Some of you may have heard of Fr. Carlos Martins. He is now involved in a court case where he is suing someone for having said that Fr. Martins is not an exorcist. Interestingly, it appears that Fr. Martins does not actually refer to himself as an exorcist, but his book "The Exorcist Files" certainly makes that presumption. It carefully avoids saying he actually is an exorcist, but it is a bit sneaky. It uses phrases like "my ministry helps deliver people from demonic activity" and "in my experience of exorcisms", and the title "Exorcist Files" clearly points in that direction. It is clear, however that Fr. Martins is not an exorcist, but has been "involved in exorcisms" (according to the religious society that Fr. Martins is with).
I am not going to be the one to decide on his status. I do, however, find it remarkable that he is suing the people who said publicly that he is not an exorcist because (according to Fr. Martins) people now do not trust him. He even said that he cannot make money as easily as before. I really do not want to make a judgment about this since I do not have all the necessary facts. Yet, it is hard not to ask whether it is really a good idea for a priest to file a lawsuit against someone for telling the truth.
I certainly believed that Fr. Martins was an exorcist from the way that he spoke about it. I cannot place the specific statement, but I know his book states more than once that he performed exorcisms. Being clear and honest, especially in a day and age when people lie so easily, and many others seek fame and celebrity status for their own advancement is essential for clergy. It is hard not to see what Fr. Martins has done as being the same as many pagan celebrities. I do hope that this is all a big mistake, and that someone will come along and clear it up. If not, then we have one more case of a Catholic priest choosing worldliness over faithfulness; and that is embarrassingly shameful.