Marta: A Case Of Diabolical Possession

Originally published in 2005 as a translation of an account of an exorcism performed in Spain by Fr. Jose Antonio Fortea, trained by the famed Italian exorcist Fr. Gabriele Amorth. This is a translation of an article by the skeptical Jose Manuel Vidal in El Mundo, a Spanish newspaper, that was published in 2002.

"This is the day!" "Today is the day," says the exorcist, holding a crucifix.

"No," a hoarse male voice sounds from the throat of a pretty twenty-year-old girl. "Exi nunc, Zebulon." "Come out now, Zebulon," repeats the priest.

"No."

"Why won't you leave her?"

"To be a sign".

"A sign of what?"

"That Satan lives."

The tension rises in the darkened chapel. Satan is fighting with God. And I'm a front-row spectator, witnessing something like this for the first time in my life. "This must be why he invited me to an exorcism. Satan wants publicity," I think in shock. My mind is racing. We're at the culmination of a ritual that had no place in my mind until now. And this despite the fact that the priests in the seminary always managed to appeal to my childish fears of the Evil One, that Evil One who always seeks to seize souls. After the Second Vatican Council, the teaching on the existence of Satan was generally seen as "a shameful part of the Church's doctrine," and like many other Catholics, I distanced myself from it.

The exorcist, José Antonio Fortea, parish priest of Our Lady of Zulema, is exhausted. And he is only 33 years old. But it's been over an hour now that he, crucifix in hand, is battling Satan. Marta (not her real name), the possessed girl, remains as strong as ever, despite all the growling, groaning, twisting, and shaking of her body like a spinning top. She is a slender girl with delicate features, yet possesses considerable strength for her age. She is 12.30 hours on a weekday and for an hour and a half, I have now witnessed an exorcism session.

Two days earlier, I received a peculiar call on my cell phone. Not because it was from a priest (I get many of those), but because it was from a Catholic exorcist (of which there are two in Spain), and they usually maintain a certain distance from journalists. He invited me to attend an exorcism. This made me stop my usual activities. Witnessing an exorcism by a Vatican-approved priest is a real challenge for a journalist specializing in religious affairs. Despite my more than twenty years of professional experience, I had only once managed to interview Father Gabriel Amorth, the official exorcist of Rome. When we met, he wrote the following dedication in a copy of his book: "To José Manuel, with gratitude and with the advice never to fear the devil."

I must admit, however, that it was out of fear that I decided to answer Father Fortea's question with a counter-question: could a fellow religious affairs specialist from the EFE news service accompany me. He agreed. On the day of the appointment, we nervously drove our car to the diocese of Alcalá de Henares. It was a sunny and beautiful day. We arrived at the parish with high expectations, a matter of being psychologically well-prepared. We nervously joked along the way.

We had arranged to meet the exorcist at his parish. A modern red-brick church nestled amidst a grove of pine trees. The interior of the church was simple and neat. A large cross in the center of a high altar. On one side, a holy water font with the inscription "Holy water keeps Satan away from you." At 10:30 a.m., the exorcist emerged from the church to welcome us. A tall, thin man. With his glasses and luxuriant beard, he cut an impressive figure. Perhaps also because of his profession as an exorcist. His pale and prominent forehead seemed particularly prominent above the all-black cassock. He invited us for a walk so he could share the background of the case.

Seven Demons

"I'm not a showman, and I'm not looking for publicity. You're here because I need you to free the girl. You must be very careful. You must not give any information that could reveal the identity of the girl or her mother. I would prefer that you not mention my name, but I will accept that sacrifice for the sake of greater credibility. God knows what it will cost me and what problems it will cause.

But don't be afraid. "Nothing will happen to you." He emphasizes the seriousness of the matter. He points out that the word "Satan" is mentioned eighteen times in the Old Testament. In the New Testament, the word "devil" is mentioned 35 times, and the word "demon" 21 times. Jesus himself performed many exorcisms, or as the Gospel calls it, "casting out demons." Father Fortea also recalls that Pope John II is known to have performed at least three exorcisms and that belief in the devil is one of the few common characteristics of practically all religions. "It is an eminently ecumenical matter." He takes the opportunity to give us a brief overview of different religions, historical periods, and various theories. I remain very skeptical and feel that he is trying to convince us by bringing in historical arguments.

