The Regulated Enemy

What an Exorcist Reveals About Spiritual Warfare

Renaissance Ministries | April 4, 2026

A Fellowship Discussion Essay
Demonology Series, Part 1 of 4

“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”
— Ephesians 6:12

“And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils.”
— Mark 16:17

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.”
— 1 Peter 5:8

Introduction: The Forgotten Twenty-Three Percent

Tucker Carlson, a Protestant who grew up thinking exorcism was “something kooky that the Latin Church does for weird cultic reasons,” recently discovered something that shocked him:

“Twenty-three percent of the Gospels are actually about Christ dealing with demons.”

The first miracle Jesus performs in the Gospel of Mark is casting out a demon. He repeats this continuously throughout His ministry. When He sends out the disciples, their commission is explicit: “Preach the good news and cast out demons.”

And yet, as Carlson notes, the modern church — at least in the Protestant West — has “so de-emphasized this to the point where it’s disappeared.”

Fr. Chad Ripperger has been an exorcist for eighteen years. He founded a society of priests dedicated exclusively to exorcism work. He has dealt with cases ranging from ordinary temptation to full possession by Satan himself. His interview with Tucker Carlson provides a window into a dimension of reality that most modern Christians have been trained to ignore.

This essay is the first in a series on demonology. It extracts the key insights from the Ripperger interview and connects them to Scripture, to the Renaissance Ministries theological framework, and to practical Christian living.

Part I: What Are Demons?

Fallen Angels

Demons are not mythological creatures. They are fallen angels — spiritual beings created by God who rebelled against Him.

According to the theological tradition from Pseudo-Dionysius through Thomas Aquinas, God created the entire hierarchy of angels instantaneously, all at once. These beings are “pure spirits” — they have no bodies, only intellect and will. Unlike humans, who learn by gathering information through the senses and reasoning toward general principles, angels have all knowledge infused directly. They know immediately and exhaustively everything about any subject they turn their attention to.

Ripperger explains:

“All their knowledge was infused. So they know exactly what the essence and nature of every created thing that exists is… They don’t have to sit and reason it out, they just immediately know it.”

This has practical implications for exorcism:

“This is a diagnostic we use in session. If you ask them a technical, theological, or philosophical question, if it’s a human being, you can see they have to think about it. That’s not how demons work. They’ll immediately give you the answer.”

The Three Instances

The angels were created and then faced a choice. Ripperger describes “the three instances”:

First Instance: They were created in an act of knowing — understanding God, themselves, their assigned task, and all of creation.
Second Instance: A concomitant act of delight in the magnificence of God’s creation.
Third Instance: The choice — will you do what God is asking, or not?

The choice required sacrifice. Each angel was given an assigned task that was, in some sense, below a perfection they could see and desire. To accept the task required letting go of something they wanted.

“They had to be willing to let go of that thing they wanted. They literally wanted something that God had not intended for them.”

A third of the angels refused. Their choice was made with full knowledge — “unadulterated malice.” And because angelic choice is complete (unlike human choice, which is often confused or half-hearted), their will became permanently fixed.

“Once they make their choice, it’s all in. It’s not half-hearted. They’re either going to accept God’s will or they’re not.”

The Hierarchy of Evil

Under Satan (who is also called Lucifer and Beelzebub — a “trifurcated personality” as punishment for wanting to be God), there are five demons who function as “generals”:

Baal — The spirit of fornication and impurity
Asmodeus — The demon of homosexuality in men
Lilith — The demon of homosexuality in women (passive type)
Leviathan — The demon of homosexuality in women (aggressive type)
Baphomet/Moloch — The demon of child sacrifice (abortion)

Ripperger traces a progression:

“When they shot down the anti-fornication laws… they ceded the territory to Baal. After Baal, and we get this from St. Paul, if people give in to lust, then eventually men start sleeping with men and women start sleeping with women… And when they allowed abortion in this country… those five generals now basically have a gainsay over our country.”

This is not a conspiracy theory. It is the application of a theological framework that takes seriously both Scripture and centuries of exorcist experience.

Part II: The Good News — Demons Are Regulated

Christ Has Complete Control

Here is the most important insight from the interview — and it is profoundly encouraging:

“Demons are one of the most regulated things in the universe.”

