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Astonishing Legends

The True Story Behind the Exorcist Part 2

Astonishing Legends

Scott Philbrook

History, Society & Culture

4.69.8K Ratings

🗓️ 31 October 2021

⏱️ 72 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

We've probably all seen exorcisms performed in movies and TV, but how accurate are those portrayals? Are they really as ferociously terrifying as these shows would have us believe? Where did the writers get their ideas and details about what actually takes place during an exorcism? The Roman Catholic Church has only one sanctioned procedure, and it's in the 23 pages of "The Great Exorcism Rite" contained within the Rituale Romanum. Compiled in 1614 at the request of Pope Paul V, with minor updates added in 1952 and 1999, it is still the only rite used to this day. With this sacrament guiding the Jesuit's efforts recorded in the "Exorcist's Diary" documenting the exorcism of Ronnie Hunkeler, it can be argued that this account is the inspiration for most everything portrayed in entertainment media. And therefore mostly informing what the general public has seen and knows about an authentic exorcism. Tonight in Part Two of our series, you'll hear about some of the actual occurrences that took place, and it is not for the faint of heart. While the priests can orchestrate the ritual, they cannot engineer the actions of the seemingly possessed, and the events are often intensely unsettling, no matter what one believes. For the skeptic and faithful alike, witnessing an exorcism in person would chill anyone to the core of their soul.

Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.

Transcript

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0:00.0

Astonishing Legends is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis,

0:08.1

or treatment.

0:09.1

Always seek the advice of your physician or the qualified health provider with any questions

0:12.5

you may have regarding a medical condition.

0:14.4

Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something

0:17.4

you have heard on this podcast.

0:21.7

Last week we introduced you to the legend of the 1949 St. Louis Exorcism.

0:26.7

The story of a young man who, thanks to author Troy Taylor, we now know was Ronnie Hunkler.

0:33.5

Ronnie did not have the ideal childhood, and perhaps he suffered a bit from being different

0:38.6

as many of us do.

0:40.9

But did that lead him to perpetrate a great pokes in the form of what seemed like a possession?

0:46.2

Or did it simply make him more vulnerable to what some would have us believe was an evil

0:51.9

spiritual influence?

0:54.0

There will be time to unlock the answers to some of those questions in part 3 of our series.

0:59.1

But tonight, it's time for part 2 of this story.

1:03.7

After everything that's already happened, how much more could there be?

1:08.3

Well, it turns out the exorcism part of this story hasn't even begun yet.

1:29.6

Welcome back to Estonishing Legends.

1:31.5

I'm Scott Philbrook and this is Forest Burgess.

1:35.1

I am the Devil himself.

1:37.6

One of several rambling messages written by Ronnie Hunkler on a piece of paper during

1:41.5

a particularly tumultuous night of his exorcism.

...

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