To bring him back to the point, we ask him for details about the case. He tells us that it concerns a girl who was possessed by seven demons. He has already expelled six of them, but the last one resists. "His name is Zebulon, an almost mute, but highly intelligent demon." His name is in the Bible. The chief demon always remains last. I've already had sixteen sessions and haven't succeeded in exorcising him, while normally only two or three sessions are needed.

He declined to provide further details about the possessed girl. He said only that she would be accompanied by her mother, "a true saint," and that she became possessed at the age of sixteen after a classmate cast some kind of spell or curse on her. "During one of the first sessions, I asked her how the possession had come about, and she addressed me with a name I didn't recognize. Her mother told me that a classmate had invoked Satan to place a death curse on her. Afterward, she became seriously ill, even to the point of dying. When she recovered, strange things began to happen." The mother noticed unusual things happening to her daughter: furniture shifting, objects breaking on their own, and, above all, the girl's resistance to all religious objects, especially at Sunday Mass. Finally, one night, the mother heard strange noises. When she opened her daughter's bedroom door, she saw her daughter lifted above her bed. Not wanting to lose her only child, she sought help. She speaks with her parish priest, who refers her to two well-known psychiatrists. But both diagnose the child as completely normal. No scientific explanation can be found for the girl's constant headaches. Then sixty-year-old Maria (not her real name) seeks out an exorcist. She contacts practically every diocese in Spain. Not a single bishop wants to hear about it. She is about to travel to Italy with her daughter to consult Father Amorth when she learns that a Spanish exorcist has recently appeared on television in connection with a book he wrote, entitled Demoniacum.

At that moment, we see a taxi arriving. "That's them," says Father Fortea. Maria, the mother, is small and frail. Her whole person radiates great pain. "I believe in God, and I know that sooner or later He will free my daughter from the clutches of Zebulon. This ordeal has been going on for five years now. None of my family knows about it, not even my brothers," she confesses. Maria is a widow, and every time she leaves her house to visit the exorcist (practically once a week), she has to make excuses. "They wouldn't understand, and I don't want my daughter to carry a label for the rest of her life."

The ritual of the exorcism

Marta smiles shyly at her mother's side. She has a delicate appearance and large, slightly sad brown eyes. Her face is marked by a sad adolescence. Her black hair is combed back and gathered in a ponytail. Her full lips, completely devoid of makeup, are pursed in visible pain. She wears jeans, a short-sleeved, high-collared blouse, and black shoes. She is beautiful. Her eyes are attractive, but they radiate fear, a lot of fear, rather than shyness. She seems like a normal girl who tells us she's studying mathematics at university. I think to myself, "She can't be possessed."

Downstairs at the church, Father Fortea opens the chapel where he celebrates Mass daily and then locks it from the inside. The chapel is small and inviting. The exorcist asks for help to bring a large, heavy mattress wrapped in green plastic to the foot of the altar. The windowless, rectangular chapel is approximately 25 square yards. At its head is a huge altar covered with white linen. Six candles burn before a large Trinity cross, dimly lit by a flickering halogen lamp. Behind it is a painting of a triumphant Christ, as well as the tabernacle. To the side is the Madonna holding the Child Jesus.

Upon entering the chapel, mother and daughter prepare for the exorcism ritual. Marta puts on a pair of white socks while her mother places a rosary, a six-inch crucifix, and a picture of Our Lady of Fatima on the side of the mattress. I try to memorize the smallest details. The thought of being on a movie set lingers in my mind. Marta lies on her back on the mattress, staring at the crucifix. Mary kneels by her side, a position she will not change for the next two and a half hours. Father Fortea kneels in prayer for a while, removes his cassock, takes a sip of water, and positions himself at the end of the mattress, the furthest point from the altar.

I sense the ritual is about to begin and sit expectantly on a pew. The exorcist extends his right hand and places it just above the girl's face without touching her. Then he closes his eyes, bows his head, and whispers a prayer several times. It is then that the first horrifying scream pierces the silence of the chapel, piercing my soul and making my flesh shudder. It is not human. A deep, overwhelming cry emerges from Marta's throat. But it can't be her, and it isn't her voice. It is hoarse and manly. Father Fortea continues his prayer, and the wailing continues. Slowly but surely, the girl's body begins to tremble violently. First, she shifts slowly from one side to the other, then she shakes violently.

