"Beyond Belief" with Exorcist Gary Thomas and Author Matt Baglio

Watch The Rite movie trailer for the 2011 Anthony Hopkins film. The movie tells the story of a disillusioned seminary student who plans to leave the church after his graduation. His superior, Father Matthew, talks him into taking a course in Rome on exorcism. During the class, his instructor, in an effort to erase his doubts, sends him to meet a real exorcist, Father Lucas Trevant. He soon begins to witness things that he cannot explain. His beliefs are put to the test when a demon emerges that is too much for Fr. Lucas to handle on his own.

Exorcist Michael Kovak's real life counterpart, Father Gary Thomas, 57, is interviewed in 2011 about the movie "The Rite" and demonic possession. He is a mandated exorcist working in California who, like his counterpart in the movie, was trained in Rome. He cautions people not to invite the devil in through the practice of Wicken or through the use of devices like Ouija boards and fortune tellers.

CNN interviews the Vatican's chief exorcist who believes that the devil has more space to work due to the growing distance that people have placed between themselves and God. He also says that as the result of three centuries without exorcism in the church, many of today's Priests and Bishops know nothing about the subject and often recommend that the afflicted seek help from a psychiatrist instead.

With more than 800 satanic cults in Italy and devil worship on the rise, the Vatican's chief exorcist Father Gabriele Amorth speaks about the practice and shows the interviewer the room where he performs his exorcisms. He explains that there are situations that medicine and science can't cure, which exorcisms can often solve. He sees up to 50 people each week who claim to be possessed.