Father Gabriele Amorth, a renowned Italian exorcist who passed away 10 years ago on Sept. 16, 2016, left behind a valuable legacy of lessons about the devil, drawn from Amorth’s many years of ministry.
Here are seven lessons he shared throughout his life:
1. “Satan is always active. He has been the tempter from the beginning.”
In a June 2004 interview with Italian Vatican expert Sandro Magister, Amorth discussed the state of Satanism and the devil’s influence on contemporary culture.
“In general terms, Satan is always active. He has been the tempter from the beginning. He does everything he can to make man sin, and whenever evil is committed, he is behind it — though it remains clear that man freely chooses his own actions. But there is also an extraordinary form of action by the evil one: diabolical possession,” he said at the time.
2. “The world is under the power of the devil.”
In the book “The Last Exorcist,” co-authored with Vatican expert Paolo Rodari, Amorth stated that “the world is under the power of the devil. And alongside Satan are many of his prophets — people whom the Bible calls false prophets. False because they lead to lies rather than the truth.”
“These people exist both outside and within the Church. They are easily recognizable: They claim to speak on behalf of the Church, yet they speak on behalf of the world. They demand that the Church assume the roles of the world, and in doing so, they confuse the faithful and steer the Church into waters that are not its own. They are the waters of the evil one,” he added.
3. “Satan attacks the pope above all.”
In his book “The Last Exorcist,” Amorth also noted that “Satan attacks the pope above all. His hatred for the successor of Peter is fierce. I have experienced this in my exorcisms.”
“After the pope, Satan attacks cardinals, bishops, and all priests and religious. It is only natural for this to be the case. No one should be scandalized by it. Priests and religious are called to a fierce spiritual battle.”
4. Invoking St. John Paul II is effective against the devil.
In May 2011, Amorth told ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, that St. John Paul II had become, in recent years, “a powerful intercessor in the fight against the devil.”
“I have asked the devil more than once: ‘Why are you so afraid of John Paul II?’ And I received two different answers, both interesting. The first was: ‘Because he dismantled my plans.’ And I believe that refers to the fall of communism in Russia and Eastern Europe — the collapse of communism.”
“Another answer the devil gave me was: ‘Because he snatched many young people from my hands.’ There are many young people who converted thanks to John Paul II. Perhaps some were already Christians but not practicing, and then, through John Paul II, they returned to the practice of the faith,” he explained.
5. The devil “wants the death of the Church because she is the mother of the saints.”
Amorth addressed the smear campaign against then-Pope Benedict XVI, whom some accused of covering up sexual abuse committed by members of the clergy, when in reality it was he who established the zero-tolerance policy. The exorcist denounced at the time that the devil “uses” priests to cast blame on the entire Church.
“The devil has it in for the Church; he wants the death of the Church because she is the mother of the saints. He fights the Church through men of the Church, but he cannot prevail against the Church itself,” he noted.
The experienced exorcist also stated that “the devil tempts men of the Church, so it should not surprise us if even priests — who possess every divine aid, such as prayer and the sacraments — fall into temptation. They, too, live in the world and can fall just like men of the world.”
6. The most effective intercessor of all is the Virgin Mary.
In May 2002, when asked about the most effective intercessor of all, Amorth told ACI Prensa that “of course, the Virgin is the most effective. And especially when you invoke her as Mary!”
“I once asked Satan: ‘But why are you more afraid when I invoke Our Lady than when I invoke Jesus Christ?’ He answered: ‘Because it humiliates me more to be defeated by a human creature than to be defeated by him.’”
7. The devil is in “everything that denies God.”
Speaking to the Peruvian newspaper El Comercio, Amorth recounted an occasion when a cardinal told him: “Be honest, the devil doesn’t exist.” The priest replied: “You ought to read a book that will be very useful to you: the Gospel.”
Furthermore, the exorcist described the devil as being present in “everything that denies God,” such as “abortion, divorce, homosexuality, satanic rock music, or programs featuring violence and sex on television.”
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.