"Go away, Zebulon."

Faced with the exorcist's chant, the girl twists and turns constantly. Suddenly, her screams become a loud, angry, and terrifying roar. The exorcist has just placed the crucifix on her abdomen while he sprinkles the girl with holy water. She kicks so furiously that the crucifix falls off her. Her mother replaces it, again and again. She also brings the girl a rosary, which she angrily throws away. For a moment, she seems calm, but immediately she begins to scream. She hasn't even taken a breath. When the girl hears Father Fortea invoke the name of Saint Gregory, she groans, her eyes roll back in their sockets, her body arches, and she rises completely from the mattress. I can't believe it.

"Kiss the crucifix," says the exorcist.

"No."

"Jesus is your king."

"Assee dee dee dee dah."

"Slave of Satan, you are in darkness."

"Assee dee dee dee dah."

"You are doing good work. Thanks to you, many will believe in God.

" "No."

"In the name of Christ, I command you, go away, Zebulon. Eternal damnation awaits you. There is no salvation for you."

As Father Fortea continues to admonish Zebulon, the girl's hands have turned into claws. The exorcist quickens his prayers and admonitions.

"Today is the day. Go away, Zebulon. Leave this child in the name of God."
The girl trembles uncontrollably. Her screams are terrifying. In a hoarse voice comes the cry: "Murderers!"
When Father Fortea asks Zebulon why he won't leave her, the demon replies: "So that people will believe in Satan."

Exhausted after an hour and a half of fighting, the exorcist stands up and leaves the chapel. This cannot be a fake or a setup. It takes courage to do this. Fortunately, cases of possession are quite rare, says Father Fortea. He has been performing exorcisms for five years and has only had four cases in Spain. However, while studying for his thesis, he witnessed thirteen others. It's clear he has experience; he commands and insists, mercilessly torturing the demon with a soft yet decisive voice. He does it in the name of God and always where it hurts most. And this despite the fact that he knows what it means to be attacked by Satan. The devil once made him feel the pain of a knife stabbed in the arm during an exorcism.

Fortea leaves the chapel, and my heart starts pounding. I wonder what could happen without the calm presence of the exorcist. Nothing happens. But then Mary, the mother, takes over the ritual and begins repeating the same or similar phrases as the priest. Quietly,but she seems determined not to speak to her daughter, but to the Evil One who has her in his possession.

"In the name of Christ, I command you to go."

"No."

"Open your eyes and look at the Virgin," Mary commands as she places the image of Our Lady of Fatima within the girl's sight. The only response is a grunt. Then she takes the crucifix. "Here is your creator, do you see Him?"
"Yes," says the voice from the other world amidst constant groans and cries.

"Look at Him, Zebulon, do not resist. You know the day and the hour have come. Your day and hour have come."

"Noooo."

"Why are you resisting?"

"I've had enough. I've told you many times."

"Tell these gentlemen why you won't leave."

"Ugh."

"Speak clearly."

"I won't."

"In the name of Christ, tell me why."

"So that they will believe in Satan."

"Come, Saint Gregory, come. Come, Saint Gregory. Leave her, Saint Gregory."

The possessed girl pauses for a moment, smiles, and through her the demon says contemptuously, "Go away, Saint Gregory."

The unguarded moment in which the woman slips up is immediately seized upon by the demon. Shortly after, he will also catch the priest in a small error. But Mary is not easily defeated. She is a true Mater Dolorosa at the foot of her possessed daughter's cross. Even I am now so moved that I fall to my knees and tearfully beg God (I dare not intercede more directly) to absolutely free Martha. My colleague does the same. It has been a long time since I have prayed with such fervor. Then the exorcist returns, bringing a small box filled with consecrated hosts from the tabernacle and standing before the girl.

"Look at the King of Kings," he says, "kneel before Him."

"No."

"Disobedient and rebellious servant, kneel," repeats Father Fortea, holding the consecrated host.

"Murderer, leave me alone."

"Saint Gregory, make him kneel."

