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The five teenage girls might look like they’re in a normal class, eagerly reading their textbooks and answering their teacher’s questions diligently. But the textbooks are Bibles and the girls all have crosses instead of protractors, as they train to become exorcists - real exorcists who fight demons, curses and evil spells. ‘People do look a bit surprised when I arrive,’ admits graduate exorcist Brynne Larson. ‘When people call for an exorcist, they don’t picture a 16-year-old high school girl.’ But Brynne, from Phoenix, Arizona, is one of a new breed of qualified teenage demon slayers, who answered a call...

May someone be barred from possessing a gun simply because he has been indicted for a felony? The U.S. Attorney’s office for the Southern District of Alabama so argues. Here’s their entire argument (citations to Heller omitted): In Heller, the Supreme Court held that the Second Amendment provides an individual with a right to possess and use a firearm for lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home. However, the Supreme Court also made clear that “the right secured by the Second Amendment is not unlimited.” The Supreme Court emphasized that “nothing in [its] opinion should be taken to cast...

In the post below, I discussed whether it was constitutional to ban gun possession by all people who are under indictment. But in the case in which the U.S. Attorney argued that this was constitutional, no such statute was actually in play. Federal law bars gun possession by felons, 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), but only gun receipt, shipment, and transportation by those under indictment for a felony, 18 U.S.C. § 922(n). Yet the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Southern District of Alabama indicted Clayton Adams for “knowingly possess[ing]” a gun, “[i]n violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(n),”...

MANILA (AFP) – A blood-curdling scream echoes through the Roman Catholic chapel in Manila as Father Jose Francisco Syquia says a prayer of exorcism over a Satanic cult member believed to be possessed by the devil. "It's very painful," the woman cries in an unearthly voice, her body contorting in an attempt to break free from the tight grasp of Syquia's assistants. After a few minutes she falls silent, her limp body exhausted. The case is among hundreds documented on video and kept by Syquia, who heads the Manila Archdiocese's Office of Exorcism -- the only one that exists in...

Reshma's change in appearance and demeanor caused her parents to panic. When she was just a young girl, an evil spirit possessed Reshma. As she grew older, the spirit never left but continued to torment her and wreak havoc in her life. Whenever the spirit attacked, Reshma would fall unconscious and remain unaware of her actions. She oftentimes became hostile and would pound her fists on the floor and walls. Her demonic possession also affected her marriage. She wasn't able to properly care for her husband, Dajiak, and their children. Her husband and parents sought treatment for her condition, unaware...

Any constitutional issues here? While Johnson's car was parked in the casino parking lot, Defendant John Hurla—then a K-9 officer in the Pottawotomie1 Tribal Police Department (PTPD)—deployed a drug dog to Johnson's vehicle and the dog indicated the presence of illegal narcotics. Based on the probable cause arising from the drug dog's deployment, Johnson was stopped, his vehicle was searched, and he was arrested... Johnson was charged under tribal law for possession of narcotics, but in February 2008, Kansas dismissed the charges. In March 2008, the United States unsealed an indictment against Johnson, charging him with violating 21 U.S.C. §...

PHILIPPINES congressman Ronald Singson has admitted he tried to smuggle cocaine into HK in his underpants. The colourful 42-year-old, who is from one of the Philippines' most high-profile political families, admitted to bringing 6.67 grams of cocaine and two tablets of the narcotic Nitrazepam into the city on July 11, 2010. He was arrested at Hong Kong's international airport by customs officers who found a small amount of cocaine and pills in his luggage, with six grams of cocaine hidden in his underpants. The total value of the cocaine was about $2000. The politician, also a music promoter whose business...

Today's Gospel : Mark 1:21-28 There is  a controversy brewing in todays society about the reality of demons. Are they real? Are they a psychosis? Demonology - the study and doctrine of demons or evil spirits - is not exclusive to Christianity or Psychology. And while doctrine about them vary they are commonly held in many cultures. It is our western "enlightened" culture that puts almost no emphasis on them. Yet study and experience show that not only do they exist but can co-exist with psychological pathologies. Many counselors have noted very specific criteria where a Multiple Personality sufferer also...

San Francisco, Calif., Jan 22, 2011 / 08:04 am (CNA).- Father Gary Thomas, whose real life experience as an exorcist-in-training is chronicled in the highly anticipated movie “The Rite,” praised the film for its positive portrayal of the Church and for its witness to the power of faith. The movie, starring Oscar winner Anthony Hopkins and newcomer Colin O’Donoghue, is loosely based on Fr. Thomas' experience traveling to Rome and studying under an Italian exorcist in 2005.Set to hit screens on Jan 28., “The Rite” follows skeptical seminary student Michael Kovak (O’Donoghue), who is sent to study exorcism at...

