The Exorcist Files - S3- Case #22- "The Exorcism of Anna Ecklund"- Part 2

Episode Date: October 21, 2026

Fr. Reisinger struggles to set Emma free while the attacks on the priests escalate in the climactic finale to one of the most famous Exorcism Cases in History Want to support the show? Get the episodes early? Get them Ad free? Join here. Thank You To Our SponsorsOriginal Grain- For an extra 10% off your order, head to OriginalGrain.com/EXFILES and use code EXFILES.  Dose: Ready to give your liver the support it deserves? Head to dosedaily.co/EXFILES or enter EXFILES to get 35% off your first subscriptionFor a limited time, try OneSkin with 15% off using code EXFILES at oneskin.co/EXFILES. That’s 15% off oneskin.co with code EXFILESExodus90- Join today and see what God does. Go to Exodus90.com/exfilesFollow us on SocialsFollow us on X and Instagram for special updates and sneak peeks @ExorcistFiles @theBetheaSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Stupid priest, he comes for you. He comes for you all. Silence, foul spirit. Wait, what do you mean, demon? Who comes for us? The one about whom it is written. He is here. And his reign comes soon.

Father, who comes for us? In the name of Jesus Christ, tell me who you speak. The Antichrist. He is. Welcome back to the Exorcist Files, the anointed ascension into something that might give you a little apprehension. I'm your co-host, Ryan Bithay. When we last left you in the quiet town of Erling, Iowa,

things were actually anything but quiet. A young woman named Emma, pious, gentle, but tormented since her youth, had been once again targeted by something sinister. 20 years earlier, she had undergone an exorcism from Father Theophilus Rysiger, who had, by all accounts, successfully driven the demons out of her. But the evil returned, and by August of 1928, a second campaign began to evict the demonic foes in a convent in Erling, Iowa. In one of the strangest aspects of this case, four distinct entities revealed themselves

during the exorcism, Beezelbub, a prince of hell, Mina, her aunt who cursed her, Jacob, her own incestuous father, and a spirit claiming to be Judas Ascariot himself. Most people know the early case from the small booklet that made it famous, Begone Satan, written by Carl Vogel in 1935 and still published by Tan Books. Written just seven years after Emma Schmidt's exorcism took place, it retells the ordeal of her being set free after several months of struggle. It was wildly successful and was published with the bishops and premature. What most people don't know, though, is that there was a second unpublished account,

written by Father Frederick J. Buncey, a German-born Jesuit priest based in Buffalo, New York. He wrote it in 1934, one year before Begone Satan was published, basing it on Father Risinger's own testimony after spending several weeks consulting with him following the 1920 exorcism. The manuscript carried a long title, The Erling Possession Case, an exposition of the exorcism of Mary, a demoniac and certain marvelous revelations foretelling the near advent of Antichrist and the coming persecution of the church in the years 1952 to 1955. It remained unpublished for almost 100 years for one reason. A grave mistake

Father Risinger kept repeating. As a reminder, the Exorcist Files is not intended for all audiences. So with that, let's turn it over to our Exorcist in residence. who fights the demonic with zero hesitance, Father Carlos Martins. One of the enemy's oldest strategies is not simply to tempt us to sin, but to convince us that we've fallen beyond the reach of God's mercy. That state has a name in the Christian tradition. Despair. Despair is not merely sadness or discouragement.

Every saint has experienced those things. it is the conviction that God either cannot or will not save me, that my situation is hopeless. There is no reason to keep fighting, and a happy future is no longer possible. That is precisely what the evil one wants. The instant someone becomes convinced that hope is gone, his ability to resist despair falls apart.

In that way, despair functions as the most composed complete form of spiritual control. Throughout Emma's ordeal, the accounts repeatedly suggest that the spirits sought to drive her towards one end, self-destruction. Suicide is not merely the loss of a human life. It is the enemy's attempt to persuade a soul that God's love has reached its limit and is exhausted. The Christian answer is that love can never be exhausted. Christian hope is not optimism. It is the certainty that God's mercy is greater than our misery. Father? Yes, sister. Do they often resist like this? It's been weeks now. How long do you think she will be like this? It is rarely a quick battle. We must trust God, but I pray her liberation

comes soon enough. Father, I fear some of the sisters are losing heart. The atmosphere here at the convent, well, it's just it's been weeks, and the sisters are wondering... We are making progress.

