'Charlie Charlie' game causes demon possession in schoolgirls in Colombia

"Mass demonic possession" gripped schoolgirls in Colombia after playing "Charlie Charlie."

Four of the girls, who were in different classrooms, began to start displaying odd behavior — screaming and foaming at the mouth. Other girls followed suit, writhing, hallucinating and some even fainting, according to Mirror.

All in all, 22 girls were affected. It was later found out that they were playing "Charlie Charlie" earlier.

The girls were aged 12 to 15 years old. They were immediately brought to the hospital, where the staff struggled to hold them down.

"They came in screaming, mumbling incoherently, hallucinating, foaming at the mouth," Dr. Jair Ruiz said.

Doctors ruled out possible causes of the girls' odd behavior, including intoxication and the use of substances that cause hallucination. Eventually, their behavior returned to normal.

One of them said that she saw a "man dressed in black."

Local authorities in Colombia have cautioned residents about playing such game after a similar incident that affected seven girls happened in the region last year because of "Charlie Charlie."

The game is played by balancing a pencil over another pencil lying on a piece of paper. The paper is divided into four quadrants; two are marked with "yes" and two are marked with "no."

The players then summon "Charlie," who supposedly answers their question by moving the top pencil in the direction that corresponds to its answer.

Renowned televangelist Pat Robertson, in a 2015 segment of the 700 Club, explained that demon possession is real and people should not try to summon them by playing games like "Charlie Charlie."

"Folks, like it or not, demons are real; they are not the figments of imagination. They are not playthings and they are certainly not parlor games."

Robertson emphasized that demons want to "destroy human beings."

Psychiatrist Richard Gallagher believes demon possession is real, and that it is on the rise.

He said there is a spiritual world existing beyond the physical world, and it includes "a very dark side."

"Assaults upon individuals are classified either as 'demonic possessions' or as the slightly more common but less intense attacks usually called 'oppressions,'" Gallagher said, according to The Washington Post.

Demonic possession is also becoming more frequent, according to Gallagher. In the U.S., there are now 50 exorcists in the Catholic Church who deal with such phenomenon. A decade ago, there were just twelve.

He warned that dismissing instances of demonic possession robs affected individuals of the help they need.

"Those who dismiss these cases unwittingly prevent patients from receiving the help they desperately require, either by failing to recommend them for psychiatric treatment (which most clearly need) or by not informing their spiritual ministers that something beyond a mental or other illness seems to be the issue," he said.