I understand how you feel, but it's not that simple, really. Anneliese had been receiving medical treatment since her epilepsy manifested and she was hospitalized in 1968. Despite medical intervention, her problems just got worse and worse and medicine and doctors did not help her. By 1970, Anneliese had given up hope that doctors could help her.

Apparently her parents eventually lost faith in doctors too because in the summer of 1973 they started seeking an exorcism for Anneliese, but they were refused at every turn. Everyone they talked to told them that Anneliese should "continue with medicine and medical treatment", so she obviously was still seeing doctors at that point, five years into her "possession".

The Bishop eventually verified a possession in 1975, which was not done lightly. A possession required proof of aversion to religious objects, the ability to speak a language never learned by the victim and supernatural powers, etc. These were not easy hurdles to jump. Remember, this was 1975, not the 1500s.

Her parents believed they were doing the best thing for Anneliese and they were certainly doing what Anneliese wanted. Doctors had given her no relief from her condition in seven long years. If Anneliese and her family believed that she was possessed and the Bishop of Wurzburg agreed, what choice did her parents have but to follow the course of exorcism as laid out by the Catholic church at the time? We have to bear in mind that these people were desperate to help their daughter.

It is true that her parents could have force fed her, but Anneliese's sister testified in court that Anneliese did not want to be taken to the mental hospital and sedated and force fed. Anneliese was 23 years old at this point, and as an adult her wishes had to be considered. I'm sure that if the priests had ordered that she be force fed as part of her spiritual treatment, the parents would have done so in spite of Anneliese's wishes.

The priests of her time were following rites from the 7th Century. The Catholic church eventually revised their rites of exorcism but it was twenty years too late for Anneliese. At the time, the church was doing the best it could to help her, I'm sure.

If her parents and the priests were at fault, surely her doctors have to take some of the blame for this tragedy, too. If Anneliese was psychotic, as the psychiatrists they dragged into court to testify for the prosecution stated with such certainty, why did none of her doctors have her committed? Where were they when she was starving to death?

Frankly, I don't see any difference between Anneliese's parents faithfully following the advice of the exorcists and the parents of terminally ill parents who allow doctors to talk them into all kinds of horrific experimental procedures, like transplanting a baboon heart into their child. Desperate parents take the advice of so called experts even when it would seem unbelievable to those of us outside the situation. While it is easy to point fingers and judge, until we have walked a mile in their moccasins, we really can't understand their plight, can we?

Like I said in my first post, I don't envy anyone who has to make these decisions for another person, especially their child. Horrible.

I'm familar with Anneliese's case and the events leading up to her death. But, it's her death I'm speaking of and what contributed to her death.

She died from the effects of severe dehydration and malnurioushment, she had a high fever and suffering from pneumonia at the time of death information from her autopsy report. At the trial specialists stated if any of the four accused would of begun to force feed her a week before her death she would of lived.

The facts remain, she didn't die from possession. The choices made by her family and the priests during the exorcisms contributed to her bodily harm.

She endured 67 rites of exorcism over an eleven month period. The ligaments were ruptured in her knees over time from performing 600 hundred genuflections during each exorcism. On her last rite of exorcism, before her death her parents helped her perform the genuflections as she was too weak and emaciated to perform them on her own.

I don't have any sympathy for her parents or the priests involved. Anneliese appeared to be incapable of making the correct choices for herself, let alone ones that would lead to her overall physical and mental health.

Age has no barrier, your children are always your children. I've asked myself, if I could stand by and watch my child starve herself, blow out her knees, and endure eleven months of this, due to a belief of being possessed. My answer is no. There are always more doctors, or sadly with knowingly being suicidal, and showing signs of schizophrenia as Anneliese did, you force them to get help. People seek medical help for years, addictions, mental issues and so on. Sometimes people are treated for a life time, not unusal. She was 23 a death, very sad, and in my previous post, this was not the dark ages for medical treatment in 1976 when she died.

We will have to agree to disagree on this one. I don't see her parents as victims in any of this, I see them as abusers, always have. Even years ago, remembering when this court case was in the news due to the cause of her death, my feeling then was, wth. It still is.

Wasn't the cannon law, Rituale Roman valid from the 17th century that was used during the exorcism? Even at that it was out dated, but understand the changes made in 1999.

I didn't know her parents, I can't presume to know what they thought, or what type of interests they had. I'm basing my thoughts on the court case alone.

