Pity the poor exorcist, caught between evil spirits eager to inhabit human bodies and a skeptical society loath to believe demons exist outside of movie theaters.<\/p>\n
Even church leaders and clergy look askance at exorcists as peddlers of a practice best left in the Middle Ages. Most American exorcists, particularly those appointed by the Catholic Church, keep a low-profile, hesitating to open themselves\u201d\u201dand their church– to ridicule and quacks.<\/p>\n
But not the Rev. Gary Thomas. The loquacious, 55-year-old Silicon Valley priest is eager to dish about exorcism, the \u201capocalyptic times\u201d\u009d we live in, and even to accuse Catholics who deny demonic possession\u201d\u201dincluding bishops\u201d\u201dof renouncing fundamental Christian dogma.<\/p>\n
Thomas is pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Saratoga, Calif.\u201d\u201dand the official exorcist for the Diocese of San Jose.<\/p>\n