CHAPTER IV

Of Divine and Supernatural Remedies. Argument.
f ‘HERE are many remedies of this sort which men ought always to use ; for they always help the soul and never harm the body, and often they cure or prevent the sicknesses and other ills of witchcraft. These have been approved by the wiser physicians and catholic-minded men, such as Jean Fernel (Uniuersa Medicina I1), Cornelio Gemma (Cosmocrit.), Baptista Gadron- chi (de Morbis ueneficis), Andrea Cesal- pini (Disquisit. de nat. daem.), and others. The first of these remedies is a true and lively faith, fortified with the love of God and His Son. S. Paul bids us to take this as a shield (Zh. vi and I. Thess. v). S. Antony the Great also commends this to his disciples, say- ing: ‘““O my dearly beloved, a sincere life and a pure faith in God are mighty weapons against the devil.” Cornelius Chempensis (De origine et situ Fristae, 11, 31) affirms the same in the following words: “‘About the time of the Emperor Lothair there were throughout all Friesland,” etc. And the same author proceeds to say how S. Cyprian (Ad Fortunatum, de exhortat. Martyrit) and Lactantius (II, 16) and Ambrosius Ansbertus* (Jn Apoc. V, 11) teach that the observance of God’s Commandments and innocence of life are the most effective remedies pos- sible. And Nider (In Epitom. Formic. cap. 4), quoting a certain Peter, praises the following five most efficaci- ous remedies: To have an entire faith,
* ““Ambrosius Ansbertus.’? Ambrose Aut- pert, an early mediaeval writer and Benedictine Abbot; born in France early in the eighth cen- tury, and died after ruling little more than a year at his monastery of S. Vincent on the Vol- turno, near Benevento, 778 or 779. “‘Ambrosit Ansbertt Galli presbytert ...1n sancti Ioan- nis.” ‘‘Apostoli et Euangelistae Apocalypsim libri decem...nune primum typis excusi’ (Cura Eucharit Ceruicornt). Coloniae, per E. Ceruicornium, folio, 1536. /
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and keep the commandments of God ; to protect oneself with the sign of the Cross and with prayer; to honour the rites and ceremonies of the Church; to execute public justice truly; to contemplate aloud or in secret Christ’s passion,
The second is a lawful use of the Sacraments of the Catholic Church; as, for example, Baptism in the case of those not yet initiated into the Faith. For it is proved by experience that they who are known not to have been baptised are freed from magic spells by means of unconditionally adminis- tered baptism: while for such as may with probability be assumed not to have been baptised, the same benefit is obtained from a conditional baptism. When I speak of a probable assump- tion, I mean that an unsubstantiated conjecture is insufficient to warrant even a conditional baptism.
The third remedy is to have recourse to holy men and to seek help from them who are known to possess the gift of working miracles (a gift which may be found, though rarely, even in those whose life is not upright, so long as they have the true faith; as may be seen from the Gospels (Matth. vii, Mark ix, Luke x)). Although there are hardly any now (at least in Europe) who have this gift, it was formerly much used as a remedy: for all sacred his- tories are full of examples of men who have profitably had recourse to holy men. And it is agreed that not all they who cast out demons were ordained by the Church into the order of Exor- cists. Of old, certainly, holy men put to flight and conquered demons simply by their presence, as we read of S. Macarius of Alexandria in Palladius, chapters 19 and 20; of Aegyptius in Sozomen, Bk. VI, chap. 20; of S. Cuthbert in chapter 15 of his Life written by Bede; of S. Rusticus in John Cassian, Collat. 14, chap. 7; and of many others everywhere in the histories.
The fourth remedy is Ritual Exor- cism. Touching this it is to be noted
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that this order of Exorcists has existed in the Church for 1300 years, as is clear from the Epistle of S. Ignatius to Antioch; .and the Epistle of Pope Cornelius* to Fabius preserved by Eusebius; (Hist. Eccl. VI, xliii.) and from the Letters of Firmilianus to S. Cyprian, and from other Fathers.
The fifth way is to seek a remedy by sufficient works of mercy, by fasting, alms-giving, and prayer. Alms-giving is commended by the authority of the Canon, chapter si per sortiarias. With regard to fasting, I find that S. Auxen- tiust the Abbot prescribed it to a certain countess, as Metaphrastes re- cords in his Life, February 14th. And S. Procopius the Monk very often won the victory against the demon by means of fasting.t We have, more- over, Christ to witness in Matth. xvii and Mark xxix. As for prayer, there survives a verse of an anonymous old versifier :
Against the Fiend’s might Prayer is a weapon right.
* “Poe Cornelius.’? 251-252. This Pon- tiff in his letter to Fabius mentions that there were then in the Roman Church forty-two acolytes and fifty-two exorcists, readers and door-keepers, and the formal institution of these orders together with the organisation of their functions was probably the work of Pope Fabian, 236-251. The practice of exorcism, not confined to any one particular order, pre- vailed in the Church from the very foundation, the power of exorcism being given to the Apostles by Our Lord Himself.
