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These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated: 1 00:00:07,640 --> 00:00:10,654 We've all seen or heard about the movie, 2 00:00:10,678 --> 00:00:12,823 Of our Lord Jesus Christ, 3 00:00:12,847 --> 00:00:15,392 who lives and reigns with the Father 4 00:00:15,416 --> 00:00:16,960 and the Holy Spirit! 5 00:00:18,252 --> 00:00:22,332 But now a mysterious diary 6 00:00:22,356 --> 00:00:25,535 reveals the true story 7 00:00:25,559 --> 00:00:28,872 behind The Exorcist. 8 00:00:28,896 --> 00:00:30,941 I'm hearing it firsthand from people who saw it, 9 00:00:30,965 --> 00:00:34,244 who saw a bed levitate. 10 00:00:34,268 --> 00:00:38,749 Finally, rare, unfiltered access into the real 11 00:00:38,773 --> 00:00:41,885 and most frightening exorcism in America. 12 00:00:41,909 --> 00:00:44,187 The demon said to me, "You can't get rid of us. 13 00:00:44,211 --> 00:00:46,023 You're not strong enough." 14 00:00:46,047 --> 00:00:50,260 And for the first time, an eyewitness appears on camera 15 00:00:50,284 --> 00:00:53,397 to expose a shocking secret. 16 00:00:53,421 --> 00:00:56,099 According to the church, somebody gave their life 17 00:00:56,123 --> 00:00:58,035 for the child. 18 00:00:58,059 --> 00:01:02,305 What really happened to the haunted boy in St. Louis 19 00:01:02,329 --> 00:01:05,075 and the devil that possessed him? 20 00:01:13,074 --> 00:01:16,653 December 26, 1973. 21 00:01:16,677 --> 00:01:19,322 The day after Christmas. 22 00:01:19,346 --> 00:01:21,358 Audiences wait in long lines 23 00:01:21,382 --> 00:01:25,362 for the much anticipated movie "The Exorcist," 24 00:01:25,386 --> 00:01:28,231 but no one in their darkest nightmares 25 00:01:28,255 --> 00:01:33,136 can imagine what they are about to see. 26 00:01:33,160 --> 00:01:37,140 I passed out in about the first half-hour. Yeah. 27 00:01:37,164 --> 00:01:38,708 I don't know what they should do with that movie, 28 00:01:38,732 --> 00:01:42,345 but I don't want to see the rest of it. 29 00:01:42,369 --> 00:01:43,947 I fainted like 10 minutes after 30 00:01:43,971 --> 00:01:46,550 the first beginning of the movie. 31 00:01:46,574 --> 00:01:49,786 "The Exorcist" follows the story of a 12-year-old girl 32 00:01:49,810 --> 00:01:52,989 possessed by the devil and the ghoulish horror 33 00:01:53,013 --> 00:01:55,459 facing the priests attempting to save her. 34 00:01:55,483 --> 00:01:58,628 It's the power of Christ that compels you. 35 00:01:58,652 --> 00:02:02,232 The power of Christ compels you! 36 00:02:02,256 --> 00:02:05,535 Let the power of Christ compel you! 37 00:02:05,559 --> 00:02:08,271 The power of Christ compels you! 38 00:02:08,295 --> 00:02:11,875 The movie strikes at one of our deepest anxieties, 39 00:02:11,899 --> 00:02:16,012 the fear of the devil. 40 00:02:16,036 --> 00:02:20,117 When she started talking like devil coming out of her, bleh, 41 00:02:20,141 --> 00:02:21,885 my legs are just going, nrrrrr! 42 00:02:21,909 --> 00:02:23,587 And I want to go in the lobby and not watch it 43 00:02:23,611 --> 00:02:25,455 and I had to cover my ears. 44 00:02:25,479 --> 00:02:27,991 I can't even describe it. It's so horrible. 45 00:02:28,015 --> 00:02:30,694 It just... 46 00:02:30,718 --> 00:02:32,929 I just scared me to death. Things just like this, 47 00:02:32,953 --> 00:02:35,098 it just really scared me to death. 48 00:02:35,122 --> 00:02:37,534 I'm just nervous. 49 00:02:37,558 --> 00:02:40,804 Are you going to go back in and see more of the movie now? 50 00:02:40,828 --> 00:02:42,506 Probably, yeah. 51 00:02:42,530 --> 00:02:47,210 I would say that everything in the movie can actually happen 52 00:02:47,234 --> 00:02:51,248 because the devil will play on a person's memory and imagination. 53 00:02:54,074 --> 00:02:58,522 So head spinning, pea soup flying, 54 00:02:58,546 --> 00:03:01,825 people crawling up the wall like a spider, 55 00:03:01,849 --> 00:03:04,494 levitation, whatever it is, 56 00:03:04,518 --> 00:03:06,630 all of these things are possible. 57 00:03:09,690 --> 00:03:11,701 After the release of the film, 58 00:03:11,725 --> 00:03:15,805 the Catholic Church notices a spike in attendance. 59 00:03:15,829 --> 00:03:19,109 People come to profess their sins and seek salvation 60 00:03:19,133 --> 00:03:22,112 through the ancient ritual of exorcism. 61 00:03:22,136 --> 00:03:25,148 Aaaaaaah! 62 00:03:25,172 --> 00:03:26,516 After the movie comes out, 63 00:03:26,540 --> 00:03:28,351 the church sees this big uptick in people 64 00:03:28,375 --> 00:03:30,120 thinking they need an exorcism. 65 00:03:30,144 --> 00:03:32,656 And priests are just getting inundated with requests 66 00:03:32,680 --> 00:03:37,394 for investigations of demonic possession. 67 00:03:37,418 --> 00:03:40,230 I command you, Satan, enemy of human salvation 68 00:03:40,254 --> 00:03:44,701 acknowledge the justice and goodness of God the father. 69 00:03:44,725 --> 00:03:48,371 I was able to learn firsthand the church's ministry 70 00:03:48,395 --> 00:03:51,141 to those who were up against the forces of evil 71 00:03:51,165 --> 00:03:53,610 and that were turning to the church for help, 72 00:03:53,634 --> 00:03:56,112 saw many different manifestations, 73 00:03:56,136 --> 00:03:58,448 everything from eyes rolled in the back of the head, 74 00:03:58,472 --> 00:04:02,252 foaming at the mouth, convulsing on the ground. 75 00:04:02,276 --> 00:04:06,790 One occasion I even witnessed a levitation. 76 00:04:06,814 --> 00:04:09,859 Exorcism is a powerful ritual. 77 00:04:09,883 --> 00:04:13,630 This is the belief of the church that the devil will, 78 00:04:13,654 --> 00:04:16,399 in speaking through the body of the possessed, 79 00:04:16,423 --> 00:04:19,569 will attempt to tear down the priest, 80 00:04:19,593 --> 00:04:23,340 to destroy him physically and emotionally. 81 00:04:25,766 --> 00:04:29,512 "The Exorcist" may be the scariest movie of all time, 82 00:04:29,536 --> 00:04:31,848 and what makes it even more frightening... 83 00:04:31,872 --> 00:04:34,150 The story is true. 84 00:04:37,878 --> 00:04:40,991 Writer William Peter Blatty loosely bases his book 85 00:04:41,015 --> 00:04:44,194 and screenplay not about a girl, 86 00:04:44,218 --> 00:04:49,899 but the real life horror of a 13-year-old boy from Maryland. 87 00:04:49,923 --> 00:04:52,369 He's often known as Roland Doe 88 00:04:52,393 --> 00:04:55,138 to protect his identity. 89 00:04:55,162 --> 00:04:58,308 William Peter Blatty who writes "The Exorcist" book, 90 00:04:58,332 --> 00:05:00,310 which is published in 1971, 91 00:05:00,334 --> 00:05:02,345 was a student at Georgetown University. 92 00:05:02,369 --> 00:05:05,048 At the time, he was an English major 93 00:05:05,072 --> 00:05:07,617 and at least one of the Jesuits whom he knew 94 00:05:07,641 --> 00:05:13,089 at Georgetown was aware of this and told him about it. 95 00:05:13,113 --> 00:05:17,627 William Peter Blatty, he had a lot of privy to documents 96 00:05:17,651 --> 00:05:20,897 that some of us may not have had privy to that had to do 97 00:05:20,921 --> 00:05:24,668 with possession and exorcism and so on. 98 00:05:24,692 --> 00:05:28,038 And he had kept newspaper clippings 99 00:05:28,062 --> 00:05:31,141 from Washington, D.C., 100 00:05:31,165 --> 00:05:35,111 about this boy just outside of Georgetown 101 00:05:35,135 --> 00:05:37,447 who had had these things happening to him. 102 00:05:42,643 --> 00:05:46,523 But the book and movie only tell half the story. 103 00:05:46,547 --> 00:05:49,192 Now the shocking discovery 104 00:05:49,216 --> 00:05:52,028 of a secret diary 105 00:05:52,052 --> 00:05:53,963 reveals chilling new details 106 00:05:53,987 --> 00:05:56,466 of the real exorcism case 107 00:05:56,490 --> 00:05:58,768 that happened over 70 years ago. 108 00:06:04,798 --> 00:06:07,610 January, 1949. 109 00:06:07,634 --> 00:06:09,879 Roland Doe, an only child, 110 00:06:09,903 --> 00:06:12,816 lives with his parents in Cottage City, Maryland, 111 00:06:12,840 --> 00:06:16,820 a modest suburb outside of Washington, D.C. 112 00:06:16,844 --> 00:06:18,822 A lot of the people that he went to school with, 113 00:06:18,846 --> 00:06:20,357 a lot of his former friends, 114 00:06:20,381 --> 00:06:24,160 people he knew growing up always described him 115 00:06:24,184 --> 00:06:29,232 as being sort of hyper, sort of troublesome. 116 00:06:29,256 --> 00:06:30,900 It wasn't that he was a bad student. 117 00:06:30,924 --> 00:06:33,269 He just had a lot of trouble focusing. 118 00:06:38,432 --> 00:06:41,211 Roland forges a close bond with his Aunt Tillie, 119 00:06:41,235 --> 00:06:43,113 who lives in St. Louis. 120 00:06:43,137 --> 00:06:45,915 Tillie dabbles in spiritualism, 121 00:06:45,939 --> 00:06:49,085 a belief in communicating with the dead. 122 00:06:49,109 --> 00:06:51,321 She teaches Roland how to speak to spirits 123 00:06:51,345 --> 00:06:55,458 through a popular board game. 124 00:06:55,482 --> 00:06:57,927 Aunt Tillie no doubt spoke to him 125 00:06:57,951 --> 00:06:59,396 about some of her spiritual beliefs. 126 00:06:59,420 --> 00:07:03,733 They used this spirit board or talking board. 127 00:07:03,757 --> 00:07:08,605 The talking board is a by-product of the spiritualist movement. 128 00:07:08,629 --> 00:07:10,673 It's got the alphabet printed on it. 129 00:07:10,697 --> 00:07:13,176 And on that talking board is a little table 130 00:07:13,200 --> 00:07:14,644 called a planchette. 131 00:07:14,668 --> 00:07:18,014 And one, two, three, or more people can put fingers 132 00:07:18,038 --> 00:07:20,950 on that planchette, and it moves and spells out messages. 133 00:07:22,376 --> 00:07:24,421 But Roland and his aunt have no idea 134 00:07:24,445 --> 00:07:29,392 they're opening a door to the dark side. 135 00:07:29,416 --> 00:07:32,495 The aunt showed him how to use the talking board. 136 00:07:32,519 --> 00:07:37,634 And there's a lot of people that believe that was the invitation 137 00:07:37,658 --> 00:07:39,969 for the demon to step in. 138 00:07:46,967 --> 00:07:48,912 It all began in Roland's home 139 00:07:48,936 --> 00:07:52,816 on January 15, 1949. 140 00:07:52,840 --> 00:07:54,417 Roland's mother hears 141 00:07:54,441 --> 00:07:57,687 what sounds like scratching noises inside the walls. 142 00:08:02,850 --> 00:08:05,495 When Roland's mother first started talking about 143 00:08:05,519 --> 00:08:07,397 the strange scratchings to his father, 144 00:08:07,421 --> 00:08:11,501 he actually had someone come in thinking that they had rats. 145 00:08:11,525 --> 00:08:13,736 An exterminator came in to check the house, 146 00:08:13,760 --> 00:08:15,672 couldn't find any signs of anything. 147 00:08:15,696 --> 00:08:18,274 So they're thinking it's Roland acting up. 148 00:08:18,298 --> 00:08:20,777 He's doing things, you know, to get attention. 149 00:08:20,801 --> 00:08:24,214 But as time went on, 150 00:08:24,238 --> 00:08:27,450 Roland's mother began to believe the house was haunted. 151 00:08:33,847 --> 00:08:37,160 11 days after the first scratching sounds occur, 152 00:08:37,184 --> 00:08:40,964 Roland receives devastating news. 153 00:08:40,988 --> 00:08:43,566 His Aunt Tillie has died. 154 00:08:46,426 --> 00:08:48,004 Soon after her death, 155 00:08:48,028 --> 00:08:50,607 Roland and his mother hear different noises, 156 00:08:50,631 --> 00:08:53,009 this time in his bedroom. 157 00:08:55,269 --> 00:08:59,015 Once Aunt Tillie passes away, then everything 158 00:08:59,039 --> 00:09:00,450 starts to really ramp up. 159 00:09:00,474 --> 00:09:03,152 They hear what sounds like troops marching 160 00:09:03,176 --> 00:09:07,290 towards Roland's bed. 161 00:09:07,314 --> 00:09:08,424 Everybody's frightened. 162 00:09:08,448 --> 00:09:10,560 There's knocks and bangs on the wall. 163 00:09:10,584 --> 00:09:12,595 And Roland's mother screams out, 164 00:09:12,619 --> 00:09:14,864 "Tillie, if that's you, knock three times." 165 00:09:14,888 --> 00:09:18,735 And they claim they heard three knocks. 166 00:09:18,759 --> 00:09:20,737 And so at this point, they start making the connection, 167 00:09:20,761 --> 00:09:23,740 that it must be Aunt Tillie paying some visitation, 168 00:09:23,764 --> 00:09:26,609 something like that. 169 00:09:26,633 --> 00:09:29,112 If the alarming sounds truly come from the spirit 170 00:09:29,136 --> 00:09:31,114 of Aunt Tillie, 171 00:09:31,138 --> 00:09:35,485 why would she be tormenting her beloved nephew, Roland? 172 00:09:35,509 --> 00:09:38,421 Is it possible the boy might be attracting someone 173 00:09:38,445 --> 00:09:42,992 or something else? 174 00:09:43,016 --> 00:09:44,928 As things started to happen in the house, 175 00:09:44,952 --> 00:09:47,063 according to his mother, they were seeing, 176 00:09:47,087 --> 00:09:48,498 you know, dishes move around, 177 00:09:48,522 --> 00:09:50,266 things fly across the room, 178 00:09:50,290 --> 00:09:52,635 chairs that that would spin around, 179 00:09:52,659 --> 00:09:55,238 slide across the floor almost every night 180 00:09:55,262 --> 00:09:58,741 when Roland would go to bed. 181 00:09:58,765 --> 00:10:00,677 At first, everything would be peaceful, 182 00:10:00,701 --> 00:10:02,812 but then the bed would start to shake. 