MEL METER 8704R - The Rest of the Story

by Mike Chapman

I have stated before that DAS Distributing is by far my favorite manufacturer of Paranormal Equipment - and for many reasons.  One of course, is the fact that the equipment is not merely "adapted" for use from its original intent and design for the paranormal field.  DAS makes equipment designed from the very beginning to serve us paranormal investigators.  DAS Distributing is run by Gary Galka, who is the inventor of the equipment.  I own every piece of equipment they make (and Gary invents) - including several RT-EVP real time recorders, the P-SB7 spirit box, several static E-Pods, and several MEL-8704 meters of various types.  It is very high quality equipment, and is effective.  But, there is another more human reason I love the equipment and the company.

It is common for us, on ghost hunts, to ask, "Who's got the Mel meters?"  We toss that name around without knowing how the equipment got its name.  I am referring to the Mel 8704 EMF meter that, in my opinion, is the best one made.  Well, here's the "rest of the story":

Gary Galka's daughter was named Melissa.  He had always called her "Mel" for short since the time she was very young.  I can relate to this, because I call my own daughter Ana when her full name is Anastasia.  Several years ago Melissa, or "Mel," was on her way home one evening around midnight.  For some unknown reason, she swerved off of the road and struck a tree.  She sustained horrible injuries that night, which occurred on September 24, 2004.  Mel was born in 1987. She was on life-support until September 28th, before her family made the decision to stop the life support, and she passed away. It was not long afterward that Gary’s new found interest in the paranormal field began.  The MEL 8704, one of Gary's inventions that came out of that, was named for Mel, with the 87 being from the year of her birth, and the 04 from the year she passed away. 

“Most of the proceeds from the product (Mel 8704) go to charities such as Compassionate Friends and other known charity organizations.”     - Gary Galka

The following details about Mel's death are directly from a telephone interview with Vince Wilson: “From the moment my wife and I and two daughters got home,” Gary explained, “Mel began to let us know that she was still around.” Gary explained how Mel began playing around with electronics in the house. The TV, radio and lights would come on and turn off and switch channels by themselves. “We could smell her perfume,” he added, “Over a period of time we could feel her hugs and kisses.” These experiences didn’t just happen to him either. His wife Cindy, and daughters Heather and Jennifer also had these wonderful After Death Communications (ADC’s) as well. They all believe that Mel reached out to them in order to help them heal and move forward with their lives. Within six months of her passing, Gary and his wife began to reach out and help other bereaved parents in their homes and through the formation of grief counseling groups. He began researching the paranormal and related topics to better understand what was going on in this field. After reading several books, and watching a few of the paranormal shows on television it became apparent that most paranormal enthusiasts had to resort to using mainstream gadgets and devices that were typically intended for a totally different purpose. Many were modified or adapted to suit the application of paranormal research. Gary, with over 30 years of test and measurement experience sat down and began to design the Mel-Meter. Not only to help give the paranormal community a push forward, but the biggest accomplishment, as Gary explained with pride is that, “Most of the proceeds from the Mel product series goes directly to grief support charities such as Compassionate Friends and other known charity organizations”.

So now, you too know the rest of the story and much more about the Mel Meter than you probably did before.  Makes you want to go out and get another one doesn't it?

The Void - Part 2

There are two kinds of people in this world.

So, which are you?

Are you the kind that must see in order to believe,

Or, do you believe in order to see?

The Void

-Part 2-

To whom do they turn? 

(This is the conclusion of the article – The Void – Part 1)

Before I continue the original article, in which I wanted to cover three attitudes of why there is “The Void” or absence of a response by the Christian Church in America and western culture to help people who are experiencing paranormal activity of a diabolic nature, I first want to address another subject, and that is the prevailing notion of relativism in our culture. In this article I have been constructively criticizing the institutional Church of us Christians, which by the way I dearly love. [In fact, in defense of the Church, I plan a future article refuting the current notion by many people today that one can rightly say “Well, I am spiritual but not religious.” As one Christian author has said, "Religion has gone out of vogue while spirituality remains a valid pursuit." Often, people are being deceived to pull out of the institutional Church in favor of a solo spirituality – this is a grave mistake and is a tactic of Satan that these people are buying into. It is a powerful current trend, and it is diabolical. But, more about that in the future.] In saying that the Church should do a better job of reaching out to those victims of this diabolical paranormal activity, I also want to say that there is another enemy of truth that is extremely prevalent in our culture which should also be targeted by those who want to help hurting people, and that is this notion that anyone with sincere intentions to help people, can do so by whatever means they wish. In other words, they think the main thing is to help people, and they ignore the proper and right way to genuinely help people. There is sincerity of belief, and there is content of belief. One can be sincere, but be sincerely wrong! The actual content of belief must be true and correct in order to help people, not just a laudable degree of zeal or effort. 