T “S. Auxentius.”? The “Roman Martyr- ology’ under 14 February has: “‘In Bithynia, of S. Auxentius, Abbot.’’ See the Bollandists for this day.
t “Fasting.” The Homily of S. Basil the Great, ““Homilia I de ieiunio,”’ rises to supreme heights of sacred eloquence. Passages are read in the Roman Breviary in the Second Nocturn of Matins on the Fourth Sunday of Lent. ““Teiunium legislatores sapientes facit: animae optima custodia, corporis socius securus, forti- bus uiris munimentum et arma, athletis et certantibus exercitatio. Hoc propterea tenta- tionem propulsat, ad pietatem armat, cum sobrietate habitat, temperantiae opifex est.’
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The sixth is a devout invocation of the Name of the Saviour Jesus Christ, or of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or a prayer for help to the Guardian Angel. All the most ancient ecclesiastical writers assert so firmly and _ fre- quently the power of the Name of the Saviour that it would be super- fluous to collect their words. There are many examples of the invocation of the Blessed Virgin, especially that famous one of Theophilus § about which, among others, Honorius|| of Autun treats in the Seal of Mary. The help from the Guardian Angel is testified
§ “Theophilus.” This history is well known. Theophilus had made so formal compact with Satan that he actually signed away his soul with a written deed. Even in his darkest mo- ments, however, he cherished some love and honour for Our Lady, and at the hour of his doom Mary intervened to save him, since She took the charter from the evil one and signally protected Her servant, who repented and made a good death. This instance of the omnipotent power of the Mother of God and the salutary effects of devotion to Her may be found in one of the earliest collections of Miracles of Our Lady, that which goes under the name of Botho (or Potho), an Abbot of Priefling near Ratisbon in the eleventh century. It 1s quoted by S. Peter Damian, S. Bernard, S. Bonaventura, §. Anto- ninus, and many other writers of authority. In ** The Glories of Mary” S. Alphonsus Liguori gives it as the “‘example’’ in the second section of his commentary on “‘Ad Te suspiramus.”” It 1s also related on the Twenty-fourth Day of “The Love of Mary,’ a golden treatise by Dom Roberto, a Camaldolese Hermit of Monte Corona. S. Peter Damian cries: ““O Mary, Who couldst snatch Theophilus from the very jaws of perdition, what is there that Thou canst not do?”
|| “‘Hfonorius.’? A theologian, philosopher, and encyclopaedist who lived in the first half of the twelfth century. Although many works from his pen have won considerable reputation, of his life practically nothing is known, and it has even been discussed whether ‘‘of August’’ (near Basle) or “‘of Augsburg’? (in Suabia) ought not to be read instead of “‘of Autun’’ in Ber- gundy. The ‘‘Sigillum Beatae Mariae’’ is an exposition upon the ‘‘Canticle of Canticles.” The works of Honorius will be found in Migne, **Patres Latini,” CLXXII.
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by Origen contra Celsum, Bk. VI, and S. Golanduch, who is mentioned by his contemporary Evagrius,* Bk. VI. chap. 19.
The seventh is the sign of the Holy Cross,t in commendation of which a whole book could be compiled from the writings of the Holy Fathers and from actual examples. See S. Cyprian, Serm. de Passtone Christi; Origen upon Job, Bk. III; Lactantius, De Uera Sapientia IV, 26; S. Antony as quoted by S. Athanasius; S. Athanasius him- self, De Incarnatione Uerbi XLVIII; S. Gregory of Naziansus, Oration. 1. in Julianum, and ad Nemesium; S. John Chrysostom, the 8th homily on the Epistle to the Colossians, and the 50th homily upon S. Matthew; S. Cyril, Cathechesis 4, de Ascensione; Diego Niceno the Basilian in the Life of the Thaumaturges; S. Jerome in the Life of S. Hilarion; S. Augustine, de Symbol. ad Cathecumen, Bk. II, and Serm. 81, - de tempore; Theodoret in the Life of Macedonius, and Hist. III, 3 and V, 21; S. Gregory, Dialogues II, 10, and many others.
The eighth safeguard is the Relicst of the Saints, of which we read: ““Thy friends, O God, are greatly honoured, and their kingdom is very secure.” But care must be taken not to mingle certain superstitious rites with this most sacred worship, as Silvester§
* “* Fuagrius.”” Scholasticus, born in 536 at Epiphania in Cele-Syria; died after 594, the exact date being unknown. Of all his works one alone survives, the important ‘Ecclesiastical History” in six books.
t “Holy Cross.” O Crux aue spes unica! See also Baltus, ‘“‘Histoire des Oracles,’ I, p. 304, etc.
+ “Relics.” The virtue of Holy Relics is indeed inestimable. I have myself known and experienced many instances of this. Upon one occasion a Relic of S. Antony of Padua, ven- erated in the private Oratory of Our Lady of Loreto, healed and restored permanent health to a sick man. Mirabilis Deus in sanctis suis.
