Ghost possibly in home?

[anabelleraine]

I have a friend that recently told me she thinks she has ghosts in her home. She, like me, has been skeptical when someone mentions having seen a ghost. She herself has not seen the ghosts, but has heard them. Odd things have been happening. Her 4yr old son keeps saying he sees angels - sometimes they have wings other times they don’t. He is afraid to sleep alone because of it. Her mother came to visit and she said she saw a ghost figure of an army general.
She is not affiliated with any particular religion. She doesn’t go to church or have her children baptized. She had a “spiritual healer” come to her house and she said that there were spirits in the house and that her 4yr old son was the one in which they were coming??? She is not sold on that idea and mentioned maybe seeing a priest. Obviously she is not Catholic but felt that seeing a priest seemed more appropriate. In her case, I believe, a priest is stereotyped as being able to do these kind of things. She is grasping at straws and just doesn’t really know what to do. She is terrified. I mentioned calling my priest to see if he could come and bless her house. Does she have to be Catholic for this blessing? Is there anything a priest can do? Do ghosts really exist??? If so, what exactly is a ghost? An unsettled soul?? Please advise.

 

[Christy_Beth]

I don’t see anything wrong with her having her house blessed. If she has no church affiliation, she might call a couple of others as well. Some may not believe her, but that’s their problem.

I have had some people tell me that ghosts are an evil manifistaion. (sp?) I’ve never seen any ghosts, but I don’t discount stories of them either. Some people may actually be seeing something. But I don’t think it would be good beings. Why would a good being want to scare us?

 

[The_Otaku]

The blessing is a good idea. It would also be better if they, especially the child, were baptized, so they can be sealed in Christ.

The problem with getting a priest involved in these types of matters is that nowadays many priests refuse to get involved for various reasons (they may fear being isolated from their peers, their congregation, that getting involved in the paranormal may hurt their credibility and the respect people have for them, they may not be willing to put themselves in potential danger, are not equipped or trained, etc.)

There are fewer and fewer exorcists priests these days, also. Nobody wants this job. There is also red tape to go through. The priest who would do exorcisms, has to have permission from the bishop. And if the bishop doesn’t believe in this stuff, or he’s under pressure from other sources, no exorcism.

It’s no wonder that since the priesthood has largely abandoned the call, the leity (in the forms of visionaries, those with spiritual gifts, “prayer warriors”, prayer groups, the charismatic ministries, etc.) are the ones who end up appraising a situation before a priest gets involved to handle it officially. God uses these people also, and they’re an asset when it comes to spiritual warfare, especially with the shortage of priests who specialize in this area and those who are reluctant to get involved.

It takes a special kind of approach and there’s all kinds of specific prayers, many of which are official, for this sort of thing. It’s the prayers that are key, since they are very specific to the issue or problem, whether it be local infestation of objects, the home, past hurts/unforgiveness, hereditary seals, curses, the “evil eye”, etc.

I recommend getting your friend any deliverance prayers you can find. Search for Father Gabriel Amorth. He is the chief exorcist of Rome, and is responsible for many of the deliverance prayers still in use to this day. It’s a good place to start or at least to inform yourself about what you’re potentially up against here.

 

[Caesar517]

I think we watch way too many horror movies.

 

[The_Otaku]

I think we watch way too many horror movies.

I actually don’t watch any. I think they’re cheesy, predictable, and not scary at all. They also exaggerate how it actually is. The only reason I even know about any of these things is because of the priests (who are faithful to the Holy Father and are orthodox by the way not some crazy, fallen away priests up in left field) who have healing masses, retreats, talks, literature, genuine spiritual gifts, etc.

I think most people, most Catholics anyway, are content to just pray their rosary (if they even do that), and go to Mass regularly. They don’t care about the spiritual realm and how they figure into it, because the priests whom represent it are still a minority group within the Church, are usually foreigners, so there is some xenophobia and the matter cannot therefore be pressed as a concern the entire Church needs to address. I think that if these priests whom are called by God to render this type of service to the Church did not have the laity behind them that they do (parish prayer groups, etc.) it would not be possible for them to keep their ministries going seeing as how the bulk of the faithful are largely uninterested, indifferent, pessimistic, skeptical and so on. The Churches are reluctant to get into these things as much as they used to, the more and more secular, budget conscious, and self-interested the local discese become. It’s sad to compare it as such, but in it’s own way it’s political in nature, and it limits the Church’s freedom to teach and educate about the spiritual realm. People don’t want to hear about hell, demons, the devil, how these forces can influence your life, etc., because it takes them out of their comfort zone and makes them realize the world is larger than they thought it was and that it is not only God who can or is influencing your life. Churches don’t want to rock the boat, so they tell the people what they want to hear, and if they talk about hell or demons, it’s only in passing and is made to seem irrelevant. Often times, it’s the priests themselves who seed the doubt in the people, by making demons out to be symbolic, or just part of a parable, etc. This disarms the people, and lulls them into a comfort zone. The priest may be well-intentioned in doing this, but I believe he’s doing a huge disservice.

