Pope Francis in one of his writings tells us; "The Holy Spirit makes us look to the horizon and drive us to the very outskirts of existence in order to proclaim life in Jesus Christ” What Pope Francis is portraying here is a belief in the transformative power or authority of Jesus in the world.
In today’s gospel we have Jesus who teaches with authority unlike the scribes who simply relied on previous interpretations and traditions. He taught with divine authority. And as he is preaching, there is a sporadic outburst of a person disturbed by the evil Spirit. “What do you want with us Jesus of Nazareth....” This was an aggressive reaction directed at Jesus.
Leave alone someone being possessed, but normally when someone responds to our presence in an aggressive way, we can be tempted to react in kind. We are more likely to become aggressive towards them.
Responding to Aggression
I was doing a mission appeal with another American Holy Cross priest in Ohio. After mass we are greeting and thanking people at the door as they leave, this guy comes and says “When will you people learn to work and stop coming to beg,” I was lost for words but the other priest was prompt in responding; “When you people stop selling their countries arms and tanks” the guy melted away. As human beings, we tend to return aggression with aggression.
- However, Jesus did not use his authority to respond in kind to the sporadic outburst.
- He used his authoritative word to bring healing to the man.
- His authority was life-giving, filled with love and mercy. In other words, Jesus’ authority is transformative, it liberates and empowers the recipients. That is why he commands the unclean spirit, and it obeys.
- Jesus has authority over all things including our lives. His authority is not oppressive, or vengeful; it is the kind that offers us a source of hope and restoration.
- His authority retains a loving, life-giving stance towards all, even in the face of great provocation and hostility.
Called to Respond
As believers, we are challenged to consider how we respond to Jesus’ authority.
- We must trust his power to overcome challenges in our lives. We often grapple with various “unclean Spirit” whether literal or metaphorical, for instance loss, terminal sicknesses, addictions, anxiety and even moral dilemmas. Jesus is imbued with divine authority to help us work through all.
- The authority portrayed by Jesus in today’s gospel must be an assurance that Jesus is able to confront and cast out all these unclean spirits from our lives. He is able to offer hope and strength that will transform our lives.
- Trusting his authority allows us to be directed, guided by him as we strive for holiness.
- Let us pray for grace to allow him to lead us to the right path so that we are able to make decisions and choices that align with His will for our lives.
- Father Fulgen's inspirational homily was recorded live during Mass at the Father Peyton Center this morning. You can view the Mass (at the 30-minute mark) on the Family Rosary YouTube page.
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