We must remain steadfast, even if it is Beelzebub himself. The gates of hell will not prevail. Yes, Father. Thank you, sisters. That's all. Contrary to popular belief, exorcism is rarely dramatic.

People remember the moments when a demon screams, when a body is thrown across a room, or when the final command is given and someone is set free. But those moments are the exception. Most exorcism work feels more like trench warfare. Day after day, week after week, you return to the same room, you open the ritual, you pray the same prayers, you issue the same commands. From the outside, it can feel as though nothing is changing.

The same manifestations, the same mockery, the same resistance. There are times when, as an exorcist, you wonder whether you're accomplishing anything at all. You know intellectually that God is at work. The grace of the right is never wasted. Every prayer weakens the enemy even when you cannot see it. Every act of obedience wounds the kingdom of darkness. But emotionally, it can feel as though you are simply repeating the same words with no effect while the demons simply laugh at you. That is why perseverance is one of the greatest virtues an exorcist must possess.

You continue because Christ commanded the church to continue. not because you can measure the results. Then, almost without warning, something changes. A single conversation uncovers a hidden wound. An overlooked memory comes to light. An act of forgiveness is finally made. A doorway closes that no one even knew was open.

Suddenly, after weeks of apparent stalemate, it becomes apparent that the demons have lost a tremendous amount of ground. It is a reminder that exorcism is never simply about commanding demons. It is about operating with God's grace to dismantle everything that gives them a claim. In Emma's case, the breakthrough did not come from a louder command or a more forceful exorcism. It came from an unexpected discovery, one that revealed another place where the enemy had quietly anchored himself. And once the team found it, The battle began to turn.

Pardon my delay. Good morning, father, sisters. She waits. Are you ready? I am. No, no, not her. No, no. She's here.

Still, in the name of Christ, I tell you to be still. Nickerlead. Away with her down. Hold her down. What is she speaking of? He who just entered as a relic. Mother Steiger.

It's true. No, way. Away! Behold the little flower. St. Therese of Lesou was a French Carmelite nun, affectionately known as the Little Flower. She entered the convent at just 15, and though she died just nine years later at age 24, her hidden life of love and sacrifice has inspired millions around the world. In the years following her death, numerous medically documented healings were attributed to her intercession.

that is, by people asking her to pray for them. St. Therese is remembered for The Little Way, a path to holiness that emphasized unseen acts of kindness, private devotion to God, and essentially honoring God in one's private life, as though he was the only audience. Interestingly, although she lived her entire life as a cloistered Carmelite and died at 24,

she became the co-patronist of missions because of her fervent prayer life for missionaries. And if you want an inspiring family tree, Well, St. Therese's parents were also canonized saints, Lois and Zellie Martin. The Holy Apple did not fall far from that tree. She was canonized in 1925 just three years before the Erling Exorcism and has become one of the Catholic Church's most beloved saints. This was actually the second time the demons had reacted to a hidden relic.

Father Risinger had also brought in a relic of the true cross, fragments of wood from the cross upon which Jesus died. Similarly, before its presence was revealed, the demons reacted by howling things like, this is torture, this is unbearable. But this incident was unique. The demons were so incensed at that particular relic that they targeted Father Steiger.

They also didn't like that he was making his parish available as the location for the exorcism. In other words, they sought revenge. Several times the possessing spirits claimed they would strike at him when they had the opportunity. It came one night while Father Steiger was driving home. He had just visited a parishioner, and he was returning to his rectory in Erling in his new car. Angel of God, a guardian dear, to whom God's love commits me here. ever this day be at my side to light and guard, to rule and guide our men.