183 00:10:05,906 --> 00:10:08,518 But then it got worse, till the mattress was bouncing 184 00:10:08,542 --> 00:10:11,888 up and down, the headboard was banging against the wall. 185 00:10:11,912 --> 00:10:15,191 And all of these things were done with this skinny 186 00:10:15,215 --> 00:10:19,562 13-year-old kid huddled in the middle of this bed. 187 00:10:19,586 --> 00:10:22,298 Beyond the scary noises and shaking bed, 188 00:10:22,322 --> 00:10:25,134 Roland awakens in the middle of the night, 189 00:10:25,158 --> 00:10:29,839 thrashing and screaming in a voice that doesn't sound human. 190 00:10:29,863 --> 00:10:33,076 And the boy would speak in a very guttural kind of voice 191 00:10:33,100 --> 00:10:35,411 that didn't quite seem like the voice of a boy. 192 00:10:35,435 --> 00:10:37,480 Maybe this was an alternative personality. 193 00:10:37,504 --> 00:10:39,582 Maybe this could even be a demon. 194 00:10:44,945 --> 00:10:47,624 People who had gone to school with him years later 195 00:10:47,648 --> 00:10:50,526 talked about how they were starting to hear 196 00:10:50,550 --> 00:10:52,495 in the neighborhood, about the things that were 197 00:10:52,519 --> 00:10:53,963 going on at night. 198 00:10:53,987 --> 00:10:56,232 They were hearing the yelling and the screaming 199 00:10:56,256 --> 00:10:58,434 and the banging that was going on in the house. 200 00:11:00,894 --> 00:11:03,773 And their parents would talk about it. 201 00:11:03,797 --> 00:11:07,243 They just thought there was something wrong with this kid. 202 00:11:07,267 --> 00:11:09,512 As rumors rippled through the neighborhood, 203 00:11:09,536 --> 00:11:12,315 Roland's classmates witnessed bizarre phenomena 204 00:11:12,339 --> 00:11:15,018 happening around him at school. 205 00:11:15,042 --> 00:11:18,755 While he was in class, sometimes his book would fly off the desk, 206 00:11:18,779 --> 00:11:20,390 papers would fly across the room. 207 00:11:20,414 --> 00:11:21,724 There were a couple of instances 208 00:11:21,748 --> 00:11:24,160 where his desk was actually moving, 209 00:11:24,184 --> 00:11:26,929 almost kind of vibrating across the floor. 210 00:11:26,953 --> 00:11:29,365 Well, the teachers accused him of doing it, of course, 211 00:11:29,389 --> 00:11:32,635 because, you know, this was a kid who was kind of 212 00:11:32,659 --> 00:11:36,139 high strung and pranks were not out of the ordinary for him. 213 00:11:36,163 --> 00:11:38,474 So they just assumed he was acting up, 214 00:11:38,498 --> 00:11:41,778 but he swore that he wasn't. 215 00:11:41,802 --> 00:11:45,581 Can you imagine you're having these horrible things 216 00:11:45,605 --> 00:11:48,251 happening to you, and you go to school, 217 00:11:48,275 --> 00:11:51,054 and your peers see this, and everybody thinks 218 00:11:51,078 --> 00:11:53,956 you're just trying to get attention. 219 00:11:53,980 --> 00:11:56,793 What a horrible thing to go through. 220 00:11:56,817 --> 00:11:59,362 As his troubling behavior escalates, 221 00:11:59,386 --> 00:12:02,065 Roland stops going to school. 222 00:12:02,089 --> 00:12:04,333 Could the boy be losing his mind, 223 00:12:04,357 --> 00:12:07,670 or has he conjured an evil spirit 224 00:12:07,694 --> 00:12:10,440 from the depths of hell? 225 00:12:23,210 --> 00:12:25,988 The quaint Maryland suburb of Cottage City 226 00:12:26,012 --> 00:12:30,393 was once home to 13-year-old Roland Doe, 227 00:12:30,417 --> 00:12:34,330 a seemingly ordinary adolescent. 228 00:12:34,354 --> 00:12:36,999 But back in February 1949, 229 00:12:37,023 --> 00:12:41,604 Roland's world is suddenly torn apart. 230 00:12:41,628 --> 00:12:45,208 Every evening, he bursts into frenzied fits 231 00:12:45,232 --> 00:12:47,744 and when throttled awake by a rattling bed 232 00:12:47,768 --> 00:12:50,747 and recurring nightmares of evil spirits. 233 00:12:55,308 --> 00:12:58,321 I think that's when things started to really get strange, 234 00:12:58,345 --> 00:13:01,791 because it just seemed impossible 235 00:13:01,815 --> 00:13:03,860 that he was doing these things. 236 00:13:08,722 --> 00:13:11,601 He was waking up, going through these fits, 237 00:13:11,625 --> 00:13:15,338 these contortions and screams and cries. 238 00:13:17,063 --> 00:13:19,008 Worried about his health, 239 00:13:19,032 --> 00:13:22,178 Roland's parents take him to a doctor. 240 00:13:22,202 --> 00:13:24,447 Could their son's nightly tantrums be the result 241 00:13:24,471 --> 00:13:28,618 of physical illness, perhaps epilepsy? 242 00:13:28,642 --> 00:13:32,822 Possession could also be signs that people exhibit 243 00:13:32,846 --> 00:13:34,791 if they have a physical issue, 244 00:13:34,815 --> 00:13:37,927 whether somebody is suffering from seizures, 245 00:13:37,951 --> 00:13:41,531 Tourette syndrome. 246 00:13:41,555 --> 00:13:44,400 The church wants to be very cautious 247 00:13:44,424 --> 00:13:46,702 because if I'm too quick to label somebody 248 00:13:46,726 --> 00:13:50,173 as being possessed, and that label prevents the person 249 00:13:50,197 --> 00:13:53,676 from getting the true help that they need, 250 00:13:53,700 --> 00:13:57,880 then I believe I've done more harm than good. 251 00:13:57,904 --> 00:14:00,082 The medical doctor can't find anything 252 00:14:00,106 --> 00:14:02,952 physically wrong with Roland. 253 00:14:02,976 --> 00:14:05,254 So his parents take him to a psychiatrist. 254 00:14:05,278 --> 00:14:08,057 Perhaps their son has a mental illness 255 00:14:08,081 --> 00:14:11,494 such as manic depression or schizophrenia. 256 00:14:11,518 --> 00:14:15,731 This was 1949. So psychiatry was not real developed, 257 00:14:15,755 --> 00:14:18,501 but nevertheless, they could find nothing wrong 258 00:14:18,525 --> 00:14:20,937 with Roland at that time. 259 00:14:20,961 --> 00:14:23,573 So they also went to see a psychologist, 260 00:14:23,597 --> 00:14:28,377 and he couldn't find out anything wrong with him either. 261 00:14:28,401 --> 00:14:31,914 I think a lot of therapists and psychologists 262 00:14:31,938 --> 00:14:35,484 and psychiatrists, they really are very hesitant 263 00:14:35,508 --> 00:14:39,655 to endorse demonic possession as a diagnosis. 264 00:14:42,249 --> 00:14:46,929 If someone had childhood trauma or even current trauma, 265 00:14:46,953 --> 00:14:51,667 that could also mimic signs and symptoms of demonic possession. 266 00:14:53,793 --> 00:14:57,940 In Roland's case, no known medical records exist 267 00:14:57,964 --> 00:15:01,611 except for a psychiatrist describing the boy as normal, 268 00:15:01,635 --> 00:15:05,147 but high strung. 269 00:15:05,171 --> 00:15:08,584 I don't think there is an available 270 00:15:08,608 --> 00:15:14,090 psychological diagnosis that can account for all of the things 271 00:15:14,114 --> 00:15:16,659 that have been reported with this kid. 272 00:15:20,086 --> 00:15:22,832 Does that make me leaping to the conclusion, 273 00:15:22,856 --> 00:15:26,936 "I'm 100 percent sure this is a bona fide case of possession"? 274 00:15:26,960 --> 00:15:29,372 I don't know. 275 00:15:29,396 --> 00:15:33,509 But do we open the door for the possibility 276 00:15:33,533 --> 00:15:35,511 is something maybe going on 277 00:15:35,535 --> 00:15:38,614 that's beyond the scope of science? 278 00:15:44,344 --> 00:15:45,955 After consulting doctors, 279 00:15:45,979 --> 00:15:48,357 Roland's parents turned to their minister, 280 00:15:48,381 --> 00:15:50,459 Reverend Luther Miles Schulze, 281 00:15:50,483 --> 00:15:54,864 the pastor at St. Stephen's Evangelical Lutheran Church. 282 00:15:54,888 --> 00:15:58,067 Reverend Schulze happened to be very interested 283 00:15:58,091 --> 00:16:00,536 in what is called parapsychology. 284 00:16:00,560 --> 00:16:03,506 That's when these abnormal things are happening 285 00:16:03,530 --> 00:16:08,878 around a person, and by some mechanism we don't understand, 286 00:16:08,902 --> 00:16:12,782 internal turmoil is expressed externally. 287 00:16:16,242 --> 00:16:19,121 Reverend Schulze wonders if mischievous ghosts 288 00:16:19,145 --> 00:16:23,225 known as poltergeists could be wreaking havoc in Roland's home. 289 00:16:26,186 --> 00:16:30,700 A poltergeist is energy that causes things to happen, 290 00:16:30,724 --> 00:16:33,703 objects moving around, lights turning on and off, 291 00:16:33,727 --> 00:16:36,305 doors opening and closing. 292 00:16:36,329 --> 00:16:38,441 The beginning of Roland's case, 293 00:16:38,465 --> 00:16:40,910 that's the things that were starting to happen. 294 00:16:40,934 --> 00:16:44,947 Schulze was curious, but also maybe a bit skeptical. 295 00:16:44,971 --> 00:16:48,985 Initially they wanted to observe him outside of the home. 296 00:16:49,009 --> 00:16:51,687 So if there was something happening in the home, 297 00:16:51,711 --> 00:16:54,857 is it just at the home? 298 00:16:54,881 --> 00:16:57,226 Reverend Schulze believes poltergeists 299 00:16:57,250 --> 00:17:00,029 typically won't move from house to house. 300 00:17:00,053 --> 00:17:02,498 So he comes up with a plan. 301 00:17:07,027 --> 00:17:10,673 Reverend Luther Schulze made an arrangement for Roland to come 302 00:17:10,697 --> 00:17:12,675 and spend the night at his house. 303 00:17:12,699 --> 00:17:16,145 His wife was going to sleep in the guest room. 304 00:17:16,169 --> 00:17:19,448 They get into their separate beds, and almost as soon 305 00:17:19,472 --> 00:17:21,650 as the lights are turned off, 306 00:17:21,674 --> 00:17:23,953 the bed starts vibrating. 307 00:17:27,180 --> 00:17:30,026 Now, Schulze is still thinking this could be a prank. 308 00:17:30,050 --> 00:17:32,294 Well, when he realizes it's not a prank, 309 00:17:32,318 --> 00:17:35,331 this skinny little kid is making the entire bed shake, 310 00:17:35,355 --> 00:17:37,533 he said, "Okay. I know how to solve this." 311 00:17:37,557 --> 00:17:40,569 Why don't you go sleep in the armchair 312 00:17:40,593 --> 00:17:42,638 on the other side of the room? 313 00:17:45,298 --> 00:17:49,178 And no sooner than things had calmed down again, 314 00:17:49,202 --> 00:17:52,448 the chair starts shaking. 315 00:17:52,472 --> 00:17:54,617 It starts bouncing so violently 316 00:17:54,641 --> 00:17:56,685 that the chair actually tips over 317 00:17:56,709 --> 00:17:58,888 and dumps Roland out on the floor. 318 00:18:02,782 --> 00:18:05,061 Stunned by what he's seeing, 319 00:18:05,085 --> 00:18:06,429 Reverend Schulze tells Roland 320 00:18:06,453 --> 00:18:10,166 to lie on a mattress next to his bed. 321 00:18:10,190 --> 00:18:13,402 And then this mattress starts sliding around on the floor, 322 00:18:13,426 --> 00:18:15,471 and he slid underneath the bed. 323 00:18:17,997 --> 00:18:20,209 Then started bouncing up and down. 324 00:18:20,233 --> 00:18:23,212 And then smashing his face on the bedsprings. 325 00:18:25,738 --> 00:18:28,517 Schulze said, well, this isn't this isn't going to work. 326 00:18:28,541 --> 00:18:30,286 When returning home, 327 00:18:30,310 --> 00:18:33,222 Roland's condition takes a terrifying turn. 328 00:18:35,415 --> 00:18:38,561 The minister claimed that three scratches appeared 329 00:18:38,585 --> 00:18:41,230 on Roland's body 330 00:18:41,254 --> 00:18:44,366 and that happened four consecutive nights in a row. 331 00:18:44,390 --> 00:18:46,102 And at this point, they know this isn't normal. 332 00:18:46,126 --> 00:18:48,437 This isn't psychological disorder. 333 00:18:48,461 --> 00:18:51,240 There's something diabolical happening here. 334 00:18:51,264 --> 00:18:54,076 Reverend Schulze no longer believes a poltergeist 335 00:18:54,100 --> 00:18:57,012 is pestering Roland. 336 00:18:57,036 --> 00:19:00,416 He said that this was getting beyond what he could deal with. 337 00:19:00,440 --> 00:19:02,084 He was a Lutheran minister. 338 00:19:02,108 --> 00:19:04,286 He suggested that the family take him 339 00:19:04,310 --> 00:19:05,855 to see a Catholic priest 340 00:19:05,879 --> 00:19:08,257 because they know more about these things 341 00:19:08,281 --> 00:19:12,094 and more about possessions. 342 00:19:12,118 --> 00:19:13,462 Could the Catholic Church 343 00:19:13,486 --> 00:19:17,133 explain these frightening manifestations? 344 00:19:17,157 --> 00:19:20,803 Roland's parents reach out to Father Albert Hughes, 345 00:19:20,827 --> 00:19:25,040 an assistant priest at St. James Catholic Church. 346 00:19:25,064 --> 00:19:29,979 They took Roland to see this Catholic priest. 347 00:19:30,003 --> 00:19:34,116 What basically happened there was that the priest reported 348 00:19:34,140 --> 00:19:40,055 that the temperature in the room all of a sudden became very cold 349 00:19:40,079 --> 00:19:44,894 and he saw the telephone go sliding across the desk. 350 00:19:44,918 --> 00:19:47,363 And the kid said something along the lines, 351 00:19:47,387 --> 00:19:49,965 "Why bother me, you priest of hell?" 352 00:19:52,091 --> 00:19:54,170 As Roland casts obscenities, 353 00:19:54,194 --> 00:19:58,607 Father Hughes senses an evil presence in the boy, 354 00:19:58,631 --> 00:20:04,313 perhaps the devil himself. 