§ “Silvester.” Francis Silvester (Ferrarjen- sis), Dominican, 1474-1526. It 1s difficult to see how any superstition could be connected with
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warns us, speaking of the word Relics. For to the Saints superstition is odious, religion is pleasing. ‘This was attested by S. Glyceria the Martyr, from whose personal garments there was distilled a most sweet and healing unguent for all diseases ; but one day the Bishop of Heraclea unwittingly tried to collect the unguent in a silver vase which had been used for purposes of sorcery, and the holy ointment at once ceased to be distilled. The Bishop therefore enquired diligently into the matter and found that that vessel had been used for unspeakable purposes; there- fore he removed it and put another in its place, whereupon the ointment flowed again as before. This is told by S. Nicephorus,|| XVIII, 32.
The ninth remedy is of most ancient standing in the Church and is of wonderful efficacy, namely Holy Water blessed by the solemn rite ordained for its benediction. One sort, which is called Baptismal, is con- secrated on the Eves of Easter and Pentecost. The other, called Lustral, is consecrated at Prime on every Sunday, and it is avowedly for repel- ling the attacks of the devil, and for averting other dangers. Its use was known before the time of Pope S. Alexander I,§] and has always been
Holy Relics, save indeed these hallowed objects were abused by heretics and witches in their dark rites. Such instances have occurred. No doubt at is to this that Silvester and Guazzo refer.
|| “SS. Nicephorus.”? Born about 758; died 2 June, 829; Patriarch of Constantinople 8o6— 815. This holy and orthodox champion of the veneration of Images was sorely persecuted by the abominable iconoclasts, and his dogmatic treatises upon the controversy have the greatest weight. His feast 1s celebrated both in West and East on 13 March, which day he was in- terred in the Church of the Holy Apostles at Constantinople.
| “*Pope S. Alexander I.” S. Irenaeus tells us that he was the fifth Pope in succession from S. Peter. Duchesne dates his pontificate 106- 115; Lightfoot, trog-116. ‘“‘Constituit aquam sparsionis cum sale benedici in habitacults hominum.”’
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retained by all Catholics to their great advantage. It is worshipfully men- tioned in the Life of S. Gregory the Great by John the Deacon, a Monk of Monte Cassino, who says that those possessed by devils are delivered when sprinkled with it; and that this miracle is often renewed to-day among the Indians.
Tenthly, there are other things which the Catholic rite is wont to bless for a remedy, as waxen discs which we call Agnus Deis because of the print of a lamb on one side. Of their efficacy there is a book by Vincenzo Bonar- do,* and Pietro Mattei speaks much of them in 7 Decretal.{ When the Pope blesses them, he asks God to grant all kinds of favours to those who wear them devoutly. Of the same sort are Blessed Grain, Blessed Candles, Blessed Salt, and Blessed Bread.
Eleventh are pious writings or sacred amulets hung around the neck, such as the Apostles’ Creed; the be- ginning of the Gospel of S. John, “Zn Principo erat Uerbum’’; or verses of some Psalm. These were much used of old; and Manuel de Costat writes that in our own time a devil was driven out of a demoniac at Hormuz by this means. But for this remedy to be lawful S. Thomas says that there must be two conditions: first that nothing super- stitious is mingled with the sacred words, as that one should put faith in the shape or colour of the letters, or
* “Vincenzo Bonardo.”? The work here al- luded to is this author’s famous ‘‘Discorso intorno all’ origine, antichita e virtu degli Agnus Dei di cera benedetti,’’ Roma, 1586.
} “7 Decretal.”’ The collection of Clement V published by Fohn XXII on 25 October, 1317, under the tatle of “Liber septimus Decre- talium,”’ but better known as ‘‘Constitutiones Clementis V’’ or “‘Clementinae.”? This ts the last official collection of decretals, and the glosses of the canonist Mattei were long highly esteemed.
t “Manuel de Costa.” A famous canonist of Salamanca, who when the University of Coimbra was at the height of its reputation accepted a chair in the faculty of law at the particular invitation of Fohn III (1521-57).
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the manner of writing, or the material of the paper or the ink; and second that the wearer’s intention must be righteous, and he must piously ob- serve the sense of the words and put his true hope in God.
Twelfth is the ringing of Bells§ in the Catholic Church (for heretics take more delight in the explosion of grenades). ‘This we know from daily experience to be so hostile and inimical to demons that they are prevented by it from raising up violent storms, and even if they have been already raised it lulls them or turns them aside else- where, as has been rightly asserted by the Council of Cologne, chapter 24. _
Let us now come to some examples of all these remedies of which we have spoken.
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Examples. 1. Of Faith.
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Johann Nider in his Formicarius (IV) tells the following: A certain witch said: ““When a man once asked me to kill an enemy of his, or else to injure him grievously by a stroke of lightning or in some other way, I invoked my Little Master, or demon, who answered that he could do neither: for he said that the man had a pure faith and protected himself diligently with the sign of the Cross; therefore he could not injure him in his body but, if I would, he could destroy an eleventh part of his crops in his field.”