Many, many well-meaning and decent people in our current culture have fallen for the lie that “all paths lead to the top of Mt. Fuji.” This is relativism, and it is wildly popular today. It is the notion of, “Well, what is true for you may not be true for me and you can’t judge my truth…everybody has to find their own way.” This is a lie straight from the pits of hell. As Ravi Zacharias has said, "we have pushed the replay button on the saga of Eden and can now look, touch, and taste anything we wish to because we have become gods, determining for ourselves what is right and what is wrong." We will be damned if we are going to let God or anyone else tell us what the truth is, we will determine it for ourselves. The problem with that is, we will indeed be damned.

Christ said straightforwardly in the Bible, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). It does not get any clearer than that. One must deal with these statements of Jesus. Unlike Mohammad, Confucius, Buddha, or even Deepak Chopra, Christ says He is the only way. You have to agree with him, or say he is a liar. He does not leave you any choice to say, “Well all ways are good and true, it just depends on which way is best for you.” He is the true gate, and through him is the only path that is valid and true. Christ also said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber…truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep…I am the door; if any one enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” (John 10:1, 7, 9). All other paths are false. To say that we can get inside the sheep pen by going around Christ is a lie. Period. If that offends you, think about this: the truth has always offended people who believe in the lies. Christianity, just as is Christ, is offensive to some, perhaps even many. The goal is not to "not be offensive." The goal is the truth and to walk in it. I would be doing you a disservice if I didn’t tell you that. So, don't believe in lies, believe in the truth. Someone needs to be strong enough to say to those who hold to false belief, and are turning to false solutions, that it is wrong. That’s what I’m attempting to do here. I care enough to confront you with the truth, not in a mean-spirited way, but in a way that is trying to help you not be duped, a way that is simply trying to help you.

I mentioned in Part 1 of this article that when the Church fails to help people claiming paranormal activity, that a void is left (hence the title of the article). I then stated that into the void rushes those that do not have a true answer to these problem, and indeed actually can make the problem much worse. I named some of these schools that victims are reaching out to: psychics, tarot readers, mediums, spiritualists, witches (no longer called witches, but Wiccans – a much more acceptable term), occultists, faith healers, New Agers, Reiki healers, Zen masters, and even Satanists. [Footnote 1] It is the teaching of the Church, supported by massive amounts of scriptural passages which this is based upon [Footnote 2], that these are false ways that are not to be turned to by Christians. The statement that these people are pseudo (false) teachers isn’t my own personal opinion; it is the stated position of the Church. People may not like that, or they may even scoff at it, but that response doesn’t change the truth one iota. The fact remains that those paths are false approaches that in many cases, are false teachings and paths invented by demons themselves in the very attempt to deceive people to NOT find the correct solution to their problems. But, people don’t think about this possibility. Obviously, this deception is working to a highly successful degree in our modern culture. Part of the reason it is succeeding is that the Church has ceded this area by withdrawing and not being very proactive in reaching out to help people claiming to have diabolical paranormal activity. That is the very reason I’m writing this article to begin with – to get the word out to Christians that we need to change our attitude. If we are absent in helping people (thus again, the void), these people will turn to false ways which of course are only too eager to “help.” [One should also note that everyone wants to be well. Everyone wants a life free from pain and stress. Who doesn't want to know God if he truly exists as we Christians insist he does? Human nature is that of a deep longing and reaching for something genuine to worship and follow. False and fake practitioners rush in and take advantage of that "momentum" toward something to worship. We now have a huge "spiritual supermarket" from which to choose. Just be very careful what you choose...only Christ is the real deal.]