It all comes down to it being invisible, like many things about our faith. Our senses cannot perceive it, so we have no reason to believe it’s there to begin with. This might not be such a problem if the Church would allow more of the priests who want to do it, but pastors are often afraid to have these priests over, so they end up having to rent convention halls, hotel lobbies, etc, and that limits the number of people they can reach, especially if priests are not allowing these events to be advertized in their bulletins, etc.

 

[DJgang]

Whatever advice you give, give this …

Do NOT allow a spiritual advisor in the house! It’s very important that a priest bless the house and no one come over to talk to the spirit, that is just dangerous.

Please go to this website and print of the House Cleansing and Blessing Prayer as well as the Hedge Prayer for Protection.

Again, please tell this friend not to attempt to talk to the spirit. Demons can mask themselves as innocent spirits. We must be very careful in dealings like this.

Edit: I have many non catholic friends who I equip with sacramentals, blessed sacramentals. You can do this as well.

 

[The_Otaku]

Whatever advice you give, give this …

Do NOT allow a spiritual advisor in the house! It’s very important that a priest bless the house and no one come over to talk to the spirit, that is just dangerous.

I absolutely agree 100%. The only one who will even come close to having the spiritual discernment necessary is an orthodox priest who has faith in the prayers he would be saying. It’s dangerous to have a lay person attempt it.

Again, please tell this friend not to attempt to talk to the spirit. Demons can mask themselves as innocent spirits. We must be very careful in dealings like this.

Edit: I have many non catholic friends who I equip with sacramentals, blessed sacramentals. You can do this as well.

Yes, and not just sacramentals, but if you can have a priest bless holy water, salt, etc., that would be helpful for when the priest blesses the house. I wouldn’t have anyone other than a priest bless the house, even if they do have gifts.

Also, something else that some people might not have known they can do, is they can enthrone their house and dedicate it to the Sacred Hearts. Of course, it’s best to do this AFTER the house is exorcised.

 

[DJgang]

Also, something else that some people might not have known they can do, is they can enthrone their house and dedicate it to the Sacred Hearts. Of course, it’s best to do this AFTER the house is exorcised.

Aww…otaku, we have a group at our parish that does this … it is on my list to do. Great idea!

 

[The_Otaku]

Aww…otaku, we have a group at our parish that does this … it is on my list to do. Great idea!

An orthodox priest should have no problem doing this for a family or household that requests it. It may even be the solution to the OP’s problem, for if the house is dedicated to Jesus and Mary, any evil presence there will either be cast out, or weakened so severely that it is not able to manifest itself either visually or audibly. When the demons see they cannot manipulate reality any more, they have no reason to stay in the house. HOWEVER, this is why carrying sacramentals are important. The demon may figure “I can’t get them while they’re at home, so I’ll harass them at work, school, etc.”

This is another reason the Deliverance prayers I mentioned earlier are so important. They rebuke the spirits completely, and command them to leave the individual, the family, etc., alone. You couldn’t call it “Deliverance” if you’re only delivered from 9 to 5, you know? LOL!

 

[Jean_1958]

Hi anabelleraine!

The Catholic Churches stand on evil is that it does exist and exorcisms would not exist if evil was not real.

On that note, the Catholic Church teaches that any paranormal phenomena which allegedly support the existence of “ghosts” should be treated with a healthly dose of scepticism by Christians. However, it is not impossible that some of these incidents may be caused by evil spirits. (CCC, par. 2116-2117) Remember, the Catholic Church DOES believe evil exists.

I do not see a problem with the person’s house being blessed. However, blessings can anger spirits and may not fully expel it.

Perhaps she should contact a paranormal group like the Penn State Paranormal Research Society to help her out. She can also contact TAPS, as they usually push cases involving children to the front of the line.

Hope this helps.

Jean

 

[Caesar517]

I actually don’t watch any. I think they’re cheesy, predictable, and not scary at all. They also exaggerate how it actually is. The only reason I even know about any of these things is because of the priests (who are faithful to the Holy Father and are orthodox by the way not some crazy, fallen away priests up in left field) who have healing masses, retreats, talks, literature, genuine spiritual gifts, etc.