The Empress Justina sent against our Father S. Ambrose a witch named Innocentius, who afterwards openly
§ “Bells.” Boguet,“‘An Examen of Witches? (John Rodker, 1929), tells us: “Satan holds bells in extreme detestation; for by their ringing the people are warned to prepare to observe their duty and pray to God. Also they drive away storms and tempests.”
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confessed that he had delegated some demons to kill S$. Ambrose, but they had been unable to approach even the door of the house in which the Bishop was; for the house was pro- tected all round by an unquenchable fire which burned there even at a distance; and so their wiles were thwarted, and baffled was the mis- chief by which he thought to have done injury to the Priest and Bishop of God.
John Cassian relates that two philo- sophers tried to trouble S. Antony by means of magical illusions and the deceits of demons. But when with all their labour they could effect nothing, and that was all the result of the plots they had sought out with such deep magic, it became very evident to them that there was great virtue in the professions of the Christians; for the same savage Powers of Darkness which could, as they thought, at will obscure the sun and moon, were not only unable to injure S. Antony, but could not even cause him the slightest disturbance in his monastery. ‘There- fore S. Epiphanius denounces the heretical opinion of the Ebionites* that there is no virtue in an invocation which uses the name of Christ and the sign of the Cross.
About the time of the Emperor Lothair Friesland was infested with a great number of Spectres of Hellish Serpent-fiends who lived in an under- ground cave in a little overhanging brow of a high hill, which they had built by magic without human help. Here lived those whom the ancients called White Nymphs, who used to seize upon night-farers, and such as kept watch over their flocks and herds in the open, and yet more frequently they snared women with the children they had just borne; and the spectres used to take them secretly to their
* “Ebionites.”? Early Christian sects in- fected with Fudaistic and (later) with Gnostic errors. In the time of S. Epiphanius only a few obscure communities existed among the scat- tered hamlets of Syria.
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hidden underground caves, from which there could then be heard the sound
_ of murmuring under the ground, and
the wailing of children and the loud weeping and moans of men; and sometimes singing and other uncer- tain sounds were heard. For this reason a careful watch was set upon pregnant women and little children, lest they should be seized unawares by those hellish Nymphs. But all these devilish illusions vanished and came to nought after they received the true Gospel of God; for erstwhile the Frisians were deluded by the errors of Sabellius and Arius.
2. Of Baptism.
We read in Ecclesiastical History that Tiridates, King of Armenia, afflicted the Christians in the time of Diocletian with various massacres and persecutions, and that he placed S. Gregory} to die of hunger in a deep
+ “S. Gregory.”? Surnamed the Illuminator, the apostle of Armenia. He was born c. 257 and died c. 337. S. Gregory after having been at first persecuted by King Trdat (Tiridates) eventually converted that monarch, and with his aid spread Christianity throughout the country. This happened whilst Diocletian was emperor (284-305). There is a famous life of S. Gre- gory by Agathangelos which was composed shortly after the year 456 in Armenian, whence it was turned into Greek, used by Symeon Meta- phrastes, and translated into Latin early in the tenth century.
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and muddy pit. Moreover, because she would not comply with his de- sires, he ordered to a most cruel death the virgin Rhipsime, together with many of her pious companions. But he soon felt the vengeance of God. For he was afflicted with madness so that he raged like one possessed, and his body was changed into that of a pig, and in his madness he tore his meat with his teeth. And others who had approved his deeds, the soldiers, magistrates, and officers, were also driven mad and showed the same symptoms; for they too were changed into swine (as Nicephorus will have it), or suffered from a delusion to that effect (as Metaphrastes thinks). But at last they were washed in the font of Baptism and recovered the shape of their bodies and the health of their minds and souls, being baptised and urged to repentance by S. Gregory the Martyr himself;—not the Thau- maturge, as is thought by Nicephorus and some scholiasts, but the other one [S. Gregory the Illuminator], as Metaphrastes teaches. And this evil was not brought upon them by any magic art, as one learned man thinks, but by the vengeance of God working through the evil Angels.
Kazan* the King of the Tartars, otherwise known as the Great Cham, conquered Syria and the surrounding lands with two hundred thousand horsemen ; and having thus made him- self an object of fear to all, he de- manded in marriage the daughter of the King of Armenia, whom he had heard to be very beautiful. The Christian King, fearing the might of this great King, agreed. After some time she bore a son to her husband Kazan, so hideous that the King her husband would by no means acknow- ledge it as his, since it appeared to be a monster. He summoned his chief men to a council, and on their advice sentenced to death his wife as an
* “Kazan.” This history is from Gio- vannt Villani, “‘Croniche,’’ Venice, 1537, Book VIII, chapter 35.
