The Shocking True Story of The Pope's Exorcist
Inspiration
“The Pope’s Exorcist” starring Russell Crowe is based on two memoirs of Amorth’s, “An Exorcist Tells His Story” and “An Exorcist: More Stories,” both of which were published around the turn of the millennium. All told, though, Amorth published more than thirty books, most of them in Italian, with some even being released after his passing in 2016. Those that don’t center around his personal experiences during his time as an exorcist cover demonology or Catholicism in some fashion. Perhaps the most striking detail about his long career is that he claimed in 2013 to have performed as many as 160,000 exorcisms, which is obviously impossible… right? Well, not so fast.
Early Life
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Gabriele Amorth was born in Italy in 1925, the youngest of five sons. As passionate and vocal as Amorth would become about his spirituality, it wasn’t the cloth that immediately drew his attention. Of course, the advent of World War II became an unavoidable reality during his adolescence. As a teenager, he served in the Italian resistance and was even given a medal for bravery. After the war, Amorth followed in his father’s footsteps and became a lawyer, even at one point working for future Italian Prime Minister Giulio Andreotti. It wasn’t until the 1950s that Amorth began pursuing a holy existence.
The Definition of “Exorcism”
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Amorth became ordained as a Roman Catholic priest in 1954 at the age of 29. Even given that he lived to be 91, one would assume that he’d have to have gotten started as an exorcist at a young age in order to perform so many exorcisms. But Amorth wasn’t appointed the position of chief exorcist for the Roman Diocese until 1986, at which point he was already 61. So what’s the catch? How exactly did Amorth conduct such an astonishing amount of exorcisms? Well, it all comes down to what one considers an “exorcism.” Specifically, Amorth counted his dealings as exorcisms whether they lasted minutes or hours. He also counted those individuals who merely needed a simple prayer recited or an entire ritual. While most of his exorcisms reportedly didn’t involve full-on possession, there were also those who were said to be taken by more than one entity, sometimes thousands, requiring multiple exorcisms. Under this loose criteria, you can see how even Amorth himself didn’t have an exact figure, or how his final estimation could be so high. All that being said, even some of Amorth’s critics have recognized his dedication to the practice. Even by minimizing the nature of the average exorcism, the numbers still suggest that Amorth’s dealings were virtually never-ending and consistent. Still, it wasn’t as if Amorth was overeager to perform exorcisms. While there’s always been something of a schism between spirituality and psychology, Amorth recognized the value of seeking out comprehensive medical care first. He denied taking on any case based simply on a patient’s personal claims, and always directed them to a doctor whenever he felt his services weren’t required. As for how many genuine cases of possession he came across, Amorth estimated around 100, which, if we’re being honest, still sounds daunting for even the most experienced exorcist.
Rites
A member of the Society of Saint Paul, Amorth used its headquarters as his primary location for exorcisms. He typically had his patients sit in a velvet armchair, but those more prone to violence had to be strapped down on a nearby bed. It’s also for this reason that Amorth never practiced his exorcisms alone, often bringing assistant exorcists and family members to help wherever needed. Typical Christian iconography lined the walls, such as crucifixes and photos of religious figures. In particular, Amorth liked to have one up of Pope John Paul II, who served for much of Amorth’s time as exorcist, as this one reportedly made the demons “particularly irritable.” To that effect, Amorth was said to be eager to get under the skin of his demonic adversaries. Unlike most exorcists, Amorth liked to use humor as a tactic, beginning each ritual by thumbing his nose at the entity. He was known to talk back to the demons, his flippancy serving to undermine their power and influence. One of his favorite jokes to say went along the lines of, “You know why the Devil flees when he sees me? Because I’m uglier than he is.”
Additional Beliefs
As progressive as Amorth was on the subject of science, he was less so toward other influences. He believed certain practices like yoga were satanic due to its association with Hinduism. Not only that, but he believed that yoga specifically led to other evil practices like reading “Harry Potter.” If Amorth’s exorcism estimates are to be believed, it’s clear that the man was regularly exposed to more evil than any one person experiences in their whole lifetime. As such, he was able to distill his reservations with modern attitudes with this quote: “People have lost the Faith, and superstition, magic, Satanism, or ouija boards have taken its place, which then open all the doors to the presence of demons.”
Legacy
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While “The Pope’s Exorcist” film seems to be a largely sensationalized take on Amorth’s experiences, it’s clear that he’s left behind a sizable legacy in the field of exorcism. For one thing, he co-founded the International Association of Exorcists in 1990, which came to consist of over 200 members by the year 2000. This was a significant step forward for Amorth, who believed that exorcists were in short supply whereas cases of possession were only on the rise. In 2016, mere months before Amorth’s death, William Friedkin, director of the original “Exorcist” film, was granted access to Amorth’s practices. It resulted in the first ever of Amorth’s exorcisms to be captured on camera, that of a woman who was supposedly cursed by her satanic brother and his girlfriend. Friedkin himself called the experience “terrifying,” and the ensuing footage became part of the 2017 documentary “The Devil and Father Amorth.” While the documentary itself wasn’t particularly well received, it’s evident that Amorth’s life has captured the attention of the global zeitgeist all the same. If there’s any one thing that he wanted to caution people against, it was the presence and influence of the Devil, which Amorth maintained wants nothing more than to have people believe he doesn’t exist.
