Deep prayer = demonic attack?

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I just finished listening to Fr. Thomas Dubay’s “Contemplation” and “Teresa of Avila” DVDs. Wow… were they inspiring! As I’ve studied lives of the Saints, many of them had deep, infused prayer lives, and knew God very intimately.

At first, I was determined to pursue a depth of prayer like St. John of the Cross, or Teresa of Avila. But then I got to thinking about a possible side effect of this deep prayer life. Padre Pio had frequent physical attacks from demons, as did other saints. That would scare me to death.

I know that demons are real and that I face them spiritually when deciding between right and wrong, but I really don’t want to ever encounter one personally - with my eyes/ears/senses.

By deepening my prayer life, I know that I’d be under more spiritual attack by Satan. Many of the Saints had actual physical assaults by demons. I gotta say… as much as I want to be close to God, I really don’t want to be messing with Satan all that much!

Has anyone else had thoughts like these? Can you share your thoughts? Is increased depth with God worth the increased harassment from Satan? I know the answer is “yes” but I just wanted to hear other people say it! Thanks…!
 
It is not certain that a deep prayer life will lead to demonic attack…just a possibility (of course it is always possible, no matter the state of your prayer life). Be careful, and don’t give satan or any of his demons too much credit. If anything, your temptation to stay away from increasing your love of God sounds to be the worst thing. Therefore, I say go for it-seek the deepest prayer life you can have. The Lord holds you in the palm of his hand, and he will not give you anything that you and him cannot take care of.
 
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Has anyone else had thoughts like these? Can you share your thoughts? Is increased depth with God worth the increased harassment from Satan? I know the answer is “yes” but I just wanted to hear other people say it! Thanks…!

Yes. And the" interruptions" as I prefer to call them, have happened for precisely the reason you’ve mentioned. Don’t let this possibilty stop you however, from longing for or developing an intense prayer life. This is what evil prefers that you do…

I was baptised Catholic but wasn’t fully received into the Church until 2006. I began my conversion to holiness (ongoing and constant joyful duty that it is) a few years before this. Since then, I’ve experienced some really creepy things as has my husband, teen daughter, brothers, and mother have. You see, when I realized that I wanted and needed Our Father in my life, it rubbed off on my whole family. We all began a beautiful life with the saints, our Blessed Mother and the Holy Trinity. 🙂 We don’t often share any of our interruptions because we refuse to grant them importance.

I have also refused to become “overly” frightened by these incidents. :dts: However, I will tell you that as the caretaker of our family’s souls, my husband has had his crucifix (hanging on a leather rope and superglued at the knots) untied from his neck while sleeping. He woke up to this happening and kept it from falling off. He retied it with some really strong fishing knots but it happened again. It stopped when he blessed the bedroom and whole house with holy water. We do this frequently and believe much in blessing ourselves daily. 🙂

I will pray that Our Father reveal to you the course you should take but please don’t give up on this precious desire. God Bless you and keep you safe from harm always! :signofcross:
 
Pursue a deep prayer life if you want…don’t let the enemy beat you before you even start. Don’t let him keep you away from God.
 
Hi tomch!
Keep peaceful… Devil can’t do the least damage to each of us without a special God’s permission.
Thoughts that steal our peace don’t come from God (not necessarily from the devil, often from our overworked mind). God’s calls leave us peaceful. Therefore this thought that troubles you has not the good “seal of quality”😉 , unlike, I guess, your first inspiration.
All the best!
Aurelio
 
Do you think St Pio, St Teresa etc were afraid of the devil? I don’t think so because he knew that God was on his side. Who is more powerful than God? Nobody.
 
And don’t forget your weapons… St Pio said “The Rosary is the weapon”.

Deuteronomy 33:29
Blessed are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD ? He is your shield and helper and your glorious sword. Your enemies will cower before you, and you will trample down their high places. "
 
Believe me, that is any risk any of us should be willing to take. After all, we know the rest of the story. God wins! There’s no denial of that…I say, pray and pray always! Go to daily mass and arm yourself with the graces bestowed by the Blessed Sacrament. It’s amazing!👍
 
Sometimes, people get attacked or possessed by demon because they yield it to them; other times, God allows it for a some reason. Demonic attack such as in the case of Padre Pio must be permitted by God.

Nevertheless, one should pray and if one can have a deep prayer, that is what he must do. To be discouraged for not developing deep prayer, he is already being attacked and tricked by demon.

The more one prays, the better chance God’s graces will be poured on him and protect him. So, don’t worry.
 
Thanks, all, for your encouragement! I know that the life of depth with God is the only thing worth living for.

It probably didn’t help that I watched “The exorcism of Emily Rose” last night before writing my post. It kinda freaked me out and made me wonder if it was worth getting into the middle of intense spiritual battle.

You’re all very right - it IS worth it. Thanks!
 
“Seeing, then, that our Lord is so powerful, — as I see and know He is, — and that the evil spirits are His slaves, of which there can be no doubt, because it is of faith, — and I a servant of this our Lord and King, — what harm can Satan do unto me? Why have I not strength enough to fight against all hell? I took up the cross in my hand, — I was changed in a moment into another person, and it seemed as if God had really given me courage enough not to be afraid of encountering all the evil spirits.”

Ch. XXV. “Divine Locutions. Discussions on That Subject”
St. Teresa of Ávila
 
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