A narrative of the extraordinary case of George Lukins, of Yatton, Somersetshire. Who was possessed of evil spirits, for near eighteen years: also an account of his remarkable deliverance

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The practice of expelling demons from the afflicted stretches far beyond the confines of the Catholic Church. It has been widely co-opted by Pentecostal churches and Evangelicals, who often refer to exorcism as “deliverance ministry.” Protestant missionaries have driven the practice’s growing popularity in developing nations, fueling a surge in popularity in Africa, South America, Asia, and the Caribbean. The first of these was the general lethargy which his movements began to adopt, a sluggish tone to each step or motion. Following that his skin grew pale and the color began to bleed from his eyes until they were almost entirely white, but the most notable were the seizures.

An account of the exorcism was published in the Bristol Gazette. [16] The newspaper reported that George Lukins, during his alleged possession, claimed that he was the devil, made barking noises, sung an inverted Te Deum, and was very violent. [17] In light of these claims, on Friday, 13 June 1778, seven clergymen, including Rev. Joseph Easterbrook, accompanied George Lukins to the vestry at Temple Church, where they performed an exorcism on the man, which included hymn singing and prayer. [18] The deliverance concluded when the demons were allegedly cast out using the Trinitarian formula; the clergymen commanded the demons to return to hell and George Lukins then exclaimed "Blessed Jesus!", praised God, recited the Lord's prayer, and then thanked the Methodist and Anglican clergymen. [19] Rev. Easterbrook, when recording the events under the patronage of Rev. John Wesley, stated that the account would be doubted in this modern era of skepticism, but pointed to "the scriptures, and other authentic history, of ancient as well as modern times" to buttress what he felt was a valid case of demonic possession. [19] An article in The Gentleman's Magazine, and Historical Chronicle criticized the account, stating that Lukins actually suffered from " epilepsy and St. Vitus's dance." [20] Dr. Feriar, a medical demonologist, criticized George Lukins as an impostor masquerading as a demoniac. [12] Nevertheless, after the exorcism, George Lukins was described as calm and happy. [7] Following this case, several pieces of literature were printed on George Lukins, thus popularising his alleged case of diabolical possession and deliverance, [21] [22] [23] despite the original design to keep the case a secret. [6] See also [ edit ] Other members of the medical community also became involved in the debate but, in general, the response was that it "argues very ridiculous credulity on the part of the reverend gentlemen concerned." A Doctor Box of Wrington that had been one of Lukins's many doctors declared him to be nothing more than a cheat. I can only imagine what an unsettling seen it must have been, but none-the-less Mrs. Barber did not heed the warning and instead called upon The Rev. Joseph Easterbrook.What’s more interesting about the case is that this recounting offered by Reverend Easterbrook appears to be of a successful exorcism. He stated that people in his modern era would find it hard to believe that the exorcism of George Lukins was indeed true. Schmidt was declared demon-free on December 23, 1928, but there’s a strange postscript to the story. As it turns out, the 1928 exorcism was neither the first time Riesinger attempted to rid Schmidt of demons, nor the last. Riesinger first exorcised Schmidt in New York City in 1908. The two reportedly became close, and the priest exorcised her several more times over the following years, with Schmidt traveling to whatever state Riesinger found himself in. 5. The Exorcism of Roland Doe // 1949 In the daemoniac his personality seems to be destroyed, and his actions, words, and even thoughts to be overborne by the evil spirit on its path for the kingdom of man”. They were not vessels but rather gateways for demonic entities. George Lukins was not possessed in the traditional sense so much as he had stopped the entities from traveling through him. During the ritual, Hoerner was assisted by another priest, several nuns, and “eight large, strong girls” who were tasked with restraining Tele. Hoerner claims all eight were lifted into the air with Tele as she levitated. The priest decided to handcuff the girl, but he says it took them three hours to accomplish the task as Tele choked, punched, and bit anyone who came close enough. The exorcism was finally declared a success around 9:30 on the morning of September 13, 1906. Just to be sure it took, Hoerner exorcised her again that evening. She happily cooperated, though another exorcism was performed the following year when her symptoms seemed to return. That exorcism was considered successful, but Tele’s recovery was short-lived. She died of consumption just six years later. 4. The Exorcism of Emma Schmidt // 1928

In 1842 Germany, a 28-year-old woman became the center of attention in her neighborhood when strange things happened in her home. Gottleibin Dittus would soon slide in and out of trances, but her possession wouldn’t become so patent until Lutheran pastor Johann Christoph Blumhart began a rite of exorcism. Dittus turned extremely violent and vomited all kinds of matter, from nails to blood. Her ber body convulsed, levitated, and disappeared behind shadows while she screamed about hell and its occupants. At least three publications were printed and circulated following the exorcism debating the Lukins authenticity. As mentioned earlier, Samuel Norman let the call that the possession was faked in his two publications, Authentic anecdotes of George Lukins, the Yatton demoniac (1788) and The great Apostle Unmasked (1788). For his part. Reverend Easterbrook wrote An appeal to the public respecting George Lukins and had two printings created. Both Norman and Easterbrook have been used in producing this history. Bibliotheca Somersetensis: County books, Bath excepted. L-Z. General index. Barnicott and Pearce. 1902 . Retrieved 31 December 2007. Lukins, George. Case of diabolical possession. Seven devils! A case of diabolical possession with an account of the spiritual efforts of seven clergymen of the Church of England, who assembled at Temple church Bristol on the 13th of June 1788 to relieve the afflicted object of George Lukins of Yatton in Somersetshire said to be possessed of seven devils. During her stay in the village, she told the Reverend, she witnessed the unfortunate man have fits multiple times a day, during which he he sang and screamed in various sounds, some of which did not resemble a human voice.

5. Maricica Irina Cornici

On 7 June 1787, Lukins was staying at a home on Redclift Street own by a man named Westcote. While there, Lukins experienced an event which was described by witnesses as having left them in a state of "horror and amazement at the sounds and expressions" that they heard. Deciding Lukins was indeed in need of an exorcism, Easterbrook asked for a meeting to discuss the remedy to the possession. In addition to Easterbrook, three other priest attended: Marsden, Simon. Phantoms of the Isles: Further Tales from the Haunted Realm. London: Boxtree, 1993.