[Episcopal News Service] In the mainstream secular world, people are generally exposed to the concepts of ghosts, hauntings and exorcisms through television, literature and film. Notably, the 1973 film adaptation of William Peter Blatty’s novel “The Exorcist,” the first horror movie to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture, brought the obscure Christian rite into the public sphere; it remains a fixture in modern-day pop culture.
“Topics on the paranormal and exorcism are what I consider the most misunderstood side of Christian theology, and it’s something that’s really not taught in seminary, if at all,” the Rev. Eric Fialho, an Episcopal priest in the Jacksonville-based Diocese of Florida, told Episcopal News Service.
Fialho will teach a three-day intensive course on understanding ghosts, exorcisms and parapsychology through Scripture, called “Ghosts! Explaining the Paranormal,” Nov. 7-9 at St. Peter’s-San Pedro Episcopal Church in Salem, Massachusetts. He said he developed the curriculum because not many Episcopalians are aware that exorcisms exist in The Episcopal Church, and those who are aware know very little.
“There’s an education gap, and I think The Episcopal Church has a duty to help fill that gap and to educate in a theologically sound way around the topic of ghosts, demons, demonology and exorcism,” he said.
The Episcopal Church’s webpage on exorcism says liturgies retain elements of exorcism and that “more commonly, spiritual cleansing and deliverance is the practice of those who pray, ‘Deliver us from evil.’”
In 2024, the Rev. Eric Fialho taught a six-week course on understanding ghosts, exorcisms and parapsychology through Scripture at St. Gabriel’s Episcopal Church in Marion, Massachusetts. Ninety-four people attended every session. Photo: Courtesy of Eric Fialho
The intensive course is a condensed version of a six-week class Fialho taught in 2024 at St. Gabriel’s Episcopal Church in Marion, Massachusetts. Ninety-four people attended every session. Fialho said he wasn’t surprised by the large turnout because “these are topics that interest a lot of people, though sometimes, I think, for the wrong reasons.”
“I think many like to focus on the sort of darker, unseemly, gory aspects of these topics, but I come at teaching them with the understanding that God’s grace and God’s love are really at work in and in praying over haunted spaces,” he said.
Fialho was born and raised in Salem, known as the “Witch City” for its close proximity to the infamous Salem witch trials that led to the executions of at least 25 people in the late 17th century. Today, the city is known for its monthlong Halloween festival in October with more than a million people participating in psychic readings, séances, tarot readings and shopping at occult-themed shops, including one owned by Laurie Cabot, the “Official Witch of Salem” since 1977. Fialho said growing up in this environment helped shape his ministry of educating Episcopalians on these “taboo” topics in Christianity.
The condensed course will informally kick off the night of the 7th with Fialho leading a walking “ghost tour” of downtown Salem and sharing the history of St. Peter’s-San Pedro, which was founded by an Anglican who was accused of being a witch during the Salem witch trials. On the 8th, participants will learn how ghosts, demons and exorcisms are depicted in the Old and New Testaments, such as Mark 5:1-3, Acts 16:18 and the parable of the Strong Man in all four Gospels, where Jesus uses his authority to cast out demons from a house. They will also learn about the history of the medieval church and The Episcopal Church’s position on exorcisms.
On the 9th, Fialho will guest preach at St. Peter’s-San Pedro during the Sunday worship service. After the service, participants will discuss, based on what they’ve learned, how to theologically define what a ghost is. Participants will then analyze ghosts, demons and exorcisms in pop culture, especially in movies and TV, and how media misinform the public about these topics. For example, fictitious portrayals of exorcisms are usually done on individuals, which are called solemn exorcisms, but they are rare. Most exorcism rites are conducted over haunted spaces, where there are clear signs of disturbance that cannot be explained through science and logic.
Registration is open until Nov. 3.
Poster advertising “Ghosts! Explaining the Paranormal,” a three-day intensive course on understanding ghosts, exorcisms and parapsychology through Scripture, taking place Nov. 7-9 at St. Peter’s-San Pedro Episcopal Church in Salem, Massachusetts. Photo: Courtesy of Eric Fialho
What is little known is that Episcopal dioceses have exorcists on staff, but it’s the bishop who decides whether cases warrant exorcism, according to the Book of Occasional Services, page 187, “Concerning Exorcisms.”
Anyone who believes they need an exorcism must consult a priest and undergo extensive physical and mental health evaluations. The priest will share evidence with their bishop when all possible medical explanations are ruled out, according to The Very Rev. Andrew “Andy” Hook, dean of the Cathedral Church of St. Paul the Apostle in Springfield and the Diocese of Springfield’s exorcist.
If a bishop decides that a case is genuine and requires an exorcism, they will consult with the diocesan exorcist. Some dioceses, including Springfield and Chicago in Illinois, have designated exorcists appointed by their bishops, though the exact number is unknown.
Hook stressed to ENS that “the last thing we want to do is cause more harm to a person.”
“No one in the church becomes an exorcist because they want to be one,” he said. “Exorcism should not be seen as this dramatic thing where heads spin around and vomit flies everywhere. Rather, it’s a pastoral arm of the church where we pray for healing for those afflicted by the devil.”
An exorcism will only work, Hook said, if “the afflicted individual is genuinely ready to commit themselves to Christ,” because “Jesus is the one true exorcist.”
Hook leads the Order of Christ the Saviour, a Dominican religious order in The Episcopal Church that trains exorcists and deliverance ministers. In 2024, the order published “The Anglican Rite of Exorcism” for The Episcopal Church, which can only be ordered directly by bishops. Before it was published, Episcopal exorcists primarily used the Catholic Roman Rite of Exorcism and tailored it to Anglican spaces. Hook said “many” bishops have already ordered “The Anglican Rite of Exorcism.”
Hook and the Rev. Trey Gardner, the Diocese of Chicago’s exorcist, have worked with Fialho in educating Episcopalians on deliverance ministry, or exorcism, and the preternatural.
“So many people in The Episcopal Church, especially clergy, need to understand that the devil exists and spiritual warfare exists. Exorcism, while it is something that we’re not used to, we should embrace because … we’re supposed to be in the business of healing,” Hook said. “We don’t talk about the devil in The Episcopal Church enough, but we need to. You can’t say you believe in Jesus but also not believe in the devil.”
On Oct. 30, Fialho launched The North Transept, a YouTube channel that will explore preternatural topics in the Bible from an Anglican lens. The first two videos he posted provide overviews of exorcisms and Jesus’ ministry. Fialho said he hopes to make his curriculum churchwide.
“It’s time for The Episcopal Church to wake up and take these topics more seriously,” Fialho said.
-Shireen Korkzan is a reporter and assistant editor for Episcopal News Service. She can be reached at skorkzan@episcopalchurch.org.