Oh, St. Joseph, do you assist me? Are they powerful intercession? And obtain him? What? As he approached a bridge spanning a great ravine, he was suddenly enveloped in a black cloud that blinded him. I can't. What is this?

Oh God, save me! His car was totaled in the crash. Thankfully, a farmer plowing a nearby field, heard the cars fall into the ravine and came to his aid. The amount of debris was incredible. Even the steering wheel was in pieces. Father Steiger was taken to a doctor, and though he had cuts and scrapes, he was unharmed.

He returned to the exorcism, where the demons greeted him with chilling, satisfaction. What happened? Your face? Are you hurt? I'm fine. I'm fine.

May I commend? Yes, of course. Look at your partner, priest. I fixed it for you. Enough. Silence. You know, a little care makes accidents rare swine. Oh, devil.

Father, we're not very careful. With your new auto. By the blood of Christ and the intercession of the saints, I have been protected. Our power extends beyond these walls. You cannot run from us. We control the universe. Enough, Satan. Your time is short.

What is it? Do you really believe that? You breeding rat! It's possible that Father Steiger had only experienced some kind of unfortunate weather phenomenon, combined with some bad luck. and the demons had simply taken credit for it. Whether the demons had actually caused the weather event or not was almost beside the point.

Their real weapon was inspiring fear and intimidation. Father Steiger refused to give them that victory. Instead, he and the sisters responded the way true Christians always do, with deeper prayer and greater trust in God. So I have to admit, I wasn't really into watches. The whole thing just wasn't really my vibe. But then I made friends with some real watch people. They knew their watches.

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The exorcisms went on for weeks with little or no progress for Emma. The original plan, of course, was for the exorcism to be kept as private as possible. but that is difficult in a small town. Rumors spread, and the incident with Father Steiger's car set off a firestorm of speculation. Fear and concerns spread all over the small town. Eventually, it reached a tipping point, and Father Steiger decided to address it. St. Paul wrote in his letter to the Ephesians that we find ourselves in a war, a war that is not against flesh and blood, but against Christiard.

powers and principalities of this present darkness. That darkness has come to our town. Most of you here by now are aware of a great spiritual trial taking place on these very grounds involving a young woman. Many of you are suspicious, many frightened. Today, I am asking you as the church to join us in prayer for the liberation of this young woman. God saw fit to bring his daughter to Erling

and entrusted her to us. So what must he require of us? Christ, our example, offered sacrifice on our behalf. And so ought we to pray earnestly. We ought to fast, and we must unite our sufferings with Christ on her behalf. not just once here today, but by God's grace until the work is finished and the victory is won. Let us pray.

One of the most powerful weapons against the powers of hell is something the church has always known, but modern Catholics sometimes forget, acts of expiation. The idea is simple. Love can be sacrificial. just as one person's sin wounds others, one person's acts of love, prayer, fasting, good works, and sacrifice can become a channel through which God pours out grace for someone else. Now, to be clear, we cannot earn another person's salvation. Only Christ saves.

But because we are members of one body in Christ, God allows us to participate in His work of redemption. We carry one another's burdens. We pray. We fast. We make sacrifices. And we offer those to God for the benefit of someone else. I've seen this time and time again. When an entire family or even an entire parish begins praying, fasting, going to confession, attending Mass,

and offering sacrifices for someone who is suffering spiritually. The battlefield begins. to change. The enemy wants isolation. Christ gathers his people together. That communion of love is one of the devil's greatest defeats. With the parish now praying for Emma's liberation, Father Risinger and Father Steiger entered with renewed vigor. And like so many things, the prayers seem to have an effect because a breakthrough happened sometime shortly after. How many are you? The games shall cease.

How many are you? Many. Many hosts. What are your names? Nine. No names. Too many names. Too many for naming.

I command you. Be removed. Depart this child of God. Never purse. You horde of hell. Why do you persist and linger? I command you by the authority of Christ. Be removed.

