113: Episode 113: The Possession of Roland Doe

In the late 1940s, in the United States, priests of the Catholic Church performed a series of exorcisms on an anonymous boy, documented under the pseudonym “Roland Doe“. The 14-year-old boy was the alleged victim of demonic possession and the events were recorded by the attending priests. Subsequent supernatural claims surrounding the events were used as elements in William Peter Blatty’s 1971 novel The Exorcist. Could this boy have really experienced the presence of evil living inside him? Was it simply a case of misdiagnosed acute mental illness? Has this whole thing just been the exaggeration of a fictional narrative to begin with? We won’t get the the bottom of it, but we’ll have a great time trying! Enjoy!

Campfire: Tales of the Strange and Unsettling is created for adult audiences only. The content and discussion in this show will necessarily engage with various accounts that include violence, anxiety, fear, and occasional body horror. Much of it will be emotionally and intellectually challenging to engage with. We will flag especially graphic or intense content so as to never put you in an uninformed or unprepared position. We will do our best to make this a space where we can engage bravely, empathetically, and thoughtfully with difficult content every week.

This week’s episode includes descriptions/sound related the following sensitive subjects.

Extreme Graphic Violence

Kidnapping

Demonic Possession

Child Endangerment

Mental Illness

Violence Against Children

Religious Themes

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