Now, a person I consider a friend cautioned me that not all psychics are bad, and that people can receive help from these people. This is a problem of clarity of definition, and I should have been more clear in expressing what I meant by “psychic.” The word psychic is a word that needs to be defined closely. To be “psychic” in a general sense is to be able to receive information that most of us are not getting. In other words, “psychic” is a secular word that is used to describe a person or ability to “see” or “receive” secret knowledge or information about spiritual realities. Many psychics are totally fake – they are frauds and use cold reading and other such methods to dupe gullible people to make money or to feel important. Others receive their information from demonic sources, even though they may not realize it. Others, however, are truly receiving their information due to a genuine spiritual gift by the Holy Spirit. This is where the word psychic is used incorrectly. Those of the third type, that receive their information due to a genuine gift of the Holy Spirit, have what is actually known as the gift of discernment of spirits. This gift is listed in the New Testament in several places. Some people are born with this gift of God but use it unwisely or for selfish reasons, or do not use it at all and therefore waste it (see the Parable of the Talents). However, some use it for good but do not use it in the full sense of using it out of a context of faith for the expressed purpose of leading their “client” closer to God. In other words, they should be using their gift in the context of discipleship (nurturing and growth of the person they are helping to grow in their faith). Instead, they sort of just help them in a secular sense because they themselves aren’t fully grounded in their own faith, although they would say that they are Christian. Finally, there are those who use the gift of discernment properly and fully, helping people to grow in their faith toward Christ.

Where the problem comes in with the use of the word “psychic,” is that all of these people claim to be “psychic.” In a sense that is true, as I just described. The ones I am saying are false and should be avoided are the fakes and those who are receiving their psychic information from Satan. The question then arises, how do we know which of these are actually demonic, even though the psychic herself may not realize it?  – that’s especially the problem for the group that claims to be psychic but are not using their gift in the full context of Christianity – the expressed purpose of getting people back into Church and overtly explaining to them the need to deepen their relationship to Jesus Christ. I suggest using the following criteria: a true psychic (person with the genuine spiritual gift of discernment) will be hammering the theme of encouraging the person to deepen their relationship with Jesus Christ and the Church. If a psychic or medium you are talking to is NOT expressly doing that, then I think they should be avoided because they simply cannot be trusted. I’m not saying that they are receiving their information from Satan or demons. I am saying that they cannot be trusted as being genuine. A person who claims to be psychic who is not encouraging you to deepen your walk with Christ but instead is doing humanistic types of teaching and telling you the answer is to fulfill your potential and that “the answer” is within you and to tap into the cosmic mind and such things – is not genuine. They could be very sincere, and very “loving” but they are likely deceived, and are leading you to be deceived as well. We don’t get genuine relief from “magic” or from within ourselves or tarot cards or crystals, but from Christ. The scripture says that Satan himself appears often as an angel of light. They may have a genuine gift, but they simply are not using it to the proper degree that they should.

Another thing, a psychic may actually do some things that seem miraculous or amazing. Demons have the ability to perform false miracles. The magicians and sorcerers of the Pharaoh were able to copy many of the miracles of Moses (see the book of Exodus).  Just because they have genuine “power” does not make them genuine in the sense of being right or holy. This power, supplied to some psychics by demons, is there to deceive people, and again, it is a tactic that is succeeding greatly.

I hope this clears up the confusion, and helps explain how cautious we have to be in consulting with “psychics,” no matter how sincere. Part of the reason so many “psychics” operate outside the Church is that the Church has often failed to find a place for them to operate within their gift. That is because it is such a subjective gift, and has to be proven by experience and maturity over time. This results in many people who have the genuine gift misusing it and allowing their genuine gift to be corrupted by mixing it with occult or pagan beliefs and practices. This is very common. Another reason is that the person genuinely gifted by the Holy Spirit refuses to submit themselves to the teaching, direction, and accountability to the Church. That is an obvious problem that the person seeking a psychic should be exploring. Just because someone claims to be psychic, doesn’t mean they really are, or that they are using this ability wisely and correctly. However, a person with the genuine gift of discernment of spirits is one of the greatest assets a pastor or priest could have. In my view it’s a shame we don’t, as the Church, put in the necessary time and effort to develop and utilize these gifted people more. It is also a shame that more people with the true gift don't attempt to stay within the teachings and auspices of the Church and too quickly rush out to "do their own thing."

Now, back to the original intent of my article – my polemic to describe at least three attitudes (there may be more) within the Church that lead to “The Void.”