At the mention of Saint Gregory, the possessed girl falls to her knees as Father Fortea forces her to receive Holy Communion into her mouth. He has returned to torture the demon inhabiting Martha. After giving Communion, he grabs the Bible and reads from Revelation: "And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever."

He makes the demon repeat each word. "Say after me: it would have been better for me if I had followed the Light.
“It would have been better for me if I had followed the Light,” the demon repeated, gritting his teeth as he dragged out every word.

This went on for a long time. The exorcist resembles a teacher instructing a stubborn child who reluctantly, between grunts and cries, repeats phrases like, "Lord, you are my King. I am your creature. Nothing is beyond your power. You are the Alpha and the Omega."

"Enough. I am exhausted," groans the demon.

But Father Fortea intensifies his attack, seating himself on a chair in front of the girl, holding the crucifix. "Hic est dies," he repeats. For a moment, I think he's going to do it. "The longer you wait to leave, the more people will believe in God. You are proclaiming God. Come closer, sit down, and kiss the crucified Christ. Give Him a kiss of respect and praise."

Like a zombie, Marta sits down and approaches the cross. She shows the whites of her eyes, babbles something under her breath, but kisses the cross. Fortea gently takes her by the arm, makes her stand, and walks through the chapel, kissing the tabernacle and the image of the Madonna.

"God is here. Repeat seven times: Iesus, lux mundi."
The girl repeats the words, but at the end she gives him a fiery look and says, "Murderer, leave me alone. I can't take it anymore."

But the exorcist continues. An hour has now passed. Fortea takes a break. "Your turn," he says to the mother and leaves the chapel. And so Mary leans toward Martha and thunders at Zebulun.

"You must leave this girl. For the blood of Christ, leave her now. The angels are with her. Three archangels are coming now. The Virgin will crush your head."

Zebulun continues to groan and writhe but seems unwilling to leave. After a while, Father Fortea returns.

"Aren't you afraid of God's punishment?"
"I know what it is!" he cries.

Alone with the possessed

Father Fortea glances at the mother. "He's not going. Let's leave him for today."

He stands up and leaves the room. The crying stops abruptly. I notice a hint of disappointment on Maria's face. I have the impression she had hoped it would happen today. She had knelt for almost three hours, but there's no sign of fatigue on her face, only disappointed expectations. She takes the crucifix and the image of the Madonna and leaves the chapel. My companion and I are now alone with the possessed man. A few seconds that seem like an eternity.

We seem glued to our pew, barely breathing. Suddenly, she turns to us, opens her eyes (of which we'd only seen the whites for three hours), and stares at us in a way I'll never forget. Her eyes are otherworldly. I'd never seen anything like it. A moment later, it's Marta's gaze, smiling at us, calmly getting up and sitting on the pew to take off her socks and fold them neatly. I notice there's not a trace of sweat on her body, despite three hours of constant movement. She puts on her earrings and smiles at us again.

"How are you feeling?" I ask.

"Tired."

"Do you know what happened?"

"No, I don't remember." As she talks to us, she lovingly kisses the image and the crucifix she had just despised.

"Does your throat hurt?"

"No." Her voice is as soft as when she arrived. No one would have imagined that such cries would rise from that same throat for three hours.

"Do you know why you're here?"

"Yes, I know. I know that I..."

She doesn't finish her sentence. We respect her silence. The five of us leave the chapel and sit in a nearby room. Marta is quiet. She's back to the shy girl from earlier.

Every night before bed, I take the crucifix I always carry with me and bless her room: "Evil spirits, in the name of God, leave this room." Before she goes to sleep, she always asks me: "Mama, have you blessed the room?" But despite this, Maria is afraid. For example, once her daughter's hands turned into claws the moment she touched the crucifix, and her fingers became like horns ready to explode in her eyes. "These are threats that, thankfully, she never carries out." Before leaving, Maria utters a plea, "The bishops and the people should know this. There should be more exorcists."

Embracing her daughter, they climb into Father Fortea's car and leave. Marta looks back at us. Her eyes remind me of the torment of a chained slave. Father Fortea promises to call me when the girl is finally freed.

I pray for Marta and her mother. What I witnessed wasn't a set-up.

Zebulon.