355 00:20:04,337 --> 00:20:06,949 The devil is one of the most interesting figures 356 00:20:06,973 --> 00:20:10,085 in mythology, in religion, 357 00:20:10,109 --> 00:20:13,088 in art, in popular culture 358 00:20:13,112 --> 00:20:14,256 because in the Bible, 359 00:20:14,280 --> 00:20:16,292 he's Satan, he's the opposer. 360 00:20:16,316 --> 00:20:20,095 He's the loyal opposition. He's the other side. 361 00:20:20,119 --> 00:20:21,797 If you believe God is real, 362 00:20:21,821 --> 00:20:25,467 you almost have to accept that the devil is also real. 363 00:20:25,491 --> 00:20:29,271 Catholics believe the devil, also known as Lucifer, 364 00:20:29,295 --> 00:20:34,343 was an angel who defies God and falls from grace. 365 00:20:34,367 --> 00:20:39,448 References to demonic spirits appear often in religious texts. 366 00:20:39,472 --> 00:20:44,853 In Catholicism, the devil personifies pure evil. 367 00:20:44,877 --> 00:20:49,425 The demonic spirit is bent on creating havoc 368 00:20:49,449 --> 00:20:52,094 and wreaking havoc in every aspect of your life 369 00:20:52,118 --> 00:20:55,631 and breaking you down. 370 00:20:55,655 --> 00:20:57,333 Breaking you down spiritually, 371 00:20:57,357 --> 00:20:59,268 emotionally, physically, 372 00:20:59,292 --> 00:21:01,203 mentally, psychologically. 373 00:21:01,227 --> 00:21:03,172 Just breaking you down. 374 00:21:03,196 --> 00:21:05,207 After observing Roland's behavior, 375 00:21:05,231 --> 00:21:09,745 Father Hughes becomes convinced the devil is possessing the boy. 376 00:21:09,769 --> 00:21:11,914 But why? 377 00:21:11,938 --> 00:21:14,917 When people are turning to what I would call 378 00:21:14,941 --> 00:21:17,820 practices of the occult, 379 00:21:17,844 --> 00:21:20,756 doing seances, trying to communicate with the dead, 380 00:21:20,780 --> 00:21:23,225 those are things that we should not be doing 381 00:21:23,249 --> 00:21:26,095 because the devil is an opportunist. 382 00:21:26,119 --> 00:21:28,697 If somebody is experiencing some type of brokenness 383 00:21:28,721 --> 00:21:30,966 in their lives, 384 00:21:30,990 --> 00:21:33,736 even from a mental perspective, 385 00:21:33,760 --> 00:21:36,005 the devil could try to 386 00:21:36,029 --> 00:21:38,507 enter into the cracks, if you will... 387 00:21:40,566 --> 00:21:43,846 ...and fracture the person even more. 388 00:21:43,870 --> 00:21:46,315 According to sources, Father Hughes contacts 389 00:21:46,339 --> 00:21:50,953 Archbishop Patrick O'Boyle of Washington, D.C. 390 00:21:50,977 --> 00:21:54,823 He thinks Roland needs an exorcism. 391 00:21:54,847 --> 00:21:57,559 Father Hughes was very upset by all this, 392 00:21:57,583 --> 00:22:00,729 and he thought right away that it warranted a trip 393 00:22:00,753 --> 00:22:02,398 to see the archbishop. 394 00:22:02,422 --> 00:22:04,133 A priest can't randomly decide 395 00:22:04,157 --> 00:22:08,037 "I think this guy needs to be exorcised." 396 00:22:08,061 --> 00:22:10,973 Father Hughes went to the archbishop, 397 00:22:10,997 --> 00:22:15,044 and very reluctantly, the archbishop was convinced 398 00:22:15,068 --> 00:22:18,347 that it was okay to go ahead and do an exorcism. 399 00:22:23,776 --> 00:22:27,122 Sometime between February 27th and March 6th, 400 00:22:27,146 --> 00:22:30,726 Father Hughes reportedly admits Roland to Georgetown Hospital 401 00:22:30,750 --> 00:22:35,297 under an assumed name. 402 00:22:35,321 --> 00:22:37,399 While Roland's strapped to a bed, 403 00:22:37,423 --> 00:22:41,170 Father Hughes reads the prayers of exorcism, 404 00:22:41,194 --> 00:22:43,439 but it goes horribly wrong. 405 00:22:45,264 --> 00:22:49,144 Roland slips his hands out of the restraints. 406 00:22:49,168 --> 00:22:51,947 The devil doesn't like to be shackled. 407 00:23:04,550 --> 00:23:07,896 Georgetown Hospital in Washington, D.C. 408 00:23:07,920 --> 00:23:11,834 becomes the scene of a nightmare beyond imagination. 409 00:23:19,298 --> 00:23:22,845 Between late February and early March of 1949, 410 00:23:22,869 --> 00:23:25,647 Father Albert Hughes, a Jesuit priest, 411 00:23:25,671 --> 00:23:29,418 attempts to perform an exorcism on 13-year-old Roland Doe 412 00:23:29,442 --> 00:23:32,688 in the hospital's psychiatric ward. 413 00:23:32,712 --> 00:23:35,290 But as father Hughes begins the ritual, 414 00:23:35,314 --> 00:23:40,095 Roland reportedly breaks free of a hand restraint. 415 00:23:40,119 --> 00:23:43,599 There's an eyewitness account from the Georgetown Hospital. 416 00:23:43,623 --> 00:23:47,202 Someone was there while Father Hughes did the exorcism. 417 00:23:47,226 --> 00:23:49,571 And in the process of the exorcism, 418 00:23:49,595 --> 00:23:52,074 the boy grabbed a spring from the bed 419 00:23:52,098 --> 00:23:54,209 and sliced Father Hughes's arm. 420 00:24:00,673 --> 00:24:02,785 According to witnesses, 421 00:24:02,809 --> 00:24:07,790 Roland lacerates Father Hughes' arm from shoulder to wrist 422 00:24:07,814 --> 00:24:10,993 requiring 100 stitches. 423 00:24:11,017 --> 00:24:14,096 People who knew Father Hughes said that he was never the same 424 00:24:14,120 --> 00:24:17,199 after this and that he had a problem with his arm. 425 00:24:23,863 --> 00:24:27,476 Days after being discharged from Georgetown Hospital, 426 00:24:27,500 --> 00:24:30,312 Roland plunges deeper into despair. 427 00:24:33,239 --> 00:24:35,117 When getting ready for bed, 428 00:24:35,141 --> 00:24:38,954 he glances in the mirror and shrieks with horror. 429 00:24:44,984 --> 00:24:47,496 Bloody scratches appear on his chest 430 00:24:47,520 --> 00:24:51,066 and seemed to form the word "Louis." 431 00:24:52,892 --> 00:24:56,472 Roland's parents believe the word is a sign. 432 00:24:56,496 --> 00:24:59,208 They have relatives in St. Louis. 433 00:24:59,232 --> 00:25:03,045 They believe that since the word Lewis did appear on his body, 434 00:25:03,069 --> 00:25:06,448 that maybe this evil spirit was sending a message 435 00:25:06,472 --> 00:25:09,318 that you should take Roland to St. Louis. 436 00:25:09,342 --> 00:25:11,553 In addition to his Aunt Tillie, 437 00:25:11,577 --> 00:25:14,823 who is deceased by this time in early March of '49, 438 00:25:14,847 --> 00:25:18,760 Roland's father had a brother who lived in St. Louis. 439 00:25:21,687 --> 00:25:25,200 I talked personally with a woman 440 00:25:25,224 --> 00:25:29,671 who was a best friend of Roland's cousin, 441 00:25:29,695 --> 00:25:34,042 and she told me that I can't possibly imagine 442 00:25:34,066 --> 00:25:35,611 the sense of chaos 443 00:25:35,635 --> 00:25:38,347 that was going on with his family at that time. 444 00:25:40,139 --> 00:25:43,519 They purely were at the end of their rope, 445 00:25:43,543 --> 00:25:45,220 maybe willing to do anything. 446 00:25:45,244 --> 00:25:47,356 I mean, they didn't have a plan. 447 00:25:51,250 --> 00:25:53,762 When they got on the train to come to St. Louis, 448 00:25:53,786 --> 00:25:56,865 all they knew is they were basing this on "Louis," 449 00:25:56,889 --> 00:25:59,368 and they had relatives here and thought maybe they could 450 00:25:59,392 --> 00:26:01,436 find some support and relief 451 00:26:01,460 --> 00:26:05,574 and help spiritually from their relatives. 452 00:26:05,598 --> 00:26:08,210 This family, blue collar family, 453 00:26:08,234 --> 00:26:10,913 job in a postwar economy 454 00:26:10,937 --> 00:26:13,649 upended their entire life 455 00:26:13,673 --> 00:26:16,151 to move halfway across the country 456 00:26:16,175 --> 00:26:20,956 on the off chance that this might help. 457 00:26:20,980 --> 00:26:26,628 So whatever you believe in this, something was happening. 458 00:26:26,652 --> 00:26:30,165 Something earth shattering was happening to this family 459 00:26:30,189 --> 00:26:32,301 to make them do this. 460 00:26:34,594 --> 00:26:36,972 March 8, 1949. 461 00:26:36,996 --> 00:26:39,675 Once arriving in St. Louis, 462 00:26:39,699 --> 00:26:42,177 Roland and his parents stay with relatives 463 00:26:42,201 --> 00:26:46,648 who are devout Catholics living in the quiet suburb of Bel-Nor. 464 00:26:49,575 --> 00:26:53,789 The family hopes they left the evil spirits behind, 465 00:26:53,813 --> 00:26:57,926 but the devil reportedly follows Roland to St. Louis. 466 00:27:01,187 --> 00:27:03,999 So they moved to Bel-Nor, 467 00:27:04,023 --> 00:27:06,802 which was the home of Roland's uncle, 468 00:27:06,826 --> 00:27:08,604 his father's brother. 469 00:27:08,628 --> 00:27:10,272 They were happy to help. 470 00:27:10,296 --> 00:27:12,374 They love the family. They love Roland. 471 00:27:12,398 --> 00:27:16,678 But now Roland seemed very different, especially at night. 472 00:27:16,702 --> 00:27:18,280 So he goes to bed, 473 00:27:18,304 --> 00:27:21,472 and immediately things start happening. 474 00:27:25,878 --> 00:27:27,756 He starts screaming, howling. 475 00:27:27,780 --> 00:27:30,592 The bed's moving, bouncing up and down. 476 00:27:30,616 --> 00:27:33,996 Things are flying around the room, and this poor kid 477 00:27:34,020 --> 00:27:37,532 is terrified, and so is the rest of the family. 478 00:27:43,496 --> 00:27:45,674 Roland had a cousin who was seeing everything 479 00:27:45,698 --> 00:27:48,477 that was going on. 480 00:27:48,501 --> 00:27:50,445 She was going to St. Louis University. 481 00:27:50,469 --> 00:27:53,515 She was Catholic. 482 00:27:53,539 --> 00:27:57,753 She goes to her professor who was Father Bishop. 483 00:27:57,777 --> 00:27:59,187 And she tells him, 484 00:27:59,211 --> 00:28:01,390 "I think there's something spiritually wrong 485 00:28:01,414 --> 00:28:04,960 with my cousin. Will you come look at him?" 486 00:28:04,984 --> 00:28:08,130 Father Raymond Bishop agrees to meet with Roland 487 00:28:08,154 --> 00:28:10,232 and observe his nightly behavior. 488 00:28:14,427 --> 00:28:17,239 March 11, 1949. 489 00:28:17,263 --> 00:28:21,510 Father Bishop arrives at the home of Roland's relatives. 490 00:28:21,534 --> 00:28:23,745 He brings along Father William Bowdern, 491 00:28:23,769 --> 00:28:25,714 a respected Jesuit priest at nearby 492 00:28:25,738 --> 00:28:28,283 St. Francis Xavier College Church. 493 00:28:31,010 --> 00:28:34,089 I am the great niece of Father William Bowdern, 494 00:28:34,113 --> 00:28:37,492 the Jesuit who was the exorcist. 495 00:28:37,516 --> 00:28:42,664 I grew up with this story from the time I can remember. 496 00:28:42,688 --> 00:28:44,966 Uncle Bill was probably one of the finest men 497 00:28:44,990 --> 00:28:48,603 I will ever be privileged to know. 498 00:28:48,627 --> 00:28:52,374 He had the most rock solid faith I've ever seen. 499 00:28:59,805 --> 00:29:02,117 As Roland prepares for bed, 500 00:29:02,141 --> 00:29:06,955 Father Bowdern reads several prayers. 501 00:29:06,979 --> 00:29:10,525 Roland appears calm. 502 00:29:10,549 --> 00:29:13,228 After observing Roland for nearly an hour, 503 00:29:13,252 --> 00:29:16,298 Father's Bowdern and Bishop witnessed no dramatic signs 504 00:29:16,322 --> 00:29:19,034 of demonic possession. 505 00:29:19,058 --> 00:29:21,470 But as soon as the priests leave... 506 00:29:23,696 --> 00:29:25,907 ...all hell breaks loose. 507 00:29:36,909 --> 00:29:40,789 8435, Roanoke Drive, Bel-Nor, Missouri. 508 00:29:43,249 --> 00:29:47,195 All is not right in this seemingly normal suburban home. 509 00:29:51,557 --> 00:29:54,302 March 11, 1949. 510 00:29:54,326 --> 00:29:56,671 Sometime after 11:00 p.m., 511 00:29:56,695 --> 00:30:00,142 Jesuit priests William Bowdern and Raymond Bishop 512 00:30:00,166 --> 00:30:04,212 finished reciting prayers over 13-year-old Roland Doe. 513 00:30:07,673 --> 00:30:10,085 After observing no significant signs 514 00:30:10,109 --> 00:30:13,955 of demonic possession, 515 00:30:13,979 --> 00:30:16,258 the priests no sooner leave 516 00:30:16,282 --> 00:30:19,461 when loud noises resound from the boy's room. 517 00:30:25,157 --> 00:30:27,602 A bottle of holy water on the nightstand 518 00:30:27,626 --> 00:30:30,138 mysteriously hurls across the room. 519 00:30:34,166 --> 00:30:36,878 While Roland tries to fall back asleep, 520 00:30:36,902 --> 00:30:41,049 a bookcase somehow moves and blocks the bedroom door. 521 00:30:45,311 --> 00:30:49,191 So the priests went back, and once again witnessed 522 00:30:49,215 --> 00:30:51,493 all of the strange activity. 523 00:30:54,987 --> 00:30:57,399 And at this point, even Father Bowdern 524 00:30:57,423 --> 00:30:59,534 started to believe that perhaps 525 00:30:59,558 --> 00:31:03,171 there was some sort of demonic activity. 526 00:31:09,134 --> 00:31:11,179 Knowing little about exorcisms, 527 00:31:11,203 --> 00:31:14,382 Father Bowdern consults the Roman Ritual. 528 00:31:17,610 --> 00:31:20,522 A 17th-century manual detailing the rules, 529 00:31:20,546 --> 00:31:23,558 prayers, and procedures of the ancient Catholic rite 530 00:31:23,582 --> 00:31:26,661 of exorcism. 531 00:31:26,685 --> 00:31:31,900 I use mainly the Roman exorcism ritual. 