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Pope Francis has been credited with encouraging a resurgence in faith among rank-and-file Roman Catholics, but his frequent references to the Devil have apparently had an unexpected consequence — a boom in the demand for exorcisms around the world.

Dioceses in Britain, Italy, Spain and elsewhere have noticed a big increase in the number of people claiming to be possessed and have responded by training more priests to perform exorcisms.

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A week-long exorcism conference, held this week at the Pontifical University of Regina Apostolorum in Rome and endorsed by the Vatican, is being attended by about 160 Catholic priests from around the world who insist that demonic possession is very real.

“Pope Francis talks about the Devil all the time and that has certainly raised awareness about exorcisms,” Fr. Cesare Truqui, a Mexican priest trained as an exorcist, said Monday. “But all Latin Americans have this sensibility — for them, the existence of the Devil is part of their faith.”