First, ignorance:

Ignorance is a matter of education, specifically, it is a lack thereof. When it comes to the issue of Satan’s existence, the fact is that a huge number of our clergy simply do not believe in the reality of the Devil and his kingdom of fallen angels. These are people who simply have not been educated correctly, and are victims of their poor education that teaches them there is no such thing. I am speaking of both their formal education, and the education they receive by osmosis in growing up in a surrounding culture which does not believe. They are not nasty about it, they simply don’t believe it. It is odd for those of us who have never lived outside the Bible-belt to understand, but a huge number of “theologians” not worthy of the term, as well as priests and pastors, simply do not believe in Satan or demons as personal beings that are fallen angels. Receiving their education in a period of the “enlightenment” (using the term with tongue-in-cheek), they have bought into the reductive doctrines of science (in particular biology, psychology and sociology) which deny spiritual realities. These Christian leaders seemingly have more in common with the teachings of Freud, Rogers or Jung than they do the actual words and deeds of Jesus Christ or the teachings of the Church. The New Testament is literally teeming with demonic activity, and one simply cannot possess a true understanding of the life and ministry of Christ without including his ongoing battle with demons and Satan. Indeed it could be argued that the main purpose Christ came was to battle Satan and his kingdom! Can the words of Apostle John be any clearer? “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.” (I John 3:8) In summary, those who do not believe in Satan and demons as personal beings of intense evil and who claim those of us who do believe this way are ignorant, are the ones who are actually ignorant. This ignorance is understandable, but at the same time is hugely damaging. 

Second, are those who actively oppose the idea of Satan and demons as personal evil beings, and have a fierce attitude about it. They are not acting out of mere ignorance (the category above) but out of derision. They scorn such belief as stupid, ignorantly superstitious and which has no place whatsoever in modern man’s sophisticated and enlightened belief system. They think they know better. They are deceived. These men and women proactively engage in teaching and efforts to attack the belief that Satan and demons are real. They occupy pulpits, parishes, bishoprics, teaching positions in seminaries, and they write article and books. They are both Protestant and Catholic. They are leading people astray, and are doing the work of demons in espousing the Number One strategy of Satan: convince humans that we do not exist, and that their problems are caused by themselves or by God himself…not us. [The exposure of this Satanic strategy of deception was actually one of the positive aspects of the movie The Rite.] In doing so, they are going against scripture, the teaching of the Church and for Catholics, against the direct teaching of several of our recent Popes, including John Paul II and Benedict XVI.

Finally there are those who believe in Satan and demons as fallen angels who are attacking mankind, especially Christians, in an on-going spiritual war. However, these Christian leaders are simply ill-equipped to deal with it, or don’t have the heart. Or, they are in denominations or contexts where their superiors do not believe (or their congregations) and so they feel they cannot actively engage in such practices as reaching out to help those with paranormal activity. These men and women need courage to stand up for what they believe and find ways to influence and convert their brothers and sisters who don’t understand reality.

To summarize, one simply cannot solve a problem he does not believe exists. The Church, in the business of helping people with genuine problems, has retreated from the area of helping people who have paranormal activity, especially paranormal activity of a diabolical nature. This should not be. For this arena is the crux of the spiritual battle! It is the arena of where the rubber meets the road in spiritual warfare - where Satan is invading the very homes and personal every-day lives of people, and these people are being tormented and attacked. There is no place more sacred than the family, and the home of the family, and this is the arena I am speaking of. Families are being attacked, and they reach out and look for help once they reach a critical point where they realize something truly bad is going on. In the fact that the Church has largely retreated from this arena, an unnecessary void has been created. Into this void…this vacuum, has flooded false teachers who these victims are turning to because we are not there to help. The result is that the blind are now leading the blind, and we all should know where that leads. It is time for Christians, both clergy and laity, to step up and help, and get out on the front lines…into the very homes of suffering, hurting and terrified people who are turning to whoever is willing to help them. Sadly and often, the last place they feel they can turn is the Church down the street from where they live. Let’s change that. Let’s enter that arena with the real solution: the Person and Work of Jesus Christ. Let’s occupy the void.

Footnote 1:
For an excellent understanding of the dangers of such New Age "Oprah Winfrey" type approaches and practices, including Reiki, the healing arts, crystals, false psychics, mediums, the Course in Miracles, hypnosis, eastern gurus such as Rajneesh and Deepak Chopra, channeling, astrology, spiritualism, etc, I strongly suggest you read the following: The Light That Was Darkness, by Warren Smith; Ransomed from Darkness, by Moira Noonan; Why Jesus? Rediscovering His Truth in an Age of Mass Marketed Spirituality, by Ravi Zacharias; and, Out from Darkness: One Man's Escape from Satanic Power, by Ben Alexander. If nothing else, read just the Introduction in Zacharias's book...it sums up a tremendous amount of truth in just a few pages. His book sells on Amazon for less than $14.