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adulteress, and her son as having been conceived in adultery. The innocent woman bewailed her misfortune and took refuge in prayer, and while still unaware of the sentence which had been passed upon her, asked permis- sion to baptise her son.. This was granted on condition that there were present some men of known reliability, as well as the King, to see that there was no fraudulent practice. By a miracle, when the boy was baptised he at once became so exceeding comely and beautiful that the King and many others were moved wholly to turn to God, and the Christian cause was very greatly advanced in the land. S. Antoninus tells this story at greater length in his Histortarum Opus, tit. 20, c. 8. Let us turn to more recent and equally proved examples. Pedro Cieza de Leon describes a miraculous victory over spectres granted by God by means of this holy sacrament of Baptism. I will quote faithfully from his Cronica del Peru.
Near Anzerma, in a place called Pirsa, reigned an Inca who had a youthful brother named Tamara- cunga. This young man_ thirsted eagerly for baptism and _ therefore tried to seek the company of Chris- tians; but he was frightened by demons which appeared to him in strange forms, for they were visible to him alone, in the shape of huge birds, the condor of the Andes. Seeing the demons thus raging, the young man ordered a poor Christian of the neigh- bourhood to be summoned; and he came without delay and, hearing the will of the Inca, made the sign of the Cross upon his brow. This did but the more enrage those enemies, whom only the Indian saw threatening him even more furiously ; for the Christian saw nothing but falling stones, and heard the whistling of demons. By good fortune there then came to that place a Spaniard named Pacheco who offered to help the other Chris- tian in his difficulty. While these two were striving, Tamaracunga trembled more violently and grew pale with
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fear, and was snatched up into the air. This was seen by all, and they heard his prayers and groans, and the howling and whistling of the demons. Once, when the Indian was holding a cup of wine, behold, the cup was lifted up in the air and returned empty of wine, and soon the wine was again poured into it from on high; and the India, full of fear, tried to hide his face with his garment so that he might not see the horrible spectres: yet, without removing the garments with which his face was covered, they took possession of his mouth and nearly throttled him in his throat. At ‘length the Christians, who had mean- while been praying continually to God, decided to take him to the town of Anzerma and there sprinkle him from the saving font. More than three hundred Indians offered to accom- pany them, but they were so terrified that they dared not come near the chief who was to be baptised. They came all together to a place where they were hindered by a broken road, and there some human enemies tried to pick up the chieftain and cast him over a precipice: but he cried aloud to the Christians to help him, and while the Indians retreated in terror, they placed him in their midst, bind- ing him with ropes to their girdles, and so guarding him they went on together, bearing three crosses in their hands and not ceasing to pray for the deliverance and salvation of the un- happy man. Not even so did they pro- ceed free from all molestation: for the Enemy often threw him to the ground, and as they ascended a hill on their way they had the greatest difficulty in saving him from some birds that tried to snatch him up and kill him. When they came to Anzerma, the Christians in the town met at the house of Pacheco, where they all saw a violent hail-storm, and heard the demons shouting and whistling, together with that terrible war cry of the Indians— Hu, Hu, Hu! The demons threatened him with death unless he abandoned his wish for baptism; they execrated
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the God of the Christians who would not permit them to seize the living soul from the Indian’s body. With the hail still falling they went to the church where, because it was a thatched building, the Sacrament was not reserved. Some say that before they entered it they heard something walking. When the church was open and the rest had gone in with the Indian, the Indian saw demons of frightful appearance but with their heads bent down towards their feet. When Brother Juan of the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy made ready to baptise him, the demons, unseen by any of the Chris- tians, visibly snatched the Indian into the air and stood him up on high with his head down in the same posture as themselves. The Christians then, rely- ing on their faith, cried aloud: “‘Jesus Christ, help us!’? and dragged back the Indian, and holding him put a sacred stole about his neck and sprinkled him with Holy Water; yet whistlings and groans were still heard in the church. Tamaracunga saw the demons, and received many blows from them; for they brandished darts before his eyes, and spat their fetid saliva in his face. These things hap- pened at night. In the morning a monk put on his sacred vestments to offer the bloodless Sacrifice; and he had hardly begun the Mass when the whistling, groaning, howling and clanking ceased, and the Indian was no more molested. As soon as the Sacrifice was done, Tamaracunga together with his wife and children asked to be baptised: and when he had been baptised he became stronger and bolder in the Faith, and asserted that he was now a Christian and would like to see what the Enemy could do if they would let him brave them alone. But they did not dare to attack him, alone as he was. Unable to con- tain his joy he marched up and down the church three or four times shout- ing: “I am a Christian, I am a Chris- tian!”? And when he found himself safe and victorious, he went home and
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was no more molested: so great was the might of Baptism.