Go down to the flames of hell. And your eternal torment. Debrose. hearts. You never know when a demon will break. But for some reason, in this session, a battle seemed to be won as what can only be described as the sound of a massive swarm of flapping bats left Emma. But we are closer. One of the most sobering teachings of our Lord about the demonic appears in both Luke 11 and Matthew 12, where he describes an unclean spirit leaving a person, unable to find rest, it returns to discover its former, quote-unquote, house,

swept clean and put in order, but empty. So it gathers seven spirits more wicked than itself, and the person's final state becomes worse than the first. These passages are the only times Christ talks about demonic repossession. Why does Christ tell us this? because exorcism is never the end of the story. If a person's life is simply emptied of evil, but not filled with God, a spiritual vacuum remains. That is why the church never understands exorcism as merely casting demons out.

The goal is union with Christ. Confession, the Eucharist, prayer, the sacramental life, obedience to the commandments, Christian community, these are not optional extras after deliverance. They are how the house is filled. Can someone experience demonic oppression or even possession again after being delivered? Sadly, yes, I've seen it happen. It isn't because the exorcism somehow failed. It's because the victim reopened the very doors the exorcism had closed

or neglected to fill his soul with God and his grace. That, however, was not Emma's situation. She longed for God, remained faithful to prayer, and cooperated heroically with the church throughout her ordeal. But unfortunately, the demons returned because their whole had not yet been sufficiently broken. Whatever claims they still possessed had not yet been fully extinguished,

and God, in his providence, permitted the battle to continue until every last foothold had been removed. Liberation is sometimes quick. At other times, it unfolds one slow victory at a time. Father, what is this? No, it's back!

Oh, amazing. Curse the unclean devil's devil's... Dead, devils, no. How are they doing this? The reports describe wave after wave of lesser spirits entering and departing throughout the exorcism. Their numbers seemed countless. Unlike the principal demons, these spirits displayed little intelligence or strength.

Some of the accounts referred to them as dumb devils because they were incapable of speech, producing only grotesque moans, shrieks, and animal-like sounds. According to eyewitnesses, these hordes repeatedly came and went, creating constant disorder. It appears they served a tactical purpose. While the principal spirits directed the battle, these lesser demons functioned almost like expendable foot soldiers, overwhelming the room with noise, confusion, and distraction.

Their goal was not necessarily to overpower the exorcists, but to exhaust and discourage them and conceal the activities of the principal demons who were directing the assault. For Father Risinger and those assisting him, the experience must have been profoundly discouraging. Just when it seemed meaningful progress had been made, another wave would arrive. It at least seemed that for every step forward,

they were forced two steps back. Yet Father Risinger pressed on and hard, with the discipline and resolve of a soldier. To the effect that, although what seemed like they were getting nowhere, something was happening. The demons got more insulting, more threatening, and angrier. He was damaging the demonic strongholds. So the devil resorted to his oldest weapon of all,

the one that got him, the conclusive, of victory in the Garden of Eden, stroking curiosity. When intimidation and exhaustion failed to achieve his purpose, he began dangling to Father Risinger, tantalizing and exotic information. In nomina Jesus Christi, I command you on a clean spirit. You will be silent and you will depart. Birds! Depart to the abyss.

I know things priests. Things hidden from you. Hidden from your church. About to end. It comes for you. Who comes? You have to Christ. It was here that Father Risinger made an error.

If a demon offers up a bargaining chip like this, you ignore them and press on with exactly what you were doing. Instead, Father Risinger let him talk. He let the mole talk. He is born already. A child, growing up in perfect obscurity, as was written. We prepare this way even now. Where? Palestine will heal.

Ah, he will rise to power soon. When? It is not for you to know. But the precious blood of Christ, I command you. Tell me! He will come. come to power in 1952.

And your church will suffer and she has never suffered. And she will be destroyed. That night, by Lamplight, Father Risinger opened a notebook and wrote down what the demon had said about the

Antichrist and every detail about the apocalyptic battle the demon foretold. Understand what just happened. Because the demons understood it perfectly. For weeks, every session had been tormenting them, from the use of relics to the blessed sacrament, to the prayers of the community, and of course, the prayers of the right. Although it was not visible to the human eye, everything was pressing on them like fire.