'When he has fits he has convulsions and his entire body twists and his eyes become completely white,' said the father of the 29-year-old man Evil spirits: Turki, 29, lies chained on the bed in the basement apartment where he has been for six years after being 'possessed by a genie' When Turki first began behaving bizarrely, his father took him to local Muslim clerics to recite the Koran over him. 'But most of them became scared when they heard the female voice telling them that she was a royal jinn (genie) and that no-one can exorcise her unless Turki...

<p>An NFL analyst who writes for ESPN has been arrested on child porn charges, police said Thursday.</p> <p>Jeremy Green, 38, of Southington was arrested at an area hotel about 5 p.m., police stated in a press release. He was charged with first-degree possession of child pornography, possession of narcotics and possession of drug paraphernalia and was in custody on $750,000 cash bail.</p>

The astonishing success of the Twilight series of vampire novels written by Stephenie Meyer ranks second only to the Harry Potter series in publishing history, and the two films released to date also repeat this pattern. Meyer’s series builds upon the foundation of older novels and cult films, themselves based on the European legends of vampires. The legends predate even these, for there is a long tradition in ancient religions of supernatural beings who are predators on humans, consuming the blood or flesh of the living, tales that can be found in Babylonian, Greek, Persian, Hindu, and Hebrew lore, as...

1673 When the Church asks publicly and authoritatively in the name of Jesus Christ that a person or object be protected against the power of the Evil One and withdrawn from his dominion, it is called exorcism. Jesus performed exorcisms and from him the Church has received the power and office of exorcizing. In a simple form, exorcism is performed at the celebration of Baptism. The solemn exorcism, called "a major exorcism," can be performed only by a priest and with the permission of the bishop. The priest must proceed with prudence, strictly observing the rules established by the Church....

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Former teen idol Leif Garrett was released on bail on Wednesday, after being arrested and booked for heroin possession by police who saw him "shaking and sweating" on a subway platform, a law enforcement spokesman said. Garrett, a 1970s child actor and pop star whose disco-era hits included "I Was Made for Dancing," was arrested on Monday when police approached him on a subway platform in Los Angeles because he was exhibiting "pronounced symptoms" of drug dependency, such as "shaking and sweating," said Steve Whitmore, a spokesman for the L.A. sheriff. Officers searched Garrett and found...

The Dark Backward: Demons in the Real World by Tom Hoopes    2/14/09     "The lunatic is on the grass."   It was an hour before midnight. Ten-year-old James was in his bedroom, alone, when he was suddenly gripped by terror. A Pink Floyd song rang out through the empty room. The radio turned on by itself.   "The lunatic is on the grass. The lunatic is in the hall."   James lay paralyzed, locked in that helpless state that is itself as terrifying as whatever causes it. He wanted to move or cry out but couldn't. So...

"When the Church asks publicly and authoritatively in the name of Jesus Christ that a person or object be protected against the power of the evil one and withdrawn from his dominion, it is called exorcism. Jesus performed exorcisms and from him the Church has received the power and office of exorcising. In a simple form exorcism is performed at the celebration of Baptism. In solemn exorcism, called a 'major' exorcism, can be performed only by a priest and with the permission of the bishop. The priest must proceed with prudence, strictly observing the rules established by the Church. Exorcism...

Please watch Segment 14 and comment on the following discussion items.1. Do fallen angels control human actions? If yes, please give an example. 2. Is it possible to yeild control of one's mind to demonic influences by joking as Carl does? Is it possible to yeild control of one's mind to demonic influences by surrounding oneself with negative music, books, and movies? 4. Do fallen angels use religious leaders to accomplish their agenda? 5. If Satan exists as an active force in the world, what are the limits of his power? Does prayer help? Segment 14: In this segment, Carl...

An American woman who levitated, demonstrated paranormal psychic powers and spoke foreign languages unknown to her was clearly demon possessed, according to a board-certified psychiatrist and associate professor of clinical psychiatry at New York Medical College. The unnamed woman, with a long history of involvement with Satanic groups, was observed by a team of priests, deacons, several lay assistants, psychiatrists, nuns, some of whom also had medical and psychiatric training, levitating six inches off the ground while objects flew off shelves in the same room, according to Dr. Richard E. Gallagher, who documented the case in the February issue of...

A Westminster family planning doctor prescribed an exorcism to a patient seeking contraceptive advice, a medical tribunal has heard. Dr Joyce Pratt, 44, is said to have told the woman she was possessed by an evil spirit and had "something moving inside her". The patient - known as Mrs K for the hearing - mentioned she was experiencing pain and bleeding during an appointment for a routine contraceptive injection, the General Medical Council heard. During the "bizarre" consultation at Westside Contraceptive Services in Westminster, Dr Pratt told Mrs K she would use her "black magic powers" to help her, the...