Fighting Evil

There are too many people, these days, who laugh at the thought of evil spirits and demons in the air. To them, faith means believing in things that are good such as heaven, Jesus, resurrection, and so on. Rarely do they consider believing in the reality of Satan, the embodiment of evil, and his hosts as having practical impact on us. St Paul did not even argue the point of the existence of evil spirits. He warns us “to take the whole armour of God” (Eph 6:13), not for a bloody political or economic conflict, but for conflict with sin, the ultimate cause of evil. Jesus himself faced evil in conflict, when he encountered men like Herod as we read in today’s Gospel (Lk 13:31). The greatest evils of our time are usually those which violate justice and charity. We are called to fight against such evils and secure justice for workers, for example, dignity for the downtrodden and assistance to the poor. How are we to fight against evils? Not by hanging dried herbs on the door of our house; not by burning dried plants on fire on a particular day. But by putting on the shield of faith, the breastplate of righteousness, and the shoes of the Gospel of peace and by wielding the sword of God’s Word. Our eyes can not see the evil, but it is real.

Meditation On Bible Readings: Eph 6:10-20; Lk 13:31-35