And then Judas offered the one sentence that made the fire stop. A headline. The Antichrist lives. And for a moment, only a moment, but a moment is enough, the exorcist stopped commanding and started listening. Here is a trap in its purest form. The bait is always shaped like something good. Father Risinger thought he was gathering intelligence for the church, but the church's caution to its exorcists is absolute. Demons are liars. Even when they tell the truth, they tell it for nefarious purposes, which is to say they weaponize it. An exorcist must never regard demons as teachers, not ever.

Well, at least never about anything beyond the details of the possession itself. The purpose of an exorcism is the liberation of the victim, not the pursuit of hidden knowledge. The moment curiosity, places the discipline of the right, the session has a new director. And he doesn't wear a priest's collar. He wears horns. Tell me again, when will his reign begin? In his 33rd year, 1952. And his end, 95. During the three days of darkness, he and the false prophet will be destroyed and cast into hell.

These days of darkness, days of 24 hours. Rose each, the darkness must not last. Good would die of fear. Die. Die of fear. The prophet, who is he?

Himself, he will form for himself a body of matter. Yes. And he will appear as a man among men. The child's parents, Tell me of his parents. Relief to his mother.

A nun of Jewish blood. Who holds intercourse with the old serpent. His father? A bishop. Not one of your swine. A schismatic. Father, she grows so weak. Perhaps we should end for today.

A moment, father. Where will he show himself? Jerusalem. Austria. Germany. Reded priests, write it all down. And when he comes, who will stand against him? Ah!

Now you ask the right questions. Shall we speak of thrones? Of the great monarch who... Speak! A great monarch will rise against him. A king, powerfully assisted from on high, who will act as God's own command at the time of the Antichrist. Christ. His name.

You know the blood already monk. Bourbon and Habsburg mingled in one man. A prince raised in exile who has served God from his earliest days. Otto? The son of Kaiser Carl. Otto will appear as the great monarch, just as he is described in your own scripture. Apoculate chapter. Otto is a boy in exile.

He hasn't a throne to his name. How could he become a king in this present confusion of things? It will take years yet, but he will be king, not because men wanted, but through providence, as if the one whom you serve can stop us. If you notice, in that entire scene, not once did the demon suffer. I want you to understand exactly the authority of an exorcist is real, but it is an authority ordered to one end, liberation of the victim. When he commands within that mandate, the demon is on the rack.

He suffers. He may resist for a while, but he is compelled. But the instant the questioning moves beyond what is pastrally necessary, all of the exorcists' authority and leverage is lost. The demon is no longer being tortured. he's being interviewed. Once Father Risinger's curiosity was engaged, the demon effectively controlled the session. He set the agenda.

He chose the topics. He decided what to dangle next to keep the priest asking. The demon was winning without even appearing to fight. Well, he was faking that he was fighting. And notice the subtle lie underneath it all. The feeling that more information equals greater effectiveness. It's one of the most seductive temptations in this ministry.

The belief that if the exorcist can just learn one more hidden fact, obtain one more name, discover one more legal right, it will benefit the church. The church's tradition points in exactly the opposite direction. Fidelity to Christ, to the right, and to the ordinary means of grace, is what ultimately matters. the demon knows which of those two paths he prefers you to take. He will happily converse with you all night if you let him.

A demon's statements must never become the basis for theology, private revelation, or pastoral practice. Even accurate statements may be mixed with falsehoods or intended to manipulate. St. Paul warns that Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light, And in this case, as the sessions wore on, the disclosures increasingly came wrapped in exactly that costume. Visions, voices, messages claiming heavenly origin delivered through the mouth and the eyes of a possessed woman. Same source, same bait, better packaging.

But here is the gravest cost of all, and it is not theological, but pastoral. Every hour Father Risinger spent taking dictation from hell was an hour that prayers were not being pressed against the demon. Amelay on her bed exhausted, starving, tormented, while her exorcist asked unrelated and esoteric questions of her demons. When the purpose of the sessions drifted from her liberation, the pressure on her demonic tormentors relaxed. I'm going to say it plainly.

