The Catholic Church in Milan has set up an exorcism hotline because they say there’s been an unusual increase in the number of people looking to dispel their demons.
It might seem like something you’d only see in the movies, but according to the Catholic Church in Italy, there’s a real demand for exorcisms. Speaking to the Catholic website Chiesadimilano.it, Milan’s chief exorcist since 1995, Monsignor Angelo Mascheroni, said “We get many requests for names, addresses and phone numbers of priests; that’s why we’ve set up a switchboard in the curia from Monday to Friday from 2.30pm to 5pm.
“People in need can call and will be able to find a priest in the same area who doesn’t have to travel too far.”
While the demand for exorcisms have increased, the church hasn’t jumped on the demonic bandwagon by claiming there are more demons out there looking to take our souls. In fact, Monsignor Mascheroni said “mental phenomena, mental and psychiatric disorders” are often to blame for the behaviour associated with someone ‘possessed’.
“Usually parents call concerned about a child who won’t go to school or who’s taking drugs or rebelling. In reality it’s not a demon, but when they’re 18 years old young people don’t want to be told what to do.”