At Bungo in the year 1596 there was a heathen woman possessed by a demon, and she was told that she could not be delivered unless she became a Christian. She consented and was already preparing for baptism when, on the following night, the demon dissuaded her from becoming a Christian, saying: “Have you been associated with me in such intimate familiarity for so long, and will you desert me now? You shall not do so with impunity.”® And as she slept and felt nothing, he cut off her hair leaving but one tress upon her head. When in the morning she saw that her hair had been cut off and woven into the reeds of the opposite bed, she took it as a spur to be baptised the sooner. This she did and, having received that Sacrament, she was immune from all the torments of the demon. This is told by Luis Frées in his Japanese Letters of that year; and he adds the following :
In the island of Chusan there kept appearing to a young heathen, eigh- teen years of age, a horrible great red dog which spoke with him and led him through the mountains to most remote places, keeping him there for two or three days, and compelling him to lift up his hands and worship him, and to do other unmentionable things. The unhappy youth, seeing that he was so molested by the mortal foe of the human race, at last fled to the church, heard and learned the Christian doctrine, and was bound to Christ by the Sacrament of Baptism ; after which he was no more molested by that hell-hound.
At Bungo about the year 1549 a certain man had a serving maid who was familiar with a demon. For the demon used to come to her every night in the likeness of a fox and lead her from the house: but when she embraced the faith through Baptism, she was delivered from this spectre.
In 1583 at Munich in Bavaria a
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young Jew twenty-three years old was, to the gratification of all, baptised in the College of the Jesuits. A demon laid many wonderful snares for him; and the more the youth sought for Baptism, the more violently did the demon assail him. He threw him nearly naked out of the house; some- times he nearly throttled him; often he frightened him with visions and spectres so as to drive him out of his mind. The face of the demon was so foully hideous that the youth said that there was no torture to be compared with the sight of him. On the day before he was to be baptised, .it was then or never for the demon to gain the victory; and the bitter Enemy so violently took hold upon the youth that he could hardly be held in one place by many men. But when he was made a member of Christ through Baptism, the demon was at once broken and deprived of his strength.
3. Of Confession.
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Anno 1591, in a certain Cisalpine Valley in the Diocese of Novara, there was a girl who was quite out of her senses, and seemed to be amazed and stupefied by the spectres and shades which she seemed to see. In the farthest part of this valley of which we speak there was a wise woman, or witch, who claimed to cure with her charms diseases which could not other- wise be cured; and a great many men
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went to her for help and advice. Although the priests warned them that it was a sin, yet when they had departed, the girl’s mother, moved by a mother’s care, took the girl to ask the witch’s help about the shades. Then the witch said: “Take the girl to the priests and ask help from them.”? The father and mother took the girl a journey of eight miles, and told the priests what the witch had said: and after they had confessed their sins, they were bidden to fortify themselves with the Holy Body of Christ. And when they had done so the girl became better.
About the year 1591, at Pont-a- Mousson in Lorraine, there was a boy of noble birth but poor fortune who was, at his parents’ bidding, taken from school and assigned a position at the Court. But his active spirit rebelled at this and, longing for his former life, he preferred to go and live with the servants in the military camps. As he was on his way, he met a black man in silken garments who asked him why he was sad, and promised to find a remedy. “‘But,” said he, “‘if I help you, what reward will you give me?” But the boy said: “If you turn me up and shake me, you won’t find a farthing.”’ But the other answered: “Only give yourself to me, and no wish of yours shall be in vain.” The boy thought he was being asked for as a slave, and demanded time to con- sider; and the other loaded him with great promises, so that even the boy wondered at such vain words and began to suspect the hidden presence of a cacodemon in the form of the man. He then silently observed the whole of his body, and saw that his left foot was deformed with a cloven hoof; and at once in horror he mur- mured the name of Jesus and made the sign of the Cross on his brow; and at the same time the terrible spectre vanished. On the third day as he was returning to his own people, the same demon appeared and was again be- trayed by his foot, and asked whether
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185
he had made up his mind. The boy answered that he did not require a master ; and, on being asked where he was going, named the town. Then the demon threw at his feet a jingling purse containing thirty or forty gul- den of bronze (as was later tested by fire). Then he gave him a poisonous powder wrapped in linen, telling him how to afflict whom he would with sudden death, and how to satisfy his base lusts; and warned him to abstain from the use of Holy Water and from adoring the Consecrated Host (which he contemptuously called ‘““The Little Cake’). The boy, shrinking in his pious heart from this blasphemy, and at the same time fearing lest he should have his neck twisted or be strangled by the master, made the saving sign of the Cross upon his breast, and at once fell with a crash to the ground, and could not rise for half an hour. Soon afterwards he came back to his mother and his school; and having obtained forgiveness of his sins by a good confession, rejoiced to find him- self freed both from the snare of the hunter and from his fear, through the help of God.
Hear some more ancient examples. “‘Certane marchandis* wer passand betwix Forth and Flanderis (quhen haistelie came sic ane Thud of wynd) that sail mast and taikillis were blawin in the brym seis, throw quhilk the schip belevit nocht bot sicker derth. The patroun thairof astonist with sa huge and uncouth tempestis againis the season of the yeir because it wes about Sanct Barnabyis day (quhen the seis apperis more calme than rageande) éraistit the samyn war cumin be illusioun of the devil the ennyme of man, than be violence of weddir. In the mene tyme the voce wes hard of ane woman in the bow of the schip wariand hir self. For the instant hour scho wes conversit with ane devil in
* “Certane marchandis.” Hector Boece, ““Scotorum Historiae,’? viit. Bellenden’s translation (15306).
