Washington's Top Exorcist Says Aliens Are Demons in Disguise Trying to 'Get Into Your Head'

The chief exorcist of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington has a stark theory about the UFO frenzy sweeping America, and it is that the lights in the sky are most likely demons hunting for a way into your mind.

Monsignor Stephen Rossetti, who has overseen exorcisms in the US capital for more than 13 years, laid out the claim in a short video posted on 29 May 2026. He argued that demons disguise themselves as extraterrestrials to deceive the curious and pull them away from faith. The warning surfaced only weeks after the Pentagon began releasing decades of once-classified files on unidentified anomalous phenomena.

A Veteran Exorcist's Theory About the Skies

Rossetti recorded the message for the YouTube channel of his St. Michael Center for Spiritual Renewal, the Washington deliverance ministry he leads. He accepted that believing in life on other planets breaks no Catholic teaching, calling the idea theologically neutral.

Then he drew a hard line between the abstract question of alien life and the phenomena now flooding news feeds, podcasts and dinner-table conversation.

His background lends the claim an unusual weight in the wider debate. Rossetti holds a doctorate in psychology from Boston College, teaches as a research associate professor at the Catholic University of America, and once ran the Saint Luke Institute, a treatment centre for clergy.

A graduate of the US Air Force Academy, he has also served as chaplain to the Washington Nationals baseball team and written the book 'Diary of an American Exorcist.' By his own account, he has taken part in hundreds of exorcism and deliverance sessions.

Demons That 'Like to Hide'

The heart of his warning rests on concealment. 'Demons like to hide,' he said, contending that the unseen enemy works most effectively when people fail to realise it is present. He added that such spirits can 'get into your head' and steer ordinary people towards harm. Recognising the deception, he argued, is what strips it of much of its force.

To show how that plays out, Rossetti described a woman he knew who believed she was contacting her late grandmother through automatic writing, a form of occult channelling. She later concluded she had been reaching something deceptive and evil instead. He cautioned that divination, sorcery and similar practices are forbidden precisely to keep people spiritually safe. Scripture frames the whole warning, and he pointed to Ephesians 6:12 and its picture of a struggle against spiritual forces of wickedness.

Rossetti was careful to separate private conviction from official teaching. He said his view was 'not de fide,' a Latin phrase meaning it is not a binding article of faith, before stating that many, perhaps most, UFO sightings are in fact demonic. He cited the impossible speed and movement attributed to the craft as feats he believes fallen spirits can imitate.

Across his ministry, he says, spirits sometimes manifest in physical form as shadow figures, glowing orbs or beast-like shapes. He urged listeners to keep their attention fixed on Jesus and not to fret about friendly ghosts or aliens. 'Stay in the boat,' he told them, casting the rules of the Church as a means of protection rather than control. The closing appeal was simple, that believers trust in God and keep their eyes on Heaven.

Holy Warnings Meet the Pentagon's Disclosure Push

Rossetti is not the only exorcist raising the alarm. Father Chad Ripperger of the Archdiocese of Denver made a strikingly similar case during a four-hour interview with former Navy SEAL Shawn Ryan that aired in March 2026, a conversation that drew millions of views within days. Ripperger argued that alien abduction accounts mirror the patterns he sees in demonic possession, and he recommended a 2004 apologetics book documenting encounters that reportedly stopped when victims called on Jesus. Stripped of the alien framing, he said, 'they're just demons.'

The clerical warnings have landed in a season of state disclosure. On 8 May 2026, the Department of War opened a public portal carrying its first tranche of 162 declassified UAP records, part of a Trump-directed effort branded PURSUE, and invited Americans to weigh the evidence for themselves. Many researchers still favour earthly explanations for the footage.

A 2025 Wall Street Journal investigation reported that the Pentagon had at times spread false UFO stories to shield secret weapons programmes.

Interest in the subject has spilled well beyond the pulpit. UAP claims have featured on influential podcasts and drawn comment from prominent officials in recent months, and one group of Charismatic pastors stirred controversy by claiming a private meeting with US officials about coming disclosure.