Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library

The Penguin book of exorcisms, edited by Joseph P Laycock

eng

Includes bibliographical references and index

index present

non fiction

The Penguin book of exorcisms

bibliography

1141151340

edited by Joseph P Laycock

"Levitation. Feats of superhuman strength. Speaking in tongues. A hateful, glowing stare. Spirit possession has been documented for thousands of years and across religions and cultures, even into our time: In 2019 the Vatican convened 250 priests from 50 countries for a week-long seminar on exorcism. The Penguin Book of Exorcisms brings together the most astonishing accounts: Saint Anthony set upon by demons in the form of a lion, a bull, and a panther, who are no match for his devotion and prayer; the Prophet Muhammad casting an enemy of God out of a young boy; fox spirits in medieval China and Japan; a headless bear assaulting a woman in sixteenth-century England; the possession in the French town of Loudun of an entire convent of Ursuline nuns; a Zulu woman who floated to a height of five feet almost daily; a previously unpublished account of an exorcism in Earling, Iowa, in 1928--an important inspiration for the movie The Exorcist; poltergeist activity at a home in Maryland in 1949--the basis for William Peter Blatty's novel The Exorcist; a Filipina girl "bitten by devils"; and a rare example of a priest's letter requesting permission of a bishop to perform an exorcism--after witnessing a boy walk backwards up a wall. Fifty-seven percent of Americans profess to believe in demonic possession; after reading this book, you may too"--, Provided by publisher

Introduction / by Joseph, Pl Laycock -- Suggestions for further reading -- Acknowledgments -- The ancient Near East -- The Greco-Roman world -- Medieval Europe -- Early modern Europe and America -- Jewish traditions of exorcism -- The Islamic tradition -- South and East Asia -- Modern exorcisms

adult

Book of exorcisms