Emma may have remained possessed longer than she needed to, and that is tragic. The demons were not merely buying prestige with their secrets. They were buying time, her time. Free of themselves being tortured, the demons were able to increase their torture of Emma. And that they did. In the name of the father and the son. and the Holy Spirit. Amen. Our brethren came back.

Because he was powerful about to keep them away. He, he is. Then what happened? What I think? I care not what you think. I think you might indeed find moments of relief. But you'll never be free of us truly. Never truly free.

And in your heart, you know it's true. No, I, no. But, Mama, maybe God can deliver you. But he wants to. Because you are not worth saving. Even save you from your wretched father, did he? Worthless, swine. Oh, for me, he's good to cry.

And he loves you to teach me so I could feed you my nuts. It's more blind. You're saving? You're not even more fighting for. Your own mother didn't even fight to stay alive for you. Why would God save a childless, rotting, stench-filled dump pile like you? Oh, you're weak because you know it's true. Your own heart tells you, doesn't it?

Give up. Or give up. It can be over quickly. Just dear. On this show, we do attempt to go to great lengths to try and evaluate whether or not the purported demonization is in fact legitimately preternatural or if it can be explained by natural causes. In this particular case, it must be stated that the majority of Emma's manifestations and behaviors could in fact be explained away by various psychological issues.

Going back to her childhood, it is replete with trauma and fertile soil for a host of issues to arise. Her father, by many accounts, was incredibly abusive, and it's entirely plausible. She could have developed a host of psychoses as a result of his abuse. One particular piece of evidence that cuts this way is the voices and particular spirits that manifest. Her aunt and her own father? That alone might invite us to think that much of this could in fact be psychosomatic. But there's more to the story. Emma understood languages she had never learned, Latin, Hebrew, and the accounts say she responded to them correctly in front of priests who spoke them. She identified relics that were deliberately hidden and never announced on multiple occasions

the moment they entered the building. Multiple adult witnesses, nuns, priests, physicians, and many others reported her manifesting in very bizarre ways, rising off a bed, standing rigid with only her heels touching the mattress, her abdomen swelling to grotesque proportions and returning to normal. She also was said to a vomited, amounts that could not possibly fit inside a human being of contents that she never consumed. Two physicians who examined her independently found no reason to believe she was insane and no evidence of hysteria. While the trauma of her past could very easily explain the character of some of the demonic manifestations, the other phenomena, well, taken together, they are much harder to account

for. Many exorcisms become wars of attrition. The enemy seeks to wear down not only the afflicted person, but everyone around her. It was December of 1928, four months after the exorcisms began. Emma was barely eating. Father Risinger, Father Steiger, the sisters, and even the parishioners, were exhausted. Humanly speaking, no one knew how much longer they could endure. The demons claimed that the prayers and sacred objects, relics, the crucifference,

and the Blessed Sacrament, caused them unbearable torment, even worse than hell. They insisted they wanted to leave, but that Lucifer would not permit it, and that sufficient atonement had not yet been made for Emma. Whether those claims were true or not, one thing is certain. Perseverance matters. For I have sinned. It's been one day since my last confession. May the Lord be in your life.

heart and on your lips that you may rightly confess your sins. My doubt, and my doubts are overwhelming. Doubt itself is not a sin. In scripture, many of the faithful experienced doubt. Then what I have is unbelief. Of what kind? Oh, I don't believe I will be delivered. If I'm not free now, when will I ever be?

I think I should return home. Emma, you mustn't. It is always darkest before dawn We're close I believe it in my spirit Father God has the power to heal me right Of course he does Why doesn't he

Father? I can't turn this much longer We mustn't despair Four months of this hell I don't fault you father You've been so steadfast but I God will use this Emma How I know not But he will

Remember, my daughter, his strength is made perfect in our weakness. Father Risinger cared for Emma, and seeing her waist away in this battle took its toll on everyone. As an exorcist, you know that the victim's liberation is not up to you. It's up to God. You certainly play a role, and you know God is sovereign and is in control. But it doesn't make it any easier to watch someone be taken. tormented like Emma Schmidt was. When it comes to optimizing our metabolisms, there are a lot of variables.

