James J. LeBar
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James J. LeBar (c. 1936) is a Roman Catholic priest who was the chief exorcist of the Archdiocese of New York in the United States.
Father LeBar was ordain in 1962. In the 1970s LeBar was asked to become part of the Office of Communications of the Archdiocese of New York which at the time was dealing with the rise of cults and occult activity. He performed his first exorcisms in 1988 and 1989. In 1989 he also published his book, entitled Cults, Sects, and the New Age. He has counseled many former cult members and is a frequent speaker on this subject.
He first came to prominence in 1991 when he took part in an exorcism in Palm Beach, Florida, which was broadcast on the ABC television program 20/20. He was appointed the chief exorcist of New York in 1992, by the late John Cardinal O'Connor. On June 25, 1995 Father LeBar was one of the guests on the Geraldo Rivera television program exploring satanic ritual abuse.
Father LeBar has performed about forty exorcisms. On people he has exorcised he has personally witnessed people who spoke in foreign tongues, the hatred and evil of the devil, and super strength.
When asked during an interview if he ever witnessed levitation during an exorcism he said, "I myself, have never seen a major levitation in the course of an exorcism. However, in one case in the preliminary investigation, I had a person who rose up above the pews of the church and was suspended there for a few minutes."
He told Spirit Daily at the time of the 25th anniversary release of the film The Exorcist that it, "is about the most accurate portrayal of what can happen at an exorcism that I have ever seen."
Actress Winona Ryder spoke with Father LeBar about exorcisms in 1999 in order to prepare for her film role in the movie Lost Souls in which LeBar was one of the consultants. He even allowed her to view some videotapes of exorcisms he had performed.
In July 2002 Father LeBar addressed a conference of Roman Catholic exorcists in Rome. He lives and works in New York State and is presently assigned as Chaplain of the Hudson River Psychiatric Center in Poughkeepsie, a post he has held for almost twenty years.