They are regulated by three things:

Their nature — Each demon has a specific nature with specific inclinations and limitations.
Their fixed will — Once they made their choice, their will became fixed. They cannot change direction; they are almost “obsessive-compulsive” in following the pattern of their original sin.
Christ’s authority — They cannot do anything without Christ’s permission.

Ripperger emphasizes:

“All power was given to me in heaven and earth — that means the demons. They know that they can’t do anything without Christ’s permission… In the spiritual warfare landscape, I don’t have to worry. If it turns into the type of thing where I get shellacked a little bit during a session, I know Christ is still controlling and metering how much and what He can and cannot do.”

He illustrates this with the story of the legion and the pigs:

“The demons actually approached Christ to ask to go into the pigs. They can’t even enter into pigs without His permission.”

And from his own experience:

“The demon said, ‘When I entered, Christ restricted me to this part of the body.’ That’s when it made me realize — He has control over everything. When they can manifest, how long they can manifest, the kind of manifestation they can do, how they can attack the person that’s possessed, how they attack us, even in our ordinary temptations. He regulates all of it.”

For Our Spiritual Benefit

This regulation is not arbitrary. It serves a purpose:

“It’s ultimately for our spiritual benefit.”

Christ uses demons as instruments of sanctification. The person who overcomes demonic temptation develops greater virtue than they would have otherwise. The person who fights their way out of possession often becomes “some of the most holy people you’ll ever meet.”

Ripperger notes that demons hate this:

“I’ll mention to the demon, ‘You’re becoming this person’s instrument of sanctification.’ They’ll admit it’s true, and they hate it.”

Part III: How Demons Operate

Levels of Influence

Ripperger distinguishes several levels of demonic influence:

Ordinary temptation — Normal temptation that all Christians experience. Demons suggest, but we can resist.
Oppression — Attacks on externals: job, relationships, health, circumstances.
Obsession — Attacks on psychological faculties. The demons “besiege the imagination and emotions to such a degree that the person can’t really think outside the box.”
Possession — The demon takes possession of a specific part of the body and from there affects the rest of the person.

How Demons Attack

Demons affect us primarily through imagination and emotion:

“They have the ability to affect our imagination and our emotions. A lot of times what they do is they put a perspective on an image in your imagination.”

Ripperger gives the example of marriage:

“When a guy is first married, he thinks his wife is wonderful. Then after ten years, his perspective on her changes because they’ve had fights. When he sees her — even though she hasn’t changed — his perspective of her has, and so his emotional response changes.”

Demons can artificially create this perspective shift:

“They can put that perspective on your imagination… The first thing they ever do in a marriage is try to put a perspective on one of the spouses to psychologically divide the people — so the person thinks they see something bad in the other spouse when it’s actually not there.”

This insight is crucial. Much of what we experience as “just how I see things” may actually be demonic manipulation of our perspective.

Signs of Demonic Involvement

How do you know if something is demonic versus merely psychological?

Switching on and off without external stimulus — “You’ll wake up in the morning just torqued. You’re like, ” Why am I angry? Why am I sad?”
No prior causation — “I just sat down one day, and I was just depressed from that point on.”
Resistance to normal intervention — If you can use will to put aside a thought, but it keeps coming back, that’s an indicator.
Pattern of preternatural signs — In possession cases: speaking foreign languages never studied, knowledge of hidden things, superhuman strength, morphing (physical changes in appearance).

The Building of Psychological Compatibility

This is one of the most disturbing insights:

“From the very beginning of our lives, they’ll start tempting us with certain things. When they see us being born, because the knowledge of these things is infused in their mind, they actually know what our DNA is. So they know, because of this guy’s genetic disposition, he’s more likely to be inclined to these kinds of sins.”

The demons pick at weaknesses from childhood:

“Their goal is not just to get him to commit sin and offend God, but it’s to slowly build a psychological compatibility. Each time you give in, you create a set of habits and defects that make you much more easily intertwined with them.”

Over decades, this builds a person who is “psychologically compatible” with certain demons, whose patterns of thinking mirror demonic patterns.

