Haunted Boy – The True Story Behind “The Exorcist”

In the summer of 1948, a young boy in Mount Rainier, Maryland began using an Ouija board with his aunt, who believed in spiritualism.  After she died, the boy and his family experienced disturbing sounds which woke them during the night: knocking, scratching, and marching feet.  The family witnessed the boy’s mattress furiously shaking, furniture moving on its own, and visitors thrown from a chair. Scratches and strange marks mysteriously appeared on the boy’s body.

Physicians and mental health experts could find no rational explanation for these events.  Finally, the family – which was not Catholic – consulted a local priest.

Father E. Albert Hughes interviewed the boy and later described his “dark, empty stare.”  He determined that the boy was possessed by multiple demons (Legions) and arranged to perform an exorcist at Georgetown Hospital in Washington, D.C.

The exorcism lasted for three nights, with no positive results.  The boy was sent home.  Not long after, the words “Louis” appeared on his chest.  The boy’s mother interpreted this as a sign to take him to St. Louis, Missouri, where she had relatives.

Father William Bowdern, a Jesuit priest, agreed to undertake a rigorous exorcism of the boy, who had suffered through months of violent behavior followed by periods of calm.

The boy was admitted to the Alexian Brothers Hospital in St. Louis and baptized Catholic.  During Easter week, while closely guarded and under restraint, the boy received confession and Holy Communion. Brother Rector Cornelius placed a statue of St. Michael the Archangel – Satan’s arch enemy – by the boy’s bed.  On the night of April 18, 1949, after hours of violent struggle and intense emotional resistance, the boy cried out, “He’s gone!”  By the next morning, Father Bowdern became convinced that the boy was indeed free from demonic possession.

The boy and his family returned to Maryland and spent the summer of 1949 as a normal, happy family.  The boy, whose identity has never been revealed, became known as “The Haunted Boy.”  With no memory of the dreadful events which had threatened to ruin his life, he grew up to become a scientist for NASA.

The fifth floor room at the Alexian Brothers Hospital, where the final exorcism had taken place, was permanently sealed.

Author William Peter Blatty, a devout Catholic, heard about “The Haunted Boy” while a student at Georgetown University.  He used the story of the boy’s ordeal for the basis of his best-selling novel, The Exorcist, one of the most terrifying and thought-provoking novels ever written.  It was later turned into a major motion picture.  Blatty wrote the screenplay.

Dawn Pisturino

Published in the Spring 2016 issue of Psychic-Magic Ezine.

Copyright 2016-2021 Dawn Pisturino. All Rights Reserved.

Angel Art – The Archangel Michael

Artwork by Luca Giordano

Michael means “who is as God.” Among Jews, Christians, and Muslims, he is the highest angel in the hierarchy of angels. His occult name is Sabathiel. In Islam, he is known as Mika’il. The Zoroastrian book, Avesta, portrays him as Saosyhant, the redeemer.

As chief among angels, he is revered as the “angel of repentance, righteousness, mercy, and sanctification.” He stands guard over the nation of Israel. He is a known enemy of Satan. As the Prince of Light, he leads the angels of God against the angels of Satan in the Dead Sea scroll, The War of the Sons of Light Against the Sons of Darkness. In the Last days, he is the fierce angel who will finally slay the Dragon (Satan).

In 1950, Pope Pius XII affirmed Michael as the patron of policemen. Today, he watches over all first responders. He has been identified as the angel who stopped Abraham from sacrificing his son, Isaac, although this act has also been attributed to other angels, such as Metatron. Jewish tradition describes him as “the fire that Moses saw in the burning bush . . . ,” although some scholars attribute this to Zagzagel. Michael may have been one of the three angels who visited Abraham in his tent. Religious lore credits him with assisting the other three archangels – Raphael, Uriel, and Gabriel – with burying the body of Moses. In fact, Michael has been identified as the angel who fought with Satan over Moses’ body.

Islamic lore describes him as bearing wings “of the color of green emerald.” His body “is covered with saffron hairs, each of them containing a million faces and mouths and as many tongues which, in a million dialects, implore the pardon of Allah.” The Qu’ran claims the cherubim were created from Michael’s tears. The Persians regarded him as the sustainer of mankind.

