A Catholic priest who has spent 20 years casting demons out of people believes the Devil is real. Father Martins has traveled worldwide to help those tormented by demons. He says these demons cause people to hear voices, experience blackouts, and suffer from strange injuries.
Father Martins’ shocking experience
Martins shared one of his most shocking experiences. It happened during an exorcism of a middle-aged woman. Just before the exorcism began, the woman threw a man over her head. This man weighed over 300 pounds and was more than six feet tall. It was impossible for an average woman to throw him across the room.
Then, the woman pointed at a light switch across the room. The screw holding the switch cover flew off and landed in her hand. She then drove it into her arm. Later in the session, she hit Father Martins so hard in the face that he needed two surgeries to repair his skull.
Martins believes this proves the Devil’s existence. He says, “The Devil is real.”
Not everyone agrees. Some scientists believe people who show signs of possession might have mental illnesses. Dr. Amin Muhammad Gadit, a professor of psychiatry, says that some people with demon-like symptoms get better with medication. Other research suggests the symptoms come from trauma, mass hysteria, or cultural beliefs.
But Father Martins isn’t convinced. He believes demons work in a certain way. First, they find a “door” into a person. They either get invited in or sent in. Once inside, they exploit the person’s weaknesses, like injuries or emotional pain.
Father Martins: ‘Demons seek to harm’
Father Martins says that demons cause suffering. “If people only knew how much pain demons cause, they would never let one in,” he warns.
In his book The Exorcist Files: True Stories About the Reality of Evil and How to Defeat It, Father Martins describes some of the terrifying cases he’s witnessed. He says battling the Devil is like fighting hatred itself.
The childless woman
One of Martins’ most heartbreaking stories is about a woman named Cheryl. She and her husband, Mark, struggled to have children. Cheryl became depressed and started obsessing over baby items. But things took a strange turn. She began collecting dead insects and placing them next to an empty crib.
Cheryl believed that the spirits of the dead insects could help her get pregnant. She even believed that dead animals had the power to make life. But her obsession grew worse when she started collecting dead squirrels and birds.
One day, Cheryl was standing over several dead rats. When Mark confronted her, she spoke in a deep, alien voice, warning him to stay away from the rats. Mark turned to Father Martins for help. After eight exorcism sessions, Cheryl was finally freed from the demonic influence.
Father Martins wrote, “It took the pain and powerlessness of demonic possession to convince Cheryl to turn to God instead of motherhood for meaning.”
The possessed firefighter
Another case involved Jeremy, a young firefighter. Jeremy had blackouts, strange behavior, and unexplained injuries. He seemed like a polite, gentle man, but Father Martins had to perform an exorcism to confirm if he was possessed.
Jeremy remembered an event from his childhood. When he was eight, a friend brought an Ouija board to his house. That night, he saw a dark figure with the body of a man and the head of a cat. The figure promised to give him anything in exchange for his soul.
When Father Martins performed the exorcism, Jeremy reacted violently. A demon took control of his body and mocked Father Martins. But after repeated prayers, Jeremy renounced the demon and claimed Jesus as his Lord. The demon was cast out.
Martins’ experience: The haunted music box
Father Martins also shares a terrifying experience in Afghanistan. A woman’s house had burned down, and she moved in with her uncle. Strange things began happening. She heard voices, scratching noises, and saw objects move by themselves.
Father Martins learned that the woman had a music box that chimed by itself, even without a key. When he touched the box, it stopped chiming. To his shock, the music box had no parts inside. After Father Martins blessed the box with holy water, the strange events stopped.
Father Martins’ experiences have convinced him that demons are real. He believes they work by attacking people’s weaknesses. His fight against evil continues, despite skepticism from some scientists. Father Martins’ mission is clear: to help those affected by demons and save their souls.