Part IV: How Possession Happens

The Three Doors

According to Ripperger, there are three ways people become possessed:

1. Grave sin (50% of cases)

“You commit some grave sin — abortion, murder, engaging in the occult arts, selling your soul to the devil. Those sins can open you up to diabolic influence.”

The occult is particularly dangerous:

“Engaging in the occult arts is one of the principal ways we see people becoming possessed.”

2. Grave disorder done to you (50% of cases)

“Something really disordered or grave has happened to you. About 50% of our caseload are women who have been raped, molested, psychologically or physically abused in a grave fashion. That disorder is the domain of the diabolic.”

This seems unjust — the victim becomes vulnerable? But Ripperger notes:

“Christ permits it, and what you find very often is those, especially the women, as they climb their way out, they become some of the most holy people you’ll ever meet.”

3. Christ’s permission is still required

Opening the door is not enough. Christ must permit the demon to cross the threshold:

“Most people who do stuff that’s bad don’t become possessed because Christ just doesn’t allow it, because it’s not gonna be good for the person ultimately.”

The Rarity of Possession

Possession is rare. Of the 400-800 monthly requests for help that Ripperger’s society receives, only about four are actual possession cases.

Most people dealing with demonic influence are experiencing obsession or oppression, not possession. These are serious but not the high-drama events depicted in movies.

Part V: Exorcism

What Exorcism Looks Like

Ripperger describes the practical process:

Initial interview — Understanding what the person is experiencing and what might have caused it.
Prayers over the person — If it’s psychological, not much changes. If it’s demonic, the person will experience relief (“lifting”) that may last hours or days before symptoms return.
For possession cases — A series of sessions (potentially over years) where the demon is progressively weakened and eventually expelled.

Why It Takes So Long

“The average case is four to eight years.”

Why so long?

The depth of possession varies
The person must cooperate in their own liberation (if they want the demon there, Christ respects their free will)
The person must address whatever opened the door in the first place
The person must develop the virtue necessary to remain free

“This Kind Only Comes Out by Prayer and Fasting”

When the disciples couldn’t cast out a demon, Jesus said this kind only comes out by prayer and fasting (Mark 9:29). Ripperger explains:

Prayer: Petitioning God enough through intercessory prayer so that liberation occurs.

Fasting: “Bringing your body under subjection” (St. Paul). This is meritorious work that can be offered for the person’s liberation.

Why does fasting help?

“When we get our body under subjection, two things occur. One, demons don’t want to get involved with you because if they attack you and suggest something contrary to that subjection, you’re going to reject it outright… But also, you become much more sensitive. As you fast, if the demons attack you, you’re much more sensitive to that disorder.”

Ripperger fasts six days a week when in session — one moderate meal in the evening only.

Part VI: The Connection to Culture and Politics

Why Christian Leaders Are Targeted

“When you get to a position of power, that attracts the demons. Because they know, if I can get control of this guy, then I can basically use his power to cause all this other damage.”

Ripperger observes:

“A lot of times the Christian leaders go with the right intentions, but when you get that high profile, the demons are going to be really spending a lot of time and energy trying to take you down.”

And they don’t just target existing leaders — they cultivate future ones:

“They’ll get the wrong types of people into positions of authority. They know this particular person has this defect. They’ll give the person the inspiration, ‘You should go into politics.’ Knowing that because of this person’s psychological compatibility with the demons, they can manipulate this person to cause all sorts of damage.”

Communism and Demonic Psychology Are Identical

Ripperger made a startling claim:

“I actually did a series on how communism and diabolic psychology are identical. When you strip the veneer away of one being political and the other being from the spirit world, the patterns of thinking are exactly the same.”

The pattern:

Promise pie-in-the-sky — Present the temptation as wonderful, all pleasure, everything will be great
Get buy-in — Get the person to sign off
Then take them down — Use the compliance to destroy them

“They sell you a bill of goods, they get you to sign off on it, and then from there they take you down. And that’s exactly what the communists do… I always watch politicians in this country that are clearly communist. They’ll start out idealistic. Give them a couple years and you’re gonna see the malice.”

The Attack on Christianity Specifically

Tucker observed that government and media actions seem “aimed at Jesus.” Ripperger agrees:

“Their goal is ultimately to destroy the Christian religion, because they know deep down that is the religion that Christ established, period… You can be any other religion you want, believe anything, do anything you want. But don’t, whatever you do, don’t be Christian.”