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Father Reisinger. Father? Father, I assure. sure you, we have ample firewood. You need not labor on. I suppose it's yet another thing I do needlessly. Father... She didn't deserve this. Why does God allow the serpent to torment her? Where is God in this? You are exhausted and carry too great a burden on your shoulders. You know, as well as I, it is not up to us. perhaps you have made this too personal

I beg you pardon you care about her well-being no one denies it but and forgive my speaking so plainly father but perhaps we ought to just spend more time listening to his spirit than to the filth these devils spit at us

your advice is insulting and good. That is wisdom, father. As the psalmist said, the just shall correct me in mercy and shall reprove me. Stop and sit with that exchange for a moment,

because it is the hinge on which everything now turns. The Erling case illustrates a temptation that can confront any exorcist. When confronting the same, boring old demonic resistance day after day, there is always a danger of letting fascination replace discipline. The right of exorcism is not a conversation. It permits the exorcist to question a demon only to discover the facts necessary

for liberation of this victim. The number of demons present, their names, how and when they entered, when they intend to leave, etc. That's it. That's more or less the entire approved syllabus. The right then explicitly instructs the exorcist not to ask anything beyond this, not to pose curious or unnecessary questions,

and to command the demon to be silent should he bring up anything else. Why so strict? Because of the nature of a demon. Demons can be compelled to be truthful about matters related to the victim's possession. The Catholic right of everything, exorcism puts them under its torturous prayers on precisely that ground and on that ground alone.

But they cannot be compelled to disclose other information, and to solicit it is a form of occultism. The unlawful pursuit of hidden knowledge from preacher natural sources. Whether the subject pursuing it wears a wizard's robe, a pointy witch's hat, or the Roman caller of a priest, that changes nothing about the object. Father Risinger's belief that the knowledge offered by the demons could be helpful is, literally, the oldest bait in the world.

It is, almost word for word, the serpent's pitch in Eden. Listen to me, and you shall know. Notice that it is Father Steiger, the less experienced man, who senses the danger. In the scene you just heard, Father Steiger gave an admonition to Father Risinger about entertaining the demon for his knowledge.

But we have no idea whether he actually ever did so. In other words, we made up this entire scene that you just heard. There is no historical record that such an admonition ever came from Father Steiger or from anyone else. We created this fictitious conversation as an example of the kind of straight talk that Father Risinger urgently needed to hear. He needed someone to tell him to close Pandora's box. What happened next is not entirely clear as the records are sparse with information. However, the exorcisms did have an effect on the demons to the effect that one by one they be

began leaving. Emma's final liberation came on December 23rd, 1928 at around 9 p.m. In a moment of either God-given revelation or his own spiritual insight, Father Risinger demanded that when they departed, the demons give a sign by naming themselves. This would let Father Risinger and everyone else know which spirits were gone. Along with every encroachment of the wicked enemy and every phantom in diabolical legion. The name of our Lord Jesus Christ, depart and vanish from this creature of God. Never. Peace of extraments.

Gone in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amidst a sudden thrashing and struggle. Emma broke free and stood upright on the bed with only her heels touching the mattress. See our power you depraved. Yes. Cease this, or we shall hurl her into the ceiling. We will not be stopped. Bring her down.

By the power of the cross of Christ who lives. lives and reigns with the Almighty Father. I bless you, Emma, his daughter. Now depart, fiends of hell, be gone. Satan, the lion of Judah. The freedom of December 23rd was real. Emma received communion. She prayed with a clear heart.

Those who were present wept and sang the todayum, the church's hymn of Thanksgiving. How much longer did Emma remain in torment because her tormentors had found a way to distract and slow down her exorcist. Who can say? But the right's discipline exists precisely so that no exorcist ever makes that mistake. Here is what the right has always understood, and what this case proves the hard way.