532 00:31:31,924 --> 00:31:36,538 The exorcism consists mainly in praying. 533 00:31:36,562 --> 00:31:40,775 I command thee, in the name of the Father 534 00:31:40,799 --> 00:31:44,579 and of the Son, I exorcise thee. 535 00:31:44,603 --> 00:31:46,615 Let thou depart! 536 00:31:50,175 --> 00:31:53,555 Exorcism is almost as old as religion itself. 537 00:31:55,447 --> 00:31:59,628 The Bible contains vivid stories of Jesus performing exorcisms 538 00:31:59,652 --> 00:32:03,265 on the demonically possessed. 539 00:32:03,289 --> 00:32:06,501 When I was first appointed, I became one of about 12 540 00:32:06,525 --> 00:32:09,371 officially appointed exorcists in the United States. 541 00:32:09,395 --> 00:32:14,476 Today, I think that number is around 125. 542 00:32:14,500 --> 00:32:15,777 The pope is an exorcist 543 00:32:15,801 --> 00:32:19,614 because he is the supreme shepherd of the church. 544 00:32:19,638 --> 00:32:22,250 I think there is examples of Pope John Paul II 545 00:32:22,274 --> 00:32:25,153 performing exorcisms. 546 00:32:28,314 --> 00:32:31,860 It will become our spiritual drink. 547 00:32:41,260 --> 00:32:43,405 According to the Catholic Church, 548 00:32:43,429 --> 00:32:46,541 Father Bowdern must prove that Roland is moving along 549 00:32:46,565 --> 00:32:49,778 the classic path to full demonic possession. 550 00:32:52,905 --> 00:32:54,950 The church identifies four different types 551 00:32:54,974 --> 00:32:57,352 of extraordinary demonic activity. 552 00:32:57,376 --> 00:32:59,454 There can be demonic infestation, 553 00:32:59,478 --> 00:33:02,891 which is the presence of evil in a location or an object. 554 00:33:05,017 --> 00:33:07,028 There can be demonic vexation. 555 00:33:09,688 --> 00:33:12,734 Which somebody believes they are experiencing physical attacks 556 00:33:12,758 --> 00:33:14,736 from a demon. 557 00:33:14,760 --> 00:33:18,773 There can be demonic obsession, which are mental attacks. 558 00:33:20,733 --> 00:33:23,244 And then demonic possession itself, 559 00:33:23,268 --> 00:33:26,414 whereby a demon will take control of a person's body, 560 00:33:26,438 --> 00:33:28,650 treating their body as if it were its own. 561 00:33:31,110 --> 00:33:32,821 Roland reportedly experienced 562 00:33:32,845 --> 00:33:37,292 the first three stages of demonic activity. 563 00:33:37,316 --> 00:33:39,160 Perhaps an exorcism can prevent him 564 00:33:39,184 --> 00:33:41,529 from complete diabolical possession. 565 00:33:45,958 --> 00:33:49,070 When it comes to doing formal exorcisms 566 00:33:49,094 --> 00:33:51,072 for people who are possessed, 567 00:33:51,096 --> 00:33:53,975 probably around 12 cases is all that I have done 568 00:33:53,999 --> 00:33:57,278 over the last 15 years. 569 00:33:57,302 --> 00:34:01,383 When it comes to exorcisms for infestation, 570 00:34:01,407 --> 00:34:03,752 vexation, and obsession, 571 00:34:03,776 --> 00:34:05,120 there would be thousands of those 572 00:34:05,144 --> 00:34:07,255 that I've done over the years. 573 00:34:11,316 --> 00:34:14,129 Following church protocol, Father Bowdern 574 00:34:14,153 --> 00:34:18,700 contacts Archbishop Joseph Ritter of St. Louis. 575 00:34:18,724 --> 00:34:22,137 He requests an exorcism to be performed on Roland, 576 00:34:22,161 --> 00:34:26,274 but tells the archbishop to choose another priest. 577 00:34:26,298 --> 00:34:28,977 Father Bowdern didn't really want anything to do 578 00:34:29,001 --> 00:34:30,178 with this exorcism. 579 00:34:30,202 --> 00:34:32,380 He knew he wasn't qualified for it. 580 00:34:32,404 --> 00:34:35,316 He didn't feel that he was in a right place 581 00:34:35,340 --> 00:34:38,753 spiritually to be an exorcist. But he wasn't given any choice. 582 00:34:38,777 --> 00:34:42,924 The archbishop just simply told him, "You have to do this." 583 00:34:46,018 --> 00:34:48,963 When it came back to the fact that this was going 584 00:34:48,987 --> 00:34:52,700 to be a case of exorcism, the bishop requested Uncle Bill 585 00:34:52,724 --> 00:34:55,170 specifically to carry on the exorcism. 586 00:34:55,194 --> 00:34:56,905 He didn't believe that he should, 587 00:34:56,929 --> 00:34:59,574 but he was requested by his bishop, and so he did. 588 00:35:01,733 --> 00:35:04,345 The Archbishop grants Father Bowdern 589 00:35:04,369 --> 00:35:07,682 permission to perform the rite of exorcism. 590 00:35:07,706 --> 00:35:10,018 Now we're talking about something that's officially 591 00:35:10,042 --> 00:35:11,853 sanctioned by the church, 592 00:35:11,877 --> 00:35:16,257 and this is not something that the church takes lightly. 593 00:35:16,281 --> 00:35:18,393 In the eyes of the Catholic Church, 594 00:35:18,417 --> 00:35:21,796 evil walks the earth, 595 00:35:21,820 --> 00:35:26,034 and only faith can combat it. 596 00:35:26,058 --> 00:35:29,771 In Roland Doe's case, Father Bowdern realizes 597 00:35:29,795 --> 00:35:34,509 he's about to do battle with Satan himself. 598 00:35:48,447 --> 00:35:50,425 This suburban St. Louis home 599 00:35:50,449 --> 00:35:53,561 was once the scene of unspeakable horror. 600 00:35:56,889 --> 00:35:59,834 March 16, 1949. 601 00:35:59,858 --> 00:36:02,137 Jesuit priest Father William Bowdern 602 00:36:02,161 --> 00:36:05,206 arrives at the residence of Roland Doe's relatives 603 00:36:05,230 --> 00:36:08,343 to carry out the first exorcism. 604 00:36:08,367 --> 00:36:10,712 Father Raymond Bishop and Walter Halloran, 605 00:36:10,736 --> 00:36:13,014 a seminary student at the time, 606 00:36:13,038 --> 00:36:15,517 volunteered to assist with the solemn ritual 607 00:36:15,541 --> 00:36:17,785 of the Catholic Church. 608 00:36:17,809 --> 00:36:19,888 The priests are aware of the risks. 609 00:36:19,912 --> 00:36:23,091 The devil could also take possession of them, 610 00:36:23,115 --> 00:36:25,193 but they're determined to purge the demon 611 00:36:25,217 --> 00:36:27,462 from 13-year-old Roland, 612 00:36:27,486 --> 00:36:30,999 no matter how long or whatever the cost. 613 00:36:32,958 --> 00:36:36,437 Bowdern went through a series of preparations 614 00:36:36,461 --> 00:36:38,473 in order to do this exorcism. 615 00:36:40,499 --> 00:36:44,779 The idea of a big shootout at noon with this demon, 616 00:36:44,803 --> 00:36:48,316 so to speak, was not on his agenda. 617 00:36:48,340 --> 00:36:50,185 He wasn't thinking this way at all. 618 00:36:50,209 --> 00:36:54,222 In fact, he approached the whole case with fear and trembling. 619 00:36:57,015 --> 00:36:59,127 The archbishop instructs the priests 620 00:36:59,151 --> 00:37:02,997 to maintain the utmost secrecy about the exorcism, 621 00:37:03,021 --> 00:37:07,268 but Father Bowdern insists Father Bishop keep a diary... 622 00:37:07,292 --> 00:37:09,103 A rare, detailed testament 623 00:37:09,127 --> 00:37:12,473 to the events that are about to unfold. 624 00:37:12,497 --> 00:37:14,509 I think Bowdern was certainly aware from the very beginning 625 00:37:14,533 --> 00:37:15,944 this was an extreme case, 626 00:37:15,968 --> 00:37:18,813 and so I think Bowdern just wanted to have 627 00:37:18,837 --> 00:37:22,550 some type of documentation as to what happened. 628 00:37:22,574 --> 00:37:24,686 The idea was to take this diary 629 00:37:24,710 --> 00:37:28,756 and make it a how-to manual for the next priests 630 00:37:28,780 --> 00:37:32,193 that came along that found themselves in the same boat. 631 00:37:32,217 --> 00:37:35,897 Because people weren't being trained to be exorcists. 632 00:37:35,921 --> 00:37:39,434 In preparation, Father Bowdern lays out religious items 633 00:37:39,458 --> 00:37:44,906 needed for the exorcism... Holy water, a crucifix, 634 00:37:44,930 --> 00:37:47,875 a long purple stole to wrap around the priest 635 00:37:47,899 --> 00:37:50,144 and the possessed, 636 00:37:50,168 --> 00:37:51,813 and a Roman Ritual, 637 00:37:51,837 --> 00:37:54,816 the official manual of exorcism rites. 638 00:37:54,840 --> 00:37:57,552 At its very core, an exorcism is a prayer. 639 00:37:57,576 --> 00:38:01,389 It's a very special prayer that is meant to help somebody 640 00:38:01,413 --> 00:38:04,459 who is being afflicted by the demonic. 641 00:38:08,320 --> 00:38:10,498 There's the laying on the hands 642 00:38:10,522 --> 00:38:12,700 on the head of the person who's possessed, 643 00:38:12,724 --> 00:38:17,238 invoking the Holy Spirit, breathing on the face. 644 00:38:17,262 --> 00:38:19,474 According to the exorcists' diary, 645 00:38:19,498 --> 00:38:22,210 as Father Bowdern recites the prayers in Latin, 646 00:38:22,234 --> 00:38:24,379 the priest shriek with horror... 647 00:38:26,305 --> 00:38:29,584 ...as bloody scratches suddenly appear on Roland's body. 648 00:38:32,978 --> 00:38:36,357 These scratches caused red marks on the body 649 00:38:36,381 --> 00:38:40,595 and caused a small amount of blood to flow. 650 00:38:40,619 --> 00:38:42,930 Roland recoiled under the evident pain 651 00:38:42,954 --> 00:38:45,433 as each mark was made. 652 00:38:48,527 --> 00:38:52,273 And usually the manifestations will begin immediately. 653 00:38:54,933 --> 00:38:57,245 Because what the church is doing in the right 654 00:38:57,269 --> 00:39:00,248 is forcing the demon to reveal itself, 655 00:39:00,272 --> 00:39:02,817 because once the demon reveals itself, 656 00:39:02,841 --> 00:39:05,753 then the battle against it begins. 657 00:39:05,777 --> 00:39:07,855 But the demon possessing Roland 658 00:39:07,879 --> 00:39:10,892 refuses to divulge its identity. 659 00:39:10,916 --> 00:39:14,629 It really is a battle. The demon inside of Roland 660 00:39:14,653 --> 00:39:15,830 is fighting back at the priests, 661 00:39:15,854 --> 00:39:18,800 whatever relics are being placed on or near him. 662 00:39:18,824 --> 00:39:22,570 He's pushing back in however way he can. 663 00:39:22,594 --> 00:39:26,107 Then the priests witness something beyond belief. 664 00:39:28,166 --> 00:39:30,912 The word "Hell" appears on Roland's chest 665 00:39:30,936 --> 00:39:35,016 as if it's been branded onto his skin with a hot iron. 666 00:39:35,040 --> 00:39:38,753 They were a burned kind of brand. 667 00:39:38,777 --> 00:39:41,222 I would say that it was like words 668 00:39:41,246 --> 00:39:45,560 that were appearing from underneath onto the surface, 669 00:39:45,584 --> 00:39:48,496 but they were very red and rashlike. 670 00:39:48,520 --> 00:39:51,265 The priests had been observing the boy's hands 671 00:39:51,289 --> 00:39:54,102 at all time and realized there's no way 672 00:39:54,126 --> 00:39:58,473 Roland could have made those markings on his own body. 673 00:39:58,497 --> 00:40:00,375 Father Lampert, who's experienced 674 00:40:00,399 --> 00:40:02,210 in the rite of exorcism, 675 00:40:02,234 --> 00:40:05,146 believes it's the devil's way of inciting terror. 676 00:40:07,406 --> 00:40:11,686 The manifestations are really meant to instill fear 677 00:40:11,710 --> 00:40:14,555 either in me or in other people that are present 678 00:40:14,579 --> 00:40:17,291 because the devil wants to convince us 679 00:40:17,315 --> 00:40:20,895 that he has the upper hand. 680 00:40:20,919 --> 00:40:23,131 Another case of when the demon manifested, 681 00:40:23,155 --> 00:40:24,999 their eyes actually turned green 682 00:40:25,023 --> 00:40:27,735 and their pupils became slanted like a serpent. 683 00:40:27,759 --> 00:40:30,705 And the demon said to me, "You can't get rid of us. 684 00:40:30,729 --> 00:40:33,975 We've been here too long, and you're not strong enough." 685 00:40:37,102 --> 00:40:40,448 After almost nine hours of hostile resistance, 686 00:40:40,472 --> 00:40:44,786 Roland collapses and falls asleep. 687 00:40:44,810 --> 00:40:46,621 Father Bowdern really didn't think 688 00:40:46,645 --> 00:40:50,224 the possession set in with Roland, 689 00:40:50,248 --> 00:40:55,062 which is interesting, until the first exorcism began. 690 00:40:55,086 --> 00:40:58,166 That's when they think the possessor really took hold 691 00:40:58,190 --> 00:41:00,134 for whatever reason. 692 00:41:00,158 --> 00:41:03,638 The exorcism provoked the devil within Roland, 693 00:41:03,662 --> 00:41:07,074 and now the demon refuses to leave. 694 00:41:07,098 --> 00:41:11,412 The priest's realize it will take more than one night 695 00:41:11,436 --> 00:41:13,915 to purge the evil spirit from the boy. 696 00:41:15,774 --> 00:41:20,087 In a movie, when an exorcism takes place in 15 minutes, 697 00:41:20,111 --> 00:41:22,857 it loses a lot of its reality because, you know, 698 00:41:22,881 --> 00:41:24,892 when you hear about them in real life, 699 00:41:24,916 --> 00:41:27,495 they go on for months. 700 00:41:27,519 --> 00:41:29,997 Some that allegedly have gone on for years. 701 00:41:35,393 --> 00:41:38,239 After two nights of exorcisms, 702 00:41:38,263 --> 00:41:42,009 Roland Doe spends the day like a typical 13-year-old 703 00:41:42,033 --> 00:41:45,312 and acting as if nothing has happened. 704 00:41:45,336 --> 00:41:48,349 His relatives think the exorcisms are working, 705 00:41:48,373 --> 00:41:52,420 but that evening, his mood suddenly changes. 