Anna Ecklund was a pseudonym for Emma Schmidt, an American woman whose alleged demonic possession and exorcism occurred over several decades, culminating in an extensive exorcism that lasted from August 18 to December 23, 1928 in Earling, Iowa. Ecklund was said to have exhibited symptoms akin to possession beginning at age fourteen, and was forty six-years-old during her final exorcism by Father Theophilus Riesinger, a GermanRoman Catholic priest. Ecklund's case is considered by theology and paranormal scholars to be one of the most abundantly documented cases of possession in the 20th century, including a profile in a 1936 issue of Time magazine.
Early life
Emma Schmidt was born in Wisconsin on March 23, 1882 and raised in a Catholic household in Marathon. According to Wisconsin birth records, both of Schmidt's parents were German immigrants. She reportedly began exhibiting signs of possession during her adolescence, demonstrating revulsion of holy objects, "disturbed" thoughts, and inability to enter churches. Ecklund also began to take part in "unspeakable sexual acts." According to an account published in 1935, the believed source of Ecklund's possession was her aunt Mina, a reputed local witch who placed spells on herbs she would prepare Ecklund's food with. Mina was purportedly also a lover of Ecklund's father.
Exorcisms
On June 18, 1912, Ecklund underwent an exorcism by Father Theophilus Riesinger, a Capuchin priest originally from Bavaria, Germany, entrusted by Bishop Thomas Dunn of Des Moines, Iowa. Riesinger had been a monk at the community of St. Anthony's in Marathon, Wisconsin. Little was documented concerning this initial exorcism; however, Ecklund was not consulted for over two decades after the 1912 exorcism. In the summer of 1928, Riesinger was again consulted to perform a second exorcism on Ecklund. Father Joseph Stieger of Earling, Iowa, a friend of Riesinger, suggested the exorcism be undertaken at a convent owned by the Franciscan Sisters in Earling. Ecklund was taken to the convent on August 17, 1928, and reportedly exhibited numerous symptoms, including falling into fits of rage over food that had been sprinkled with holy water, and hissing like a cat. With the help of the Franciscan sisters of the convent, the exorcism began on August 18. The exorcism was reportedly violent, with Ecklund levitating, howling, and hanging from the frame of the doorway. The first session lasted until the 26 of August; a second session occurred between September 13 and September 20, followed by a final eight-day session that lasted from December 15 to December 23, 1928. The extensive exorcism resulted in deterioration of Ecklund's body, as she refused to consume food, also vomiting foul debris and what appeared to be tobacco leaves. Her head, lips, and face reportedly swelled, and she also was able to speak in multiple languages unknown to her. The exorcism was reportedly so grueling, and Ecklund's behavior so violent, that several nuns in the Franciscan order asked to be relocated to a different convent. Ecklund was believed to be possessed by Judas Iscariot, as well as Jacob, her own father, who had cursed her with the help of his lover, her aunt Mina, for refusing his incestuous sexual advances during her adolescence. During the exorcisms, Ecklund also spoke in a high falsetto voice, which Riesinger interpreted as the voice of her aunt Mina. On December 23, the final day of the exorcism, Father Riesinger commanded the demons in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary to depart to Hell. Ecklund collapsed on her bed and began to shriek, "Beelzebub, Judas, Jacob, Mina," followed by, "Hell! Hell! Hell!" She opened her eyes, and then spoke in her own voice, saying: "My Jesus, Mercy! Praised be Jesus Christ!" Riesinger's exorcism was reportedly successful, and Ecklund only exhibited "milder" and "quite manageable" possessions after it. Her true identity was kept protected from the public in written accounts.
In culture
In 2016, a fictionalized British-produced film entitled The Exorcism of Anna Ecklund was released, documenting her possession and exorcism.
Published accounts
Carl Vogl, a theologian, wrote an account of the possession in German, titled Begone, Satan, in 1935, using the pseudonym Anna Ecklund. According to Francis Young, a theology scholar, elements of the account published by Vogl were repeated in a written account of a thirteen-year-old possessed boy, Robbie Mannheim, in Mount Rainier, Maryland, in 1949 by Jesuit priests. Young views the publication of the Ecklund case as integral in exemplifying the "American exorcism." In February 1936, the 1928 exorcism was also profiled in Time magazine.
