You wouldn’t normally think the Devil would want to go anywhere near a church – but apparently in the medieval period, he’d often pop in. With disastrous consequences!
I grew up in the county of Essex in England, not far from London. It’s full of medieval churches and abbeys – some still standing and others in ruins. And it’s well documented from the Middle Ages, that on occasion Satan was known to wander in. For whatever reason.
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In the 1992 book, Secret Essex by Glyn Morgan, there are several instances noted of the devil coming to mass. In one case, in the year 1402, he came disguised as a grey friar – that is a member of the Franciscan order. This resulted in a huge storm that severely damaged the building.
He subsequently sneaked back to steal one of the bells, which was eventually retrieved in a nearby field. But nobody would dare ring it for years afterwards. This theft isn’t entirely surprising as apparently Satan can’t stand the sound of church bells. It distracts him as he tries to seize the souls of the recently departed!
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According to Glyn Morgan, churches often used to have “devil doorways” on the north side of the nave. These are usually bricked up now. But the idea was that they encouraged Satan to vacate the premises during events like christenings where his presence really wasn’t appreciated at all. Nobody wanted a possessed baby!
At one church in the village of Runwell, a new priest took mass one Sunday and he was well known for his inappropriate interest in the occult. While he was delivering a sermon, the devil appeared out of his mouth. Recovering quickly, he dashed to the main door of the church and slammed it shut.
The devil in turn, crashed into the door and began trying to claw his way out. And you can still see Satan’s frantic scratches on the woodwork today.
According to local media in the county, there are lots of examples of the devil in church in Essex. In the town of Broomfield, there is an ancient tomb in the churchyard and if you walk round it seven times – guess who shows up?!!
If you have any stories about Satan coming to your place of worship – do share!
