Pope Francis Excommunicates the mafia.....Also makes exorcisms official catholic practice.

(CNN) - Using his strongest language to date, Pope Francis told Italian Mafia members Saturday that they are excommunicated from the Catholic Church.

“Those who in their life have gone along the evil ways, as in the case of the Mafia, they are not with God, they are excommunicated," Francis said.

It is the first time a Pope has spoken of excommunication for the Mafia.

Excommunication, which excludes Catholics from the church, can be imposed by church authorities or incurred automatically for certain grave offenses.

The Pope’s remarks will resonate strongly in this part of southern Italy, where the Mafia attempt to portray themselves as upstanding religious men in good rapport with the Catholic Church, in order to maintain local credibility.

During a one-day visit to Calabria, in southern Italy, the Pope denounced the local mafia, called ‘Ndrangheta, as an example of “the adoration of evil and contempt for the common good.”

According to reports, ‘Ndrangheta is one of the wealthiest international crime organizations, with an annual turnover of 53 billion euros, much of it from the global cocaine trade.

Calabria also suffers from 56% youth unemployment, which the Mafia exploits with promises of jobs for disillusioned young people.

“They must be told, No!” the Pope said to a crowd of over 100,000 gathered in Piana di Sibari, Calabria, for an outdoor Mass.

Prosecutor: Pope faces threat from the mafia

Earlier during his visit, Pope Francis met with relatives of a 3-year-old boy, Nicola Campolongo, who was the victim of an alleged Mafia hit in January. Nicknamed Coco, the boy was with his grandfather when they were both shot and their bodies subsequently burned in a car.

It is not the first time the Pope has spoken out against the Mafia. In March in Rome at a meeting with families of victims, the Pope called directly on Mafia bosses to repent, saying "hell ... awaits you if you continue on this road.”

Some anti-mafia prosecutors have worried that mobsters may target Pope Francis, who is reforming the Vatican, including its scandal-scarred bank, the Institute for Religious Works.

"The strong will of Pope Francis, aiming to disrupt the gangrene power centers, puts him at risk. He disturbs the Mafia very much," Nicola Gratteri, an anti-mob prosecutor in Calabria, told CNN in November.

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Pope Francis has given support to the work of exorcists in the Catholic church, after a group of priests who claim to save people from demons were officially recognised under canon law.

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The International Association of Exorcists, a group of 250 priests battling the forces of evil across 30 countries, has now had its statutes approved by the Vatican’s Congregation for Clergy, the church’s newspaper L'Osservatore Romano reported.

It gives legal recognition to the performance of an exorcism, and was a cause for joy – according to the head of the association.

The Reverend Francesco Bamonte told L'Osservatore: “Exorcism is a form of charity that benefits those who suffer.”

More than many of his predecessors, Pope Francis likes to encourages the personification of Satan and speaks frequently about the Devil’s work.

Last year he was captured in astonishing footage placing his hands on the head of a boy in a wheelchair, reciting an intense prayer until the boy slumped down exhaling sharply.

At the time La Repubblica quoted an exorcism expert saying: “It was a prayer of liberation from evil or even a real exorcism.” The Vatican has downplayed the incident, saying it was simply a prayer.

The Catholic Encyclopedia defines exorcism as “the act of driving out, or warding off, demons, or evil spirits, from persons, places, or things, which are believed to be possessed or infested by them, or are liable to become victims or instruments of their malice”.


Earlier this year, a number of Catholic churches across Italy and Spain were reported to have recruited at least 18 priests between them to tackle “an unprecedented rise in cases of demonic possession”.

Rev Bamonte then told La Repubblica: “Diabolical possessions are on the increase as a result of people subscribing to occultism.

“The few exorcists that we have in the dioceses are often not able to handle the enormous number of requests for help.”

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NazDrowie said:

is religion that big among mafiosas? don't know any made men, so i wouldnt know...

also, did anybody want a hot dog after reading the exorcism article?

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Hand2HandKing said:

the mafia would kill the pope tho?? 

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Nicola Gratteri, 55, a state prosecutor in the southern Italian region of Calabria, where the ‘Ndrangheta is most active, said the pope’s effort to reform the church is making the ‘Ndrangheta “very nervous.”

The organization is considered by experts in Italy to be the most dangerous, most unified and most difficult to penetrate mafia-type organization in the country.

“I cannot say if the organization is in a position to do something like this, but they are dangerous and it is worth reflecting on,” Gratteri warned. “If the godfathers can find a way to stop him, they will seriously consider it.

“Those who have up until now profited from the influence and wealth drawn from the church are getting very nervous,” he added. “For many years, the mafia has laundered money and made investments with the complicity of the church. But now the pope is dismantling the poles of economic power in the Vatican, and that is dangerous.”

Gratteri noted that in southern Italy organized crime figures have strong and high-profile relationships with local church leaders, who help give the crime figures legitimacy.

He also said most Italian mobsters are practicing Catholics, despite their violent activities.

“A gunman from the ‘Ndrangheta will pray and kiss his rosary before shooting someone,” said Gratteri, who has been under police protection against the mob since the 1980s.

Gratteri was named by Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta to head a special committee aimed at curbing the influence of organized crime.

Francis has spoken out strongly against organized crime in the past, specifically naming the country’s four main organized crime groups –including the ‘Ndrangheta — in May.

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can someone school me on what the pope does?

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Originally Posted by sckid20  

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is this exorcist stuff real

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Patrick Bateman said:

The Pope is the sovereign Ruler of the Earth. All of your favorite politicians bow down and kiss the ring. Anyway, if you think this guy is "righteous" then you know nothing about the Jesuit order.

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FlyNY said:

Is this exorcist stuff real?
Like are there really folk with demons in em? How we know they just not crazy?

The devil is a LIE = there's no such thing as the devil

I love my God, and I love Jesus. But at the end of the day, I really hate how some churches operate..like they'll give you the word, but at the end they'll say that you MUST contribute money or the blessing will not come to

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SammyDavisJr said:

I'm not religious at all but isn't it if you believe in one then you have to believe in the other. Meaning if you think God and Jesus are real then the Devil is real and the only way to fix evil spirits from coming in to a human is an exorcism.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

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N3RD said:

Please explain. I always heard about how the Jesuits are secretly the ruling class of religion, but its hard to find info about it.

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sckid20 said:

interesting.

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HTG Designs said:

Yeshua/ Jesus did exorcisms in scripture. I do believe that it can be done. Casting out demonic spirits through prayer. Thats why the scriptures talk about the power being a two edge sword. There's alot of power in the spoken word.

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Patrick Bateman said:

An exorcism is making a deal with the demon, an "oath".. the messiah was casting the demons out, big difference

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