Catholics pray for Michael’s heavenly intercession as St. Michael. They regard him as God’s warrior who protects the faithful from the Devil’s wily snares. As the angel of death, prayers to St. Michael request his intercession in a good and holy death. Fra Filippo portrayed him as the messenger who announced to the Virgin Mary that she would soon be taken up into Heaven.

Michael’s feast day is September 29th (the Feast of the Archangels).

Prayer to St. Michael, the Archangel

Saint Michael, the Archangel,

Defend us in battle!

Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil;

May God rebuke him, we humbly pray;

And do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host,

By the power of God, thrust into hell Satan and all evil spirits

Who wander through the world for the ruin of souls.

Amen.

(1932)

(Eastern Orthodox Church icons) – The Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates Michael’s feast day on November 8th.

This painting by Cesare Nebbia tells the story of the four apparitions of Michael, the Archangel, that allegedly occurred in Southern Italy many centuries ago.

Apparition #1: A wealthy landowner, named Gargano, in the 3rd to 8th century C.E., lost a bull, became angry when he found the bull grazing near a cave, and shot a poisoned arrow at him. Miraculously, the arrow turned around and shot him instead! The local bishop ordered three days of prayer and fasting. On the third day, Michael appeared to the bishop and ordered him to “dedicate the cave to Christian worship.” Since the cave had been used by pagan worshippers in the past, the bishop did not honor Michael’s request.

Apparition #2: Michael allegedly appeared again in the year 492 C.E., but scholars have determined that the apparition actually occurred later, inspiring Duke Grimoaldo I to defeat the Greeks on May 8, 663 C.E., who had attacked the Sanctuary of Gargano. May 8th is now celebrated in the Roman Catholic Church as the Feast of the Anniversary of the Apparitions of St. Michael, the Archangel.

Apparition #3: After the victory over the Greeks, the cave was finally dedicated by local bishops to St. Michael. But Michael is reported to have said, “I founded it, I myself consecrated it.” When the bishops arrived at the cave, they found Michael’s footprint in a crude stone altar that was already erected there. Since then, the cave has been called the “Celestial Basilica” because Michael consecrated it to himself!

Apparition #4: In 1656, Michael ordered Bishop Alfonso Puccinelli to bless the stones of his cave. Michael carved the sign of the cross and the letters “M.A.” onto the stones. He then told the bishop that “anyone carrying the stones would be immune to the plague” that was ravaging southern Italy. The bishop’s city was cured of illness. The stones, known as St. Michael’s relics, are now used in exorcisms.

In popular culture, Longfellow wrote, in The Golden Legend, that Michael was the spirit of the planet Mercury who brought patience to mankind. In the Hollywood movie, The Bishop’s Wife (1947), Cary Grant plays Michael in the form of a mysterious assistant who suddenly appears to aid the Episcopalian Bishop Brougham.

Dawn Pisturino

September 7, 2021

Copyright 2021 Dawn Pisturino. All Rights Reserved.

Angel Art – The Archangel Uriel

This painting by Leonardo Da Vinci, titled “The Virgin of the Rocks,” depicts the Virgin Mary, John the Baptist, the Child Jesus, and the Archangel Uriel.

Uriel means “fire of God.” In Catholic tradition, he was the angel that stood outside the Garden of Eden, after the expulsion of Adam and Eve, holding the revolving fiery sword. His feast day is celebrated on September 29th (the Feast of the Archangels).

In 1 Enoch, Uriel is the angel that “watches over thunder and terror.” In the apocryphal book, The Book of Adam and Eve, Uriel is the angel of salvation and repentance. II Esdras, an apocalyptic writing often included in the King James Bible, portrays Uriel as the angel who interprets Ezra’s dreams. Uriel has sometimes been identified as the angel who wrestled with Jacob at Peniel and helped bury the bodies of Adam and Abel in Paradise; as the messenger sent by God to warn Noah and his family about the flood; and the angel who destroyed 185,000 Assyrians in II Kings 19:35.

Occult literature names Uriel as the angel who brought alchemy down to earth from heaven, although many sources attribute this act to the angel Metatron.

John Milton, in Paradise Lost III, refers to Uriel as the “Regent of the Sun.” Dryden portrays him “as descending from heaven in a chariot drawn by white horses.”

The Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates Uriel’s feast day on November 8th:

(Eastern Orthodox Church icons)

Dawn Pisturino

August 30, 2021

Copyright 2021 Dawn Pisturino. All Rights Reserved.