Footnote 2:
For just a few of the scriptures condemning the turning to such practitioners, and the evil realities of such practices, see: Exodus 22:18; Leviticus 19:31; Leviticus 20:6-8; Leviticus 20:27; Deuteronomy 18:9-14; 1 Chronicles 10:13-14a; Isaiah 8:17-22; Deuteronomy 4:19-29; 2 Kings 21:2-6; Daniel 2:27-28a; Galatians 5:19-21; Revelation 21:8; Exodus 7:8-13; Revelation 22:14-15; John 4:1-3a; Ephesians 6:12; 1 John 5:19; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Matthew 12:43-45; John 10:10; 1 John 3:8; 1 Peter 5:8-9. I challenge you to read every one of these. 

Lorraine Warren

by NAPS Team Leader Mike Chapman

She has the presence of a saint, and her eyes sparkle with light, life, and love. She is warm, personable, and talkative. She was also delighted when I gave her a small gift – a little statuette of Padre Pio, whom she is very devoted to. I am speaking of Lorraine Warren of Monroe, Connecticut, a pioneer in the field of demonology. Last October (2011), Case Manager Kim Frith and I were fortunate enough to be in a group that was in her home to learn more about "the work" that we also are involved in, and about Lorraine's experiences over the years. Lorraine’s husband Ed Warren passed away in 2006 but Lorraine continues to be actively involved in cases.

That night in October will always be a memorable one for me. I will remember it most for the time I had speaking with her about Padre Pio, whom I had learned about by reading and listening to Lorraine’s story over the years. I had even gone so far as to purchase a couple of books about the famous Padre, and had read about his amazing life and ministry. I had developed my own love and adoration for this Capuchin Monk, and often beseech him on my behalf when I am praying. When I gave Lorraine her little gift, her eyes lit up and she seemed a bit amazed. She immediately asked, “Oh! You know about Padre Pio?! Thank you so much!” She was genuinely surprised and proceeded to tell me about her desire and past plans to go to Italy to his shrine, but that time after time she has been thwarted in her efforts to go. We got lost in conversation and finally Tony Spera, her son-in-law, had to break up our private party and get the events of the evening underway!

We spent the evening with Lorraine and Tony, and watched a video of an actual exorcism of a farmer by Bishop Robert McKenna. This was one of Ed and Lorraine’s worst cases. Seeing that video was extremely sobering – to see the power of Satan possess a grown man and the physical manifestations of that evil…tears and spittle turning into human blood right before your eyes…eyes that went unblinking for several minutes – impossible for the human eye to do naturally…and speaking Latin in reverse, when all he had was a third grade education. It was also reassuring to see the power of God in the Catholic Rite of solemn exorcism. The unspeakable act that led to this man becoming eventually possessed (an unusual case of “complete” possession) began when as a boy; he went into a barn and walked in on his father committing an act of bestiality with an animal. That led to his father forcing him to do the same and then a downward spiral to his eventual entanglement with occult practices.

We also had the great privilege of going through the Warren’s Occult Museum. I had underestimated this part of the visit, as I didn’t think there would be much to this. Was I ever wrong! This “room” consisted of hundreds of items collected over fifty years of cases involving evil or demonic spirits. I could spend another couple of hours in that room. Everyone was warned strictly not to touch any of the items, and we also had to be out by 9:00pm, the beginning of the witching hours. It would take forever to describe all the objects I saw there…many Ouija boards, voodoo dolls, possessed objects, crystal balls, satanic books and spells and so forth.

We gathered in Lorraine’s living room and were given plenty of time to ask her questions. This was another very encouraging moment. I had assumed that members of the visiting group would all be paranormal investigators and/or demonologists like me. Again, I was completely wrong. To my knowledge, Kim and I were the only ones who fit that category. All the others were people having demonic or paranormal activity of their own, or were there to ask questions on behalf of a friend or loved one. It was if I was a fly on the wall, listening to people who climbed the mountain to speak to the holy woman about the secrets of life (in this case paranormal or demonic activity) and got to listen to her responses to them! Time after time, Lorraine referred to God, the Church, and a priest as the remedy for peoples’ problems in this area. One girl kept asking about saging, or spreading sea-salt, and Lorraine kept telling her, “Get a priest in the home to bless her and the home.” This girl couldn’t get it through her thick head that many of these so-called remedies that are being tried by people are useless.  Someone brought up the fact that they had reached out to Chip Coffey, and Lorraine flatly responded, “Oh honey, Chip Coffey can’t help you, get a priest in the home to bless it!” She also brought up, several times, the importance of baptism, especially in the case of a child. She also gave people answers the probably didn’t want to hear, or that are not politically correct, or maybe difficult for people used to nice bow-tied endings to stories. She stated that sometimes children are trapped between this life and the next because they are unbaptised, and that’s why we need to pray for the dead. I really appreciated the strong Christian stance she took on behalf of the truth. I came away from the evening with an even greater love and respect for this amazing woman and her gift of spiritual discernment (how she puts it and I agree) and how she has helped thousands of people. The sobering thing for me in listening to the questions of the group was to realize just how ignorant the average American has become regarding basic spiritual truths. We have truly lost our way. One girl asked Lorraine, “Tell me again why baptism is so important?” Wow. Her question or comment was typical.

