Auxilium Christianorum: how to join

This is the association most people actually mean when they say 'spiritual warfare confraternity'. It was started by priests who perform exorcisms, and it does two things: it prays for those priests so their work is effective, and it prays for its own members and their families so that they are not harmed by demonic influence. It is quite different from the Angelic Warfare Confraternity, which is Dominican and concerns chastity and the cord of St Thomas rather than deliverance or protection. What is unusual is that there is nothing to sign: you become a member simply by starting to say the daily prayers, and you stop being a member by stopping.

Where it comes from

Founded by exorcist priests. The association deliberately does not publish the name of the bishop who approved it, or the date, in order to protect the exorcists and the bishop involved.

What you promise

Quoting the FAQ directly: 'All that is required to be a member is that one says the daily prayers. If one decides to cease one's association with the Auxilium Christianorum, one simply stops saying the prayers. There is no other requirement in order to be a member.' The Requirements page adds ten points: before joining, 'the layman is strongly exhorted to consult his spiritual director or confessor'; 'seek to lead a habitual life of sanctifying grace, always desiring never to fall into the state of mortal sin and to avoid all intentional venial sin'; keep increasing a life of prayer including meditation; 'to pray the rosary daily'; fulfil the daily vocal prayer requirements with the association's aims as your intention and make frequent use of sacramentals; strive for meekness and humility and avoid all superstition; increase devotion to Our Lady under the title Virgo Potens; increase devotion to your Guardian Angel; 'when it is financially possible, each member is to keep a statue of Our Lady and Saint Michael in his home, before which a votive candle is to be burned'; and finally, 'the members of the association should be aware that none of these requirements bind under the pain of sin.' Missing the prayers for a day or a few days does not affect your enrollment.

What the Church attaches

Prayer by the whole membership for every member and for the priests of the association. The FAQ explains that members are protected by the association's ecclesiastical approval as well as by the prayers themselves, and says members 'often experience a decrease in demonic influence in their own personal lives over the course of time'. No indulgences are published, so none should be claimed.

Something physical is involved

Not required to join, but members are asked, when finances allow, to keep a statue of Our Lady and of St Michael at home with a votive candle burning before them, and to make frequent use of sacramentals such as holy water, exorcised salt, blessed candles and medals.

Confraternities