E is for...Exorcism in Enfield
A family in Enfield, London conducts an exorcism in their mansion, killing their son.
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On August 22, 2016, young 26-year-old IT consultant Kennedy Ife lifeless body was rolled out on a stretcher from his parent's 1.3 million dollar mansion after a botched exorcism. Three days earlier, Kennedy became aggressive and bit his father. He then threatened to cut off his own penis.
The Ife family: Parents, Kenneth and Josephine, and five sons held Kennedy captive by cuffing him to his bed for the fear of being possessed by evil spirits. His mother sought answers from the ministry instead of medical help.
Kennedy was restrained for 67 hours in the seven-bedroom mansion in Enfield North London and treated like an “animal.” During those three days, the family attempted to “cure” Kennedy through restraint and prayer. The family held deeply religious beliefs and was connected with the Jesus Sanctuary Ministries in Southeast London.
In the days before his death, members of the Ife family had turned to religious figures for help. A minister at the Jesus Sanctuary Ministries was called by Josephine Ife and her son Colin. The mother told the minister that her son had refused to see a general practitioner and three ministers were asked to go to the family home to pray for him.
Colin Ife, Kennedy’s brother said his sick brother ranted on about the “mark of the beast 666 - god to forgive him”, while his mother, Josephine, told police her son had been “fighting amongst himself”.
His brother, Colin Ife, also told police: “It’s clear that thing was in him, what we believed was a demon because it was not natural. It was clearly trying to kill him,” he said. “We had to restrain him for himself. It was clear if we didn’t restrain him, he could have tried to harm people in our family.” He goes on to say his brother seemed to improve at times when the family prayed for him, but added: “At a certain time of night, like a full moon, it would just click.”
The term "exorcism" is most commonly associated with Christianity, especially Catholicism, partly because of the numerous explicit references to Jesus casting out spirits in the Gospels. It is also found in Islam, Buddism, Judaism and Hinduism.
Exorcisms are divided into two kinds (or forms). Simple or minor forms of exorcism are done for those preparing for Baptism, the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) and the Rite of Baptism for Children both call for minor exorcisms
While both forms of exorcism are directed against the power of the devil, the Rite of Major Exorcism is employed only when there is a case of genuine demonic possession, namely, when it is determined that the presence of the devil is in the body of the possessed and the devil is able to exercise dominion over that body.
Minor exorcisms are prayers used to break the influence of evil and sin in a person's life, whether as a catechumen preparing for Baptism or as one of the Baptized faithful striving to overcome the influence of evil and sin in his or her life
The second kind is "major exorcism," which is a rite that can only be performed by a bishop or a by priest, with the special and express permission of the local ordinary. This form is directed "at the expulsion of demons or to the liberation [of a person] from demonic possession".
Only after a thorough examination including medical, psychological, and psychiatric testing might the person be referred to the exorcist for a final determination regarding demonic possession. To be clear, the actual determination of whether a member of the faithful is genuinely possessed by the devil is made by the Church, even if individuals claim to be possessed through their own self-diagnosis or psychosis.
In addition to the use of the Psalms and Gospel readings and the recitation of the exorcistic prayers, a series of sacred symbols is utilized in the Rite of Major Exorcism. To begin, water is blessed and sprinkled recalling the centrality of the new life the afflicted person received in Baptism and the ultimate defeat of the devil through the salvific work of Jesus Christ. The imposition of hands, as well as the breathing on the person's face by the exorcist, reaffirms the power of the Holy Spirit at work in the person as a result of his/her Baptism, confirming him/her as a temple of God. Finally, the Lord's Cross is shown to the afflicted person and the Sign of the Cross is made over him/her demonstrating the power of Christ over the devil.
The first four books of the New Testament of the Bible, known as the Gospels, tell the story of Jesus of Nazareth, a Jewish prophet whose life and teachings became the basis of Christianity. The first mention of Jesus casting away evil spirits appears in the Gospel of Mark, which is thought to have been written around A.D. 70, roughly 40 years after his death.
"When fighting the demons possessing those under their charge, saints commonly used three methods of “healing” the afflicted: “cross, the prayer, and laying of hands on the victim”. Other symbolic objects were also used, such as holy water, wine and bread, and in more severe cases the saint would beat the demoniac – they, of course, justified this as it was the demon being beaten, not the sufferer. Salt and water were also seen as tools of purification and sometimes exorcists would use herbs, fumigation and suffumigation, or even amulets."
In the 1520’s Martin Luther, a German theologian was angry and disillusioned one day by the Catholic Church’s sale of indulgences, he published his Order of Baptism in 1523, followed by a revision in 1526 that added exorcism to Protestant baptismal rites. In this situation, infant exorcism was done to help the baby reject the devil, sin and evil throughout their lifetime, rather than to cast out a demonic presence. This was the start of exorcisms having specific rules and steps to cast out evil according to the history channel.
As Kennedy lay there, slowly dying, he became severely dehydrated and developed significant breathing problems. Shortly after 10am on the day of Kennedy’s death, his brother Harry called for an ambulance, stating his brother complained of dehydration. Paramedics who arrived at the house were told Kennedy had been behaving abnormally for over three days, but the family made no mention of possession. Paramedics attempted to resuscitate Kennedy, but he was pronounced dead. Ambulance staff called the police, who saw the family carry out an “attempted resurrection” over Kennedy’s dead body. Brother Colin was heard saying: “Kennedy I commend you to rise in the name of Jesus.”
More than 60 injuries on Kennedy Ife’s body, including a possible bite, were revealed in the post-mortem examination. A pathologist concluded a number of them were consistent with “forceful restraint”.
The family was taken to court and it took over four days for the jury to deliberate a verdict. Dr. Kenneth Ife, who has a PhD in mineral engineering, was a wealthy business consultant and was pictured with the Queen, told jurors he ordered his sons to take shifts and use “overwhelming force” to retrain Kennedy.
The family told the court, Kennedy had to be restrained after becoming “very agitated” and then developed breathing difficulties.
A search uncovered a note on Josephine’s bed about the “bewitching” of offspring that said: “If you feel your son is under a spell pick up earth and throw it to north, south, east, west for four days. After there will be an encounter.”
Officers retrieved a bag containing black handcuffs, cable ties and wristbands that appeared to have been thrown into a neighboring backyard. The prosecution said it amounted to an “Ife family false imprisonment kit”, saying the presence of multiple packets of cable ties “reveals the intended duration of the false imprisonment going forward had Kennedy not died”.
All seven of Kennedy Ife’s family members were accused of manslaughter, false imprisonment, and causing or allowing the death of a vulnerable adult. On March 2019 all members of the family were cleared of all charges.
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Disclaimer: by creating this blog & podcast on this topic, I am covering facts I have believed to be the most reliable from conducting my own research. If there are any details that are missing or inconsistent between this blog or podcast and the real case please feel free to leave a comment with any suggested edits. See the references below for more information.
REFERENCE LINKS:
https://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/sacraments-and-sacramentals/sacramentals-blessings/exorcism
https://www.sublimehorror.com/art/medieval-representations-of-exorcism-in-art/
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