How does one stand by and watch a loved one starve themselves to death? I don't get it!

The Klingenberg Case was decided on two questions: what caused the death of Anneliese Michel and who was responsible.

All four convicted were responsible.

I understand how you feel, but it's not that simple, really. Anneliese had been receiving medical treatment since her epilepsy manifested and she was hospitalized in 1968. Despite medical intervention, her problems just got worse and worse and medicine and doctors did not help her. By 1970, Anneliese had given up hope that doctors could help her.

Apparently her parents eventually lost faith in doctors too because in the summer of 1973 they started seeking an exorcism for Anneliese, but they were refused at every turn. Everyone they talked to told them that Anneliese should "continue with medicine and medical treatment", so she obviously was still seeing doctors at that point, five years into her "possession".

The Bishop eventually verified a possession in 1975, which was not done lightly. A possession required proof of aversion to religious objects, the ability to speak a language never learned by the victim and supernatural powers, etc. These were not easy hurdles to jump. Remember, this was 1975, not the 1500s.

Her parents believed they were doing the best thing for Anneliese and they were certainly doing what Anneliese wanted. Doctors had given her no relief from her condition in seven long years. If Anneliese and her family believed that she was possessed and the Bishop of Wurzburg agreed, what choice did her parents have but to follow the course of exorcism as laid out by the Catholic church at the time? We have to bear in mind that these people were desperate to help their daughter.

It is true that her parents could have force fed her, but Anneliese's sister testified in court that Anneliese did not want to be taken to the mental hospital and sedated and force fed. Anneliese was 23 years old at this point, and as an adult her wishes had to be considered. I'm sure that if the priests had ordered that she be force fed as part of her spiritual treatment, the parents would have done so in spite of Anneliese's wishes.

The priests of her time were following rites from the 7th Century. The Catholic church eventually revised their rites of exorcism but it was twenty years too late for Anneliese. At the time, the church was doing the best it could to help her, I'm sure.

If her parents and the priests were at fault, surely her doctors have to take some of the blame for this tragedy, too. If Anneliese was psychotic, as the psychiatrists they dragged into court to testify for the prosecution stated with such certainty, why did none of her doctors have her committed? Where were they when she was starving to death?

Frankly, I don't see any difference between Anneliese's parents faithfully following the advice of the exorcists and the parents of terminally ill parents who allow doctors to talk them into all kinds of horrific experimental procedures, like transplanting a baboon heart into their child. Desperate parents take the advice of so called experts even when it would seem unbelievable to those of us outside the situation. While it is easy to point fingers and judge, until we have walked a mile in their moccasins, we really can't understand their plight, can we?

Like I said in my first post, I don't envy anyone who has to make these decisions for another person, especially their child. Horrible.

I agree with you. She was an adult, they could only do so much. Once someone turns 18 the parents cant force any decisions on them anymore. But if she was so mentally ill and not possessed, then why didnt the doctors do anything? It was her wish to stop seeing them, and she herself decided at 23 to stop eating. She was an adult and therefore she was in charge unless they had really fought to prove she was unstable and there was no other choice but to have her basically declared mentally incompetent so they could make all her decisions for her. I think they did what they did out of love. Its a tragic ending, but the judge was right. They suffered through losing their daughter and they never forgot what happened or stopped thinking what else could have been done.

I found the Emily Rose movie loosley based, and Requiem a little more on target of the real life events of Anneliese Michel.

I still can't wrap my head around how a mother lets her child refuse, medical treatment, food, and die at 68 pounds. The autopsy report stated she died from dehydration and malnourishment. This was not the dark ages.

Who knows with Grand Mal Epilepsy, if she had a brain tumor or lesions.

The mom and dad were found guility of negligent homicide, and sentenced to six months in prision suspended with three years probation.

Light sentence for abusing your child and killing her.

I understand how you feel, but it's not that simple, really. Anneliese had been receiving medical treatment since her epilepsy manifested and she was hospitalized in 1968. Despite medical intervention, her problems just got worse and worse and medicine and doctors did not help her. By 1970, Anneliese had given up hope that doctors could help her.

Apparently her parents eventually lost faith in doctors too because in the summer of 1973 they started seeking an exorcism for Anneliese, but they were refused at every turn. Everyone they talked to told them that Anneliese should "continue with medicine and medical treatment", so she obviously was still seeing doctors at that point, five years into her "possession".