"He doesn't speak much, but he's quite intelligent." This is how Father Fortea describes Zebulon, his enemy for over seven months. At first, Father Fortea simply thought Zebulon was the name of the tenth son of Jacob and his wife Leah. After doing some more research, he realized he was dealing with one of the most powerful demons in hell.

Zebulon appears only three times in history. The first time was in the 15th century in Loudon, France. Almost all the nuns in a convent were possessed and were constantly tormented by an army of demons. Their leader was Zebulon. The second time was in the 1950s during an exorcism performed by Father Candide, the Italian master exorcist who taught Father Amorth. And now he had reappeared.

So that they would know that Satan lives.

The editorial, which could be read on Hispanidad.com on Monday, September 30th, is long, but I can assure you it's worth it. It is the first-person account of an exorcism ritual that took place in a chapel in the Alcalá de Henares district of Madrid, with the aim of freeing a young woman possessed by a demon. Both Javier Paredes (Opinion Editor of Hispanidad.com) and Luis Losada (the journalist) were present during the two-and-a-half-hour session.

An earlier session, covered by José Manuel Vidal, the religious editor of the "El Mundo" newspaper, and the subsequent news item along the same lines from the EFE news agency, caused considerable controversy. The session was published in "El Mundo," and Vidal concluded by declaring that it was "not a setup." The initial reaction of many (for example, the readers of "El Mundo") was unanimous: how can a serious newspaper publish such things?

That being said, it seems no one bothered to adopt a more scientific stance and investigate the events. In this case, as in any discovery in human history, there are three possible approaches: someone fooled the witnesses to the exorcism, the witnesses are lying, or demons really exist and possess another spirit, since human beings are nothing more than a combination of mind and body.

Nevertheless, many decided, without any scientific evidence, that the report was a lie. This is because they are not ready to believe in the existence of spirits despite the evidence. What about the evidence, they conclude. And, to top it all, they become angry and insult the witnesses. What is happening here?

I urge you to read the testimony given by Luis Losada and supported by Javier Paredes without any preconceived notions. Your conclusions about the story may make all or nothing, but it will certainly affect your putting peace of mind to the test. Thus...

I return to one of the exorcism sessions conducted by Father Fortea. I write excitedly. Zebulon's cries, the prayers of the priest and the mother of the possessed woman continue to torment my mind. I believe the saying, "They will not prevail," but I am afraid. If I could turn back the clock, I would not have attended this session. My soul is disturbed by the brutal confrontation with the demon.

Zebulon has taken possession of Martha's body "so that they would know" that Satan lives. This is one of the answers Zebulon gave the exorcist when he asked why he would not leave her body. This is why, at our farewell, the mother, Mary, asked me to tell the whole world so that her daughter could be freed as soon as possible.

"Father, may we report what we have seen?"
"You may report whatever you wish. The things of the Light do not fear the Light, but the things of darkness seek the darkness."

Without a doubt, there must be a reason for my presence at this exorcism, a reason I will discover in time. Meanwhile, I can only discern my own basic motivations. Journalistic or morbid curiosity, naiveté, and ignorance led me to accept the offer of my friend and colleague Javier Paredes of Radio Inereconomia to accompany him to the exorcism. Without any psychological preparation, I take the first available taxi to the Madrid parish where Father Fortea will celebrate the sixteenth chapter of Marta's exorcism.

Marta is a young, apparently sweet girl who comes to the session with feelings a mix of fear and anticipation that the nightmare will end. When it's all over, she will tell us she's tired, even though she has no memory of what we endured for two seemingly eternity. Maria, her mother, is small and frail. She is tense, perhaps overwhelmed, but still strong enough despite having knelt beside her daughter for two hours.

Without any preparation and without many words, Father Fortea shows Javier and me to our seats on a pew in the chapel. There are no other people present. Only two conditions were stipulated: to turn off our phones and to ask permission before leaving the session. That's not too much to ask for to witness the most astonishing event one can ever experience. Without much ado, Marta lies down on the mattress she had just helped put in place. Her mother kneels by her side. Javier and I remain on our pews, discreet, expectant, and cowardly.