The State of American Culture

Ripperger does not mince words:

“If you, by hopeful, mean in the sense that human beings are going to correct this, right this ship — I think it’s beyond human correction at this stage… Especially when you look at the corruption in the higher levels of government.”

But he is hopeful that Christ will correct it:

“If you look at the history of how God deals with human beings, He’ll let us be evil only for so long and then He gives us a spanking… We’re almost as bad as Sodom and Gomorrah. At least at Sodom and Gomorrah they weren’t trying to marry each other.”

Part VII: Practical Protections

What Opens the Door

Based on Ripperger’s experience, the primary doors:

The occult — Tarot, Ouija, séances, fortune-telling, witchcraft, New Age practices
Grave sexual sin — Pornography, fornication, homosexual acts, abortion
Substance abuse — Creates vulnerability; some substances are deliberately cursed
Trauma — Being victimized opens vulnerability
Cursed objects — Items that have been cursed can carry demonic influence

On pornography specifically:

“The number of men that confess is pretty high up there… A lot of the pornography is cursed to increase its addictive effect. That was one of the things that Satanists taught people in the porn industry — curse the master copy and then the copies that are made will influence the people.”

What Provides Protection

Consistent prayer life — “If you’re praying regularly, you can pray for your own protection.”
Fasting — Brings the body under subjection, makes you more sensitive to demonic attack, and creates virtue.
Sacramental life — For Catholics, regular confession and communion. For Protestants, regular repentance and communion.
Stop the sinning — Especially the grave sins that open doors.
Address undisciplined areas — “Every person the demons attack, there’s some area of their interior life that is undisciplined.”
Community — The exorcism team provides support; Christians need fellowship.

The Pattern of Attack

Ripperger identifies a key pattern:

“The first two years of the exorcist is the worst. The demons are probably contesting every single area of your weakness, and they know your weaknesses because they’ve been watching you your whole life.”

This applies to any Christian who gets serious about spiritual warfare:

“You have to really shore up those areas in a hurry, because otherwise you’re going to get taken down.”

Part VIII: Connecting to Renaissance Ministries Themes

The CPP Connection

Conscious Point Physics posits that consciousness is the fundamental substrate of reality. In this framework, angels and demons are not bizarre add-ons to a materialist universe — they are perfectly intelligible as conscious beings without physical embodiment.

The materialist assumption that only physical things exist is what makes demonology seem “kooky.” Remove that assumption, and spiritual beings become entirely plausible.

Moreover, CPP’s understanding of the Nexus — the atemporal, non-local coordination of all Conscious Points — provides a framework for understanding how demons can:

Know all created things (infused knowledge)
Perceive events anywhere in the universe instantaneously
Influence physical systems (since physics is consciousness at the bottom)

The Discernment Theme

Our recent essays have emphasized discernment:

“The Kings You Cannot See” — discerning manufactured movements
“What Is Truth?” — discerning motivated reasoning
The Seismometer Principle — being microscopically perceptive of wrongness

Ripperger adds the spiritual dimension: some of what we’re discerning is not merely human error or malice, but demonic influence operating through psychologically compatible humans.

This does not excuse human responsibility. It does explain why:

Certain movements have an almost supernatural coordination
Certain lies are told with a complete absence of a normal human conscience
Certain people seem “willing to sacrifice other people for the sake of even the most modest of gains”

The Christlike Remainder

In our essay on interfaith engagement, we argued that what is Godly in any religion is Christlike; what differs from Christ is not-God.

Ripperger’s framework adds depth: the “not-God” elements in false religions may not merely be human error but demonic influence. The demons have been active throughout history, seeding false religions with elements that lead people away from Christ while providing enough truth to be plausible.

The Christlike remainder is what remains when demonic distortion is stripped away.

The Voting Network

The Voting Network concept envisions every citizen informed, voting, and contributing to the ongoing conversation about how we live together.