I mean we as a society watch too many horror movies. I’m not denying that some stuff like this is possible, but it wouldn’t make sense to me. If the “ghosts” in question were in God’s service, they wouldn’t be haunting anyone. If they were in Satan’s service, the last thing they would want to do is make themselves known. Those are the only two groups that would have the power to do so.

I think the spooky ghost idea has become a secular perception of another world beyond what we can see (e.g. God and Heaven). It is skewed because it is missing the focal lens of religion.

However, I don’t have any first hand experience with this sort of thing.

 

[The_Otaku]

I mean we as a society watch too many horror movies. I’m not denying that some stuff like this is possible, but it wouldn’t make sense to me. If the “ghosts” in question were in God’s service, they wouldn’t be haunting anyone. If they were in Satan’s service, the last thing they would want to do is make themselves known. Those are the only two groups that would have the power to do so.

I think the spooky ghost idea has become a secular perception of another world beyond what we can see (e.g. God and Heaven). It is skewed because it is missing the focal lens of religion.

However, I don’t have any first hand experience with this sort of thing.

If they’re of God, maybe they weren’t ghosts, but angels, and the OP’s friend’s child was allowed to see them because this is a sign to that family to turn to God. There’s lots of ways to interpret seeing an angelic figure, but in most cases, it’s good and a sign of God’s blessings on you. A simpler explanation is it may be your guardian angel you’re seeing, or someone elses in the family.

If the other figures are evil, then one could speculate that there may be spiritual warfare going on in that very house, rather, in the space that house occupies dimensionally. Where the angels are fighting, the house isn’t there, but they move through it on our plane of reality as do the demons.

If these are evil spirits then I disagree they would not want to be known. It depends on their marching orders. If they’re a demon that works to get people into addiction for example, yes, they’d want to remain covert about it so the person doesn’t know that there are forces at work making his habit or addiction worse (internet pornography for example, the demon might ‘guide’ the person into particular sites the demon already knows will solidify the addiction and appeal to that person’s sexual appetites and hidden desires, while, to the person, it will seem completely random where they’re going). If the demon is exposed, in this example, he would flee for fear of being exorcised back to hell, which is the place no demon or unclean spirit wants to actually be, which is why they’re allowed to roam. If the demon has been feeding on this person’s depravity and sin long enough, it may not go willingly and will need to be exorcised if its strong. If the demon knows the family is not religious or spiritual, it knows it can have it’s way with them to some degree and it may be able to gain access for additional demons. Once it sees someone come into the home that can actually do something about it (ie- a priest) it’s either fight or flight for the demon. Seeing the family start to pray and turn to God is a tip-off however, that a priest may be coming eventually, and the spirit may cause more problems, out of anger and fear of being kicked out, and the situation may seem to get worse until someone with the authority of Christ acting on behalf of Christ (ie- again, the priest) commands it out.

I mention that last part because I wager there are people who have had issues where prayer seemingly did nothing, and sacramentals didn’t help ward off anything. It’s important to understand that the demons may have special permission in some cases to harass a person, because this is that person’s cross to bear and they are gaining special indulgences or blessings for it. Not everyone is demonically assaulted, obviously, so it’s a very unique cross. And until God sees fit to remove this cross (usually through the aid of a priest, prayer groups, the family becoming religious themselves, etc.) it’s one of many explanations for why things seem to get worse before they get better.

And, if that ends up being the case of the OP’s friend, she needs to remain strong and keep fighting with prayers, devotionals, sacramentals, exorcisms, etc. Of course, it’s a matter of getting her to believe in these weopons and utilizing them, and I sure hope the OP can get her to do that.

 

[anabelleraine]

It is my sincere hope that she will get the children baptized. Next, my hopes are that they return to church and pray more. Maybe one day help her to become Catholic. Her husband travels all the time. He is home only a few days out of the month which, I’m sure puts a strain on my friend. The husband was raised church of Christ and she was raised Presbyterian. His take on baptism is that the children shouldn’t be baptized until the “age of reason” usually 13 yrs. He is not adamant about it so he will do what ever his wife wants. I gave her my rosary. It was the only thing I had at the time to give her to take home. I told her to pray the Our Father and meditate on the birth, death and resurrection of Christ. I am in the process of getting her a “how to say the rosary” pamphlet, in addition to the deliverance prayers mentioned earlier. This may be a sign from God that she needs to call on Him. He also may have had me reconnect with her to pray for the souls in purgatory. I fail to do that and have prayed more for the souls now than I ever have.

 

[DJgang]

Hi anabelleraine!

The Catholic Churches stand on evil is that it does exist and exorcisms would not exist if evil was not real.

On that note, the Catholic Church teaches that any paranormal phenomena which allegedly support the existence of “ghosts” should be treated with a healthly dose of scepticism by Christians. However, it is not impossible that some of these incidents may be caused by evil spirits. (CCC, par. 2116-2117) Remember, the Catholic Church DOES believe evil exists.