We ended the evening by going to the Cemetery and paying our respects to Ed Warren at his gravesite.  Then, we went to a nice Italian restaurant and shared a meal together. We took photos with Lorraine and Tony, and spoke to her a few moments and said our goodbyes. I have a feeling it won’t be the last time I see her.

God bless you Lorraine and thank you for a memorable evening. Like your beloved Padre Pio, you too are truly an inspiration.

Natchez Paranormal at Brandon Library June 26

N.A.P.S. Team Leader Mike Chapman will be conducting a presentation on Paranormal Investigating at the Brandon Public Library on June 26, 2012 beginning at 6:00pm.

The library in Brandon is part of the Central Mississippi Regional Library System, which recently asked MSSPI's Shelly Beard to help them schedule another round of talks at three of their libraries this summer. Other library locations include Pearl and McGehee on different dates, which will be conducted by MSSPI. MSSPI and NAPS are sister teams, and both Shelly and Mike are State Representatives for the American Ghost Society. They cover Mississippi, parts of Tennessee and Louisiana. 

Mike will be using an audio/visual display to present samples of evidence collected during investigations, as well as outline how investigations are done. He will be telling the audience about some of the cases NAPS has been involved with, and how they were handled to bring resolution to the case. He will also be speaking about demonology, and cases surrounding that aspect of paranormal investigating. Equipment used during field investigations will be on display, and a question and answer time is included. For any people located in and around the Jackson, Mississippi area, mark your calendars and come on out!

Global Reach: 108 Countries! - Welcome!

We have had visitors to our websites from 108 Countries now! Thank you to all of you who stop by, especially those of you who return again and again!

The Top Ten Countries are:
United States
United Kingdom
Canada
Philippines
Australia
India
Germany
Russian Federation
France
Italy

Again, thanks for coming by, and please drop us a line or comment on our posts! We'd love to hear from you, about experiences you've had, or questions you may have!

S.O.R. Unit Conducts House Blessing

Three members of the Spiritual and Occult Research Unit of the Natchez Area Paranormal Society traveled to an undisclosed home in another part of Mississippi last month to conduct a house blessing and clearing, along with several other actions in order to help a family troubled by significant paranormal activity.

This case, which began in 2008, was taken over by NAPS in September of 2011 based upon a request by the Team Leader of another paranormal team that NAPS works closely with. This Team Leader was contacted by the family for help after years of frustration and little relief. This leader recognized that the case might very well include the presence of demonic or evil spirits, and knew that NAPS works regularly with such cases, and that it is an area of specialty for our team. (Members of our S.O.R. Unit are constantly working such cases.) It actually turned out that the case only involved mild demonic presence, but nevertheless was an extremely complex case that had to be handled carefully.

The unit's finding concluded that several factors were in play, two of which were: significant sensitivity of one of the family members which attracted spirits; and, spirit attachment to an object which was purchased at a sale and moved into the home. Team Leader Mike Chapman explained, "This ended up being an extremely complex case, and the case file we have on this situation is one of the thickest files we have. We worked very hard on this case, for this family. We learned a lot while investigating their case, and feel very honored and privileged to have worked with them to get to the bottom of what was going on and why, and come up with a plan to resolve the problem based upon our conclusions. There were many factors involved, both predisposing historical factors on the site, as well as factors specific to the family that then moved into the home, which we call "precipitating factors." They all combined to set off the activity."

Mike further described one of the predisposing factors that contributed to the activity was that a former homeowner worked in a cemetery and brought home tombstones to the property. "This was a very unwise thing to do in my opinion, and most probably was one factor in the haunting or spirit activity in the home. He was probably unaware that doing this would cause this, but sometimes innocent or naive behavior or activity opens up a doorway and the spirits come through. This case though, had over half a dozen contributing factors that led to this activity, not just that. It wasn't any one thing, it was the combination of many things." 

