Bao Loc Exorcism Group In Vietnam
Bao Loc Exorcism Group In Vietnam
I.
Bao Loc Exorcism
Group
In several recent years, there is a group called "Bao
Loc exorcism group" has appeared illegally in the highland of Vietnam.
This group includes former priests, former men and women religious, and laypeople who are ready to give up everything: vows, congregations, parishes,
family to come to “the House of God the Father”.
Ms. Teresa Nguyen Thi Thuong, who leads the group of exorcists
based in Bao Loc parish in Lam Dong province of Vietnam,[1]
identifies herself who was revealed to become “a secretary of God the Father”.
Her mission is doing what God the Father told her and wants her to communicate
to others. She claims that she has been given the ability by God to exorcise
demons, so she and her companions have performed exorcism at her house and
attracted many people by video clips for years. Many people have visited Thuong’s
house, recited the Divine Mercy and the rosary many times, and had themselves
exorcized by Ms. Thuong and her group members. In 2021, Ms. Thuong inaugurated
her new house called “House of God the Father” for her exorcism. She treats
illnesses such as headaches, backaches, heart problems, and depression as well
as faith ignorance as being caused by evil and uses exorcism to deal with them.
Especially, she exorcizes patients by receiving mandates from God the Father
and violently beating and getting rid of evil spirits from them with the
assistance of group members. The group’s activities are based on the “words of
God the Father” that Thuong is said to receive from God.
Faced with the increasingly popular and serious faith-related
activities of this group, Bishop Dominic Nguyen Van Manh of Da Lat diocese has
banned this group, especially Ms. Thuong for her “incorrect” divine revelations
and disobedience to church officials. He said her “words of God the Father” are
“incorrect, untrue, obscure and delusional.” However, every time Ms. Thuong was
asked not to perform exorcism by local clergy, she answered that she has to
“obey God the Father, not the bishop.” She also says her case is a private
revelation like the Marian apparitions reported in 1917 by three shepherd
children in Fatima, Portugal, and apparitions of Jesus Christ reported by
Polish Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska (1905-1938).
II.
Identify
And Explain The Gnostic Elements Of Bao Loc Exorcism Group
First, for exorcism, we have to define exorcism as a prayer
that falls in the category of sacramentals. This is one of a number of sacred
signs instituted by the Church "to sanctify different circumstances of
life" (the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) no. 1668), thus varying
from the seven sacraments of the Church which were instituted by Christ
himself. Clearly, the Church needs exorcisms for there are instances when a
person needs to be protected against the power of the devil or to be withdrawn
from his spiritual dominion. At such times, the Church asks publicly and
authoritatively in the name of Jesus Christ for this protection or liberation
through the use of exorcism. Moreover, exorcism is grounded in the ministry of
Jesus Christ (Mk 1:34, 39; Lk 4:35; Mt 17:18) and Jesus involved the disciples
in his mission and through their commissioning continued the exorcistic work
begun by Jesus himself (Mt 10:8; Mk 3:14-15; 6:13; 16:17; Lk 9:1; 10:17). It was
not a work they did in their own names but in the name of the One who had
bestowed it upon them. Hence the ministry of exorcism continues in the life of
the Church as part of the regular pastoral care of souls.
Exorcisms are divided into two kinds. Simple or minor forms
of exorcism are found in two places: first, for those preparing for Baptism,
the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) and the Rite of Baptism for
Children both call for minor exorcisms; secondly, the appendix of Exorcisms and
Related Supplications includes a series of prayers which may be used by the
faithful. The second kind is the solemn or “major exorcism”, which is a rite
that can only be performed by a bishop or by a priest, with the special and
express permission of the local ordinary (Code of Canon Law (CIC), can. 1172).
This form is directed “at the expulsion of demons or to the liberation of a
person from demonic possession” (CCC no. 1673).
In the case of Ms. Thuong, when coming to her house, all cases
of illness are considered to be caused by demons and all are treated by
exorcism without distinction. This is completely contrary to the instructions
of CCC no.1673.[2] Moreover, Ms. Thuong exorcizes
patients by receiving mandates from the “words of God the Father” and violently
beating and getting rid of evil spirits from them with the assistance of group
members.[3]
Clearly, the instructions of CCC No.1673 emphasize that solemn exorcism, called “a
major exorcism”, can be performed only by a priest and with the permission of
the bishop. Illness, especially psychological illness, is a very different
matter; treating this is the concern of medical science. Therefore, before an
exorcism is performed, it is important to ascertain that one is dealing with
the presence of the Evil One, and not an illness. This is completely opposite
of Ms. Thuong's method of exorcism.
Second, Ms. Thuong shows no sign of obeying the local
ecclesiastical authority when she answers “obey God the Father, not the
bishop.” Canon 1172 of the CIC declares that no one can perform exorcisms
legitimately unless he or she has obtained special and express permission from
the local ordinary. Ms. Thuong had not obeyed a legitimate prohibition by the
ordinary and persisted in disobedience. Moreover, her acts baffle Catholics’
faith and sow division among them rather than building unity. Even if she has
the gift of true prophecy, the sign of God's belonging is unity through
obedience like St Paul says: “The authority the Lord gave me for building you
up, not for tearing you down” (2Cor 13:10), and “such a person also goes into
great detail about what they have seen; they are puffed up with idle notions by
their unspiritual mind. They have lost connection with the Head” (Cl 2,18-19).
