Just to clarify, exorcism is not a sacrament and not one of our fundamental beliefs as Catholics, as the Eucharist is. The Church takes a "verification needed" stance toward even the holiest people who report apparitions of Christ and Our Lady--I think verification should go double for those (priests or not) who say they've encountered demonic forces.
Just to clarify, exorcism is not a sacrament and not one of our fundamental beliefs as Catholics, as the Eucharist is. The Church takes a "verification needed" stance toward even the holiest people who report apparitions of Christ and Our Lady--I think verification should go double for those (priests or not) who say they've encountered demonic forces.
Elinor, Excellent point that exorcism isn't a sacrament, but to say that it isn't a fundamental belief of the Catholic Church would, I think, go a bit far. The office of exorcist was historically one of the four minor orders of the church with exorcist ordination rites going back at least as far as the Fourth Council of Carthage in 398 AD, and much further when you consider that Carthage was merely formally approving what had already been practiced from time immemorial.
Anytime someone is ordained for a ministry and given formal rites to follow, I think it is safe to assume that such a ministry is considered a foundational part of the Church's function on earth and part of her core belief structure.
Just to clarify, exorcism is not a sacrament and not one of our fundamental beliefs as Catholics, as the Eucharist is. The Church takes a "verification needed" stance toward even the holiest people who report apparitions of Christ and Our Lady--I think verification should go double for those (priests or not) who say they've encountered demonic forces.
Elinor, Excellent point that exorcism isn't a sacrament, but to say that it isn't a fundamental belief of the Catholic Church would, I think, go a bit far. The office of exorcist was historically one of the four minor orders of the church with exorcist ordination rites going back at least as far as the Fourth Council of Carthage in 398 AD, and much further when you consider that Carthage was merely formally approving what had already been practiced from time immemorial.
Anytime someone is ordained for a ministry and given formal rites to follow, I think it is safe to assume that such a ministry is considered a foundational part of the Church's function on earth and part of her core belief structure.