The unit's finding indeed concluded that no less than seven major factors contributed to this family's misery, and at least fourteen total factors that contributed to one degree or another. This led to one of the most complex and lengthy lists of "Recommendations for Case Resolution" that the team has ever compiled, with no less than nineteen action points. Seven of those resolution action points were for the team to do, and twelve were left to the family to complete and work on. The team has finished its seven, and now the ball is in the family's court so to speak. Mike reports that progress is being made. "I'm especially proud of the dad in this family. He has taken leadership and appears to be working the plan. He definitely loves his family and I hope and pray it works out. We have done all we can, the rest is up to them. That's the bottom line with all of these cases. We do our best and work very hard to understand what is going on and help bring clarity to a family or person in need, but in the end we can only do so much. The real work is done by them. It's simply a matter of free will. They have to exercise their free will and be very persistent about it if they want a positive outcome." 

The unit members conducted the house blessing, which is a form of deliverance ministry. Mike explained further, "We prefer to have clergy do this if at all possible. However, because this family's minister was not at all open to this, and due to the distance, we will not hesitate to pray for a family and go through their home for them. The alternative, which is to leave them without help or assistance, would be immoral in my opinion.

Christ, through the general priesthood, has given all Christians the authority to do this sort of thing. What is important to me personally is to be humble, and give clergy the opportunity to lead. But if they refuse or can't, we are all empowered by the Holy Spirit to do such things. I would strongly advise though, that not just anyone do this. I do think it is a calling and should be done by individuals trained, called, and experienced to do this work. There are consequences and counter actions that come because of what we do. I call this "blow-back." The demons know who we are, and they do not at all like what we do. But, "greater is he who is in us than he who is in the world." And, to be honest, it's more than just binding any demons and having them leave, it's praying for God's peace to settle upon the family and also for any lingering humans souls to move on to their eternal rest. It's not all just about any possible demons that are harassing or oppressing them."

Definitely one of the more interesting aspects of this case, besides one of the children being significantly sensitive to spirits (which contributed to attracting them as if this child were a lighthouse in the darkness) was the object which had spirit attachment to it, known as psychometry. A few days after removing this object off of the site, which was "bound and sealed" by prayers, holy water and blessed oil so that any spirits attached would not flee back inside the home or property or attach themselves to any of the investigators or their belongings, the object was again sealed, prayed over, and destroyed. In December, while in the home, teams members had their own personal encounter with spirits attached to this object, which the family had complained about for years. Mike added, "I will say this, that something was definitely attached to that object, without question. We don't know why, the family purchased it at a sale. So, whether it was used in some ungodly rites or some unholy activity, we don't know. We just became convinced that the family was telling the truth about this object because we had experiences of our own with it." This is not the first time investigators have had to deal with object attachment. "Actually, we've dealt with several objects recently, such as books, Ouija boards, and a tribal mask," he advised. 

Apparently, the object also did not want to fade away quietly in the night either. The team found it difficult to destroy. Mike explained his personal experience, "Yeah, that was quite unexpected. I doused it with gasoline, and after sprinkling it with a few drops of holy water and praying over it one last time to bind the demon or spirit to go to the Cross and have Christ command it where to go, I lit it afire. The gas burned off, and immediately the fire went out. This object should have burned easily. I left it alone for a few days and went back a second time. I prayed over it again, sprinkled holy water on it - certainly not enough to prevent it from burning - and then really doused it, I mean soaked it, with gasoline. I lit it again, and the same thing happened. The gas burned off, and the flame was just a small little flicker on one little area. I walked away and started to leave again. However, I decided to sit down about forty yards away and pray, to ask God to allow it to burn, to be destroyed. Another investigator showed up just after, and little by little it caught up. We added some wood nearby to help it, and soon it was roaring. It is now gone, destroyed. Maybe it's because of prayer and the promise "where two or more are gathered in my name, there I will be also" had something to do with it. I suppose we had our own little Elijah moment, I'm not sure. The main thing is, I'm glad it's gone."  

The S.O.R. Unit, according to Mike, now turns its attention to two other cases, one in Mississippi, and one in Louisiana. Meanwhile, the team at-large is focused upon the Eola Hotel public case investigation and the Glenburnie - Goat Castle Murder investigation, for this August's TV Production with Natchez TV and producer Eric Glatzer.

Myrtles Ghost Photo

by Mike Chapman

On Left: This photograph was taken of the infamous mirror in the parlor at The Myrtles Plantation in St. Francisville, LA. How many figures do you see?


