MOUNT HOLLY — Local author Charles Fraune has written a book he never expected to write. It’s entitled “Slaying Dragons: What Exorcists See & What We Should Know.”
The book by Fraune, who teaches theology at Christ the King High School in Huntersville, is now in its second edition.
Fraune says that in the process of teaching theology to the juniors and seniors at the high school, “Divine Providence directed me toward a documentary on the true story behind the movie ‘The Exorcist.’ This was the beginning of my journey toward writing ‘Slaying Dragons’.”
After watching the documentary, a priest told him about the book “The Demon of Brownsville Road,” which he quickly read. “These two detailed, real-life accounts of what demons are capable of doing were given to me at a time when I was eager to obtain clarity about spiritual baggage that I had carried with me since my childhood, from before my conversion at the age of 20,” Fraune explains.
“I was not a devout child or teenager, but I was spiritually curious – a curiosity of the sort that led me in the wrong direction. Having never settled in the practice of the faith in my youth, I did not have the proper spiritual understanding, nor prayer life, to navigate the rough waters of a secular and occult-inclined culture,” he admits.
“Even after my conversion, when Our Lord performed truly miraculous surgery on my soul, I knew that I carried with me particular, yet mysterious, wounds. Still, almost 20 years later, those wounds were a burden and a hindrance to my spiritual growth,” Fraune says.
Fraune recalls that around the same time that he read the book mentioned above, he embarked on a spiritual purification under the guidance of a priest friend.
“This helped me re-focus my life of prayer and meditation and also trained me in certain techniques of spiritual warfare like renunciations and the use of the ‘binding prayer’,” he notes.
It was at that point that someone introduced him to the teachings of Father Chad Ripperger, F.S.S.P., a renowned exorcist in the United States who has countless conferences available online to watch and listen to, Fraune adds.
“The teachings of this exorcist, detailed and fascinating, were also intensely practical,” Fraune says. “I continuously remarked to myself, as I watched the videos, how I had never heard half of this information, even with a masters in theology and having spent significant time in seminary.”
The more he immersed himself in these teachings, the more Fraune felt compelled to share them with others. “Eventually, being a lifelong writer, the idea emerged of writing a book. In the end, I collected the teachings, from books and lectures and articles, of about 12 exorcists and 20 saints and Doctors of the Church, and arranged them into a systematic presentation of the most crucial and helpful teachings with regard to the actions and methods of the diabolical,” he explains.
— SueAnn Howell, senior reporter
Order a copy
At www.amazon.com: “Slaying Dragons: What Exorcists See & What We Should Know” is available in paperback and eBook online