Does the Catholic Church believe in ghosts?

[UrbScotty]

Catholics like Marla Fisher can be excused for their confusion over what the church itself believes and teaches about ghosts.

“There is no settled doctrinal or moral practice with respect to ghosts or apparitions,” says Lawrence Cunningham, professor emeritus of theology at the University of Notre Dame. “You can’t point to a canon in ecumenical councils or canon law that addresses this.”

When it comes to the paranormal, the church walks a fine line. On the one hand, Catholicism is defined by a belief in the supernatural—one person of the Trinity was in the not-too-distant past commonly called “the Holy Ghost.” But church leaders also must battle against errant belief in the occult.

The word “ghost” comes from geist, the German word for spirit. A poltergeist, or noisy ghost, is a spirit that makes its presence known with acts of mischief—throwing toasters or dining room chairs around. Martin Luther was one of the earliest to use the term “Polter-Geister.” The Modern Catholic Dictionary (Eternal Life) defines “ghost” as “a disembodied spirit.”

http://www.uscatholic.org/articles/201309/paranormal-activity-do-catholics-believe-ghosts-27887#sthash.2Ax319PH.dpuf

[AnotherMcIntosh]

1. Yes, of course. But not occult ghosts.

[Fortinbras Armstrong]

2. The Holy Ghost, AKA "the Sacred Spook"

Is really a poor translation, since it comes from an Old English word, gast, which means "spirit". The German Geist is the same word.