Levitation
Dear brother,
Can you comment about the phenomena of levitation (floating of a person in the air)? There are saints who levitated (E.g. Sts. Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross, Joseph of Cupertino and others). And there are people who practice yoga who attained to levitation (Did their ability come from evil?) and people who indulge in oriental practices to attain occult powers including levitation (surely from the devil).
I read in a book that before the fall, man was given certain supernatural powers (which may include levitaion, bilocation) which he lost after the fall.
Is levitation a result of opening of some part of our soul as they say because of prolonged meditation? Or is it given by God to His elect or given by the devil like those of a certain Magdalen of the Cross (whom St. Teresa of Avila knows, correct me if I'm wrong) who acquired mystical experiences by pact with him and it also said to happen during exorcisms. Should we avoid such experiences if ever they happened to us and believe it is a temptation by the evil one?
God bless and best regards,
QUESTION from James on June 12, 2004
James
ANSWER by Bro. Ignatius Mary, OLSM on June 12, 2004
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Dear James: No genuine levitation is sought after. If a person is "trying" to levitate, and if they succeed, the power by which they accomplished this feat is not of God. Those saints who levitated did so mostly without knowing it while in mystical ecstasy. It is a gift from God to a few very holy people. It is no commonplace and is not to be sought after. St. Teresa of Avila, one of the Church's greatest mystics, once said something to the effect that she would rather have one normal experience to a thousand mystical experiences any day. Any levitation, that is genuine levitation, that comes from yoga or other Eastern mystical practices is not sourced in God. The reason I say "genuine" levitation is that some Eastern practices, like Transcendental Meditation, claim levitation but in actuality do not levitate, but "bounce". Levitation of the possessed is often experienced during exorcisms and sometimes is experienced during demonic infestations of houses.
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