I recently received this query (used with permission):
Many years ago when I was doing massage therapy, I used to touch peoples' feet and I could see demons leaving their body. I was working in the New Age world and even worked as a psychic back then. I closed everything down a couple years ago and returned to the Catholic faith. I know I still have these abilities and I’m feeling called to return to healing work with people. I want to do this work now with Jesus, Mary, St. Joseph & the Holy Spirit guiding me.
This woman believes she has a healing charism with special "abilities" from God and feels called to use them to help people. She said she would now do it with "Jesus, Mary, St. Joseph and the Holy Spirit" guiding her. Good idea? Certainly her intentions are good, which one should applaud. However, many an evil has been perpetrated in this world with people intending to do good, such as so-called "good witches." Regardless of one's intentions, there is no good witchcraft.
In this case, great caution is warranted, which was communicated to her. A few people do have a real healing charism from God including seeing demons and assisting in casting them out, although it is relatively rare. However, this woman has a significant history of New Age spiritualities including working as a psychic! Some practitioners of the occult do have special "abilities" but they come from demons and/or the opening of their occult third eye (see Exorcist Diary #296: Closing the Occult Third Eye).
In this person's case, it would be prudent to assume her "abilities" come from the dark world and not from God. It can take 3-4 years of solid Catholic living, including regular confession and deliverance prayers, before the demonic effects of years of occult practice are "scrubbed out." This includes a final closing of the occult third eye. I recommended to her that she engage in ongoing deliverance prayers and continued sacramental living. If she becomes involved in a healing ministry too early, knowingly or not, using the occult third eye, she would likely become a channel for spiritual deception and harm.
People underestimate the evil wrought by practicing the occult. What is the harm? It is a violation of the First Commandment against God, and its spiritual devastation should not be underestimated. While a good confession indeed wipes out the sin, the evil effects of such sins are typically not immediately and fully expunged, a theological principle well understood by the Catholic faith.
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