At the urging of his archbishop, a prominent Catholic exorcist in the Denver Archdiocese is taking a one-year break from public speaking and interviews which have garnered millions of views on social media.
Instead, the Rev. Chad Ripperger will use his “one-year fast” to devote himself to the Society of the Most Sorrowful Mother, the semi-contemplative religious community he founded and the people it serves, the archdiocese announced in a Monday statement.
The decision arose from a meeting Ripperger had with Denver Archbishop James Golka, who asked the Catholic priest to consider taking the break.
“Fr. Ripperger readily agreed,” the statement said, adding that Golka is grateful for Ripperger’s “priestly service, exorcism ministry and for the generous spirit in which he received this request.” It also said they’ll revisit this arrangement together at the end of the year.
Efforts to reach Ripperger through the archdiocese were not immediately successful, and the archdiocese declined to provide more details, including what led to the archbishop's request.
Ripperger's yearlong fast comes about four months after Monsignor Stephen Rossetti, another Catholic exorcist who gained notoriety on social media, was removed by Cardinal Robert McElroy after serving as the exorcist for the Washington, D.C., Archdiocese for 19 years. That decision followed a viral video Rossetti posted on social media, expressing his personal belief that many UFO sightings are demonic manifestations.
Ripperger recently said that aliens are “just demons” during a nearly three-hour interview on the Shawn Ryan Show, a wide-ranging conversation that racked up about 2.8 million views. Ripperger said that famed inventor Nikola Tesla probably received messages from demons, and dismissed evolution as scientifically, theologically and philosophically problematic. Ripperger has also made appearances on other high-profile conservative media platforms, including The Tucker Carlson Show.
Interest in exorcisms has spurred a recent memo to priests in the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. In response to priests' queries about the possible use of the Rite of Exorcism, they were instructed to treat distressed parishioners with respect and urge them to participate fully in Catholic worship while avoiding involvement with occult practices.
The protocol said that if a parishioner was still suffering from demonic influence after “prudent spiritual care,” priests should contact the Vicar General’s Office to launch an evaluation of whether an exorcism is warranted. It also observed that popular culture has reduced exorcism to a movie and fiction genre rather than what it truly is — “a pastoral act of the Church.”
The Catholic Church recognizes and authorizes the use of exorcism as a spiritual ministry. But dealing with Catholic exorcists with large online followings is a delicate matter for bishops and other church leaders, said Massimo Faggioli, professor of theology at Villanova University.
“There is no canon law that is clear on this,” he said. “(The bishops) know that the online clergy have a following they can’t afford to alienate. It’s an area with not just a legal vacuum, but also a lack of understanding of what it means for the church to be present on the internet.”
Celebrity priests can present big theological challenges for those who have spiritual authority over them.
These bishops tend to “embody a church that might be boring, but reliable,” said Faggioli, adding that it can also be theologically dangerous for online Catholic personalities to possess an influence that can be easily monetized.
“In Catholicism, it shouldn’t matter who gives you the Eucharist or absolution for your sins,” he said. “But, when it becomes focused on the charisma of one person or a few people, this is problematic.”
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