Manilia archdiocese said the Church now has 80 to 100 exorcism requests on its books at any one time.

Some Christians are taking matters into their own hands, seeking out healers and occult practitioners.

But a Church spokesman said this only serves to attract more demons.

There has also been a call for a unified approach to exorcisms in the Philippines amid concerns about how some priests might be performing them.

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Fr Jose Francisco Syquia, the chief exorcist for Manila archdiocese, said he has seen a steady increase in cases in the past decade, with 200 so far this year.

In 2006, a National Office of Exorcism was opening in the Philippines.

"At any given time we have at the minimum 30 cases," said Fr Syquia.

"And we're only five exorcists."

He has asked the Philippines bishops conference to assign one resident exorcist to each of the country's 86 dioceses.

It's important, he said, because many Filipinos will turn to occult practitioners when they cannot find a Catholic exorcist, leaving them with "spiritual openings" that allow demons to latch on.

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