PROSPECT HEIGHTS — “There’s no such thing as ghosts,” has been the age-old mantra of Catholic parents seeking to soothe the minds of children afraid of the dark.
But many of the same parents made sure their kids were catechized, and in those lessons is the acknowledgment of “supernatural beings” including spirits, angels, and demons linked to spiritual or religious beliefs.
So, during this season of Halloween, one could ask whether the Church includes “ghosts ” on that list. The easy answer is “no” — the Church has never ruled definitively over the existence of ghosts.
Case closed? Not so fast.
Consider the theology of the human “soul,” often called a “spirit.”
“I would say, properly speaking, that a ghost is really a human spirit,” said Father Robert Mucci, pastor of St. Mark-St. Margaret Mary Parish in Sheepshead Bay, and a vice-chancellor for the Diocese of Brooklyn.
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While Father Mucci doesn’t claim to be an expert on supernatural beings, the subject does fall under his purview as an associate vicar for canonical affairs. Therefore, when it comes to explaining apparitions of otherworldly beings, he refers to what the Church teaches about the “spiritual world.”
“As Catholics,” he continued, “we believe that God created spiritual beings, including the angels, which are pure spirits. Human beings are beings that have both bodies and spirits.
“So, what people sometimes refer to as ghosts can really fall into two categories.”
First, he said, are the previously mentioned human souls or spirits, which can become “stuck in a particular place,” unable to continue to their destinations of purgatory, heaven, or hell. He noted, however, that the Church has prescribed a procedure to address the “stuck” soul.
“In those cases where we think there may be the presence of a human spirit, we would normally, if possible, celebrate a Mass in that place,” Father Mucci said, adding that it would include a prayer for that soul, seeking forgiveness for it.
“It’s kind of giving that soul permission to move on to the next world,” Father Mucci said.
Demonic spirits are the other category that’s confused as ghosts, Father Mucci said. These are the fallen angels who followed another fallen angel, Satan.
He added that they are actual spirits who can afflict places or people in different ways, “like making their presence known with crucifixes coming off a wall, or people being afflicted either mentally or even physically.”
While Father Mucci said he has no statistics on how often human souls make appearances, his chancery office still takes the calls.
“When people call the diocese regarding these issues,” Father Mucci said, “they’re directed to me to find out what the problem is, and who would be in the best position to help.”