Francis MacNutt

Within the evangelical Protestant Christian tradition, the concept of exorcism as a formal ritual has given way to deliverance- the casting out of demons as a form of ministry.

Depending on the severity of the demonic threat, deliverance ministry can be as physical as traditional exorcism or as noninvasive as prayer.

In this excerpt from his book Deliverance from Evil Spirits: A Practical Manual, Francis MacNutt-a former Roman Catholic priest who serves as director of Christian Healing Ministries- describes the role of a deliverance minister. MacNutt argues that the ministry of deliverance, which is difficult and must be undertaken with great caution, serves a vital and necessary role in protecting human beings from evil forces.

The first and most common way we find out that a person needs deliverance is that he tells us. Affected people...