And the devil went to the penthouse

Suddenly, a lady 'participant' stood up in the middle of the inspirational talk and raised herself up on a monobloc chair, screaming derangedly.

“Yes! Yes! No! Yes! No! Nooo!”

We all thought she was just that -- a lunatic. The ocassion was a Catholic, "charismatic' prayer meeting" held at the penthouse of some tower in Makati. In attendance were roughly a hundred people from all walks. A speaker was on the microphone giving a sort of closing remarks.

Everyone present was distraught when the talk was suddenly pierced by her profane screams. What was this lady, an otherwise respectable high school teacher, yelling about - in the middle of someone’s speech yet!?

These participants were in the last stages of the Christian Life Program (CLP), otherwise known as the Life in the Spirit Seminar (LSS) among born-agains. This is the Catholic version of the born-again LSS.

Soon enough the woman made it somewhat clearer for all to hear: “Yes," she shouted, "I will follow you!"

"No, I won’t!"

"Noooo! Noooo! Yeees! Nooo!”

The screams became louder and louder as the words became more and more unintelligible, like the devil speaking in tongues. Then the woman dropped to the floor and shook violently. Her seatmates - her co-teachers - stood back wide-eyed, unmoving.

But the leader of the charismatic group knew what to do. It seemed it wasn’t his first time to witness such a scene. Immediately he instructed the members to lay their hands on and pray over the woman, now slithering like a snake on the floor, her teeth gnashing, the corners of her eyes snapping pointedly like daggers.

The ten or so people who found the courage to throng around her were having a hard time restraining her. Her beastly growlings lent an air of indescribable agitation, at least to those who were new to this, including me. The pious crowd couldn’t help but counter with mutterings of “Jesus, Jesus” as they helped vainly in casting out the devil.

The rest of the crowd chose to remain calm as they recited together a common prayer delivered by the leader on the microphone. Prayer-hymns were sung, in the Augustinian belief that singing in prayer was like a prayer said twice over.

Just when I thought I've watched, read about, and heard everything about things supernatural, I realize that nothing beats a first-hand account. A 'demon' 'took possession' of the woman, it was reportedby an 'elder' of the community, and it was quite hesitant to leave. A community member ran away to procure a blessed scapular. Another ran for holy water. The praying and singing turned even more fervid.

But the devil apparently took offense and bristled anew with roars. The confrontation seemed to last forever. Finally the group leader, finding that speaking in the microphone from afar wouldn't work, approached the possessed woman and uttered a prayer of deliverance and showered her with holy water. He practically played the role of resident exorcist.

Soon the otherworldly strength of the possessed waned and her growls turned into harmless gibbers which turned into moans of “Abba! Abba!” (“Father! Father!”).

Hands of members and the other participants, tired from being held aloft for quite some time, suddenly broke into enthusiastic applause.

But the woman’s fellow CLP participants remained wide-eyed, too stunned to process what had transpired.

There was unbearable silence soon after. Going back to the microphone, the leader then encouraged the flock to sing joyful songs of victory in thanksgiving. The Hail Mary was chanted thrice. St. Michael the Archangel was also called upon. The spiritual warfare was over.

After realizing what came over her, the possessed woman came up in front of everybody and tearfully gave some word of thanks.

A week after, I would learn from reputable membeers that the woman was said to have long been depressed, saddled with long-standing personal problems when she decided to attend the CLP.

I would also learn that CLP participants are routinely advised to make a thorough confession before commiting to activities such as this.


***

I came to attend this gathering because an officemate, an engineer, invited me. I was intrigued that a man of applied science would be so into things spiritual as well. Besides, I was in some kind of soul-searching myself at the time. And so, I gladly accepted the invite.

Little did I know that it would somewhat be punctuated with such a horrible episode. I would go home that night trying vainly to fight off what I had seen as I retired alone in my room. I was quite fond of artsy horror stories but what I saw could not even compare to The Blair Witch Project and M. Night Shyamalan’s movies. I thought those things only happened in fiction, in old films such as The Exorcist. And now I was in the middle of it, scared witless about the devil possessing not just that woman but… me!

I can only second-guess what the others thought that night they went to bed. All of us came to that gathering purposively to find that elusive peace of mind and spirit that the woman was trying to find. We were not much different to one another in that regard. Now we had to contend with the fact that we could be so troubled just like her and… we could be so visited against our will.

Yet curiously, strangely, no one among us found running away as a convenient option that time. Most serious LSS sessions are several months’ worth of two- to three-hour meetings and I distinctly remember most people came back to the session – until we finished the LSS and “graduated” with flying colors.

If someone did not come back ever, it was that lady and her officemates. I figure they were too embarrassed for it.

Perhaps we, who chose to stick it out, realized that everything was a bluff - the ‘devil’ was bluffing us - and we chose to call his bluff.

Eventually we would learn that it’s precisely people who give in to fear and despair that evil spirits love to make friends with the most. We permit them demons to engulf us by giving in.

I figure we all chose faith – plus the hope and the joy associated with it. This was apparently a battle of wits and wiles. We all chose not to allow the enemy – a gatecrasher at the penthouse party – to get the upper hand and get away with it.

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(This is a major coup! I was able to get a version of this published in Fudge magazine, May 2005.)