Source: Religion News Service
KOLKATA, INDIA, September 6, 2001: Amid fears she had become the victim of the devil, Mother Teresa “happily agreed” to undergo an exorcism, according to the Archbishop of Calcutta. Several months before her death, the 87-year-old Catholic nun turned to the procedure after suffering from sleeplessness during a stay at the Calcutta hospital where she was treated for heart problems, Henry Sebastian D’Souza said. “When doctors said they could not find a medical reason for her sleeplessness, I thought she might be getting attacked by the devil,” said D’Souza. “I wanted her to calm down and asked a priest, in the name of the church, to perform an exorcism prayer on her. She happily agreed.” After the half-hour procedure, the Macedonia-born nun “slept very well that night,” he said. The revelation has slightly embarrassed the Catholic Church, as candidates for sainthood are unusual subjects for exorcisms.