In his sermons, Pope Francis has repeatedly pointed out that “the devil comes through the pockets” with regard to the power of corruption.
In an Italian-language book published in April 2023 Escorts fight Satana (Exorcists against Satan), journalist Fabio Marchese Ragona revealed how Saint John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis have confronted the devil throughout their pontificates by promoting or even practicing the ministry of exorcism.
“Father Gabriele Amorth complained as early as the 1980s that there were many bishops in the Church who did not believe in exorcisms or the devil. John Paul II, but also Benedict XVI and Francis supported this liberation ministry through their speeches against the work of the devil,” Marchese explained in an interview with ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner.
In his sermons, Pope Francis repeatedly mentioned the power of corruption, referring to the statement that “the devil comes through the pockets”.
Speaking to ACI Prensa, Marchese recalled his meeting with the Pope while preparing his book on exorcism. “Never dialogue with the devil, because he will win,” the Holy Father warned him.
“He makes you believe that everything is fine, that you will succeed, and then he catches you, you fall into the abyss and then it is difficult to get up again,” the expert recalled the Pope saying.
Marchese, a Vatican journalist at Mediaset (Italian television) with over ten years of experience, wrote the book full of stories of victims of possession and testimonies of exorcists fighting the devil. It also includes a previously unpublished interview with Pope Francis in which he describes how the devil always “tries to attack everyone and sow discord, even in the Church, trying to play one against the other.”
Pope Francis, attacked by the devil
The Pope admitted in this interview that he too had been attacked by the devil, said Marchese. “The devil attacks everyone, but especially those in the hierarchy of the Church. He tempted Jesus and he does the same with the popes and bishops.”
In fact, in the first chapter of the book, Marchese tells the story of a nun who was freed from demonic possession and who, during the exorcisms, made it clear in a demonic voice that the devil hated Pope Francis: “Have you seen everything I did to that Argentine?” the devil said to the priest. “But he won’t go away, he is strong, too much for me.”
“I asked the Pope,” Marchese recalled, “if he knew that the devil was saying that about him? And he answered me: ‘Perhaps because I annoy him with prayers and I follow the Gospel.’ At the same time, he is certainly happy when I commit a sin. He seeks the downfall of man, but he has no hope when prayer is there.”
In some dioceses in Northern Europe, despite the warnings of the last popes, there are no exorcists, Marchese noted in an interview with ACI Prensa. “Yes, unfortunately that is the case, and I have to agree with Father Gabriele Amorth (1925-2016), who was a great exorcist.”
Some popes have performed remote exorcisms
Although some popes, such as Pius XII and John Paul II, have performed remote exorcisms, there is no evidence that other contemporary popes have done so. Even during times when the devil has manifested himself, such as when Benedict XVI blessed three demon-possessed youths remotely after a general audience in 2009, popes have not performed exorcisms.
Saint John XXIII never performed exorcisms, nor did Saint Paul VI, who said in 1972 that “the smoke of Satan had entered the Church through some crack.” Pope Francis has also never performed an exorcism, as he confirmed in the interview with Marchese, preferring that specialized priests do so.
His approach focuses on preventing and fighting evil temptations through faith and prayer. The Pope has not only openly preached against the devil, but also recognized the International Association of Exorcists in June 2014, Marchese noted.
In 2019, the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) published the book Rebuke the devilwhich summarizes Pope Francis’ key teachings on the Prince of Lies, “his empty promises and works, and how to actively combat him.”
“The Pope tells us how to use powerful spiritual weapons against the devil, including the Word of God and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament,” wrote Bishop Michael Burbidge of the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, when introducing the book.
This updated story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It was translated and adapted by CNA.