Father Fortea kneels and prays silently for a few minutes. Then he sits on top of Marta on the mattress, places his hands over her head, and begins to invoke God. At the sound of the Lord's name, Marta shakes, and her eyes roll back in their sockets, where they will remain for the entire exorcism. As soon as the priest invokes the name of Saint Gregory, Marta begins to convulse and scream terrifyingly.

What Javier and I witnessed for two and a half hours still weighs on my soul, and it was only the first chapter. It is now 2:30 a.m., and it has been more than twelve hours since the exorcism ended. I am still tense and restless, but I pray for Marta and her mother. But I also pray for those witnesses who came to the chapel where Zebulon had been so palpably present.

Suddenly, the priest commands the demon: "In the name of Jesus Christ, leave this girl!"
"No!" Answers the supernatural voice emanating from Marta's body. It's not Marta's voice. It's hoarse, strong, and filled with hate. There's hate in all of Zebulon's answers. Even a simple yes or no is wrapped in hate. You can feel it.
"By my power as a priest, I order you to leave this woman," Father Fortea continues.
"Aiyeee!" Zebulon responds, amidst screams and spasms that shake Marta's body. She convulses.

Despite her hunched position, she throbs unbelievably. Without a mattress, she would have been seriously injured. It was incredible that we heard no sign of hoarseness when we left, even though she had been screaming wildly for two hours before.

Despite the exorcist's repeated orders to leave the girl's body, Zebulon continues to fight. To pressure him, Father Fortea reminds him that because of him, many people will come to believe in God. Martha, or whatever lives inside her, writhes violently. At that moment, Father Fortea attacked again, reminding the demon that eternal damnation awaited him and that he could do nothing about it. Zebulon wept despondently.

Then, Father Fortea armed himself with a picture of the Virgin of Fatima and a crucifix. The priest ordered Zebulon to kiss the picture he showed.

"Argh! No," said the unnatural voice from Marta's young, feminine body.
"In the name of Jesus Christ, I command you to kiss this picture," the exorcist insisted.
"I refuse!" replied Zebulon as Marta's body screamed, cried, and convulsed.

Father Fortea pauses briefly and asks Saint Gregory for help. At the mention of Saint Gregory, Martha writhes. Of all the saints and angels, Saint Gregory's name is the most effective for this demon. I feel sorry for Martha because of her screams and convulsions, but I can tell from her mother's serene gaze that she approves of the ritual. It's not Martha writhing in pain; it's Zebulon being tortured by the exorcist.

"You know that sooner or later you'll have to go. I command you, leave!"

"No!" Zebulon replies.

"Well, you asked for it," says Father Fortea, "I'm going to sprinkle you with holy water."

"Argh!" Zebulon writhes at the thought of being sprinkled with holy water. Martha's body recoils as the drops of holy water, poured by the exorcist, touch her.

Javier and I remain seated. He holds a rosary. Later, in the car on the way back, he tells me that during the two hours of the exorcism, he prayed the Hail Mary and other prayers, both for Marta and so that nothing would happen to us.

I remain motionless, trying to remain unnoticed. I think Javier is trying the same. Our eyes witness a display of demonic power, hatred, and fury. I am horrified and afraid. Suddenly, Marta throws a rosary at her mother. I catch it and keep it with me for the rest of the session.

During the exorcism, Marta only turned her head slightly in our direction once, looking at us with the whites of her eyes. We thanked God she wasn't really looking at us. There seemed to be a barrier between her and us. It was delicate, translucent, and fragile, and seemed ready to burst at any moment. Fortunately, she didn't look directly at us for more than two hours.

The exorcism continues. Then Father Fortea leaves for a break and to pray the liturgy for the relevant hours. "Couldn't he have chosen a better moment to pray?" I wonder.

"In the name of Jesus, kiss the cross!

" "Aiyee!" Zebulon cries.

Martha's mother looks the demon straight in the eye and says, "I am only a creature, but I love the Lord. In His name, kiss the cross!"

"No!" Zebulon replies, threatening the mother with Martha's hands, which have now turned into claws.

"Don't you dare hurt me! Back off!" Martha's claw-like hands continue to threaten Maria, "Back off!"

It was at that moment that a hand turned into a hook, ready to claw out the mother's eyes, the mother who was now suffering and forced to act as a temporary exorcist. "I told you not to hurt this creature of God,in the name of the Archangel Gabriel, of Saint Gregory, and of all the saints."