I do not see a problem with the person’s house being blessed. However, blessings can anger spirits and may not fully expel it.

Perhaps she should contact a paranormal group like the Penn State Paranormal Research Society to help her out. She can also contact TAPS, as they usually push cases involving children to the front of the line.

Hope this helps.

Jean

Jean:

with all due respect, if you even watch Paranormal State, the group from Penn State you would know that they try to contact these spirits which is totally against Catholic Teaching. They have occult experts, etc. Even though at times they have brought in Catholic Priests to help out, especially the night that a DEMON talked to them through a frank box.

Please, as a Catholic, do not advise someone to contact this group or any other group, or person that tries to speak to the dead! You say that exorcisms would not exist if the church didn’t believe … however, how do you think people become possessed? One of the ways is by opening themselves up … how do you do that … by trying to contact these spirits. They will mask themselves as Aunt Sue and they will be a demon. You are suggesting that these people commit a sin according to the church, bottom line.

TAPS, all they do is record all night, they do not attempt to rid the spirit.

CCC 2115-2117

 

[Snerticus]

Hi anabelleraine!

The Catholic Churches stand on evil is that it does exist and exorcisms would not exist if evil was not real.

On that note, the Catholic Church teaches that any paranormal phenomena which allegedly support the existence of “ghosts” should be treated with a healthly dose of scepticism by Christians. However, it is not impossible that some of these incidents may be caused by evil spirits. (CCC, par. 2116-2117) Remember, the Catholic Church DOES believe evil exists.

I do not see a problem with the person’s house being blessed. However, blessings can anger spirits and may not fully expel it.

Perhaps she should contact a paranormal group like the Penn State Paranormal Research Society to help her out. She can also contact TAPS, as they usually push cases involving children to the front of the line.

Hope this helps.

Jean

Oh my gosh, please NO! Do NOT get a paranormal group involved!!!

That is one of the worst things you can do. Please, get help through prayer, a priest, the blessings mentioned.

But absolutely no groups like the above.

I think also that all of us should pray for the deliverance of this woman and her child.

God Bless,
Snert

 

[Appleby]

I have developed an eye disease that has taken the sight from one eye, and in reading the literature my doctor provided, I discovered that this eye disease can sometimes cause hallucinations of shapes, forms and human faces due to involvement of the optic nerve.

Before accepting the reality of “ghosts” in your house, I would get a thorough examination by an opthalmologist just to make sure there is no physical reason for these manifestations. Had I not read this material (which is available on the Mayo Clinic website) I would have believed that either I was losing my mind or haunted. (My condition is called choridal macular degeneration – I think that is spelled right.)

 

[gretchenhagan]

well, a little too late to not let her know about the paranormal groups. I already suggested it. I suppose I will tell her I was misinformed. I guess you can never go wrong with a blessing and prayer. That may be the best route. I have a prayer request…please pray for this family. Pray that they return to church and to God. Pray that whatever spirit that is in this house leave the family alone and that it may find it’s resting place.

 

[Snerticus]

Don’t feel bad about it, just pray.

I made and still do make a lot of mistakes, but God knows our hearts. You didn’t mean to give bad advice, but hey, I’ve been there and done that myself. I don’t expect I’ll stop anythime soon. But at least when I learn, I try real hard never to do it again. You seem to be the same way.

BTW- I used to be interested in that paranormal stuff. One day I decided to go to the TAPS website. I hit on some links that took me to other websites. Man, they were giving ridiculous advice on all these different types of “spirits”. You know, goblins, fairies, etc… and even hybrid man/goblin types too. Really really bad stuff you wouldn’t even want to believe in. I stopped right then and there and am now convinced all of this is through Satan. He can look or act or be anything we can imagine. And secondly why would heavenly or purgatory-bound spirits want to scare us like that (as brought up by a previous poster).

 

[Luke65]

There are no ghosts - only demons. There are angels too, but they don’t haunt houses! Your friend needs a priest, a priest, and only a priest.

“This kind can come out only by prayer.” (Mark 9:29)

 

[Jesus_N_Cherie]

I remember hearing somewhere trustworthy that “ghosts” need our prayers. I have heard that the proper thing to do is to pray to Jesus “Eternal rest grant unto them. May Your Perpetual Light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen.”

There is also special prayers in the Pieta booklit to say for the souls of the dead.

Definitely speak to a priest. Definitely advise strongly not to try to communicate with these “ghosts”.
But no prayer ever goes to waste. So I would also advise to pray for these “ghosts” just in case it could help them.

I would also advise her to MOVE!!!