Tuesday
of the 22nd Week in Ordinary Time
September 1, 2015 6:30am
Sometimes we speak of evil
outside of ourselves.
We speak of the existence of the
devil or of demons.
And sometimes we speak of evil
within ourselves.
We speak of the power of darkness
within us personally, or within humanity in general.
So, whether we are talking of
what is outside of us or inside of us, we recognize that there can be an
absence of God or of light and goodness.
In today’s gospel, Jesus is
dealing with evil.
In this particular incident, he
is dealing with an unclean spirit, a demon, evil in this man.
And he deals with this, as the
passage says, “with authority.”
Jesus has the power to cast out
this evil and to make this man whole.
The reality is that we, each of
us has some darkness within us – a dark side.
We are all human.
We are not perfect.
But, we also have Jesus, the Son
of God.
And two things flow from the
presence of Jesus with us.
First, the power that comes from Jesus
helps to tame our sinful inclinations.
And second, the power that comes
from Jesus even helps us to become more and more like him.
So, Jesus once spoke with
authority in the synagogue.
Now he speaks to us through the
Word of God with power, the power to enlighten us and guide us.
Jesus also acted with authority
in freeing this man from the demon.
Now he acts with power when he
gives his very body and blood to us and empowers us to live in his way and grow
in God’s image.
So, the Word and the sacrament –
these two gifts tame the evil or darkness within us.
And they help to make us whole or
holy persons.