The Bishop eventually verified a possession in 1975, which was not done lightly. A possession required proof of aversion to religious objects, the ability to speak a language never learned by the victim and supernatural powers, etc. These were not easy hurdles to jump. Remember, this was 1975, not the 1500s.

Her parents believed they were doing the best thing for Anneliese and they were certainly doing what Anneliese wanted. Doctors had given her no relief from her condition in seven long years. If Anneliese and her family believed that she was possessed and the Bishop of Wurzburg agreed, what choice did her parents have but to follow the course of exorcism as laid out by the Catholic church at the time? We have to bear in mind that these people were desperate to help their daughter.

It is true that her parents could have force fed her, but Anneliese's sister testified in court that Anneliese did not want to be taken to the mental hospital and sedated and force fed. Anneliese was 23 years old at this point, and as an adult her wishes had to be considered. I'm sure that if the priests had ordered that she be force fed as part of her spiritual treatment, the parents would have done so in spite of Anneliese's wishes.

The priests of her time were following rites from the 7th Century. The Catholic church eventually revised their rites of exorcism but it was twenty years too late for Anneliese. At the time, the church was doing the best it could to help her, I'm sure.

If her parents and the priests were at fault, surely her doctors have to take some of the blame for this tragedy, too. If Anneliese was psychotic, as the psychiatrists they dragged into court to testify for the prosecution stated with such certainty, why did none of her doctors have her committed? Where were they when she was starving to death?

Frankly, I don't see any difference between Anneliese's parents faithfully following the advice of the exorcists and the parents of terminally ill parents who allow doctors to talk them into all kinds of horrific experimental procedures, like transplanting a baboon heart into their child. Desperate parents take the advice of so called experts even when it would seem unbelievable to those of us outside the situation. While it is easy to point fingers and judge, until we have walked a mile in their moccasins, we really can't understand their plight, can we?

Like I said in my first post, I don't envy anyone who has to make these decisions for another person, especially their child. Horrible.

I still can't wrap my head around how a mother lets her child refuse, medical treatment, food, and die at 68 pounds. The autopsy report stated she died from dehydration and malnourishment. This was not the dark ages.

Who knows with Grand Mal Epilepsy, if she had a brain tumor or lesions.

The mom and dad were found guility of negligent homicide, and sentenced to six months in prision suspended with three years probation.

Light sentence for abusing your child and killing her.

Possessions and Exorcisms are really interesting and terrifying to me. Terrifying because of the idea that something possessing you is doing it totally against your will and violating your body/spirit. Almost like rape or some other crime being committed against you. I'm not sure exactly what is going on, but I do believe in the possibility of a demon/fallen angel/negative spirit/negative energy or even something positive to posses a person. I just don't think it happens as often as is claimed.

ya thats the problem with exorcisms its really hard to proove if an individual is possessed cuz there is the strong possibility that the person is faking for attention or is in fact mentally impaired.

It's terrible if someone is really mentally ill but is only treated for possession. On the other hand, there have been cases of people who have been treated for years for "mental illness" who only get relief from an exorcism, so it's wrong to deny them that option.

I don't envy anyone who has to make that decision for someone else and I am loathe to criticize the decisions that her family made since they were the ones who were actually there and dealing with the situation while it was happening.

I know that common belief now is that she was mentally ill, but if you listen carefully to the audio tapes of her exorcisms she is not only speaking in different voices, which is certainly explainable, she sometimes speaks in two or more voices at once which I don't think is easily explained. Reports say that she could speak in languages that she couldn't know, etc, but since I don't speak any of those languages I can't say for sure.

Whether she was possessed or mentally ill, her suffering and death were a tragedy.

I don't know if possessions are caused by demons, incarnate spirits or both. I know there have been cases where someone has been taken over by another person/personality. There was one case where a young man was taken over by a female who lived in him for quite a while before leaving. She knew a great deal about aspects of life that a gently reared young boy would not know (she claimed her mother was a courtesan in Paris and this "spirit" was very worldly).

In another case, a young girl was taken over by a dead neighbor who demanded to be taken to see her family and knew all of them intimately, despite the fact that she had died before the little girl was born. She knew the pet name that her father called her that no one except her mother and father knew, etc.

These cases were carefully documented at the time, so it's hard to explain them away. You could certainly claim multiple personalities but how do you explain the things that these people knew that they shouldn't have? IMHO there's so much happening in the world that we can't explain.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v.....4n9vK0_mdk...feature=related