186
ymage of ane man. And schew how this devill had usit hir in that maner mony yeris afore. And thairfore be- socht the pepill to cast hir in the seis, that be hir deith the remenant pepill in the schip mycht be savit. Than be command of the patroun ane preist went to hir in the hevy cheir. Com- mandying hir to mak confessioun of hir abhominable lyfe. And to have confidence in God, be quhais mercy all synnis ar purgit, quhen the synnar hes repentance and teris. Quhen this woman wes makand hir confessioun with gret repentance to the preist in sycht of all the pepill ane uglie cloud with ane crak of fyre and reik flew out of the schip and fell down with ane vennomus stink in the seis. Incon- tinent this tempest ceissit.”” (From Bellenden’s translation, published 1536.)
Peter the Venerable, Abbot of Cluny, describing the terrible tor- menting of a certain Monk, agonies which could not be relieved either by prayer or by the use of Holy Water, in all sober truth adds the following words: “But lest any should marvel that the demon was not put to flight by Holy Water, let him know that when the plague is seated internally no outward application of salves can avail. And by the plague I mean mortal sin which, as long as it lurks within a man, cannot be removed by partaking of an external sacrament.” But the Abbot urged the Monk to make confession of his sins; and after he had confessed he at once ceased to be tormented.
Caesarius tells that at Bonn a priest who had led an abominable life made an end of himself by hanging. When he was dead his concubine entered a Convent, wishing to repent; but by the permission of God she was con- tinually solicited by an Incubus Devil to sin with him. She drove him away with the sign of the Cross and with Holy Water; and when he again returned she devoutly recited the Angelic Salutation, upon which he fled further than a bow-shot: but the
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BK. III. CH. IV.
importunate fornicator never returned after she had purged herself clean of all the stains of her life by a general confession.
It is recorded that a man at Liége was similarly vexed by a most pestilent Succubus Devil. But let us relate a more recent example. In Austria in the year 1591 a nobleman was en- slaved by a great love, near to mad- ness; and no worldly advice or divine admonition could persuade him to cease from it, so entirely was his heart filled with the fire of this poison. But he was cured of his frenzy in the following manner, being stricken with the fear of God. He had contracted a slight fever and was lying in his bed at night, when he saw before him a fiery chariot drawn by a horse blazing with fire, and the charioteer in the form of a hideous monster even more savage than the Evil Spirit himself, than whom there is nothing more fear- ful to mortals. ‘Why do you delay,” he said, “to mount into a chariot which is worthy of your deserts?” The unhappy man was paralysed with fear, but at last recovered his courage and seized a sword which was by the bed and brandished it, crying aloud the while for his servants to come to his help. The attendants ran up in terror, and the whole household was aroused from sleep; even the neigh- bours were awakened, some of them asking the reason for the tumult and then covering their ears and eyes with their blankets to hide themselves from the terror. But when the tumult con- tinued and their fear was not appeased, but rather spread to the breasts of others, despite the hour of the night the priests were sent for, being Re- ligious of the Society of Jesus. These came and, by the use of Holy Water, the sign of the Cross, and blessed wax imprinted with the Lamb, calmed the terror a little while the sick man asserted that the demon had departed for the present with a threatening countenance full of savage anger. Then, when he had confessed his sins,
BK. III. CH. IV.
he was delivered from his shameful love and from the sad terror in his soul.
At the same time in Bavaria a poor woman was induced, either by the lightness of her nature or by poverty, to give herself to a demon in return for his help; and though she did not at the time perceive his presence, she felt that she was in his power. After she had recovered from her poverty, she paid the penalty for her rash words; for she was not only haunted by sore alarm, but was even beaten with blows and prevented from ap- proaching a church: yet she alone could see the rods that menaced her. She told the matter to a certain matron who led her to a priest, by whom she was purged in confession, and so was delivered from all moles- tation, having hung about her neck a waxen image of the Celestial Lamb.
The same remedy was used for another who suffered under the same affliction. At the instigation of her kindred a woman broke her vows of chastity and outraged the monastic life by contracting an incestuous mar- riage. But she was not unpunished ; for she had wedded an evil man, and she was in perpetual anguish of con- science, and so lived wretchedly. Weighed down by these cares, and in need of solace, she went one day out of the house and soon, to her utter horror, saw a demon. She drove him away with the sign of the Cross; but immediately she became as one mad, and meditated every abominable crime in her heart. Yet there shone a ray of light in this darkness when she took refuge in prayer; and, like a cloud at the rising of the sun, her fear departed and she suddenly thought of confes- sion and remembered the vow she had broken. But when this hot-bed of vice came to the church, the more she tried to come to the priest the more she was withheld from confession as if by a hand that restrained her: yet at last, with the help and example of others, she conquered both herself and the evil spirit.
