A course for aspiring exorcists is advertised at the conference in Rome TONY GENTILE/REUTERSMuslims are queueing up to have their demons cast out by Catholic priests, sometimes with the help of a mobile phone, amid soaring global demand for exorcism, a conference at a Vatican-linked university was told yesterday. In Italy, where there are up to 400 exorcists, about half a million people reportedly claimed demonic possession in the past decade — three times higher than in previous decades. “Demand is absolutely growing,” said Father Anthony Barratt, a British priest who attended the packed event at the Regina Apostolorum, which trains priests. Cardinal Ernest Simoni of Albania told nearly 300 delegates that he had performed exorcisms on Muslims. “They remain Muslim.”Giuseppe Ferrari, an expert on exorcisms, said: “I don’t see why…

Source: The Times April 16, 2018 16:04 UTC