706 00:41:54,045 --> 00:41:58,993 When the priests arrive to continue the exorcism rituals, 707 00:41:59,017 --> 00:42:03,865 Roland transforms into a rabid creature, 708 00:42:03,889 --> 00:42:09,504 snarling and biting the man holding him down. 709 00:42:09,528 --> 00:42:11,472 Father Bishop and Father Bowdern would borrow 710 00:42:11,496 --> 00:42:14,275 some relics, pin them to Roland's pillow, 711 00:42:14,299 --> 00:42:17,712 hoping any of these things would have a positive influence 712 00:42:17,736 --> 00:42:19,914 on what was going on. 713 00:42:22,574 --> 00:42:23,885 Amid the hysteria, 714 00:42:23,909 --> 00:42:26,420 Roland suddenly makes vomiting gestures 715 00:42:26,444 --> 00:42:29,090 and asks for the window to be opened. 716 00:42:29,114 --> 00:42:32,860 Roland said that he believed that the demon was leaving him 717 00:42:32,884 --> 00:42:35,329 and actually had them throw open the windows 718 00:42:35,353 --> 00:42:37,632 so that he could purge it from his body, 719 00:42:37,656 --> 00:42:41,135 figuratively and literally get rid of this demon. 720 00:42:42,827 --> 00:42:46,941 He said sweetly, "He's going. He's going. 721 00:42:46,965 --> 00:42:50,077 Finally, there he goes." 722 00:42:53,805 --> 00:42:57,818 If a person during the exorcism feels that he must vomit, 723 00:42:57,842 --> 00:43:00,521 he does vomit during the exorcism. 724 00:43:00,545 --> 00:43:03,357 It happens quite frequently. 725 00:43:03,381 --> 00:43:04,592 Quite frequently. 726 00:43:04,616 --> 00:43:07,628 And it's a form of liberation. 727 00:43:07,652 --> 00:43:09,263 As Roland falls asleep, 728 00:43:09,287 --> 00:43:11,599 Father Bowdern leaves the house for the night 729 00:43:11,623 --> 00:43:15,136 thinking the boy finally purged the demon. 730 00:43:15,160 --> 00:43:18,105 But he is dead wrong. 731 00:43:21,266 --> 00:43:22,443 About 2:00 a.m., 732 00:43:22,467 --> 00:43:26,414 Roland felt strange sensations in his stomach, 733 00:43:26,438 --> 00:43:30,484 and in a few moments, he began to call out fearfully. 734 00:43:30,508 --> 00:43:33,521 "He's coming back! He's coming back." 735 00:43:33,545 --> 00:43:38,960 Father Bowdern was called at 3:15 a.m. 736 00:43:38,984 --> 00:43:40,962 If you have someone possessed by the devil 737 00:43:40,986 --> 00:43:42,997 and there's an exorcism being performed 738 00:43:43,021 --> 00:43:44,332 and that's unpleasant for the devil, 739 00:43:44,356 --> 00:43:48,202 they might might want to throw you off the trail. 740 00:43:48,226 --> 00:43:51,439 The sense that, "Well, this is over. 741 00:43:51,463 --> 00:43:53,841 "This is ending," only for the priest to leave 742 00:43:53,865 --> 00:43:57,545 and things to begin again. 743 00:43:57,569 --> 00:43:59,246 The demons are doing these things 744 00:43:59,270 --> 00:44:03,317 to try to get the upper hand, 745 00:44:03,341 --> 00:44:06,854 and I did work with somebody who was possessed by seven demons. 746 00:44:06,878 --> 00:44:09,924 The weakest of the demons are always the first to go. 747 00:44:09,948 --> 00:44:13,327 But a demon that's more dominant will be the last to go. 748 00:44:17,088 --> 00:44:20,334 Roland's nightmare is far from over. 749 00:44:20,358 --> 00:44:22,837 As the exorcisms continue, 750 00:44:22,861 --> 00:44:27,308 eyewitnesses both in and outside the inner circle of priests 751 00:44:27,332 --> 00:44:32,346 witness an otherworldly sight that rattles them to the core. 752 00:44:48,720 --> 00:44:52,333 Bel-Nor, Missouri, will forever be linked 753 00:44:52,357 --> 00:44:55,469 to the most chilling exorcism case in America 754 00:44:55,493 --> 00:44:57,672 and inspiration for the horror 755 00:44:57,696 --> 00:44:59,573 classic "The Exorcist." 756 00:45:06,805 --> 00:45:10,885 March 20, 1949, day five. 757 00:45:10,909 --> 00:45:13,688 13-year-old Roland Doe and his parents are staying 758 00:45:13,712 --> 00:45:17,658 in a St. Louis suburb with relatives. 759 00:45:17,682 --> 00:45:20,561 They're hoping Catholic exorcist Father William Bowdern 760 00:45:20,585 --> 00:45:23,664 can expel the demon that's possessing Roland. 761 00:45:25,890 --> 00:45:28,402 But Father Bowdern and the assisting priests 762 00:45:28,426 --> 00:45:32,606 continue to confront disturbing behavior. 763 00:45:32,630 --> 00:45:36,010 During one of the nightly exorcisms, 764 00:45:36,034 --> 00:45:39,113 Father Walter Halloran recalls a startling sight. 765 00:45:49,380 --> 00:45:51,659 I started interviewing Father Halloran 766 00:45:51,683 --> 00:45:53,094 toward the end of his life. 767 00:45:53,118 --> 00:45:56,530 He said "One night, I was down at the end of the bed" 768 00:45:56,554 --> 00:46:01,869 and I watched the bed levitate eight inches off the floor. 769 00:46:05,163 --> 00:46:08,075 And slam back down again. 770 00:46:08,099 --> 00:46:10,277 I'm hearing it firsthand from people who saw it, 771 00:46:10,301 --> 00:46:11,746 who saw a bed levitate. 772 00:46:11,770 --> 00:46:14,715 Could there be a natural explanation for it? 773 00:46:14,739 --> 00:46:17,118 Maybe as unbelievable as believing it's a demon. 774 00:46:17,142 --> 00:46:18,652 I don't know. 775 00:46:18,676 --> 00:46:20,721 But that's some strange things that were going on in there. 776 00:46:20,745 --> 00:46:23,457 And they were seeing it every single night. 777 00:46:26,584 --> 00:46:28,896 Levitation also is rumored to be witnessed 778 00:46:28,920 --> 00:46:33,167 by someone outside the inner sanctum of priests. 779 00:46:33,191 --> 00:46:35,536 Roland's family reportedly invites scientist 780 00:46:35,560 --> 00:46:40,207 and mathematician Frank Bubb to observe the possessed boy. 781 00:46:40,231 --> 00:46:43,310 Bubb worked on the top-secret Manhattan Project, 782 00:46:43,334 --> 00:46:45,513 creating the world's first atomic bomb. 783 00:46:51,509 --> 00:46:54,789 The professor, he saw something there that deeply disturbed him. 784 00:47:01,719 --> 00:47:05,399 Supposedly, what he saw was a nightstand levitate. 785 00:47:05,423 --> 00:47:08,869 He would later be reported to say something along the lines 786 00:47:08,893 --> 00:47:10,838 that we still had a lot to discover 787 00:47:10,862 --> 00:47:12,907 regarding electromagnetism. 788 00:47:20,905 --> 00:47:24,084 Scientists have found ways to levitate objects 789 00:47:24,108 --> 00:47:28,322 if placed in a strong enough magnetic field. 790 00:47:28,346 --> 00:47:30,357 But Roland's family wonders 791 00:47:30,381 --> 00:47:34,128 if levitation also can be a tool of the devil. 792 00:47:38,823 --> 00:47:41,602 Roland's family were all there in the house, 793 00:47:41,626 --> 00:47:45,973 and he was becoming more and more volatile as this went on. 794 00:47:45,997 --> 00:47:48,209 So Father Bowdern and Father Bishop 795 00:47:48,233 --> 00:47:52,146 thought that perhaps moving him to another location 796 00:47:52,170 --> 00:47:54,348 might help things. 797 00:47:57,175 --> 00:48:00,221 Father Bowdern transfers Roland to the rectory 798 00:48:00,245 --> 00:48:02,957 at St. Francis Xavier College Church 799 00:48:02,981 --> 00:48:06,861 on the campus of St. Louis University. 800 00:48:06,885 --> 00:48:11,999 But Roland's haunting outbursts draw unwanted attention. 801 00:48:12,023 --> 00:48:15,135 Students were talking about what was going on 802 00:48:15,159 --> 00:48:17,705 at the rectory at night because the lights were on, 803 00:48:17,729 --> 00:48:19,139 the windows were thrown open, 804 00:48:19,163 --> 00:48:20,975 and people are out walking around in the evening. 805 00:48:20,999 --> 00:48:24,044 They're hearing screaming, animal noises, 806 00:48:24,068 --> 00:48:27,448 shouting, and all kinds of things. 807 00:48:27,472 --> 00:48:30,584 And it was attracting attention on campus. 808 00:48:42,520 --> 00:48:43,931 Inside the church rectory, 809 00:48:43,955 --> 00:48:46,934 the priests keep a detailed diary of the horror 810 00:48:46,958 --> 00:48:51,338 as Roland displays the telltale sign of possession... 811 00:48:51,362 --> 00:48:54,008 Unnatural human strength. 812 00:48:54,032 --> 00:48:56,944 Sometimes they can get incredibly strong. 813 00:48:56,968 --> 00:48:59,013 It's unclear if it's adrenaline 814 00:48:59,037 --> 00:49:03,384 or just superhuman kind of a strength. 815 00:49:03,408 --> 00:49:06,020 But often times we'll have to put hands on, 816 00:49:06,044 --> 00:49:08,756 and sometimes it has been known to happen 817 00:49:08,780 --> 00:49:11,558 that they'll kind of break free of the restraints 818 00:49:11,582 --> 00:49:13,827 and even the people holding them. 819 00:49:13,851 --> 00:49:15,896 And you have to be very careful. 820 00:49:21,759 --> 00:49:24,939 As Father Bowdern repeats the exorcism prayers, 821 00:49:24,963 --> 00:49:27,675 three men can barely restrain Roland 822 00:49:27,699 --> 00:49:30,978 as he wildly swings his fists and throws a punch... 823 00:49:32,770 --> 00:49:37,017 ...to Father Halloran's face. 824 00:49:37,041 --> 00:49:39,286 The priests now believe that the demon 825 00:49:39,310 --> 00:49:42,222 behind Roland's violent bloody attacks 826 00:49:42,246 --> 00:49:44,425 is just getting started. 827 00:49:58,196 --> 00:50:03,677 St. Louis, Missouri, March 23, 1949. 828 00:50:03,701 --> 00:50:07,481 After a week of grueling exorcisms, 829 00:50:07,505 --> 00:50:09,817 the priests move Roland Doe to the rectory 830 00:50:09,841 --> 00:50:12,586 at St. Francis Xavier College Church 831 00:50:12,610 --> 00:50:15,756 to continue the nightly rituals, 832 00:50:15,780 --> 00:50:19,493 but the boy's diabolical rage and superhuman strength 833 00:50:19,517 --> 00:50:23,297 become almost too powerful to control. 834 00:50:23,321 --> 00:50:26,033 During this exorcism, little 13-year-old Roland 835 00:50:26,057 --> 00:50:28,202 is fighting, he's punching. 836 00:50:28,226 --> 00:50:30,070 And at one point... 837 00:50:32,096 --> 00:50:34,975 ...he breaks Father Halloran's nose. 838 00:50:34,999 --> 00:50:36,710 He's that strong. 839 00:50:36,734 --> 00:50:38,512 Something inside of him has given him 840 00:50:38,536 --> 00:50:41,248 unnatural strength and rage. 841 00:50:43,074 --> 00:50:45,385 Something evil is happening in the room. 842 00:50:48,112 --> 00:50:50,924 There were several times when he got loose 843 00:50:50,948 --> 00:50:54,962 and would hit people, punch people, slap people. 844 00:50:54,986 --> 00:50:58,499 Once he actually punched one of the priests in the groin 845 00:50:58,523 --> 00:51:01,168 and paralyzed him with pain. 846 00:51:01,192 --> 00:51:03,604 Roland was just completely out of control. 847 00:51:06,831 --> 00:51:08,642 What's happening during the exorcisms 848 00:51:08,666 --> 00:51:11,378 of Roland Doe are typical terrors 849 00:51:11,402 --> 00:51:15,649 when clergy and laypeople of all faiths attempt to expel the evil 850 00:51:15,673 --> 00:51:19,286 from a person possessed by the devil. 851 00:51:19,310 --> 00:51:21,922 Myself and my colleagues have been injured 852 00:51:21,946 --> 00:51:24,324 during exorcisms many times. 853 00:51:24,348 --> 00:51:27,795 We've been pushed, we've been hit, and we've been bitten. 854 00:51:27,819 --> 00:51:32,566 We've been scratched. I've had my hair pulled several times. 855 00:51:32,590 --> 00:51:35,169 I've been locked in rooms. I've been burned. 856 00:51:35,193 --> 00:51:37,938 So, yeah, it happens frequently. 857 00:51:37,962 --> 00:51:39,640 By the power of Christ, release him! 858 00:51:39,664 --> 00:51:42,309 To me, restraining people during an exorcism 859 00:51:42,333 --> 00:51:46,080 was pointless because if it's truly something demonic, 860 00:51:46,104 --> 00:51:48,582 the only one that's going to be able to restrain the demon 861 00:51:48,606 --> 00:51:52,086 is the power of God himself. 862 00:51:52,110 --> 00:51:55,789 I command you, Satan, prince of this world, 863 00:51:55,813 --> 00:51:58,826 acknowledge the power and strength of Jesus Christ. 864 00:51:58,850 --> 00:52:00,928 I was doing an exorcism one time, 865 00:52:00,952 --> 00:52:04,198 and when the demon manifested, it lunged at me. 866 00:52:04,222 --> 00:52:06,567 I think I jumped back five feet. 867 00:52:06,591 --> 00:52:08,635 My heart was pounding a mile a minute, 868 00:52:08,659 --> 00:52:11,338 but immediately went right back towards the person 869 00:52:11,362 --> 00:52:14,475 and laid my hand on their head and began praying. 870 00:52:18,035 --> 00:52:19,913 These same frightening conditions 871 00:52:19,937 --> 00:52:23,917 were what priests confronted in 1949 in St. Louis 872 00:52:23,941 --> 00:52:26,220 as they tried to drive out the dark force 873 00:52:26,244 --> 00:52:28,622 within a 13-year-old Roland Doe. 874 00:52:32,083 --> 00:52:33,927 But what could they have done so far 875 00:52:33,951 --> 00:52:36,130 to finally turn the demonic tide? 876 00:52:43,194 --> 00:52:46,773 Unable to subdue the nightly fits in the church rectory, 877 00:52:46,797 --> 00:52:49,109 Roland returns to the home of his relatives 878 00:52:49,133 --> 00:52:50,777 in a suburb of St. Louis. 879 00:52:50,801 --> 00:52:53,614 For the next five days, the boy remains 880 00:52:53,638 --> 00:52:57,584 suspiciously calm and quiet. 