I myself am confused about Ryan.  Is he for real (as far as his beliefs) or just acting out everything for the cameras? 

Revenant: If you haven't already, you might find this page from Yahoo! Answers contains some useful information on exorcism in general, not just the Roman Catholic variety. "Dee" has written a good summation of pagan exorcism and the different viewpoint that goes along with it.  But the other comments are interesting as well and give a look into the differing mindset of people when it comes to this very controversial subject.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080224101800AAFIaiw

It's interesting that nobody is calling on a Rabbi as far as this matter is concerned.

Don't know about you, but I am constantly in wonderment that this stuff is still going on, and believed in, in the year 2009, not 1409.  Just my personal feelings.

Nosfer–Father Bob is indeed an ordained Catholic Priest, as I posted somewhere here.  In fact, he is pastor of St. Maria Goretti Parish in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.  His name is Robert L. Bailey.  Here's the church's website:

http://www.stmariagoretti-ri.org/

However, I too was questioning whether or not he obtained a bishop's permission to do this AND have it televised to boot.  What is interesting is that you will note he does not mention any interest in the paranormal on his parish's website, but he does discuss it on his MySpace page:

http://www.myspace.com/frbob

I could be wrong, but this makes me think that maybe he did not receive authorization to do what he did for PS.  However, to answer one of your questions–yes, he is the real deal.

Please take note that in the first "I Am Six" episode, the priest was different.  He was an Episcopalian priest as opposed to Roman Catholic.  Basically they are supposed to be about the same–Espicopalian simply the result of Henry VIII's break with Rome–but from what I've seen it's the Roman Catholics that seem to go to the extreme in matters like this.

Hope this helps.

P.S. Can't seem to find the full video on A & E's site but here's another website that has the YouTube uploads of the show.  Can't say "enjoy" because it's really, IMO, a disaster and extremely disturbing.

http://alienufoparanormalcasebook.blogspot.com/2009/03/videos-paranormal-states-possession.html

Funny you should mention the Greek and Roman gods.  It was when I read Edith Hamilton's wonderful book about them back in grammar school that (no offense to believers intended) I realized that to me  all gods were just creations by humans in order to explain the unknowable.  Although the unknowable has been shrinking as the centuries and even decades go by, the belief in god(s) still is quite strong. 

Sounds like you are on the track to a good article about medieval practices that still exist today.  Exorcism is  probably the most dramatic.  However there is also self-flagellation, something that is practiced by the Opus Dei, the extreme society that has sprung from Roman Catholicism.

This is a fascinating subject.  These episodes of PS that contain exorcism could just as well have been a movie similar to The Exorcist.  And it's not just the actual exorcism that is fascinating, but also the reactions of those in attendance.  I just hope we never return to a world where everyone, from the rulers on down, believed that demons were everywhere and that disease was the result of sin or mankind not praying enough.  Another reason why I find this show disturbing.

Good points, Martimus.  Don't worry about saying anything about Ryan Buell.  There's remarks all over the internet about how he can't pass a mirror without looking at his reflection.  He does appear to be numero uno on this show.

You mention "dead time".  In the first season, PS used to start this at 3 a.m. because it supposedly is the direct opposite the time that Jesus died on the cross.  All of a sudden, any time is now dead time.  They changed this without any explanation but I could come up with at least one: Sticking around until 3 a.m. was beginning to get tiring for everyone involved.  Of course, they could have fudged the clocks, so to speak, but I think it was becoming very inconvenient filming wise.

The question often comes up as to why investigate in the dark.  There are various reasons for this, I believe, and a big one is that we are psychologically prone to be more on edge in darkness.  Now this could produce results either way–we are more subject to experience things due to our heightened state of awareness or our brains start to manufacture all sorts of odd things.  My hubby has stated that the atmosphere itself seems to be different to our senses at night than during the daylight.

Your point is well taken about light contamination.  And in many cases, daytime investigations can be hampered by too many sounds as well as the fact that more people are milling around in the daytime.

Most of my experiences have happened at night during complete darkness.  However, the most frightening one took place in a well-lit room, and another strange occurance happened in broad daylight on my porch.  Go figure.