Ripperger’s analysis suggests that this project has spiritual dimensions:

The “principalities and powers” are actively working to corrupt public discourse
Psychologically compatible people are being positioned in leadership
The pattern of communism and demonic psychology being identical suggests that certain political movements are spiritually animated

The Voting Network, then, is not merely a political tool but a spiritual one — creating a network of Christians whose discernment is sharpened by prayer, fasting, and the Holy Spirit.

Part IX: Discussion Questions for the Fellowship

On the Nature of Demons

Were you aware that 23% of the Gospels involve Jesus dealing with demons? How does this change your reading of the Gospels?
Ripperger says demons are “one of the most regulated things in the universe.” Does this framing change how you think about spiritual warfare?
The idea that demons have been watching us from birth and know our weaknesses — how does this affect your understanding of temptation?

On Demonic Influence

Ripperger describes how demons “put a perspective” on our imagination, especially in marriage. Have you experienced sudden shifts in how you see someone that might have external causes?
The pattern of demonic obsession: switching on and off without external stimulus, no prior causation, resistance to normal intervention. Have you experienced anything like this?
Ripperger says people who hold power attract demonic attention. What does this mean for how we pray for leaders?

On Cultural Implications

The claim that communism and demonic psychology are identical — does this resonate with what you observe in current political movements?
Ripperger says the specific attack on Christianity (versus other religions) reveals a demonic strategy. Do you see this pattern?
He believes the country is “beyond human correction” but that God will intervene. How do you hold hope and realism together?

On Protection

What “undisciplined areas” in your life might make you vulnerable?
Are you maintaining a consistent prayer life and periodic fasting? If not, what stands in the way?
Have you been involved in any occult practices (even seemingly innocent ones like horoscopes or Ouija boards) that might need to be renounced?

On Integration

How does this interview change your understanding of the news, of politics, of cultural movements?
How should this understanding affect our fellowship’s prayer life?
What does “putting on the whole armor of God” (Ephesians 6) look like in light of this interview?

Key Insights Worth Preserving

On demonic regulation:

“Demons are one of the most regulated things in the universe… Christ has complete control over the spiritual landscape.”

On how demons attack:

“They put a perspective on an image in your imagination… The first thing they ever do in a marriage is try to psychologically divide the people.”

On psychological compatibility:

“From the very beginning of our lives, they’ll start tempting us with certain things… Their goal is to slowly build a psychological compatibility.”

On communism and demons:

“Communism and diabolic psychology are identical. The patterns of thinking are exactly the same.”

On the attack on Christianity:

“You can be any other religion you want, believe anything, do anything you want. But don’t, whatever you do, don’t be Christian.”

On protection:

“Every person the demons attack, there’s some area of their interior life that is undisciplined.”

On hope:

“I think Christ is going to correct it, probably fairly soon… God will let us be evil only for so long and then He gives us a spanking.”

A Closing Prayer

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, You came to destroy the works of the devil. You cast out demons throughout Your ministry. You gave Your disciples authority over unclean spirits.

We confess that we have neglected this dimension of Your work. We have been trained by a materialist culture to dismiss what You took seriously. We have left ourselves vulnerable by our ignorance and our undisciplined lives.

Open our eyes to see the spiritual battle around us. Give us the discernment to recognize demonic influence in our own thoughts, in our relationships, in our culture, and in our politics.

Protect us from the enemy. Shore up our weaknesses. Bring our bodies under subjection. Fill us with Your Holy Spirit so that we are sensitive to any demonic approach.

And use us as instruments of liberation for others who are oppressed, obsessed, or possessed. Let Your Kingdom come and Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

We pray in the Name that makes demons tremble — the Name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
— James 4:7

“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.”
— Revelation 12:11

Source Material: Tucker Carlson interview with Fr. Chad Ripperger (2024); Scripture; Renaissance Ministries fellowship discussions.

Series: This is Part 1 of the Demonology Series. Upcoming essays:

Part 2: Richard Gallagher, Demonic Foes — The psychiatrist’s perspective
Part 3: Carlos Martins, The Exorcist Files — Case studies from the field
Part 4: Synthesis — An integrated framework for spiritual warfare

Related Christos Content: Christos AI Theological Grammar; “The Kings You Cannot See”; “What Is Truth?”; CPP and the nature of consciousness.

Exorcism and Demonology – Fr. Ripperger