881 00:52:57,608 --> 00:53:01,788 There was about a five days reprieve, and that's unusual. 882 00:53:01,812 --> 00:53:06,960 And it makes everybody stand back and go, "Oh, is this over?" 883 00:53:06,984 --> 00:53:08,529 And then, all of a sudden, 884 00:53:08,553 --> 00:53:11,765 things went completely backward again. 885 00:53:11,789 --> 00:53:16,803 There was a night when Roland wanted to write things down. 886 00:53:16,827 --> 00:53:18,639 Now, his uncle was an architect 887 00:53:18,663 --> 00:53:20,807 and had these huge sheets of paper, 888 00:53:20,831 --> 00:53:25,245 and he was writing out messages and words. 889 00:53:25,269 --> 00:53:27,848 According to the exorcists' diary, 890 00:53:27,872 --> 00:53:31,084 Roland's family frantically calls the priests to come over 891 00:53:31,108 --> 00:53:34,221 and help decipher what the possessed boy is trying to say. 892 00:53:37,582 --> 00:53:39,693 I will stay 10 days, 893 00:53:39,717 --> 00:53:43,764 but will return after the four days are up. 894 00:53:43,788 --> 00:53:46,433 I am the devil himself. 895 00:53:49,260 --> 00:53:52,206 So they were trying to interpret what did that mean? 896 00:53:52,230 --> 00:53:55,242 It looked like Roman numerals, and there was speculation 897 00:53:55,266 --> 00:53:57,911 at that point about the timeline of the exorcism. 898 00:53:57,935 --> 00:54:02,549 Is it going to be 10 days? What does the 10 represent? 899 00:54:02,573 --> 00:54:04,618 Father Bishop thought the boy was going to be possessed 900 00:54:04,642 --> 00:54:06,720 for 10 more days. 901 00:54:08,713 --> 00:54:11,358 So the devil was definitely playing with him. 902 00:54:16,921 --> 00:54:21,835 On day 17, after over a dozen exorcisms, 903 00:54:21,859 --> 00:54:24,137 Father Bowdern suggests that Roland 904 00:54:24,161 --> 00:54:26,240 should be baptized as a Catholic. 905 00:54:29,300 --> 00:54:31,311 A baptism is a form of exorcism 906 00:54:31,335 --> 00:54:35,749 because it rejects the powers of Satan. 907 00:54:35,773 --> 00:54:38,518 Because Roland had been raised a Lutheran, 908 00:54:38,542 --> 00:54:42,656 it was thought that perhaps by instructing him in Catholicism 909 00:54:42,680 --> 00:54:47,728 that it might help to ease the exorcism along. 910 00:54:50,454 --> 00:54:53,533 But on the drive to the church for the baptism, 911 00:54:53,557 --> 00:54:57,337 Roland falls into one of his deviant spells. 912 00:54:57,361 --> 00:55:00,007 His aunt and uncle are driving him to the church 913 00:55:00,031 --> 00:55:02,576 when, all of a sudden, 914 00:55:02,600 --> 00:55:05,912 Roland in the back seat just goes into a rage, a fit, 915 00:55:05,936 --> 00:55:07,247 and he leaps to the front seat, 916 00:55:07,271 --> 00:55:09,049 tries to grab the steering wheel, 917 00:55:09,073 --> 00:55:11,018 saying, "You're going to try to baptize me? 918 00:55:11,042 --> 00:55:12,853 You're going to try to offer me communion? 919 00:55:12,877 --> 00:55:14,388 It's not going to work." 920 00:55:14,412 --> 00:55:17,024 And his uncle is forced to pull the car over 921 00:55:17,048 --> 00:55:20,127 for fear that he's going to kill all of them. 922 00:55:20,151 --> 00:55:23,664 He put all of their lives, including his own, in danger 923 00:55:23,688 --> 00:55:26,066 to try to avoid going to that church. 924 00:55:28,192 --> 00:55:30,671 13-year-old Roland curses and spits 925 00:55:30,695 --> 00:55:33,473 as he is dragged into the church rectory for the baptism. 926 00:55:36,200 --> 00:55:41,114 Father Bowdern demands Roland to renounce Satan, 927 00:55:41,138 --> 00:55:44,651 but the boy slips deeper into his hysterical state, 928 00:55:44,675 --> 00:55:46,687 repulsed by the holy water. 929 00:55:49,180 --> 00:55:52,059 He's just fighting and kicking. 930 00:55:52,083 --> 00:55:55,562 Three men are doing all they can to try to hold him down, 931 00:55:55,586 --> 00:55:57,397 and it's decided that they're just going to have to do 932 00:55:57,421 --> 00:56:00,067 a shortened version of the baptism ritual 933 00:56:00,091 --> 00:56:02,202 just to get it done. 934 00:56:11,068 --> 00:56:12,846 Three days after the baptism, 935 00:56:12,870 --> 00:56:16,883 Father Bowdern makes a radical decision... 936 00:56:16,907 --> 00:56:19,753 Roland should return home to Maryland. 937 00:56:22,713 --> 00:56:26,293 Father Bowdern suggested that the family go back to Maryland. 938 00:56:28,753 --> 00:56:33,100 He would go with them, and he would find a hospital 939 00:56:33,124 --> 00:56:35,869 or a convent or a monastery 940 00:56:35,893 --> 00:56:39,673 where he could be treated under medical conditions, 941 00:56:39,697 --> 00:56:40,874 because at this point, you know, 942 00:56:40,898 --> 00:56:42,476 this kid has been going through this, 943 00:56:42,500 --> 00:56:45,712 and it's not wearing well on him. 944 00:56:45,736 --> 00:56:47,748 Physically, he's becoming thinner. 945 00:56:47,772 --> 00:56:49,616 He's not eating. 946 00:56:49,640 --> 00:56:54,554 He's despondent, and his behavior is wild and crazy. 947 00:56:54,578 --> 00:56:57,457 And so Father Bowdern said, 948 00:56:57,481 --> 00:56:59,893 "I will find some place in Maryland 949 00:56:59,917 --> 00:57:04,131 where someone can continue the exorcism." 950 00:57:04,155 --> 00:57:06,666 They're trying to find some institution or hospital 951 00:57:06,690 --> 00:57:09,202 where they can keep him, but no one wants him. 952 00:57:09,226 --> 00:57:13,073 No one wants to touch this case because of how complex it is. 953 00:57:13,097 --> 00:57:15,776 Whether it's psychological or diabolical, 954 00:57:15,800 --> 00:57:20,280 no one wants to seem to deal with poor Roland. 955 00:57:20,304 --> 00:57:22,382 Unable to find anyone to help 956 00:57:22,406 --> 00:57:25,819 near the boy's home state of Maryland, 957 00:57:25,843 --> 00:57:28,722 Father Bowdern decides that their only option 958 00:57:28,746 --> 00:57:30,690 is to go back to the Midwest 959 00:57:30,714 --> 00:57:35,962 and make one more desperate attempt to save Roland Doe. 960 00:57:35,986 --> 00:57:38,398 Father Bowdern realized that he was going to have 961 00:57:38,422 --> 00:57:41,234 to take Roland back to St. Louis 962 00:57:41,258 --> 00:57:43,503 and he was going to have to continue this himself, 963 00:57:43,527 --> 00:57:46,706 because after all this time around Maryland and D.C., 964 00:57:46,730 --> 00:57:48,108 no one would take him. 965 00:57:48,132 --> 00:57:51,311 So he decided that the best thing for him to do 966 00:57:51,335 --> 00:57:54,481 was to take him to a hospital, and he knew just the place. 967 00:57:58,275 --> 00:58:00,821 Upon returning to St. Louis, 968 00:58:00,845 --> 00:58:03,190 Roland is admitted to the psychiatric ward 969 00:58:03,214 --> 00:58:05,292 at the Alexian Brothers Hospital, 970 00:58:05,316 --> 00:58:09,563 which is run by an ancient order of Catholic monks. 971 00:58:09,587 --> 00:58:11,665 The brothers were known for taking care 972 00:58:11,689 --> 00:58:15,001 of the really extreme cases of both physical 973 00:58:15,025 --> 00:58:18,071 and also mental illness. 974 00:58:18,095 --> 00:58:21,074 And so that's where he ended up staying in the psychiatric ward 975 00:58:21,098 --> 00:58:23,243 at Alexian Brothers here in St. Louis. 976 00:58:23,267 --> 00:58:26,346 The Alexian Brothers Hospital had a secure 977 00:58:26,370 --> 00:58:29,783 psychiatric facility where Roland could be taken 978 00:58:29,807 --> 00:58:33,286 out of the public eye and everything would be kept secret 979 00:58:33,310 --> 00:58:37,257 because the Alexian brothers were known for their secrecy. 980 00:58:40,384 --> 00:58:41,862 But soon after, 981 00:58:41,886 --> 00:58:44,564 hushed whispers echo down the corridors 982 00:58:44,588 --> 00:58:47,400 about a special patient in the psychiatric wing. 983 00:58:50,828 --> 00:58:54,508 In his only interview, a dying Alexian monk 984 00:58:54,532 --> 00:58:58,712 breaks his silence and divulges his darkest secrets 985 00:58:58,736 --> 00:59:03,383 of what really happened during the terrifying final chapters 986 00:59:03,407 --> 00:59:06,219 in the exorcism of Roland Doe. 987 00:59:22,826 --> 00:59:26,139 April 10, 1949, 988 00:59:26,163 --> 00:59:30,544 After more than three weeks of unsuccessful exorcisms, 989 00:59:30,568 --> 00:59:33,680 Roland Doe enters the Alexian Brothers Hospital 990 00:59:33,704 --> 00:59:35,916 at the beginning of Holy Week, 991 00:59:35,940 --> 00:59:38,785 one of the most sacred and celebrated times 992 00:59:38,809 --> 00:59:42,422 in the Catholic Church. 993 00:59:42,446 --> 00:59:45,158 But the week turns into sheer hell for the priests 994 00:59:45,182 --> 00:59:49,229 and monks tending to 13-year-old Roland. 995 00:59:49,253 --> 00:59:51,331 Before his death, an Alexian brother 996 00:59:51,355 --> 00:59:53,266 breaks his vow of silence 997 00:59:53,290 --> 00:59:58,305 and speaks about the exorcisms he witnessed firsthand. 998 00:59:58,329 --> 01:00:01,975 In 2014, I got the opportunity to interview 999 01:00:01,999 --> 01:00:03,777 Brother Greg Holewinski. 1000 01:00:03,801 --> 01:00:08,114 An Alexian Monk who had never talked about 1001 01:00:08,138 --> 01:00:10,483 his participation in the exorcism, 1002 01:00:10,507 --> 01:00:13,053 and he was dying of cancer. 1003 01:00:13,077 --> 01:00:15,422 And he wanted to tell his story. 1004 01:00:19,083 --> 01:00:22,195 The first night I went up, there was a boy laying in bed, 1005 01:00:22,219 --> 01:00:26,399 there were three priests that were the exorcists. 1006 01:00:26,423 --> 01:00:28,101 During the prayers of the possession, 1007 01:00:28,125 --> 01:00:29,970 the priest wears the stole. 1008 01:00:29,994 --> 01:00:33,974 It's a fine silk ribbon. 1009 01:00:33,998 --> 01:00:37,544 The devil, using the boy's hand, reached over and snatched... 1010 01:00:39,470 --> 01:00:44,517 ...that silk cloth, and within a split second, 1011 01:00:44,541 --> 01:00:47,020 it was a thousand threads. 1012 01:00:47,044 --> 01:00:51,791 Then Brother Greg witnesses a frightening sight. 1013 01:00:51,815 --> 01:00:56,496 You could feel the powers of the devil. 1014 01:00:56,520 --> 01:00:58,898 They saw the boy's body levitate. 1015 01:01:02,159 --> 01:01:05,772 I was at the foot of the bed and had my arms crossed over 1016 01:01:05,796 --> 01:01:07,807 from his ankle to his knee. 1017 01:01:09,800 --> 01:01:11,878 I was frightened. 1018 01:01:11,902 --> 01:01:16,383 What I saw was real, what I touched was real. 1019 01:01:16,407 --> 01:01:21,121 It was an experience that I would never forget. 1020 01:01:21,145 --> 01:01:25,458 Anybody with common sense just walk in seeing that 1021 01:01:25,482 --> 01:01:27,227 knows that couldn't be faked. 1022 01:01:32,489 --> 01:01:36,536 After the second night, the boy... 1023 01:01:36,560 --> 01:01:39,506 ...and the devil had possession of him. 1024 01:01:39,530 --> 01:01:42,142 Suddenly, the devil threw this decanter. 1025 01:01:45,769 --> 01:01:48,415 And it crashed into a thousand pieces. 1026 01:01:48,439 --> 01:01:51,151 I've been through storms, hurricanes, tornadoes 1027 01:01:51,175 --> 01:01:55,822 and whatnot, but this thing was the worst. 1028 01:01:55,846 --> 01:01:58,825 There's no reason he would have lied or made this story up. 1029 01:01:58,849 --> 01:02:02,028 You know, here we are 65 years later at the time, 1030 01:02:02,052 --> 01:02:04,364 and he'd never talked about it before, 1031 01:02:04,388 --> 01:02:07,000 but what happened had never left him. 1032 01:02:10,227 --> 01:02:12,305 A few days before Easter, 1033 01:02:12,329 --> 01:02:13,873 Father Halloran takes Roland 1034 01:02:13,897 --> 01:02:16,810 to an outdoor retreat center on a high bluff 1035 01:02:16,834 --> 01:02:20,180 overlooking the Mississippi River. 1036 01:02:20,204 --> 01:02:22,615 He thinks the fresh air might help Roland. 1037 01:02:25,843 --> 01:02:28,154 The expansive grounds include statues 1038 01:02:28,178 --> 01:02:30,857 depicting the stations of the cross, 1039 01:02:30,881 --> 01:02:35,361 the path Jesus endured on the way to his crucifixion. 1040 01:02:35,385 --> 01:02:38,364 There was a path that goes along the bluff that's 1041 01:02:38,388 --> 01:02:41,000 the various stations of the cross. 1042 01:02:41,024 --> 01:02:42,502 And so while they were out there, 1043 01:02:42,526 --> 01:02:45,939 Roland seemed very interested in the stories of the stations. 1044 01:02:45,963 --> 01:02:48,641 When they get to the 14th station, 1045 01:02:48,665 --> 01:02:51,411 where Jesus is being placed into the tomb... 1046 01:02:53,604 --> 01:02:55,215 ...something snaps in Roland. 1047 01:02:55,239 --> 01:02:57,417 He starts going into a fit, a seizure. 1048 01:02:57,441 --> 01:03:00,854 He starts running. 1049 01:03:00,878 --> 01:03:03,690 Father Halloran chases after Roland, 1050 01:03:03,714 --> 01:03:06,326 who charges straight towards the edge of the cliff. 1051 01:03:08,786 --> 01:03:11,564 Whatever demon has seized Roland's soul 1052 01:03:11,588 --> 01:03:16,069 is leading the boy and the priest toward a violent death. 1053 01:03:30,641 --> 01:03:33,186 April 13, 1949. 