Beware of the symptoms of an unclean Spirit in my Life

Gospel Thoughts

*Fourth Week : Sunday

*GOSPEL - Mk 1:21-28*

*First Reading - Dt 18:15-20*

*Second Reading : 1 Cor 7:32-35*

*Beware of the symptoms of an unclean Spirit in my Life*

*1) The Unclean spirit makes a person to cry/Shout with loud voice*

This something abnormal : *What have you to do with us*

It shows the refusal to relate with Jesus/God

Unclean spirit is an obstacle to relate with God

One can't relate with the person who shouts or cries with loud voice 

Basically a loud cry or shouting with loud voice becomes an obstacle to relate with the other

The attitude of crying or shouting shows a kind of fear, insecurity, inferior complex, lack of confidence, guilt feeling, etc from the part who shouts 

The very attitude of shouting also shows that person has done something wrong and inorder to hide his/her fault or to prove that his/her view point is right, the person shouts 

Normally some people have an impression that one who is able to shout with loud voice he/she is right 

But the very fact one shouts it shows some kind of deficiency in the one who shouts 

By shouting with loud voice the unclean spirit is showing its unwillingness to relate with Jesus or shows its inability to relate with Jesus 

The shouting of the unclean spirit also shows the fear, anxiety, some wring doing  and guilt feeling of the unclean spirit 

The shouting of the unclean spirit shows its helplessness and desperate situation

*2) The shouting and the attitude of unclean spirit in our life*

The unclean spirit of anger, makes us to shout at others 

The unclean spirit of revenge, makes us to yell at others 

The unclean spirit of gossip, makes us to shout loudly in spoiling the name of another person 

The unclean spirit of pride makes us shout loudly to show ones power over another 

The unclean spirit of jealousy makes us to shout loudly in spoiling their good deeds. 

*3) Secondly the unclean spirit sees other as destroyer, Threat, and danger*

*Have you come to destroy us?*

*The other is a Hell - Jean Paul Sartre*

For the unclean spirit the other/Jesus appears to be an destroyer, threat and Hell. 

One who does good and sees good in others will never be able to see the other as destroyer, threat, and hell 

A person who does evil things to others, because he/she thinks that the other is a threat, other is a destroyer, and other is hell 

So once approach to others will tell us, whether we are in possession of the unclean spirit or not 

The presence of unclean spirit makes us to see the other as destroyer, threat, and hell. 

What about my relationship with others? 

Do I take them as obstacles to my path? 

Do I try to eliminate them in some way or the other 

Do I have these symptoms of unclean spirit in my life?*

*4) The unclean spirit knows the fact but does not want to accept it*

The unclean spirit says - *I know who you are—the Holy One of God!*

In fact this is the reality and the truth 

The unclean spirit knows the truth, but at the same time it twists the spirit of the truth 

It says *Have u come to destroy us*

Trying to malign the spirit of the truth, by adding to it some malicious things.

He is the Holy one of God, but came to destroy us - the subtle way of distorting the truth 

In our life it may take in the following ways 

He is good leader but he does not work, he is a lazzy 

He appears to be very sober, but he/she is a very dangerous person 

He is good man, but does not support me in any way 

He takes leadership, but for his own selfish motives 

These are the symptoms of this unclean spirit, even after knowing the truth unwilling to accept it in the right spirit 

*5) The unclean spirit convulsed him*

This is the attempt of the unclean spirit to make the person completely incapable of doing anything 

The convulsions to make the person to fear, or to create anxiety and tension 

The convulsions to make the person to behave in an abnormal way, to show its power 

The convulsions also an attempt by the unclean spirit, without me you can do nothing 

Going out from a place or from a situation or from a relationship, by creating a scene of convulsions, shows that the person is not happy either with the place, or mission, or with the persons 

The attempt of the unclean spirit to bring the convulsions shows that there is no growth what so ever. It shows the terrible feeling and situation of the unclean spirit

Do I create the scenes of convulsions in my life, relationships, Family, work place, in neighborhood, society and in the parish. 

*6) The call to become a genuine prophet - and the unclean spirit*

 

The main theme of today's liturgy is to become a genuine prophet 

A call to become a prophet - in this mission and journey we need to be very careful not to yield the the temptations of unclean spirit

The above attitudes of unclean spirit are the obstacles to become a genuine prophet

*Think about it*

*God bless you and your family. Praying for you and your dear ones*

*Fr Maxim Dsouza*

*Jeppu Seminary*

*Mangalore*