MALEFICARUM
187 4. Of Confirmation.
Thomas of Brabant, De Bono Uniuer- sali, c. lvii, writes as follows: The Venerable Boniface, one time Bishop of Lausanne, related in my hearing a story to the following effect. There was in a certain town a blind man who used to watch the cows of the whole town at pasture, keeping them off the tilled land and leading them to the richest pastures. What was even more wonderful, he could tell the colour and appearance of each separ- ate cow; so that if you asked him for such a cow of such a colour, he would take that cow by the horns and bring it to you without any difficulty. A bishop came to the place and, having heard and proved this marvel of the blind man, asked him if he had re- ceived the Sacrament of Confirmation from a bishop; and he said that he had not. The bishop at once confirmed him ; and thereupon he lost that power of discrimination between the different cows. For he had done this through the operation and ministry of demons.
5. Of the Eucharist.
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Saint Prosper* writes: In our own times a girl of Arab race, who wore
* “Saint Prosper.’ The dates of his birth and death are uncertain. He is first mentioned in 428 or 429, when he writes to S. Augustine, and he appears to have been living rather later than 455. It does not seem that he was Bishop of Reggio, as was once believed.
188 COMPENDIUM
the habit of a handmaiden of God, was once washing herself in a bath when she cast immodest eyes upon a statue of Venus, comparing herself with it, and so offered herself as a dwelling place for the devil. For he who goes about as a roaring lion at once found what he sought and entered into her throat. For nearly seventy days and nights no food or drink passed down her throat, and the devil proved his mastery and pos- session of her by this fast. The girl’s parents, hoping to be able to put an end to this prodigy after so many days, and unable to endure the evil yoke any longer, went with their daughter to a priest and faithfully told him what had happened. The girl only confessed that a bird had appeared to her in the middle of the night and had poured something into her mouth. All were amazed to see the girl showing no signs of her long fast, being neither pale nor wasted nor weakened, but on the contrary organically sound and robust of limb. And when the story seemed incredible, they held a council in a nunnery where were certain Relics of S. Stephen, and the priest and the Prior com- mended the girl to God. On the first day there she asserted that the bird had appeared to her and rated her because neither hunger nor thirst had driven her to seek that place to which it was not lawful for her to go; and she remained in the convent for two weeks without taking food or drink. But at the dawn of the fifteenth day which was a Sunday, the priest went up with us to offer the customary morning Sacrifice, and the Prior led the girl to the Altar, she adopting the gait and habit of women overcome with shame after feasting and drink- ing. Then, prostrating herself at the Altar, by the noise of her weeping she moved all those present to groans and tears, with which all the people prayed God to take away so great a misery: for there was an increasing murmuring among the people. After
BK. III. CH. IV.
the Sacrifice had been performed, she, with the other women, received a small particle of the Body of the Lord from the priest; but after chewing It for half an hour she could not swallow It. For he had not yet been put to flight of whom the Apostle says ‘““What concord hath Christ with Belial?” (II. Cor. vi, 15). And again, “Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils’ (I. Cor. x, 21). While, therefore, the priest supported her face with his hand so that she should not eject the Holy Element, a certain deacon suggested that the priest should hold the Cup of Salva- tion to her lips: and no sooner was this done than, at the Saviour’s com- mand, the devil left that place which he was possessing, and the girl cried out, praising the Redeemer, that she had swallowed the Sacrament which she had in her mouth. At this there was joy and voices lifted to the glory of God, that after eighty-two days the devil had been cast out and the girl delivered from the power of the Enemy.
In Milan at the church of S. Ambrogio, there was brought to S. Bernard a woman who had been pos- sessed for many years, and was so deformed that she seemed rather a monster than a woman. The Saint turned to the congregation and ordered them to pray fervently to God, then commanding the Clerics to hold the woman near the Altar, he proceeded to offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Every time he made the sign of the Cross over the Sacred Host, this valiant champion turned also to the woman and fought the Evil Spirit with the same sign of the Cross. At the end of the Lord’s Prayer he attacked the Enemy more strongly, placing the Holy Body of the Lord upon the paten and holding It over the woman’s head, with these words: *“Here is He Who, when about to suffer for our salvation, said: ‘Now shall the Prince of this world be cast out.’ This is that Body which was
‘ if ; |
BK. Ill. CH. IV.
formed in the Virgin’s womb, and was stretched upon the Cross, and lay in the tomb, and rose from the dead, and ascended into Heaven in the sight of His disciples. By the terrible power of this Majesty I com- mand you, O evil spirit, to depart from the body of this woman, and never to be so hardy as to molest her again!’ ‘The demon, being forced to leave her and unable to remain longer, tormented her cruelly, show- ing the greater fury and rage in that he had but little time to exercise them. The Holy Father returned to the Altar and completed the Breaking of the Host of Salvation and gave the Pax to the deacon that he might com- municate it to the people: and at once the woman regained both peace and health. So much says the Abbot William* in his Life of Blessed Bernard,