If you’re feeling a little nauseous this weekend, it might be because America will be caught in the crosshairs of dueling sorcery taking place on opposite sides of the country on Saturday evening (Oct. 20).
In perhaps the tensest coastal face-off since the hip-hop rivalries of the late 1990s, a California exorcist will attempt to stop Brooklyn witches from putting a mass hex on Brett Kavanaugh, who was confirmed to the Supreme Court last month after categorically denying multiple accusations of sexual assault (paywall).
On the East Coast, a coven of witches will gather in Catland Books, an occult bookstore in Brooklyn, New York. Tickets to the event cost $10, with half the proceeds going to women’s and LGBT charities, as well as Planned Parenthood. The event sold out almost immediately—with more than 14,000 people expressing interest on Facebook—and a second mass hex will be held on November 3.
Meanwhile, in California, Gary Thomas of the Catholic Church’s diocese of San Jose plans to hold a mass on behalf of the justice on the Saturday of the hex. Incidentally, the San Jose diocese was in the news just yesterday following the release of the names of 15 former priests who were accused of committing sexual abuse towards children. Of the 15, 10 have died while the remaining five have been banned from the ministry.
Thomas, who has been a practicing exorcist for 12 years, told the National Catholic Register that he is “appalled” by the hexing, and sent the news to other exorcists who were similarly offended. It should be noted that while controversial, exorcism remains a practice in the Catholic church, and the Vatican itself holds an annual exorcism course which saw record-setting demand this past year. Thomas is one of America’s most active modern exorcists.
“They are more confident that the general public will be more accepting of the demonic…. This is a conjuring of evil—not about free speech. Conjuring up personified evil does not fall under free speech. Satanic cults often commit crimes; they murder and sexually abuse everyone it [sic] their cult,” he told the publication.
Catholics and exorcists plan to pray and fast for both Kavanaugh and the witches holding the Brooklyn event.
The hex, meanwhile, will reportedly involve two rituals: The first will require focusing on an image of Kavanaugh while passages are recited and candles burned; “graveyard dirt, coffin nails and effigies,” will also feature, the Guardian reports. The second part is called “the rite of the scorned one,” and will focus on “welcoming rage.” Despite skepticism around the event and its specific goals, the organizers hope that it will ultimately serve as an act of protest and community outreach.