How Would One Tell if an Apparition is Good, or Demonic?

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I have been thinking about this lately. If an apparition appears to you, how would you be able to know if it was good, or demonic?
 
Have been having sleep paralysis this past year, and seeing she-devils standing next to my bed whilst I sleep. Praying the rosary daily, don’t see them now. Sometimes it’s obvious it is demonic.

Have had a very memorable one too, an apparition appeared to me as a kid, but that one was a lot more ambiguous. And whilst I have my own personal suspicions about whether it was good or demonic, I won’t be doing any wild goose chases. Even if you believe the apparition is a good one, we weren’t taught by the Church to seek them out, quite the contrary.
 
I have been thinking about this lately. If an apparition appears to you, how would you be able to know if it was good, or demonic?
Well first, I would validate if it really was an apparition.

Second, I would use my reason to discern the actual message.

And thirdly, if I’m convinced that the apparition is indeed an apparition, I would run it by my pastor or bishop.

If the bishop says it’s a fake, then his word carries the day.
 
Are your speaking of angelic appearances? An angels always says : Be not afraid FIRST.
 
I was recently reading (online) excerpts from a book written by a priest concerning just this topic - how can you tell the difference between demonic and heavenly apparitions? This was an old, authoritative book. I wish I could remember who the author was. Anyway, he said concerning apparitions of the Blessed Virgin, when they were real (Lourdes, Fatima, etc) the BVM appeared suddenly, fully formed. There was usually a preceding light, then she appeared. She was separate from the light, as if the light accompanied her as a herald to announce her presence.

During the demonic apparitions, some of which were at Lourdes after the BVM’s appearance there, the light would appear slowly, in the form of a mist, and the “Virgin” would slowly, piece by piece, coalesce out of the mist into a figure of the BVM. Sometimes only half her body would appear. It was as if it were having difficulty manifesting. The luminous mist would form itself into the “BVM,” or half of her. The real apparitions had no such difficulty manifesting. They would do so suddenly. There would be no luminous mist that somehow becomes the “Virgin” as if there was no real separation of the “Virgin” from the mist. The real BVM would appear after some announcing light, and then BOOM! There she is!!!
 
Several of the saints had apparitions, both saintly and demonic, show up on a regular basis. Most would ask the apparition to join them in prayer or state something as simple as “Blessed be Jesus Christ”. The saintly would have no problem with prayers or blessings while the demonic would go into fits of anger or refuse to say the words properly.
 
Offhand, I would stick my blessed rosary through it. My belief in the power of the Lord through the rosary is strong enough to beat back any evil apparition. I say this from the fact that if I wake in the night with disturbing dreams, I take down my 1 decade rosary and hold it in my left hand (sinister side) it has been 100 % effective

With all the meds I take for blood pressue, cholesterol, prediabetes, I would probably hold off on announcing it to anyone else unless it happened multiple times or there was another compelling reason!
 
Have been having sleep paralysis this past year, and seeing she-devils standing next to my bed whilst I sleep.
Scary stuff. I had sleep paralysis occasionally as a young person and it’s frightening, indeed. I never had the she-devil/demonic character in it, though. I had a friend who would have a figure dressed all in black lean over his face and scream.

After a few episodes I learned to recognize the symptoms and forced myself to not fight the sensation and to relax and let it run its course. The episodes were far less troubling and became shorter in duration.

It’s been years and years since I had one.

BTW, my wife’s great aunt had been troubled by shadowy figures/demons moving around her bedroom at night. No one could figure it out until she had her cataracts removed and the figures stopped appearing. :rolleyes:
 
Sleep paralysis is natural, if not fully normal, and is nothing to fear.

Frightening images can appear from our subconsciousness when we can’t use our bodies, though.

As per the OP, I’d ignore an “apparition” unless it urged me to go to the Church authority. (Demons would never do that). Then I’d do what the Church said.

ICXC NIKA
 
Well it would depend on the message. If it was like Bay side apparition causing division and saying the rest of the 12 apostles were priest not bishop or just evil like a demon.
 
Thanks for the replies! I was simply wondering what one would do. I don’t think I have ever seen an apparition though.
 
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