1054 01:03:36,146 --> 01:03:38,958 After nearly a month of nightly exorcisms... 1055 01:03:42,786 --> 01:03:46,199 ...Father Walter Halloran takes 13-year-old Roland Doe 1056 01:03:46,223 --> 01:03:48,234 outdoors for fresh air. 1057 01:03:52,896 --> 01:03:56,209 They walk the grounds of the White House Retreat Center, 1058 01:03:56,233 --> 01:03:58,344 which features statues depicting Jesus 1059 01:03:58,368 --> 01:04:02,015 on the day of his crucifixion. 1060 01:04:02,039 --> 01:04:04,350 But Roland snaps 1061 01:04:04,374 --> 01:04:07,821 and falls into one of his spells. 1062 01:04:07,845 --> 01:04:12,058 He takes off and heads toward the edge of a steep bluff. 1063 01:04:13,817 --> 01:04:15,628 Father Halloran has to chase him down 1064 01:04:15,652 --> 01:04:18,598 because he could kill himself if he runs off. 1065 01:04:18,622 --> 01:04:20,767 And Father Halloran eventually has to tackle him 1066 01:04:20,791 --> 01:04:22,769 to get him back under control. 1067 01:04:26,597 --> 01:04:29,876 Roland comes out of his crazed trance 1068 01:04:29,900 --> 01:04:32,212 and doesn't remember what happened. 1069 01:04:32,236 --> 01:04:34,414 People that I've worked with who have been possessed, 1070 01:04:34,438 --> 01:04:36,950 some of them will tell me that they're aware 1071 01:04:36,974 --> 01:04:38,218 of what's going on. 1072 01:04:38,242 --> 01:04:40,386 But just like they're trapped in their own body 1073 01:04:40,410 --> 01:04:43,323 and they're powerless to stop what is taking place. 1074 01:04:43,347 --> 01:04:46,559 Other people tell me that once the demon takes over, 1075 01:04:46,583 --> 01:04:50,864 they no longer have any awareness of what took place. 1076 01:04:50,888 --> 01:04:54,400 As Roland's demonic state worsens, 1077 01:04:54,424 --> 01:04:59,372 Father William Bowdern shows signs of stress and fatigue. 1078 01:04:59,396 --> 01:05:02,976 Oozing boils cover the priest's frail, emaciated body. 1079 01:05:05,869 --> 01:05:08,014 These priests went through long periods 1080 01:05:08,038 --> 01:05:10,950 where they had to fast and pray, 1081 01:05:10,974 --> 01:05:13,686 and during the course of these exorcisms, 1082 01:05:13,710 --> 01:05:16,489 Father Bowdern lost almost 40 pounds. 1083 01:05:16,513 --> 01:05:20,960 These men were exhausted. 1084 01:05:20,984 --> 01:05:23,263 Father Bowdern, who is on the side of the bed 1085 01:05:23,287 --> 01:05:27,000 praying for the boy, and he felt weak, 1086 01:05:27,024 --> 01:05:31,237 but he's fighting for the life of this young boy. 1087 01:05:31,261 --> 01:05:34,307 When you think about what he went through, what he did, 1088 01:05:34,331 --> 01:05:36,342 that he could love this child so much 1089 01:05:36,366 --> 01:05:39,579 that he would pretty much sacrifice himself for him. 1090 01:05:43,173 --> 01:05:47,186 If I just did exorcisms every day of the year, 1091 01:05:47,210 --> 01:05:50,390 I think I would reach the point where it would have an impact 1092 01:05:50,414 --> 01:05:54,060 on my own mental health and physical health as well. 1093 01:05:54,084 --> 01:05:55,862 I've known exorcist priests over the years 1094 01:05:55,886 --> 01:05:58,264 who've actually left the priesthood. 1095 01:05:58,288 --> 01:06:00,066 They just reached the point where they just felt like 1096 01:06:00,090 --> 01:06:03,169 they were so broken that they just couldn't go on. 1097 01:06:10,334 --> 01:06:13,880 On Holy Saturday, the day before Easter, 1098 01:06:13,904 --> 01:06:17,150 a monk places a statue of Saint Michael the Archangel 1099 01:06:17,174 --> 01:06:19,519 in Roland's room. 1100 01:06:19,543 --> 01:06:23,756 Saint Michael symbolizes protection from evil forces. 1101 01:06:23,780 --> 01:06:26,526 Michael represents a dragon slayer figure 1102 01:06:26,550 --> 01:06:28,328 and is often depicted that way, 1103 01:06:28,352 --> 01:06:32,432 sort of a soldier and triumphant over the devil. 1104 01:06:32,456 --> 01:06:36,169 And so he's often invoked as sort of a protector figure. 1105 01:06:39,930 --> 01:06:42,942 Prayers that were dedicated to Saint Michael 1106 01:06:42,966 --> 01:06:45,478 seemed to be particularly effective. 1107 01:06:45,502 --> 01:06:48,948 Roland seemed to really react in a different way. 1108 01:06:51,241 --> 01:06:53,853 Do the monks believe Saint Michael the Archangel 1109 01:06:53,877 --> 01:06:57,390 could finally save Roland from Satan's wrath? 1110 01:07:07,024 --> 01:07:10,269 The day after Easter marks more than one month 1111 01:07:10,293 --> 01:07:13,806 since Roland's first exorcism. 1112 01:07:13,830 --> 01:07:17,510 Father Bowdern uses every weapon in his holy arsenal 1113 01:07:17,534 --> 01:07:21,481 to exorcise the demon. 1114 01:07:21,505 --> 01:07:23,616 Roland complains the religious medals 1115 01:07:23,640 --> 01:07:27,020 around his neck burn his skin. 1116 01:07:27,044 --> 01:07:31,791 But Father Bowdern refuses to remove them. 1117 01:07:31,815 --> 01:07:35,628 Instead, he forces a crucifix into Roland's hand, 1118 01:07:35,652 --> 01:07:37,764 which makes him go into convulsions. 1119 01:07:40,557 --> 01:07:41,768 Oftentimes when a relic 1120 01:07:41,792 --> 01:07:44,037 is placed on a person who is possessed, 1121 01:07:44,061 --> 01:07:47,940 you'll hear screams that somehow it's burning. 1122 01:07:47,964 --> 01:07:50,410 So it's the confrontation 1123 01:07:50,434 --> 01:07:54,113 between the holy with the demonic. 1124 01:07:56,706 --> 01:07:59,218 At that point, Roland turns violent and he's shaking 1125 01:07:59,242 --> 01:08:01,954 and he screams, and in a deep, masculine voice, 1126 01:08:01,978 --> 01:08:05,625 as Father Bowdern demands to know who's inside of Roland... 1127 01:08:09,119 --> 01:08:12,765 Father Bowdern was evidently trying to get the demon 1128 01:08:12,789 --> 01:08:16,602 to express to him, "Tell me your name. Who are you?" 1129 01:08:16,626 --> 01:08:18,704 According to the Diary of the exorcisms 1130 01:08:18,728 --> 01:08:22,975 kept by Father Bishop, the demon speaks through Roland 1131 01:08:22,999 --> 01:08:26,879 and provokes Father Bowdern with a haunting threat. 1132 01:08:26,903 --> 01:08:30,483 He has to say one more word, one little word. 1133 01:08:30,507 --> 01:08:34,887 I mean, one big word. He'll never say it. 1134 01:08:34,911 --> 01:08:36,889 I am always in him. 1135 01:08:36,913 --> 01:08:41,194 I may not have much power always, but I am in him. 1136 01:08:41,218 --> 01:08:44,864 He will never say that word. 1137 01:08:46,523 --> 01:08:49,869 The demon said, "I'm not going to leave until Roland's said 1138 01:08:49,893 --> 01:08:51,204 a certain word." 1139 01:08:51,228 --> 01:08:54,474 In a pivotal showdown between good and evil... 1140 01:08:54,498 --> 01:08:57,310 Until he said it, it would stay with him. 1141 01:08:57,334 --> 01:09:00,880 ...what word could release Roland... 1142 01:09:02,139 --> 01:09:04,539 ...from the devil's grip? 1143 01:09:16,253 --> 01:09:19,932 April 18, 1949. 1144 01:09:19,956 --> 01:09:23,436 After more than a month long battle, 1145 01:09:23,460 --> 01:09:26,906 Father William Bowdern engages in a decisive exorcism 1146 01:09:26,930 --> 01:09:31,444 of 13-year-old Roland Doe at the Alexian Brothers Hospital. 1147 01:09:33,904 --> 01:09:37,216 A demonic spirit speaks through Roland 1148 01:09:37,240 --> 01:09:40,887 and claims the boy refuses to say a word 1149 01:09:40,911 --> 01:09:43,122 that might finally set him free. 1150 01:09:43,146 --> 01:09:46,492 One more word. 1151 01:09:46,516 --> 01:09:48,094 He'll never say it. 1152 01:09:48,118 --> 01:09:51,330 I am always in him. 1153 01:09:53,790 --> 01:09:56,702 But according to the exorcists' diary, 1154 01:09:56,726 --> 01:10:00,673 Roland suddenly defies the demon possessing him 1155 01:10:00,697 --> 01:10:03,276 and commands the evil spirit to leave. 1156 01:10:05,936 --> 01:10:09,682 Roland was in a seizure, but lay calm. 1157 01:10:09,706 --> 01:10:12,552 In clear, commanding tones, and with dignity, 1158 01:10:12,576 --> 01:10:15,354 a voice broke into prayers. 1159 01:10:17,681 --> 01:10:19,859 Satan. 1160 01:10:19,883 --> 01:10:24,130 Satan, I would seek Michael. 1161 01:10:24,154 --> 01:10:26,332 And I command you, Satan, 1162 01:10:26,356 --> 01:10:29,135 and the other devil spirits to leave the body 1163 01:10:29,159 --> 01:10:32,171 in the name of Dóminus immediately. 1164 01:10:32,195 --> 01:10:35,708 Now! Now! Now! 1165 01:10:41,104 --> 01:10:45,218 Father Bowdern realizes Dóminus is the word 1166 01:10:45,242 --> 01:10:48,654 that the devil claims Roland would never say. 1167 01:10:48,678 --> 01:10:54,026 "Dóminus" is the Latin word for "Lord." 1168 01:10:54,050 --> 01:10:56,729 Dóminus, our Lord, it's forcing the demon 1169 01:10:56,753 --> 01:11:00,600 to recognize the lordship of Jesus Christ, 1170 01:11:00,624 --> 01:11:04,036 and by doing that, it's showing a sign of weakness, 1171 01:11:04,060 --> 01:11:06,872 and then it's going to be compelled to to depart. 1172 01:11:09,399 --> 01:11:12,478 Suddenly, Roland erupts 1173 01:11:12,502 --> 01:11:15,314 and experiences the most violent convulsions 1174 01:11:15,338 --> 01:11:17,483 of the entire period of exorcisms. 1175 01:11:21,077 --> 01:11:22,855 In his delirious state, 1176 01:11:22,879 --> 01:11:26,092 Roland claims to have a prophetic vision. 1177 01:11:26,116 --> 01:11:28,794 On the final day of the exorcism, 1178 01:11:28,818 --> 01:11:33,032 Roland envisioned himself outside of a cave 1179 01:11:33,056 --> 01:11:35,701 with an angel with a flaming sword 1180 01:11:35,725 --> 01:11:40,306 that he believed was Saint Michael. 1181 01:11:40,330 --> 01:11:44,377 He sees this vision of Saint Michael the Archangel 1182 01:11:44,401 --> 01:11:46,779 with a sword and a pitchfork, 1183 01:11:46,803 --> 01:11:51,651 pushing these demons back into the fiery pit of hell. 1184 01:11:53,443 --> 01:11:55,688 And this angelic figure, Saint Michael, 1185 01:11:55,712 --> 01:12:00,059 smiles at Roland and says the word Dóminus, 1186 01:12:00,083 --> 01:12:04,297 which is the word that the devil said Roland would never say. 1187 01:12:04,321 --> 01:12:07,266 After several minutes of uncontrollable spasms, 1188 01:12:07,290 --> 01:12:09,935 Roland relaxes and falls still. 1189 01:12:13,963 --> 01:12:16,909 After seven or eight minutes of violence, 1190 01:12:16,933 --> 01:12:20,813 Roland, in a tone of complete relief, said, 1191 01:12:20,837 --> 01:12:23,516 "He's gone!" Immediately, 1192 01:12:23,540 --> 01:12:25,685 Roland came back to normal. 1193 01:12:28,278 --> 01:12:31,857 Suddenly, this spell, this seizure that Roland 1194 01:12:31,881 --> 01:12:35,728 was going through just stopped. 1195 01:12:35,752 --> 01:12:37,663 He just went silent. 1196 01:12:37,687 --> 01:12:41,867 And he looked up at the priests, and he said, "It's over." 1197 01:12:44,794 --> 01:12:49,141 At an exorcism, once the person says they want help, 1198 01:12:49,165 --> 01:12:52,812 then that connection with the demonic can be broken, 1199 01:12:52,836 --> 01:12:55,314 even though the demon might be trying to say, 1200 01:12:55,338 --> 01:12:57,116 "No, no, no, no, it can't be broken. 1201 01:12:57,140 --> 01:13:00,686 You've made a pact with me." 1202 01:13:00,710 --> 01:13:04,090 While the priests and Alexian monks celebrate, 1203 01:13:04,114 --> 01:13:07,026 Father Bowdern remains skeptical. 1204 01:13:07,050 --> 01:13:10,629 Has the demon truly left for good? 1205 01:13:10,653 --> 01:13:12,698 Father Bowdern wasn't so sure. 1206 01:13:12,722 --> 01:13:13,899 He'd seen this before. 1207 01:13:13,923 --> 01:13:16,602 This was not the first time that Roland 1208 01:13:16,626 --> 01:13:20,706 or the demon in Roland told him that it was over. 1209 01:13:20,730 --> 01:13:23,743 So he had prayed for a sign to be sent 1210 01:13:23,767 --> 01:13:26,612 so that he would know it really had come to an end. 1211 01:13:26,636 --> 01:13:30,516 And then suddenly, there was this massive boom... 1212 01:13:33,309 --> 01:13:34,820 ...that shook the building. 1213 01:13:34,844 --> 01:13:38,090 In fact, one of the monks there believed that their furnace 1214 01:13:38,114 --> 01:13:40,092 had exploded, it was that loud. 1215 01:13:42,018 --> 01:13:44,830 Moments after the mysterious blast reverberates 1216 01:13:44,854 --> 01:13:46,966 throughout the hospital, 1217 01:13:46,990 --> 01:13:49,869 priests report an image of Saint Michael 1218 01:13:49,893 --> 01:13:52,304 illuminating the dome above the altar 1219 01:13:52,328 --> 01:13:55,508 at nearby St. Francis Xavier College Church. 1220 01:14:00,303 --> 01:14:03,315 Father Bowdern knew that was the sign 1221 01:14:03,339 --> 01:14:08,220 that he had been waiting for, and that it really was over. 1222 01:14:08,244 --> 01:14:10,256 That was the end of the exorcism. 1223 01:14:16,319 --> 01:14:19,465 Roland stayed in St. Louis for a couple of weeks, 1224 01:14:19,489 --> 01:14:24,570 and then returned home to Maryland. 