Father Fortea remains silent as the mother issues this command and prays silently, aware that motherly love is one of the most powerful forces in the world. For what seems like an eternity, the mother continues to send admonitions to the devil. She demands that he stand up. After several refusals, he finally complies.

Now, as she sits, the mother demands that the devil bow his head before the image of the Virgin. At that moment, Martha's neck abruptly twists away from the image in an incredible manner.

"No!" Satan's minion speaks through Martha's mouth.

The twisted neck and the turned-away head to avoid bowing before the image of the Virgin is a spectacular gesture of contempt. The mother stubbornly insists while Zebulun continues to defiantly respond.

But the mother does not give up. Finally, despite convulsions and screams, the neck begins to twist, allowing the chin to reach the girl's breast. It's a difficult process that Zebulon resists, refusing to honor the Virgin. Meanwhile, the possessed man refuses to look at the image, closes her eyes, and turns her head away. Mary commands her to open her eyes. She reveals the whites of her eyes in a macabre expression of hatred, far more hatred than fear. Her gaze is thrust like a lance toward the Virgin Mary.

The exorcist now steps forward and commands the demon, "Kiss the crucifix."
"No!"

Now the session seems to have slowed down, and no one is making any progress or regression. Zebulon, now mute, gestures that he wants to write. Father Fortea immediately goes to the sacristy to look for a pen and paper. He can't seem to find any, and I was about to offer my pen and notepad. Out of fear, and because I'm attached to my fancy fountain pen, I refrain from giving them to him.

Fortunately, the priest finds writing materials. The mother places a pad of paper on the girl's stomach and a notebook on top of it. The pen doesn't work and is replaced by a pencil. Marta lies on her back with her head tilted back and her arm extended to reach the notebook. In this position, she can't possibly see her own hand as she writes. At high speed, and apparently without looking at the paper, Marta's hand begins to glide across the notebook. If you could already sense his presence in his booming, rough voice, his presence seems even closer when you see him writing.

Javier and I couldn't understand what was happening. We could only hear the exorcist's questions, but couldn't see the written answers. After the exorcism, Father Fortea handed Javier the two notebooks, which he now has in his possession. Back home, we tried to reconstruct the events. It was then that Javier pointed out to me that the letters weren't overlapping: the handwriting was perfectly clear, and even the periods were perfectly positioned over each "i." The letters were typical typefaces you find in print, not handwriting.

The spoken/written dialogue in which Father Fortea asked questions and Zebulon answered through Marta's hand went like this: "

When I saw I was getting reinforcements, I wanted you to give up." With that sentence, Zebulon explained why the exorcism session had received a final blow during the first hour.

"What reinforcements? "Who came?" the exorcist asks.

"Satan," writes Zebulon, "but now he's gone." And then, without the question being asked, he says, "One person is missing," underlining the number "1" several times.

"Which person?" asks the priest.

Confronted with this question, the pencil drops from her hand and Marta firmly closes her mouth. Zebulon refuses to answer.

"Give me a sign so I can know who it is," the priest insists, but the possessed girl's lips are sealed.

At this point, we are completely exhausted after almost two hours. Throughout the entire session, we barely breathed and remained in a state of tension and fear unlike any I'd ever experienced in my life. The exorcist continues to force Zebulon to kiss the crucifix, to acknowledge that Christ is the King, and so on, but without any real impact. And then one of the most shocking events occurred. At the moment the priest changed his position, he unconsciously struck the container with the holy water and spilled it all over the chapel. I heard a cackling, hateful laugh from the afterlife. Zebulon is enjoying Father Fortea's mistake. It makes me shudder.

I'm impressed that the exorcist doesn't seem to notice. It doesn't seem to bother him in the slightest. Everything seems normal, but I feel like I have to climb the walls. And then the priest decides to give communion to the possessed person. He puts on his stole, goes to the tabernacle, and returns, standing at the possessed person's feet. He takes the consecrated Host and raises it. The possessed girl's face changes to one of abject horror, and she drags herself as far away from the priest as possible. With her face turned upward, she writhes and wriggles like a reptile. Then, in the name of Christ present in the Host, the priest orders the demon to kneel and says, "At the name of Christ every knee must bow." Zebulun/Martha kneels after some resistance. Javier and I had been kneeling since the opening of the tabernacle and would remain so until the ciborium was returned to its place.

