Chad Alec Ripperger (born October 11, 1964) is an American Catholic priest, theologian, and exorcist. He also founded the Society of the Most Sorrowful Mother, a traditionalist Catholic association in the Archdiocese of Denver, Colorado, United States, known as the Dolan Fathers.[1][2][3] Ripperger is noted for his public commentary on metaphysics, the Mass, spiritual warfare, mental health, and prayer, particularly in relation to his work on deliverance ministry. His views have drawn both supporters and critics, with some commentators expressing concern about traditionalist values and the controversial nature of certain claims he has made.
In the early 2010s, Bishop Edward Slattery of Tulsa asked Ripperger to consider training exorcists for the diocese; from that, an idea developed to begin a society of exorcists. Ripperger moved into a motherhouse in 2014 and then a celebration for the formal establishment of the Society of the Most Sorrowful Mother was held in March 2015.[8]
Views and teachings
Ripperger has drawn both support and criticism for his public statements, views, and teachings, which reflect a strongly traditionalist Catholic perspective that differs from more progressive or mainstream theological approaches.
Harry Potter and Magic
In 2019, Ripperger advised Catholics to avoid the Harry Potter series, claiming that author J.K. Rowling "went to witch school before she wrote the books" and that some of the spells in the novels are "real spells" because they appear in Latin, adding that "witches tell us they’re real spells". He also asserted that a woman in Spain had burned down her house while attempting one of the spells. Trent Horn, an American Catholic apologist, questioned these assertions, stating that he was "having a really hard time buying the evidence Father Ripperger is putting forward here," noting in particular that there is no evidence Rowling attended a witch school.[9] A commentor expressed support for Ripperger's concerns, noting that Gabrielle Amorth, the former chief exorcist of Rome, similarly argued that "behind Harry Potter hides the signature of the king of darkness, the devil" due to what he viewed as positive depictions of magic, which he described as “the Satanic art." Moreover, Biblical passages have warned against sorcery, describing practitioners of magic as an "abomination in the eyes of God."[10]
Women working outside the home
In 2019, Ripperger stated that "it is a mortal sin for a woman to work outside the home without a sufficient reason," citing the Manuale Theologiae Moralis[11] and arguing that seeking a career or pursuing a higher standard of living "which they don’t really need" could statitute a grave manner and undermine a child's moral and psychological formation. One commentor has disrupted this interpretation, noting that the Catholic Church does not teach that women working outside the home commit a mortal sin, that numerous canonized women pursued vocations or professions beyond domestic life, and that employment in itself does not preclude the proper raising of children.[12]
Stop the Steal Prayer
In January 2021, Ripperger received criticism after a report circulated that he had shared a “Prayer of Command” urging Jesus to "banish evil spirits" in an effort to "Stop the Steal," prompting concerns about reactionary political rhetoric and the influence of nationalistic currents within some Catholic communities, heightened due to January 6th. One commentor argued that "Catholics have embraced a dangerous amalgamation of an incomplete faith and a radical partisanship".[13] Michael Hichborn of Crisis Magazine later published a statement from Ripperger in which he clarified that he had composed a deliverance prayer, but the group "modified it" and that he "never said to say it to stop the steal", adding that he had not issued any such “memo.” Ripperger stated that he had only encouraged people "to say a prayer for the integrity of the election."[14]
No salvation outside the Church
In 2024, during an interview on the podcast Full Sheen Ahead, Ripperger was asked about what the hosts described as a recent statement by Pope Francis "to the effect that all religions are paths that lead to God." He rejected the idea that God positively wills non-Catholic religions or that they constitute valid paths to salvation, referring to them as "false religions" and invoking the traditional Catholic doctrine dogma extra ecclesiam nulla salus, which declares that "there is but one universal Church of the faithful, outside which no one at all is saved."[15] Ripperger added that Protestants can only receive the grace necessary for salvation "in spite of their religion, not because of it." Emphasizing that salvation comes only through Christ and the Church, he stated:[16]
Because the Catholic Church is the Mystical Body of Christ — and Christ is the only one who saves; that’s absolutely clear in Scripture — it’s part of divine tradition and revelation. There’s no way of getting around that. Only Christ saves: Muhammad doesn’t save; Buddha doesn’t save; none of these others save. Only Jesus Christ saves. Now, that means therefore that if anyone outside the Church is saved, they’re still saved by means of Jesus Christ, which basically means that they are saved by means of the Mystical Body of Christ.
Bipolar disorder
Mike Lewis of Where Peter Is reported that Ripperger stated that "bipolar is actually a form of obsession, demonic obsession by the time it gets to the point where it’s diagnosable". Lewis characterized this as implying that bipolar disorder is caused by demonic activity, as well as Ripperger discouraging "individuals from seeking appropriate medical treatment".[17] In response, Michael Hichborn, writing in Crisis Magazine, argued that this was a misrepresentation, contending that Lewis had omitted qualifying remarks in which Rippergar stated that some mental illnesses are actually psychological rather than demonic. According to Hichborn's account, Ripperger explained that "if it’s psychological, it will either be physiologically based or it will be triggered by certain objects or events," whereas "if its demonic, it will have no correspondence to anything whatsoever".[18]
Evolution and aliens
In contrast with the positions articulated by Pope Pius XII in Humani Generis (1950)[19], Pope John Paul II in 1996[20], Pope Benedict XVI[21], and Pope Francis—each of whom affirmed that evolutionary theory is compatible with Catholic teaching and may point to a divine creator[22]—Ripperger rejects biological evolution. He has stated: "I have never had any conviction in relationship to evolution as a viable thing from the very beginning, from the first time I heard it in — I think it was in either 8th or 9th grade when I heard the proposition. I’m just like, that’s just absurd." A commentor responding to his position argued that such certainty "is not an argument" but rather "a manifestation of religious fundamentalism," reflecting a "lack of maturity and humility."[23] Ripperger has also contended that evolution is metaphysically improbable, asserting that "one species does not have the existence of the essence in itself... to confer it to another species," and therefore "it cannot be the cause of another species/essence."[24]
In a February 2025 appearance on the Avoiding Babylon podcast,[25] Ripperger stated that he believes alleged extraterrestrial beings—specifically so-called "grey aliens," referencing Gary Bates's book Alien Intrusion: UFOs and the Evolution Connection—are in fact demons masquerading as aliens in order to lead people into "rabbit-holes."[26] He further argues:
Demons who portray themselves in what they call themselves grays, and they literally manifest looking exactly like these aliens that you see out there, and they claim that they’re not demons, they’re not angels, they’re not humans, so there’s kind of this intermediate non-moral, ‘they’re not good or bad’ kind of thing. And it’s all a ruse. It’s basically just demons doing that to get people to go down the rabbit holes.
And there’s been more than one exorcist that’s actually had to deal with that. So does that have a connection to the Antichrist? Maybe in the sense that the Antichrist is going to be endowed with Satan’s intelligence. And so he’s going to — or Satan’s going to — basically, he’s going to be perfectly possessed, so it’s going to be Satan that’s going to be operating through this guy; and so it’ll be like an angelic intelligence, but it’s the same. It’s the same thing.
And in fact, if you look at abduction cases, for example — if you strip away the veneer of that it’s an alien or a demon — it’s actually the exact same patterns, which is the person loses bodily control.
Publications
The Metaphysics of Evolution (Books on Demand, 2012) ISBN9783848215508
Introduction to the Science of Mental Health (Sensus Traditionis Press, 2013) ISBN9780615815398
Topics on Tradition (Sensus Traditionis Press, 2013) ISBN9780615790220
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