Caster

The caster or exorcist - ( Greek έπορκιστής, έφορκιστής, εξορκιστής - conjurer , from the Greek έπορκίζειν, έφορχίζειν - conjure , lat. Exorcist ) ^{[1] of the} ancient Christian church. The duty of the spellcasters consisted in reciting special prayers over demoniacous, epileptic, and similar patients. The basis of their activity was the words of Jesus Christ :

while walking, preach that the kingdom of heaven is drawing near; Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons; got it for nothing, give it for nothing. ( Matt. 10: 7-8 )

The degree of exorcists, or spellcasters, goes back to ancient beliefs in the possibility of spells of evil spirits. In the early Christian era (I - beginning of IV centuries). this ability was, according to adherents of the Christian religion, common among them. St. Justin the Philosopher in “Conversation with the Jew Tryphon” says: “We, the believers in Jesus Christ our Lord crucified under Pontius Pilate, conjure all demons and unclean spirits, and hold them in our power.” Origen wrote: “Those (that is, demons) many of the Christians are driven out of the possessed not by any fabrication, magical or medical art, but only by prayer and simple spells, and, moreover, those that can be used by the simplest person, like simplets (ιδιοται) do this. ”The mention of“ simple people ”undoubtedly indicates that this gift in the age of Origen was not connected with serving in the clergy, but in the West the spell already at the beginning of the III century, and, possibly, even earlier, became a deed clerics.

Tertullian wrote: “Heretical women themselves, how brave they are! They dare to teach, argue, do exorcisms, promise healing and even baptize. ”Condemning the heretic for their commitment to perform duties not characteristic of women, Tertullian thereby expressed, probably, the prevailing belief in the Orthodox Church in Africa that the spell is the work of men and probably of clergy, since the “making of exorcisms” was allotted a place next to teaching and baptism.

St. Peacock of Nolan (V century), talking about the hierarchical ministry of St. presbyter Felix, wrote: “In the early years he served as a lecturer, then he took the step, the ministry of which was to conjure the evil with the voice of faith and cast them out with a sacred word.” This is, of course, the ministry of an exorcist. St. Felix died in 256, therefore, he passed the steps of the reader and the caster (exorcist) at the beginning or, in any case, in the first half of the 3rd century. ^[2] Mentioned in the epistle of Pope Cornelius (251–252 G.) in the story of the clergy of the Roman Church, the epistle quotes in Church History Eusebius of Caesarea: “Does this guardian of the gospel do not understand that there must be only one bishop in the Catholic Church? It contains - he could not know this - 46 priests, 7 deacons, 7 subdeacons, 42 Akoluf (novice), 52 people of spellcasters (εξορκισταί) and reciters and gatekeepers, more than one and a half thousand widows and cripples nourished by the grace of Christ. ” ^[3]
According to the 10th rule of the Council of Antioch in 341, choreographers could put spellcasters. Mentioned in the 26th rule of the Laodicean cathedral , according to which: “Not produced from the bishop should not be spelled neither in churches, nor in houses.”, And according to the 24th rule of the same cathedral, spellcasters are forbidden to visit the nerds.

Over time, spell prayers have become an integral part of the rite of announcement made by the bishop or presbyter (the “rite of announcement” is performed on every person before the “rite of baptism ”). Therefore, finally, there was no need for a special rank of exorcists. At present, there is no particular degree and position of caster in the church; but in the order of the announcement and baptism, special, very ancient (known even from the “announcing teachings” of Cyril of Jerusalem , IV c.) spell prayers were preserved. There are three spell prayers in Chin. They are called “Prohibition” ( dr. Greek Ἀφορκισμός ) ^[4] first, second, third. For example, in the first prohibition that the priest reads over the person announced, it is said:

It forbids you, the devil, that God has come to the world and be possessed of mankind, so that he will destroy your martyrdom, and mankind will be destroyed ... Get rid of, go away, and depart from this creature, and do not go back, go down, and not be lifted ... in Russian : The Devil forbids you, the Lord, who came to the world and settled between people in order to destroy your autocracy and free people ... Fear, go out, and backslide from this creature (that is, from the person being announced), and don’t return, and don’t hide in it [5]

The rank of announcement is placed in the Big Trebnik .

There are also prayers "for the expulsion of demons" in the so-called "Trebnik of Peter the Grave." Pyotr Mogila in the 17th century, on the model of the Catholic rite “Exile, the Devil” ( Latin “De exorcizandis obsessis a Daemonio” ) from the book “Roman Ritual” ( Latin “Rituale Romanum” ) ^[6] composed his own essay on the expulsion of demons ( evil spirits) from a person: “A follow-up is prayer for the deliverance of unclean spirits from unclean spirits; and prayers of incantation from those of evil spirits ” ^[7] and placed it in his Trebnik.

In the West, the post of exorcist remained, although it lost touch with the actions corresponding to its name (see. Exorcist (cleric) ).