“[A] monumental struggle against the powers of darkness pervades the whole history of man. The battle was joined from the very origins of the world and will continue until the last day, as the Lord has attested” (Gaudium et Spes, 37). Let us today reflect upon this struggle, and the surprising joy that it sometimes brings.
The Gospel for this Sunday, brings us the image of Jesus sending forth his disciples, two by two, to evangelize the cities towards which, as the Greek text says, “he set his face” – basically, the cities and towns where he wanted to go. These disciples were to, so to speak, prepare the ground for him, and also find out if people in these cities and towns were receptive to Christ’s message. When you have good news, you want to share it with others – a new job, positive results from medical tests, a promotion, news about a pregnancy – these are examples of good news. The Gospel too, is in its entirety, the Good News. Last Monday, Canada Day, we had an evening of evangelization, adoration, and mission, right here in the church. People who came to watch the fireworks were invited to spend a few minutes of prayer in the church, to light a candle, to pray to God. Towards the end of the evening I had a good conversation with a gentleman who was Christian, but not Catholic. I introduced him to the idea of the Sacrament of Penance and Eucharist. “Can you really have your sins forgiven?” – “Yes, really”. “Is Jesus really present in the Eucharist, in the Blessed Sacrament?” – “Yes, really”. Forgiveness of sins – Jesus Christ, God, truly present among us – that is news worth sharing with others, that is good news.
Let’s go back to the Gospel. We see right away that some cities and towns are open to receiving Christ and his message, and some are not. The mission of sharing the good news encounters obstacles, roadblocks, opposition. In the same Gospel passage, Christ mentions Satan, the angel of light, falling from the sky. Here it would be good for us to spend a little bit of time on what the Gospel and the Church’s tradition teaches us about the fallen angels.
A relatively little-known study document from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, issued in 1975, helps us shed some light on this topic. This document says: “Without ever placing Satan at the centre of his Gospel, Jesus nevertheless only spoke of him on what were clearly crucial occasions and by means of important pronouncements” (Christian Faith and Demonology, Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, July 10, 1975). Jesus does not overemphasize Satan, but he does speak of him. Think of the temptations in the desert at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry; the exorcisms that Jesus performed; and even the Last Supper narratives, which tell us that Satan was able to influence Judas.
What is Satan’s origin? Here, the document from the Congregation gives us helpful information: “The majority of the Fathers…saw the principle of their [the fallen angels’] fall in their pride – the desire to rise above their condition, to affirm their independence, to make themselves like God…side by side with this pride, many Fathers underlined the fallen angels’ malice towards man” (Christian Faith and Demonology, Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, July 10, 1975). So there is malice, ill will, and meanness that the fallen angels direct toward the human race.
Still, lest we become afraid or overly concerned with Satan, the Catechism reminds us: “The power of Satan is, nonetheless, not infinite. He is only a creature, powerful from the fact that he is pure spirit, but still a creature. He cannot prevent the building up of God's reign” (CCC, 395).
Moreover, we should not blame our own faults, failings, and our own tendency to evil, on the fallen angels. The document from the Congregation states: “It is clear that she [the Church] has never allowed man to rid himself of his responsibility by attributing his faults to the devil. The Church did not hesitate to oppose such escapism…saying with Saint John Chrysostom: “It is not the devil but men’s own carelessness which causes all their falls and all the ills of which they complain” (Christian Faith and Demonology, Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, July 10, 1975).
My brothers and sisters, what are some of the ways in which we can keep our spiritual backbone, our spiritual independence, our spiritual freedom in Christ? We are indeed called to freedom in Christ, as last week’s readings reminded us. A discipline of prayer, frequent confession, regularly attending Mass and receiving the Holy Eucharist, the prayer of the Rosary. These are all ways to keep our hearts calm and collected, even when the evil one lurks nearby. St. Paul writes in the Letter to the Galatians, which we heard from today: “May I never boast of anything except the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ” and then he continues, “Let no one make trouble for me; for I carry the marks of Jesus branded on my body”. St. Paul, the great apostle, knew that the Cross of Jesus Christ is the ultimate protection. Through the sacraments, we too participate in that Cross, and in its victory.
“[A] monumental struggle against the powers of darkness pervades the whole history of man. The battle was joined from the very origins of the world and will continue until the last day, as the Lord has attested” (Gaudium et Spes, 37). Jesus speaks of the devil, but does not put him at the center of his preaching. For us, Jesus’ followers, there will be struggle, but there also will be joy, as even now we participate in Christ’s final victory over the devil, sin, and death.
(Fr. Pawel Ratajczak, OMI, July 7, 2019)