THE WORD
Jl 1: 13–15; 2: 1–2 / Lk 11: 15–26
When Jesus had driven out a demon, some of the crowd said, “By the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons, he drives out demons.” Others, to test him, asked him for a sign from heaven. But he knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste and house will fall against house. And if Satan is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that it is by Beelzebul that I drive out demons. If I, then, drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your own people drive them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the finger of God that [I] drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. When a strong man fully armed guards his palace, his possessions are safe. But when one stronger than he attacks and overcomes him, he takes away the armor on which he relied and distributes the spoils. Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
“When an unclean spirit goes out of someone, it roams through arid regions searching for rest but, finding none, it says, ‘I shall return to my home from which I came.’ But upon returning, it finds it swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and brings back seven other spirits more wicked than itself who move in and dwell there, and the last condition of that person is worse than the first.”
IN OTHER WORDS
Have you ever wished you had the power to see the physical and spiritual worlds at the same time? When I was young, I did. I wished angels occupy space and become visible so that I might actually see them guarding everyone. How I wished to see them flying constantly over our house to safeguard the members of my family. As I grew up, I also realized that it was not only an exciting but also a horrifying thought because it would also mean seeing demons in space and watching them quarreling with angels all the time.
In our gospel for today, some of the Jewish leaders reacted vehemently to Jesus’ healings and exorcisms. They assumed that he had to be in league with Satan. This reaction is not surprising, because oftentimes Jewish exorcists had to resort to old-fashioned witchcraft to do their work successfully when demons would not leave a person.
This assertion of power and authority of Christ to cast out demons is a clear demonstration of the reign of God. He came to free us from the greatest danger of all – the corrupting force of evil which destroys us from within and makes us slaves to sin and Satan (John 8:34). St. Augustine of Hippo once mentioned that our lives have a God-shaped void which only He can fill satisfactorily. If we attempt to leave it vacant or to fill it with something else, we will end up being in a worse state in the end. Thus, we must also learn to fill the void with God who is the source of all that is life-giving for us. The Lord assures us of his protection from spiritual harm and gives us the help and strength we need to resist the devil and his lies. “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7)
- Felmar Castrodes Fiel, SVD (WBC – Cebu City)
The Word in other words 2015
An annual project of Logos Publications, The WORD in Other Words Bible Diary contains daily scripture readings and reflections written by priest, brothers, and sisters of the three congregations founded by St. Arnold Janssen (the SVD, SSpS, and SSpSAP). It hopes to serve as a daily companion to readers who continually seek the correlation of the Word of God and human experience.