The exorcist's job is not to learn things. It is to drive the spirit out. The church lets him ask, only what he needs to and forbids him from questioning about matters that aren't part of his task. That's not the church being timid, nervous, or prudish. That's the church being wise. The moment a priest starts asking a demon to reveal what does not concern the possession, he has stopped being an exorcist and started being a customer. So when we tell this story and it concerns a genuinely brave and holy priest,

in a genuinely terrible fight, which he fought heroically, we owe it honesty about the part that went wrong, because that's the part most likely to be repeated. The demons inside Emma were beaten. They couldn't keep her. They did the only thing they had left. For a while, they got the better of the man who beat them simply by telling him stories.

And stories they were. It has now been almost 100 years, since the demons dictated their prophecies, and none of the events they predicted came true. Everything they disclosed was hogwash. And the lesson, for everyone who does this work, and for everyone who listens to those who do, is very simple.

Apart from disclosing the rights by which he claims his victim, everything a demon offers, every name he drops, every secret he dangles, every date he circles on a calendar is not a gift of knowledge, but a weapon of deception. Even when he speaks the truth,

he speaks it to deceive. He is the embodiment of evil, possessed of a terrifying patience, content to wait years or centuries if it serves his purpose. And in the end, he has nothing to give you but lies. And so,

on December 23rd in a just before Christmas miracle, Emma Schmidt was finally set free from her demonic torment. Because so much effort was taken to protect her identity and keep the case anonymous, there is not much known of her life after the exorcism. Interestingly, though, there are many reports of involved alleged demonic oppression returning later in life, but these are, to date, unconfirmed. We have nothing to suggest that she ever endured anything comparable to the demonic assault she experienced in this case later in life.

But interestingly, it does invite reflection. If her affliction was a combination of spiritual and natural causes, perhaps the resulting psychological trauma from her youth played a significant role and persisted long after any of the demons were cast out. As our regular listeners know, the cases we select are identified not only for their story anatomy, that is, whether or not they make a compelling listen, but also whether or not they contain important lessons or wisdom that Father Mark parents feels can help elevate our understanding of spiritual warfare. In this case, we see a tendency

that all of us happen to be vulnerable to, the curiosity of things unknown. There is to be sure a human fascination with spiritual warfare, a quick search on YouTube and one can see that anything involving UFOs, demons, angels, monsters, anything of the unseen realm, well, it tends to do very well. There is nothing inherently wrong with human curiosity about the unseen realm. But the enemy is cunning, and he can leverage this. In the Garden of Eden, we must not forget, it was the promise of knowledge, knowledge that would make Eve like God that tempted her to eat the forbidden fruit, and the result was catastrophic. Humans will always want to know things, and demons know this. And while we go to great lengths to remind listeners that demons are in fact liars, it cannot be

stated enough, that theology is gleaned from God, from Scripture, from sacred tradition, from the Holy Spirit leading the church. We do not build our theology off anecdotal reports from demons. They are like the earliest versions of AI. Sometimes they just say nonsense. And with that, we close out what probably is a message not endorsed by the Iowa Tourism Board. Thanks for listening, folks. You have been listening to the Exorcist Files and to keep in touch with us and get some of our anointed merchandise. You can visit our website atexercistfiles.tv. You can also email us at Exorcistfiles at gmail.com. All cases are recounted by Father Carlos Martins from his personal archives.

Today, we thank Laura Stein for playing Sister Schaefer. Kim Klerasi as Sister Lane, Reggie Brown as Judas, Jonathan Byram as Father Steiger, Nikoa as Father Risinger, Emily Timmer as Emma, Vivian Wells Pickering as Mina, and Justice Dallinger as Beezelbub. And of course, Danny Fahenzeld as Jacob. We want to thank our amazing sound team who helps score our fears and tears through this episode.

Thank you sound designers, editors and mixers, Dan Blesinger and Michelle Martinez, music and scoring by James Cavell and Tom Straeli. This case was written by Jonathan Langley, Father Carlos Martins, and Ryan Bethay. Executive producers are Father Carlos Martins and Ryan Bethay. Stay demon free, y'all.