Beginning at 3AM, and lasting for one hour: the Devil’s Hour, known also as the Witching Hour.

According to pious folklore, these sixty minutes are prime for ‘supernatural’ activity. Witches, demons, and ghosts appear at that most powerful and practitioners of ‘black magic’ are at their utmost peak ability. Above all, Satan himself is at his strongest – where the Devil’s Hour owes its namesake.

The phrase Witching Hour was first used in 1793 in Mary Robinson’s poem entitled “A Fragment. Supposed to be written near the Temple on the Night before the Murder of Louis XVI.” During pagan witchhunts, women caught outside during the Witching Hour without an adequate reason were often executed on suspicion of witchcraft.

But why is the Devil’s hour from 3AM to 4AM?

The answer lies in the Liturgy of the Hours.

Some believe the absence of prayer between Matins, traditionally starting around 1AM, and Lauds, traditionally starting around dawn, is responsible for the supposed increase in demonic activity.

While the Church has never ruled definitively on the matter, it can be said for sure that prayer is an effective spiritual weapon against Satan.

“When the soul is clothed in faith the devil is ignorant of how to hinder it, neither is he successful in his efforts, for faith gives the soul strong protection against the devil, who is the mightiest and most astute enemy.” – Saint John of the Cross

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7 COMMENTS

  1. I thought it might have something to do with 3pm being the moment of death for the crucified Christ on Good Friday. The polar opposite timeframe would be 3am, thus a ‘moment of opportunity’ for the evil one to stir up mischief. Paranoia and doubt can be as damaging as overt evil, and when our defenses are down due to fatigue from insomnia or nightmares, we are at our most vulnerable to subtle inference.
    Saint Dymphna, pray for us, and protect us from all nightmares and mental agitation. Let us rest in the sanctity and humility of the Holy Family by way of praising the Lord God Almighty. Blind the demonic through prayer with penance, sacramentals, Plenary/Partial Indulgences offered for the souls in Purgatory, etc. Amen.

  2. Anyone ever watch THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE? 3am is a telling hour for the devil. So if you wake at that time, please pray: either the rosary or the Divine Mercy Chaplet!

  3. The prayers from my rosary protect me
    My sister is to be by my Lord’s side.
    And my obligations are to obey my Lord for he is my guide.
    If I’m waking up at 3am than let it be an opportunity to pray the rosary and read the Bible. These are the best moments to talk to Jesus because unlike Satan Jesus’s power and his intelligence can never be matched by any satanic demons including Satan . Jesus is Almighty his power always increases even at 3 am.

  4. While I understand how people might be scared I’d say nobody has much to worry about especially if you are devout catholic. 3am is nothing to be afraid of. Every hour is gods hour and Jesus has more power over evil. If you find yourself being disturbed always pray however you feel most comfortable and god will triumph over. As somebody who used to think 3am was something to worry about now I just look back and laugh. God bless anyone reading this.

  5. If you are praying to anyone other than God, then you have much to fear. Read Deuteronomy Chapter 5 below and notice that the catholic church changed the 10 commandments. They skip the 2nd commandment and separate # 10 to come up with 10.
    Read the scripture below. Use the bible as the only authority on salvation. I was a catholic for 38 years, read the bible and discovered that the catholic doctrine does not match the bible. You have a choice, follow the inspired word of GOD or man. I will say a little pray for you all that you have more time to seek the truth. There are many more false teachings in the catholic church and many other denominations. Let the bible be your only guide. Please read below. May God give you time.

    Moses summoned all Israel and said:

    Hear, Israel, the decrees and laws I declare in your hearing today. Learn them and be sure to follow them. 2 The Lord our God made a covenant with us at Horeb. 3 It was not with our ancestors[a] that the Lord made this covenant, but with us, with all of us who are alive here today. 4 The Lord spoke to you face to face out of the fire on the mountain. 5 (At that time I stood between the Lord and you to declare to you the word of the Lord, because you were afraid of the fire and did not go up the mountain.) And he said:

    6 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

    7 “You shall have no other gods before[b] me.

    8 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 9 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 10 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

    11 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

    12 “Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the Lord your God has commanded you. 13 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 14 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns, so that your male and female servants may rest, as you do. 15 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.

    16 “Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land the Lord your God is giving you.

    17 “You shall not murder.

    18 “You shall not commit adultery.

    19 “You shall not steal.

    20 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

    21 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. You shall not set your desire on your neighbor’s house or land, his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

    22 These are the commandments the Lord proclaimed in a loud voice to your whole assembly there on the mountain from out of the fire, the cloud and the deep darkness; and he added nothing more. Then he wrote them on two stone tablets and gave them to me.

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