LifeSiteNews interview [1:00:30] – Fr. Carlos Martins talks about some of the exorcisms he has performed and about how Catholics can protect themselves against the forces of evil. The podcast is @ https://www.exorcistfiles.tv/.
The Exorcist Files Podcast [1:00] – In the last several years, there has been an alarming increase in the number of reported demonic possessions. Father Carlos Martins has been in the exorcism ministry for almost two decades and has encountered evil in nearly every way imaginable. The Exorcist Files are his stories.
In addition to being an exorcist, Fr. Martin is director of the Treasures of the Church ministry. [2:53] – This exposition has special significance for me and Dearest, because one of our grands got to visit it with his parents last fall. When they came for Christmas, they brought us a third class relic and the DVD version of the presentation Fr. Martin gives to those who attend in person.
Since thinking about people venerating objects will no doubt strike many of you as blatant idolatry, I hope you’ll read the following from the Treasures of the Church website.
About Relics
Relics are physical objects that have a direct association with the saints or with Our Lord. They are usually broken down into three classes. First class relics are the body or fragments of the body of a saint, such as pieces of bone or flesh. Second class relics are something that a saint personally owned, such as a shirt or book (or fragments of those items). Third class relics are those items that a saint touched or that have been touched to a first, second, or another third class relic of a saint.
Scripture teaches that God acts through relics, especially in terms of healing. In fact, when surveying what Scripture has to say about sacred relics, one is left with the idea that healing is what relics “do.”
- When the corpse of a man was touched to the bones of the prophet Elisha the man came back to life and rose to his feet (2 Kings 13:20-21).
- A woman was healed of her hemorrhage simply by touching the hem of Jesus’ cloak (Matthew 9:20-22).
- The signs and wonders worked by the Apostles were so great that people would line the streets with the sick so that when Peter walked by at least his shadow might ‘touch’ them (Acts 5:12-15).
- When handkerchiefs or aprons that had been touched to Paul were applied to the sick, the people were healed and evil spirits were driven out of them (Acts 19:11-12).
In each of these instances God has brought about a healing using a material object. The vehicle for the healing was the touching of that object. It is very important to note, however, that the cause of the healing is God; the relics are a means through which He acts. In other words, relics are not magic. They do not contain a power that is their own; a power separate from God. Any good that comes about through a relic is God’s doing. But the fact that God chooses to use the relics of saints to work healing and miracles tells us that He wants to draw our attention to the saints as “models and intercessors” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 828).
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