Father Ambrosio Nonato Legaspi, chief exorcist in the Novaliches diocese in the Philippines is warning the faithful about rosaries that are being given away by Satanists who are affiliated with the Illuminati.

Father Legaspi told CBCPnews.net that the rosaries contain odd symbols that are not readily noticeable to the untrained eye, such as a snake wrapped around the cross, a pentagram, and/or a sun with rays which is an insignia of the illuminati.

Even more disturbing is that the rosaries have been “prayed over” by the makers, consecrating them to evil so that whoever uses it will be followed by evil spirits.

“These were made not only to be simply given away but to deceive Catholics…so that evil spirits will haunt them,” Father Legaspi said.

These rosaries look very much like the plastic “New Age rosaries” that are in wide circulation. If anyone receives a satanic rosary, and experiences paranormal occurrences, he recommends that the item be taken to a priest to be exorcised.

“Not just a blessing, these items should be exorcised,” he said. “Not just an ordinary blessing where water is just sprinkled–as most priests commonly do–but to use the Catholic ritual…that would frighten the demon away.”

According to Father Legaspi, there is no need for an exorcist to perform this ritual. Any priest can do so using the Book of Blessings of the Old Rite prayers.

Because of the similarity of these rosaries to the “New Age rosaries” that we reported on several years ago, I reached out to Father Gareth Leyshon who has an expertise in the New Age and whose work is featured in my book, The Learn to Discern Compendium. In 2010, Father Leyshon gave this advice about the New Age rosaries:

Three things could potentially corrupt what is apparently a Catholic Sacramental,” he wrote.

• Explicit imagery which can only have a pagan or New Age interpretation; • Ambiguous imagery which was put in by a designer who INTENDED a pagan or New Age interpretation; • Some kind of occult ritual being performed over the objects.

The rosaries in question do indeed show a serpent coiled around a pole and have pentagons at the end of the four arms of the cross. I wonder what the designer intended?

In the Book of Numbers, 21:6, God commands Moses to make a bronze serpent on a pole, through which God miraculously heals those Israelites bitten by poisonous snakes. In the Gospel According to John, 3:14, Jesus uses that serpent as a prototype of his own being lifted up on the Cross so that the whole of humanity can be healed from sin. The Numbers reading is the First Reading on the liturgical feast of the Triumph of the Cross, September 14th. We may be rather uncomfortable with a serpent – a Biblical symbol of temptation – being a prototype of Christ Our Saviour; but it is clearly used by Jesus Himself, so it is a legitimate image.

The bottom line: Does this crucifix bear any symbols which are unambigously pagan or New Age? No.

Does this crucifix have symbols which are totally explainable by Christian traditions? Yes.

Was it the intent of the designer to depict something Christian or something New Age? Only the designer knows.

When assessing the satanic rosaries, he again cited the presence of symbols that are not necessarily indicative of satanism, such as the sun which "has a long heritage in Christian imagery from the ‘woman clothed with the sun’ to the coat of arms of Pope Francis."

As for the rosaries being cursed, this is very possible but we need not be afraid if we are using them correctly.

"The amount of harm a person might receive from such a cursed object depends on how it is received. If the rosary is used as a tool of prayer to invoke Our Lady, surely the positive prayers offered up would largely counteract the curse, since a curse is simply a ‘negative prayer’ for those who use the cursed object," Father said. "On the other hand, a person who took such a rosary and used it as a ‘lucky charm’, perhaps wearing it round their neck or hanging it in their home with no active intent to invoke the Blessed Virgin, would be subject to those negative prayers without the protection of their own positive prayers."

While the word of an exorcist is to be accepted in good faith, Father Leyshon sees no need to panic over the rosaries.

"As baptized Christians, we have immense power over evil spirits – the promises Jesus made to overcome evil were made to 'believers', not just to the Apostles (and in the early church, exorcism was a lay ministry). In most cases, if a Christian is given a gift without knowing its providence, it should be adequate to say a kind of ‘grace’ for it: 'Lord Jesus, I thank you for this gift, and I ask you to place your precious blood between me and my household, and any evil actions or intentions associated with this object'.”

He added: "Maybe in rare cases where serious rituals were performed, a priestly blessing with exorcised water might be needed, but that would be exceptional."

Because rosaries are so plentiful, the best advice I can give is to avoid any plastic rosaries that have images on them that you are not comfortable with. If you know someone who has one of these rosaries and is experiencing paranormal occurrences, pass along the advice by Father Legaspi on how to deal with this.