil made me do it!’ 😉

Even exorcists will attest to the fact that our spiritual power of the Free Will is ‘off limits’ to all creatures! That is why everyone says that the demons need permission [for which they trick us, of course] for getting involved with us.

Regarding the spiritual power of the Intellect - Our spiritual life is between GOD and us…and we can also have fellowship with the Communion of the Saints [saints in Heaven, Holy Souls in Purgatory, those of ‘good will’ here and angelic beings]. But, not the demons…

Pax Christi,
 
kage_ar said:
We are down a rabbit trail here. The Church has no teaching on if deamons can read minds, so, it is open for debate.

One thing to know…

What does the CHURCH teach about private revelations???

**67 **Throughout the ages, there have been so-called “private” revelations, some of which have been recognized by the authority of the Church. They do not belong, however, to the deposit of faith. It is not their role to improve or complete Christ’s definitive Revelation, but to help live more fully by it in a certain period of history. Guided by the Magisterium of the Church, the sensus fidelium knows how to discern and welcome in these revelations whatever constitutes an authentic call of Christ or his saints to the Church.

Christian faith cannot accept “revelations” that claim to surpass or correct the Revelation of which Christ is the fulfillment, as is the case in certain non-Christian religions and also in certain recent sects which base themselves on such “revelations”.
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Does the catechism even mention apologists? They aren’t even in Heaven!😦
 
All of our bodily and spiritual powers, with the single exception of the will itself can both be taken away from us, and given to the authority of the devil, or simply lost to our authority. We can easily recognize this as we look around, at ourselves, and at others and our own pitiful lack of ability and control interiorly.

In other words, the will is the heart – it is the only thing we truly possess, and possess completely.

Many people will clearly tell you that devils have read their minds and responded to whatever was in their minds at the time, made them forgetful of things they needed to remember, made them remember things they wanted to forget, etc. etc.

This is all very common and basic.

The devils do not understand us in certain interior ways inside themselves, because they are angels not men, and also, lacking grace to be able to experience certain things we experience interiorly. But in these cases they can at least watch with their exterior knowledge.

And as mentioned above, quite clearly, the Devil has authority over all that is sinful, and even the entire world he has been granted by God a measure of authority.

Every sin is known to the Devil – Because it places the sinner under the Devil’s authority, and the Devil is the accusor of man before God.

Angels are not like us, they are very different, they were in many cases created to have oversight over gigantic areas of Creation, and were given what was necessary so they had the capacity to do this.

Angels watch over cities, towns, entire nations… the stars themselves.

While certain gifts cannot be retained once one is separated from God’s grace, others can be, He does not repent them, because they have to do with the nature of the creature and the role He created it for. So the fallen angels retain some of their created capacities to supervise, and now abuse them.

There are more angels and fallen angels than mankind who have ever been born, I once read. Therefor, one does not have to be surprised at the extent of their knowledge of man. One does pretty much however have to be surprised at first at least at the extent of their success in obliterating men’s knowledge of them… especially the modern day Catholics.
 
I have never heard not even once of a saint reading anyone’s mind. If anything saints like Padre Pio and St. John Vianney (Cure d’Ars) were given by the Lord the ability to **see the state of a person’s soul ** which is not like reading a person’s mind at all.

And concerning the devil reading one’s thoughts…according to Father Amorth who I believe may still be the Exorcist of Rome. A demon cannot read your thoughts unless you direct your mind’s focus on the demon.

It cannot read your mind if it is not the will of God and the Lord will never go against anyone’s free will.
 
ukdal1 said:
Pretty straightforward questions…can they read your mind or just hear what you say?

Thanks!!!
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No.

But they are good guessers and have praeternatural ability to read expressions, tendencies, reactions and overall body language.

If you’ve ever heard of law enforcement officials who specialize in telling if someone is lying or not by their expressions and reactions - then imagen the demons, whose experience in this field surpasses that of any human being.
 
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