"All this being said and done, we should be grateful to you," says Father Fortea. "Thanks to you, many will come to believe in demons. Don't you see that you serve God?"

"Noooo!" Zebulon cries frankly.

"Look to your Savior and King!" commands the priest, Host in hand.

The devil's howls grow even louder: "Argh, no!"

Father Fortea insists, and after several refusals, Zebulon is forced to obey and opens the girl's mouth.

The Host remains on Marta's tongue, and her mouth remains open for several minutes. She doesn't swallow the Host. Meanwhile, Zebulon cries, and Marta's body shakes in convulsions. Javier and I are both afraid that Zebulon will expel the Host. But at this point in the exorcism session, the devil is exhausted. He has no choice but to obey the priest's commands. After several minutes, following commands from the priest and the mother to swallow, the Host finally enters Marta's body.

It was then that she was tortured by the worst spasms of the entire session. There were screams, cries, roars, and spasms and convulsions throughout her entire body. Several minutes of extreme tension. I knew I don't know where to go. Just remembering these events makes me panic. Father Fortea remains unmoved. The demon spews unintelligible words. It's not Spanish, nor is the Latin used for some of the exhortations during the exorcism. When I ask the priest at the end, he says, "I can't explain anything to you now, I'll tell you later." I don't understand the answer. Actually, I don't understand anything.

The exorcist doesn't understand the language Zebulon uses. This evil spirit keeps repeating a strange expression. The exorcist believes these words actually mean something.It is indeed a strange language.

Near the end of the session, the priest remembers what was written on the paper: "There is 1 person missing." The priest suspects it's a third witness and orders the witness's identity to be revealed. This is a futile order, so the priest orders the demon to kiss the tabernacle as a "punishment." Marta rises with the help of the exorcist and her mother. On the way to the tabernacle, they stop in front of an ancient statue of the Virgin Mary.

"Kiss the feet that will one day crush your head," Father Fortea commands. The possessed woman then makes sounds of disgust and revulsion in front of the statue, sounds she had made during the session or when confronted with the image of Our Lady of Fatima, but she finally kisses the feet. Javier and I remain rooted to our spots while the exorcist and the possessed girl walk to the tabernacle. After the priest's insistence, Zebulon clearly pronounces a name for the priest. I can't make out a name, even though I'm only about fifteen feet away. It seems to be someone they know. and who can fulfill the purpose stated in previous sessions, "so that they would know that demons live."

The exorcist is fortunate to know the name because it's someone he had intended to invite to the session earlier. Although the demon remains present, the priest decides to end the session. He places Marta on the mattress and does nothing. He only gathers his "materials": holy water, breviary, Bible, crucifix, and rosary. Suddenly, Marta returns, no longer in crisis. We see her eyes and her shy smile again. She remembers nothing. She only feels like she was having a nightmare, but remembers nothing else.

She can't explain how she got into the "crisis." I ask her if it's like being put under anesthesia for a surgical procedure, but she says no. I still don't understand it. She knew certain "things" were going to happen. Before the session, she had carefully removed her earrings and shoes. She lay down "religiously" on the mattress and submitted to the "treatment." by the priest.

Even more surprising is that Martha is in God's grace and goes to Mass every Sunday. How is it possible that both the devil and sanctifying salvation can inhabit the same person simultaneously? I still don't have an answer. I have no answers to many questions. I only know what you read, what I saw with my cynical and unbelieving eyes. "So that you may know that Satan lives?"

I know nothing about psychiatry or theology. I'm simply testifying to what I saw as a reporter, and I can assure you the story is true. I hope for the best for my readers, for Marta and her mother, and for all the other witnesses to what happened in that chapel. May it be so.

Jose Antonio Fortea has written several novels and scholarly works. His bilingual website fortea.ws provides further information on exorcisms. His book, "Interview With an Exorcist: An Insider's Look at the Devil, Demonic Possession, and the Path to Deliverance," is available in English. Update: As of 2015, young Marta had yet to be liberated from her enemy. See his specialized website on exorcism here.