A 16-Year-Old Made A Pact With The Devil - It Led To The Scariest Possession You've Never Heard Of
Germana Went Through A Two-Day Exorcism
On September 10, 1906, Clara Germana Cele underwent a strenuous two-day exorcism that almost ended her and the priests who were trying to save her. According to reports, the exorcism took place in front of 170 people, with the priests starting in the morning and stopping only for brief lunch breaks before they returned to the hard work of expelling a demon from the girl's body.
At one point, as Germana allegedly struggled within the clutches of Satan, she managed to snatch a Bible away from one of the men and tried to choke him.
The Church Was The Only Family She Knew
Clara Germana Cele didn't have a great life before she was possessed. As an orphan in South Africa, Germana was mostly raised by the church. Baptized as a child, the only life she knew was in St. Michael's Mission in Natal. There she allegedly made a deal with a demon in exchange for her soul, though it's unclear what she thought she was getting out of the bargain.
She Took On The Properties Of A Snake
Stories about Germana's possession have taken on near-mythical proportions in retellings. One of the most horrifying things she allegedly did was slither around on the floor like a snake. One witness claimed that during the exorcism, Germana's body lost all its rigidity and became "rubbery" like a serpent.
It's not out of the ordinary for possessed people to writhe and squirm across the ground, but some versions of the story say Germana fully turned into a snake.
She Went To Confession During Her Possession
Many stories about Germana's possession say she was averse to all forms of religious iconography during the ordeal, but in A History of Exorcism in Catholic Christianity by Francis Young, the author claimed this might not be entirely true. Young stated that Germana not only went to confession while she was possessed, but she also received holy communion.
Either this happened early in her possession, or she was dealing with incredibly strong forces that thought they could withstand the power of the Catholic Church.
She Could Read Thoughts And Levitate
Nuns at Germana's school weren't sure if she was possessed or merely acting out. That began to change when she started discussing the embarrassing personal stories of people she couldn't have known. After she allegedly brought up the private life of someone in the church, people began to realize something was happening with the young woman.
After her psychic abilities appeared, so did her penchant for levitation. One account said Germana floated five feet above her bed. Father Erasmus Hörner, one of the priests who later performed her exorcism, recalled, "Germana floated often three, four, and up to five feet in the air, sometimes vertically... and at other times horizontal."
After Her Possession, Germana Could Speak Multiple Languages
Witnesses claimed that after Germana's possession, she was able to converse in and understand multiple languages. According to one of the nuns, the 16-year-old could suddenly speak French, German, and Polish. Becoming a polyglot is a typical trait of demonic possession, so it's not surprising this was one of the first ways the girl's demonic hanger-on manifested.
Germana's abrupt use of multiple languages is likely what tipped off members of the parish.
Blessed Items Drove Her Away
Once possessed, Germana wasn't just allergic to religious iconography, she was physically revolted by the sight or feel of anything the church had blessed. Multiple people who worked on her case claimed that when Germana went into a crazed possession trance, the only thing they could do to snap her out of it was to spritz her with holy water.
But the holy water was only a temporary solution - throughout her two-day exorcism, Germana assaulted nuns and acted out wildly every time a Bible or cross went near her.
A Nun Got Too Close And Ended Up With A Snakebite
One of the creepiest parts of the Clara Germana Cele story is her savage treatment of a nun during the exorcism. One of the sisters assisting the priests got more than she bargained for when Germana grabbed her arm and bit down.
The imprints left on the nun weren't just of Germana's teeth, but also something that looked like the outline of a snake's tongue.
Germana Made Guttural Animal Noises During Her Possession
The nuns at the school realized something was wrong when Germana began acting like an animal and making strange guttural noises. She spoke to people who weren't there and even smashed her bed to pieces.
After witnessing the girl ripping at her clothes and making strange noises, one nun said, "No animal had ever made such sounds. Neither the lions of East Africa nor the angry bulls. At times, it sounded like a veritable herd of wild beasts orchestrated by Satan had formed a hellish choir."
Germana Felt Like She Got A Raw Deal
The book Demonic Possession: Extraordinary True Life Experiences by C. Torrington alleged Germana felt like she was cheated out of something by the demon who possessed her. Supposedly after she confessed to Father Hörner about her deal with the devil, she got into a verbal argument with the spirit inside of her.
She allegedly said, "You have betrayed me. You have promised me days of glory, but now you treat me cruelly."
She Was Very Embarrassed After The Exorcism
According to The Devil and Philosophy: The Nature of His Game, Germana recovered from her exorcism and was incredibly embarrassed about the behavior she exhibited while possessed. Rather than hide away in her room and hope everyone would forget the insanity of her two-day exorcism, she asked for forgiveness and dedicated her life to humble pursuits.
Germana Warned A Priest That She Wanted To Make A Pact With The Devil
It took a while for the clergy at Germana's school to accept that she was possessed, but if they had listened to her in the first place, they might have saved themselves some trouble. According to their accounts, the girl went to confession and told a priest she wanted to make a pact with the devil. She may not have been clear with her reasoning, but it was something she wanted.
She later went back to confession and told Father Erasmus Hörner that the deal was done.