1225 01:14:24,594 --> 01:14:27,006 He did contact Father Bowdern one last time, 1226 01:14:27,030 --> 01:14:29,642 he wrote him a letter, told him how happy he was, 1227 01:14:29,666 --> 01:14:32,812 he was back in school, that he had just gotten a new dog. 1228 01:14:32,836 --> 01:14:36,415 And things seemed to be going okay for him. 1229 01:14:36,439 --> 01:14:38,384 After examining all of the evidence 1230 01:14:38,408 --> 01:14:40,820 gathered in Maryland and St. Louis, 1231 01:14:40,844 --> 01:14:43,856 the Catholic Church reportedly refuses to confirm 1232 01:14:43,880 --> 01:14:49,261 or deny Roland Doe was a genuine case of demonic possession. 1233 01:14:49,285 --> 01:14:54,500 There were 48 eyewitnesses who signed off 1234 01:14:54,524 --> 01:14:57,903 on this final ecclesiastical document 1235 01:14:57,927 --> 01:15:03,108 reporting that these abnormal things had occurred. 1236 01:15:03,132 --> 01:15:05,077 Now, that's not a signing off saying absolutely 1237 01:15:05,101 --> 01:15:08,447 I know with 100% this was a case of demonic possession. 1238 01:15:08,471 --> 01:15:10,616 But we saw some really weird stuff 1239 01:15:10,640 --> 01:15:12,651 that happened around this kid 1240 01:15:12,675 --> 01:15:15,421 that we don't know how to explain naturally. 1241 01:15:18,915 --> 01:15:21,093 Despite the church's conclusion, 1242 01:15:21,117 --> 01:15:23,963 the priests who were there believe Roland Doe 1243 01:15:23,987 --> 01:15:27,032 was an undisputed case of demonic possession. 1244 01:15:29,659 --> 01:15:33,472 Father Bowdern soldiered through this whole ordeal 1245 01:15:33,496 --> 01:15:37,943 and said virtually nothing to family members about it 1246 01:15:37,967 --> 01:15:39,979 until his dying days. 1247 01:15:40,003 --> 01:15:42,381 But he did say that he believed, 1248 01:15:42,405 --> 01:15:47,887 you know, that he was dealing with a true demonic possession. 1249 01:15:47,911 --> 01:15:49,455 If you've ever had anyone in your life 1250 01:15:49,479 --> 01:15:51,857 whose word you implicitly believe, 1251 01:15:51,881 --> 01:15:56,428 this was the guy, was Uncle Bill, was Father Bowdern. 1252 01:15:56,452 --> 01:16:00,032 He wasn't an exaggerator. I think with his common sense, 1253 01:16:00,056 --> 01:16:04,136 he would never think to exaggerate anything. 1254 01:16:04,160 --> 01:16:06,472 Do you choose to believe that this was something 1255 01:16:06,496 --> 01:16:10,910 that was real and that happened as it's reported? 1256 01:16:10,934 --> 01:16:14,380 Do you choose to remain skeptical? 1257 01:16:14,404 --> 01:16:19,051 It boils down to, do you trust the veracity of the witnesses? 1258 01:16:19,075 --> 01:16:21,954 I have doubts about parts of the story, 1259 01:16:21,978 --> 01:16:25,391 but I do think something happened. 1260 01:16:25,415 --> 01:16:27,593 Whether you want to believe it was a demon 1261 01:16:27,617 --> 01:16:31,964 or some sort of presence or some sort of psychological problem 1262 01:16:31,988 --> 01:16:34,333 that was instantly cured somehow, 1263 01:16:34,357 --> 01:16:37,069 whatever it was, it was expelled. 1264 01:16:40,630 --> 01:16:42,708 While the final report of the exorcism 1265 01:16:42,732 --> 01:16:46,946 remains locked away in the Roman Catholic archives, 1266 01:16:46,970 --> 01:16:50,516 speculation and questions persist. 1267 01:16:50,540 --> 01:16:54,353 Now, an investigator talks on camera for the first time 1268 01:16:54,377 --> 01:16:58,357 about a possible cover up surrounding the exorcism case. 1269 01:16:58,381 --> 01:17:01,160 What happened to the real Roland Doe 1270 01:17:01,184 --> 01:17:04,730 and the demon that allegedly possessed him? 1271 01:17:14,464 --> 01:17:17,810 The 1949 exorcism case of Roland Doe 1272 01:17:17,834 --> 01:17:20,412 is supposed to be kept top secret. 1273 01:17:20,436 --> 01:17:23,048 While most involved remain tight-lipped, 1274 01:17:23,072 --> 01:17:26,085 stories eventually leak to the press 1275 01:17:26,109 --> 01:17:28,454 and reported details about the boy's life 1276 01:17:28,478 --> 01:17:33,726 after the exorcisms are revealed. 1277 01:17:33,750 --> 01:17:36,128 Roland remains Catholic. 1278 01:17:36,152 --> 01:17:40,099 He goes to a Catholic Jesuit high school, 1279 01:17:40,123 --> 01:17:42,301 Gonzaga Prep. 1280 01:17:42,325 --> 01:17:45,404 He marries, had several children. 1281 01:17:45,428 --> 01:17:48,240 He evidently named his first child Michael 1282 01:17:48,264 --> 01:17:49,942 after Saint Michael. 1283 01:17:49,966 --> 01:17:52,244 He did very well, went to college, 1284 01:17:52,268 --> 01:17:54,580 literally became a rocket scientist, 1285 01:17:54,604 --> 01:17:56,715 went to work part-time with NASA. 1286 01:17:56,739 --> 01:18:01,153 He has a couple of patents for scientific devices to his name, 1287 01:18:01,177 --> 01:18:03,856 including shielding they used on rockets. 1288 01:18:03,880 --> 01:18:07,393 So he has lived a very full and long life, 1289 01:18:07,417 --> 01:18:11,163 never troubled by anything that had happened to him 1290 01:18:11,187 --> 01:18:13,165 during that time period. 1291 01:18:16,926 --> 01:18:21,240 I had always said I would never put his name into print, 1292 01:18:21,264 --> 01:18:23,909 and I think his privacy needs to be respected. 1293 01:18:25,668 --> 01:18:28,747 The real Roland Doe, now in his 80s, 1294 01:18:28,771 --> 01:18:31,150 has never spoken publicly 1295 01:18:31,174 --> 01:18:34,987 and will most likely take his secrets to the grave. 1296 01:18:35,011 --> 01:18:36,188 I don't blame him. 1297 01:18:36,212 --> 01:18:37,589 I don't blame him for keeping silent on it. 1298 01:18:37,613 --> 01:18:39,725 And it's possible he doesn't even remember. 1299 01:18:39,749 --> 01:18:42,261 It's possible if he really wasn't himself, 1300 01:18:42,285 --> 01:18:43,762 he would have no recollection of it. 1301 01:18:43,786 --> 01:18:46,065 So what is there to say at this point? 1302 01:18:46,089 --> 01:18:49,068 But we do know he lived a life. 1303 01:18:51,928 --> 01:18:55,908 While Roland Doe may have put the exorcisms behind him, 1304 01:18:55,932 --> 01:18:58,444 eyewitnesses and residents of St. Louis 1305 01:18:58,468 --> 01:19:01,346 claim physical reminders of his ordeal 1306 01:19:01,370 --> 01:19:03,482 continue to haunt the city. 1307 01:19:06,509 --> 01:19:10,756 In 1978, the psychiatric wing of the Alexian Brothers Hospital 1308 01:19:10,780 --> 01:19:13,025 is scheduled to be torn down. 1309 01:19:13,049 --> 01:19:15,094 Before leveling the building, 1310 01:19:15,118 --> 01:19:19,131 construction workers make a chance discovery. 1311 01:19:19,155 --> 01:19:21,266 The construction crew found a particular room 1312 01:19:21,290 --> 01:19:23,102 that was locked. 1313 01:19:23,126 --> 01:19:24,903 They found a desk in the room, 1314 01:19:24,927 --> 01:19:29,241 and inside was this booklet 1315 01:19:29,265 --> 01:19:33,712 that had been put together that mentioned an exorcism. 1316 01:19:33,736 --> 01:19:36,014 And it turned out that it had been a copy 1317 01:19:36,038 --> 01:19:39,384 of Father Bishop's diary of the exorcism. 1318 01:19:39,408 --> 01:19:42,888 And that's how the story eventually became public. 1319 01:19:42,912 --> 01:19:46,258 That's how we have access to the diary now. 1320 01:19:50,520 --> 01:19:52,765 The diary might not be the only 1321 01:19:52,789 --> 01:19:56,168 eerie vestige of the exorcism. 1322 01:19:56,192 --> 01:19:58,871 Investigator Stephen LaChance says he's discovered 1323 01:19:58,895 --> 01:20:02,007 a possible conspiracy in the case. 1324 01:20:02,031 --> 01:20:04,676 He claims an unnamed church official 1325 01:20:04,700 --> 01:20:07,946 provided him access to a medical facility 1326 01:20:07,970 --> 01:20:11,250 near the old Alexian Brothers Hospital. 1327 01:20:11,274 --> 01:20:14,219 I was taken to a hospital. I was taken through security. 1328 01:20:14,243 --> 01:20:16,255 There's a little elevator. We were taken up. 1329 01:20:16,279 --> 01:20:20,425 It was the third or fourth floor. 1330 01:20:20,449 --> 01:20:23,195 It was completely deserted. There was no one there. 1331 01:20:23,219 --> 01:20:25,964 I walked up to the door, and I started to pull the door 1332 01:20:25,988 --> 01:20:27,232 and they stopped me and they said, 1333 01:20:27,256 --> 01:20:28,700 "You can't open it." And I said, "Why?" 1334 01:20:28,724 --> 01:20:32,371 They said, "Put your ear to the door." 1335 01:20:32,395 --> 01:20:33,839 And I put my ear to the door 1336 01:20:33,863 --> 01:20:37,676 and there sounded like there was things... 1337 01:20:37,700 --> 01:20:41,213 flying against the wall, crashing. 1338 01:20:41,237 --> 01:20:44,082 And they asked me, "Do you know where you are?" 1339 01:20:44,106 --> 01:20:48,453 And they said, "This is the place where the priests stayed." 1340 01:20:48,477 --> 01:20:52,991 For decades, rumors persist that once the devil left Roland Doe, 1341 01:20:53,015 --> 01:20:57,062 it must have possessed someone else. 1342 01:20:57,086 --> 01:21:01,700 Now, I believe that Roland Doe's demon 1343 01:21:01,724 --> 01:21:04,336 went from Roland into a priest. 1344 01:21:07,930 --> 01:21:10,209 And the priest took the demon over from the boy, 1345 01:21:10,233 --> 01:21:12,110 which is not uncommon. It has happened before, 1346 01:21:12,134 --> 01:21:15,180 and I believe they housed the priest in a hospital 1347 01:21:15,204 --> 01:21:17,115 until his death in 1983. 1348 01:21:17,139 --> 01:21:20,252 And I believe that's where I was. 1349 01:21:20,276 --> 01:21:24,489 During exorcisms, the entity will try to leave 1350 01:21:24,513 --> 01:21:28,260 the afflicted individual and go into other people 1351 01:21:28,284 --> 01:21:30,395 who may be present at the exorcism, 1352 01:21:30,419 --> 01:21:33,665 including the exorcist himself. 1353 01:21:33,689 --> 01:21:36,168 In an ultimate act of sacrifice, 1354 01:21:36,192 --> 01:21:39,171 is it possible a priest took possession of the devil 1355 01:21:39,195 --> 01:21:42,975 to save Roland and then spent the rest of his life 1356 01:21:42,999 --> 01:21:45,944 locked in a mental hospital? 1357 01:21:45,968 --> 01:21:48,447 According to the person from the Catholic Church 1358 01:21:48,471 --> 01:21:51,483 that I was with, that was indeed what had happened. 1359 01:21:51,507 --> 01:21:55,187 So there you go. 1360 01:21:55,211 --> 01:21:57,823 That's one of those St. Louis things that you're not going 1361 01:21:57,847 --> 01:22:01,026 to hear anywhere else, and I think it's sad 1362 01:22:01,050 --> 01:22:04,863 that somebody gave their life for the child. 1363 01:22:04,887 --> 01:22:08,667 If the story is true, perhaps William Peter Blatty 1364 01:22:08,691 --> 01:22:10,736 knew this before writing the climax 1365 01:22:10,760 --> 01:22:13,639 to his screenplay, "The Exorcist." 1366 01:22:13,663 --> 01:22:16,909 In the shocking scene, a priest takes the devil 1367 01:22:16,933 --> 01:22:20,779 into his own body and then ends his life. 1368 01:22:27,176 --> 01:22:28,754 The St. Louis exorcism 1369 01:22:28,778 --> 01:22:32,157 inspired one of the most iconic horror films of all time. 1370 01:22:35,117 --> 01:22:37,095 Yet the real case of Roland Doe 1371 01:22:37,119 --> 01:22:40,632 and its strange aftermath remains unresolved. 1372 01:22:46,195 --> 01:22:49,107 We're still talking about this case because it was made 1373 01:22:49,131 --> 01:22:52,344 into one of the greatest horror movies of all time, 1374 01:22:52,368 --> 01:22:55,580 and then you find out that there's a story behind the story 1375 01:22:55,604 --> 01:22:56,915 and that it's real? 1376 01:22:56,939 --> 01:22:59,151 You're never going to stop talking about it 1377 01:22:59,175 --> 01:23:02,220 because that's what profound stories do. 1378 01:23:02,244 --> 01:23:04,323 They stay with us. 1379 01:23:04,347 --> 01:23:07,559 How can a child go from being innocent and pure 1380 01:23:07,583 --> 01:23:09,027 to a monster? 1381 01:23:09,051 --> 01:23:10,629 I think that's interesting. 1382 01:23:10,653 --> 01:23:15,600 And I think with people, that's where the curiosity lies. 1383 01:23:15,624 --> 01:23:18,637 I think for other people, they see it as a warning. 1384 01:23:18,661 --> 01:23:21,306 Why why in the world would a 13-year-old boy 1385 01:23:21,330 --> 01:23:25,177 be possessed by some evil or demonic presence? 1386 01:23:25,201 --> 01:23:27,980 Why? What did he ever do? Nothing. 1387 01:23:28,004 --> 01:23:31,149 This is just a kid living his life in 1949. 1388 01:23:31,173 --> 01:23:34,252 There's that fear of if it can happen to him, 1389 01:23:34,276 --> 01:23:35,454 it could happen to me. 1390 01:23:35,478 --> 01:23:36,888 It could happen to anyone. 1391 01:23:36,912 --> 01:23:38,623 If it's real, 1392 01:23:38,647 --> 01:23:44,596 then this could happen to anyone, any time, any day. 1393 01:23:44,620 --> 01:23:46,531 For those who believe, 1394 01:23:46,555 --> 01:23:51,436 the exorcism of Roland Doe endures as a haunting warning 1395 01:23:51,460 --> 01:23:54,306 evil walks among us, 1396 01:23:54,330 --> 01:23:56,274 and the devil's greatest trick 1397 01:23:56,298 --> 01:24:01,346 is making us believe he doesn't exist. 1398 01:24:01,370 --> 01:24:04,872 >>>>oakislandtk<<<<< www.opensubtitles.org 113108

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