Third, is what Ms. Thuong said really the “words of God the
Father”? The Letter to the Hebrews says: “In the past, God spoke to our
ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these
last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things,
and through whom also he made the universe” (Heb 1, 1-2). Thus, Jesus is God's full
& final revelation. There will be no further revelation, no need for another
prophet. The revelation is already complete. There is no new revelation to come
before Christ’s return when he will reveal more of himself to us as the full
and final revelation of God. This continues to emphasize so many times in
Hebrews: “He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself”
(Heb 7:27). Hence, Jesus is the only Son who came down from Heaven to carry out
and preach the will of the Father, and “there is only one Mediator between
mankind and God, and that is Jesus Christ” (1Tim 2:5).
Ms. Thuong considers herself as a “secretary of the Father”, which
means she excludes Jesus' role in the Father's saving work – the only One Mediator. She implicitly denied Jesus Christ as the Savior sent by the Father
and see herself as a prophet in this new age. While St Paul teaches us: “Whatever
you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Col 3,17). Moreover, Ms. Thuong's words
are one-sided, not confirmed by the Father, not verified through the Church, so
it is not true in its nature. Elsewhere, Jesus also stated very clearly: “No
one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the
Father” (Jn 6:46).
Fourth, she said her case is a private revelation like the
Marian apparitions and apparitions of Jesus Christ. However, the Catechism of
the Catholic Church teaches us: “Throughout the ages, there have been so-called
“private” revelations, some of which have been recognized by the authority of
the Church…Guided by the Magisterium of the Church, the sensus fidelium knows how to discern and welcome in these
revelations whatever constitutes an authentic call of Christ or his saints to
the Church” (CCC 67). Therefore, the Church does not reject private revelation.
Well-known examples of private revelations are those visions granted to St. Faustina
Kowalska, St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, and St. Bernadette Soubirous to name a
few. These have all been confirmed as authentic private revelations and the
faithful are free to read and gain spiritual benefit from them but are not
obligated to do so.
However, not all private revelations are approved by the
Church and have been deemed either the fruit of a human spirit or a diabolical
spirit. The Vatican publishes guidelines on apparitions, private revelations
with a three-stage process by which a legitimate church authority can come to a
decision regarding claims of apparitions or revelations.[4]
First, the claim should be initially judged “according to positive and negative
criteria.” This investigation can include an assessment of the “personal qualities”
of any alleged seers as to their “psychological equilibrium, honesty and
rectitude of moral life, sincerity and habitual docility towards ecclesiastical
authority, the capacity to return to a normal regimen of a life of faith.” A
potentially authentic revelation must also be of “true theological and
spiritual doctrine and immune from error.” Second, if the local church
authorities come to a favorable initial conclusion they can permit some form of
public devotion while continuing “overseeing this with great prudence.” Third,
a final judgment can then be passed “in light of time passed and of experience”
with special regard to “the fecundity of spiritual fruit generated from this
new devotion.”[5] Therefore, to be accepted
as private revelation requires a carefully authoritative ecclesiastical
approval process.
Moreover, the sign of any private revelation is entirely
obedient to their superiors. This might be a local bishop, the pope, or their
religious superior. Saint Faustina says: “Satan can even clothe himself in
a cloak of humility, but he does not know how to wear the cloak of obedience”.[6]
God always invites us to obey those given authority in the Church and to
respect their decisions as Jesus says: “Whoever listens to you listens to me;
whoever rejects you rejects me, but whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me”
(Luke 10,16). Therefore, when Ms. Thuong says: “obey God the Father, not the
bishop”, her attitude is not only disobedient to the bishop but she also wants
to go against the Church, the teaching, and the unity of the Church.
To conclude, with the gnostic elements of Bao Loc Exorcism
Group listed above, it can see that the exorcism, the idea of revelation, obedience
to the local ecclesiastical authority, and working in the name of the words of
God the Father of this group completely go against the Scripture, to the
theological thoughts, the teachings, and traditions of the Catholic Church.
Clearly, this group's practice of faith does not produce a “healthy devotion
and abundant and constant spiritual fruit”. On the contrary, what they are
doing is leading to errors in faith and the unity in the Church.
Sỹ Đoàn C.P
[1]
Lâm Đồng is a province located in the central highland region of Vietnam. Its
capital is Đà Lạt.
[2]
Also see CIC No. 1172: §1 No one may lawfully exorcise the possessed without
the special and express permission of the local Ordinary. §2 This permission is
to be granted by the local Ordinary only to a priest who is endowed with piety,
knowledge, prudence and integrity of life.
[3]
Ms. Thuong exorcises demons mainly through “ask the word of God the Father”,
then transmits demons, casts out demons, receives demons, expels demons, fights
demons, and exorcises demons.
[4] “Private Revelation,”
Vatican, accessed March 07, 2022,
[5] “Private Revelation,” Catholicnewsagency,
accessed March 07, 2022,
[6] Maria Faustina Kowalska, Diary: Divine Mercy in My Soul (Marian
Press), 2005, 939.
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