The photo was given to me recently by relatives and I had a chance to speak to them in depth about the circumstances surrounding it. We are calling this photo the Newsome-Clay Photograph, based upon Patricia Newsome who took the shot, and Kathleen Clay, her sister, who was with her and is on the left in the photo. The other lady near the mirror was the Myrtles Tour Guide. These three ladies were the only three people (alive!) there at the time.


Photo on Left: This is a cropped close-up of the bottom right portion of the photograph above.

Navajo Task Force Investigates the Paranormal

A friend of ours who lives in Arizona sent the following story to me, which as a cop I find very interesting and refreshing. It's nice to know an agency that takes the reports seriously enough to at least investigate them and become adept at understanding the many nuances of paranormal investigating.

WINDOW ROCK, AZ (CBS5) -

With this story, keep in mind that we really do tell it like it is - even when it is hard to believe. There is a law enforcement agency in Arizona that actually welcomes claims of the paranormal -- ghosts, witchcraft, UFOs and even Bigfoot. CBS 5 News obtained dozens of photos and case files from strange scenes and sightings in northeastern Arizona. Most police won't take reports like this. But about 10 years ago, officials on the Navajo Reservation decided to stop the snickering, to treat these witnesses with respect and thoroughly investigate. Only one agency -- the Navajo Nation Rangers -- stepped up to the plate. For the first time ever, they are sharing their documents exclusively with CBS 5 News.

Retired Lt. John Dover explains that Navajo Nation Rangers are a federal law enforcement resource. They manage national parks, archaeological sites, fish and wildlife services and more as officers of the law. Dover spent 31 years in police work -- the last 10 included claims of the paranormal.

"Haunted locations and things going bump in the night," he said. "Objects appearing out of the air and dropping onto the floors, objects flying across rooms, ceramic vessels exploding and then we got involved in UFO investigations." In one of the most solid cases, a mother and daughter describe a mass of lights floating over uninhabited reservation land in January. As they watched, the lights blinked out after a few seconds, followed by a sonic boom, a black domed craft and the entire town of Chinle losing power.

Their drawings are strikingly vivid -- blue, orange and white colors stand out against a dark landscape.

There are also reports of Bigfoot. The hairy creature is most often associated with the Pacific Northwest. However, both the Apache and Navajo tribes say they've got Sasquatch too. One case Dover investigated had 30 witnesses. "We came out with physical evidence," he said. "Hair samples, footprints, stride distances, logs that had been pulled out of the bog area and removed -- normal people wouldn't have been able to do that."

Here in Arizona, so-called paranormal activity is abundant, but serious investigation is not. Just ask Jim Mann, state director of the research organization MUFON. Mann told CBS 5 News, "Tribal lands are filled with Native American legends and folklore and we know those people take the UFO phenomenon very seriously." Mann said partnering with the Rangers is a huge step forward for the field of paranormal research. "It's always been the history that unfortunately the news media has sort of rolled their eyes at us and snickered at us," he said. "We have to grow up and realize this phenomena is really happening and we have to get over the giggle factor."

Dover says 10 years of investigations have revealed a wealth of information. Witnesses are comfortable speaking with officers who promise to be thorough and protect their anonymity. "Maybe we don't believe it," he said. "Maybe we don't hold every belief that you do, but we're going to investigate it rather meticulously and professionally. We'll report it and let the chips fall where they will." More often than not, Dover said those chips fall on the side of truth. "Their testimony would be accepted in a court of law. The confidence level is high," he said. "We've seen them ourselves on occasion. We've seen cigar-shaped craft flying low, we've seen orbs. I had one follow me for about 30 minutes one time."

Dover retired from the Rangers last year but still consults unofficially on the side. The Rangers continue to take paranormal reports. "The cases are coming from people that are just normal people who were very afraid -- something unusual was happening to them," he said. "They didn't know what was going on, they didn't know if it was military, something supernatural, if it was witchcraft. They wanted answers and they wanted to know that somebody cared enough about them to find those answers for them."

You can meet Dover on March 11. That Sunday at 1 p.m. at the Harkins Shea 14 Theatre, Dover and other guests will attend a screening of the documentary The Phoenix Lights. They will take questions from the audience along with filmmaker and witness Dr. Lynne Kitei. 

Copyright 2012 CBS 5 (Meredith Corporation). All rights reserved.

Click on this link to go to the story, which includes a video clip that is interesting.