anointing with consecrated oil and laying on of hands followed by a blessing on a specific person and commanding the spirit to leave. The second and most common method is done by "raising the hand to the square" and then "commanding the spirit away in the name of Jesus Christ and with the power or authority of the Melchizedek priesthood". Exorcisms can only be performed by someone holding the Melchizedek priesthood, the higher of the two priesthoods of the Church, and can be performed by anyone holding that priesthood, however they are generally performed by bishops, missionaries, mission presidents, or stake presidents. Exorcisms are not recorded by the Church and therefore the number of exorcisms performed in the religion are unknown. Demonic possession is rarely talked about in the church. Demonic possession has been talked about twice by Joseph Smith, the founder of the faith. The first time refers to his experience during the First Vision and he recorded the following in his "1831 account of the First Vision": His second experience comes from a journal entry in which he talks about the time he performed an exorcism on a friend. Criticism When someone becomes ill, pastors - exorcism practitioners - visit the sick person's home, especially in rural areas and communities. Then, with the help of others who believe in faith healing, strive to heal them without the use of drugs or anything else. Sometimes the exorcist party gets in the way of local authorities or public health officials trying to heal a sick person. Sometimes they don't even ask the sick's consent - a child or a person who can't respond consciously to them - and continue the process. This has not gone well, and critics from scientists, health officials, and the general public have expressed their fears and dislikes for why this should be halted — since the sick individual often dies when he could have been spared if he was put in the common health system. Hinduism In many Hindu traditions, people can be possessed by bhoots or preths, restless and often malignant beings roughly analogous to ghosts, and to a lesser extent, demons. Of four Vedas, or holy books, of Hinduism, the Atharva Veda is most focused on knowledge such as exorcism, magic, and alchemy. The basic means of exorcism are the mantra (a sacred utterance of certain phonemes or phrases that is often connected