Faithful told: Purify the mind through Our Lady of Guadalupe, Divine Mercy

According to an American priest, who gave a talk at the 3rd National Conference on the Ministry of Spiritual Liberation and Exorcism, focusing on the images of the Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Divine Mercy help make the imagination holy, protecting one from distractions during prayer.

“Prayer sanctifies the imagination. Two images that would be helpful while praying is the Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Divine Mercy image,” said Fr. Gregory Thomas Clark, O.P. during his talk on the “Spirituality Of An Exorcist,” held at the University of Santo Tomas on Aug. 20

The priest explained that the image is extraordinary because it was a supernaturally produced. “…When you have heaven’s rendition of Our Lady, it drives the demons nuts,” he said.

Holy imagination

Clark noted how the Divine Mercy, on the other hand, has moved many people to conversion.
“That image (the Divine Mercy) has inspired confidence in Our Lord for so many,” he said. “So keeping that in your imagination. Sanctifying your eyes, very important.”

Based in Albaquerque, New Mexico, the priest explained to 95 exorcists that besides sanctifying the imagination, one’s memory should also be made holy to discipline oneself and stay free from distractions during mental prayer.

“Mental prayer also deals with memory. Memory is such an important faculty because in our memory lies the wounds that the evil one goes after,” stressed the exorcist who was previously assigned in Los Angeles, California.

Attacks of the enemy

“He’s (the devil) going to dig up stuff from your past and throw it in your face,” Clark revealed, emphasizing that sanctifying one’s faculties–imagination and memory–also protect oneself from the attacks of the enemy.

As main speaker of the event cum recollection, he also gave a talk on the “Pitfalls and Dangers of Spirituality.” Other speakers for the conference that ran until Aug. 24 included Fr. Jose Francisco Syquia, Fr. Winston Cabading, O.P. of the Archdiocese of Manila’s Office of Exorcism (AMOE), and Fr. Ambrosio Nonato Legaspi of the Diocese of Novaliches’s Office of Exrocism (Libera Nox).

Some of the other topics discussed were on the “Sacraments of Consolation: Anointing of the Sick, Confession, and Exorcism”, “Infestation of Objects and Places, Discerment”, and “Closing of the Occult Third Eye, Discernment”.

The three priests are all founding fathers of the Philippine Association of Catholic Exorcists (PACE), which partnered with AMOE to organize the conference together with the Pontifical University of Santo Tomas.