My Monologues 9
A demon possessed in the Synagogue
(Mk 1)
It, sure, was a frightening sight!
She was a real beautiful young girl in her late teens with a sick and pale complexion, yet having a cute little face, sparkling eyes and dry, rosy lips.
But her head was clean shaven!
She was very weak, frail and fragile to the point of emaciation. There was some eerie feeling about her. She was skinny-boney. She used to puff and pant frequently.
Very often she would turn violent and would make all sorts of scary noises. She would frequently fly into howelling rage and even utter filthy, abusive language.
On and off, she would produce very coarse voice of a man as well as weird inhuman sounds.
She lived with her parents in our village. Though we kids were not allowed to go anywhere near her house, we used to sneak in just to have a fleeting glimpse of her from a safe distance. She was treated by several physicians but her situation did not improve.
A number of times priests, who were specialized in exorcism, were brought in to pray over her and to drive out the demon in her.
Hardly anyone spoke about her in public and whenever they did, they did it in hushed whisper. It was almost a taboo to talk about.
These are my earliest recollections of a so- called demon possessed person.
Usually, a possessed person tends to be violent and tardy.They are either confined to asylums or they are let off to wander around in the open.
But to find a possessed person in a place like synagogue, a place of prayer and worship, is very unusual.
Elsewhere in the gospel they are found wandering in a cemetery among the tombs or are forced to take refuge with pigs.
Apparently, the demon-possessed brother must have been on his best behavior while sitting in the synagogue.
Or else, he would have been thrown out.
Probably, the rest of the congregation may not have even noticed him as a possessed person.
It is only when he saw you, O Lord, his hitherto hidden identity was revealed.
Lord, why is it so?
How come that a human being, one of your children, is so completely taken over and, so to say, remote-controlled and his life is being ruined by the evil spirit?
Lord, is it his fault?
Lord, how come that an evil spirit is able to have such a sway over a person and torment and forcefully take over his or her life?
How could his or her Creator allow such a thing to happen?
Yes, the Satan did it with Your servant Job.
Sure he did it with your permission, right?
Though your servant Job was not possessed, he was mercilessly tormented.
Despite his persistent pestering you for a satisfactory explanation and for the "why" of it all, he was not given an answer.Though he didn't get an answer, you did not abandon him, right?
You strengthened him to persevere all through his ordeal.
And finally you rewarded him in abundance.
But with regard to this demon possessed brother, you freed him from the shackles of the Evil One. You freed him from the constraints and controls of the demon.
You did it against his wish and will.
Lord, in spite of knowing and acknowledging that you are the Son of God, how come that he did not want to be freed from the clutches of Satan?
It shows that he was totally under the iron grip of the evil one and was unable to make an informed choice, right?
This demon-possessed brother even felt at home in his tormented state. He made it very clear to you that he wanted very much to be left alone and undisturbed. He seemed to be sadistically satisfied with his present pathetic plight.
Dear brother, though you did not want to get rid of the demon who had been possessing you, the Lord of Life forcefully threw him out from your life.
How do you feel now?
Don't you feel relieved?
Don't you feel afresh?
Don't you feel a new beginning, a much better life?
Don't you feel the regret for missing so long this new found peace and joy?
Don't you feel real bad that you resisted the Lord for casting out the demon in you?
Don't you feel immensely grateful to the Lord for forcefully evicting the Evil One from your life?
Dear brother, I love to listen to you and to the saga of your demon-possessed life and the new life the Lord has gifted you with.
Dear brother, I shall spend some time with you in silence.
Do speak to me and share with me all that you love to.
I want to be strengthened by your sharing.
Speak to me, my brother......
Looking at my life, O Lord of Life, I am happily and humbly grateful to you that I am not possessed and my life is not totally taken over by the Evil One.
Thank you Lord, for protecting and preserving me and many others from the slavery of Satan.
But, Lord, I am very much obsessed with all sorts of thoughts and desires which at times end up with compulsive behaviors.
This is a sort of possession in which I am no more in control of myself.
Lord, as I glance through my life, many a times, I have been obsessed with the thoughts of anger, revenge, retaliation, lust, ambition and envy and what not.....
At times I feel powerless against these obsessions.
I feel as if I am under the control of some other powers outside myself.
Oh, Lord,
Many times, I have yielded to them.
Oh, Lord,
I feel guilty!
Oh, my Lord and my God,
"Mea culpa,
Mea culpa,
Mea maxima culpa!"
Oh, my Lord, like the possessed person went unnoticed by the synagogue congregation, others have often failed to notice or suspect me of my obsessions.
I have stage-managed to act myself a good priest.
Yet, whenever I am caught and confronted, I fly into an irrational rage or keep on justifying myself and my actions.
I keep denying or keep blaming others for my failures and misdemeanour.
Lord, I keep strutting around with the borrowed feathers of piety and religion!
Though it is obvious to those who know me, I am naive and oblivious!
l love to lace my conversations with witty asides and thus keep the common folks in good humor.
Lord, that's me many a times!
Lord, do to me as you did it to the possessed brother.
Lord, do order my obsessions to come out of me and leave me.
Lord, you better do it,
not just once,
but as often as it is needed.
Just as the possessed brother was incapable of realizing that he was under the spell of Evil One and just as he never felt the need to be exorcised,
So am I, Lord!
Lord, as you know, there are many of your children like me, who are often obsessed and under the iron grip of the Evil One,
Deliver us, Oh, Lord!
At times I do see the demon controlled aspects of my life and try to make a feeble and often unsuccessful attempt to shrug it away.
"Oh, Lord come to my help!"
Lord, wherever you find me possessed of my obsessions:
Be it in the "Synagogue", of my priestly ministry,
Be it in the "marketplace" of my social life,
Just barge in and bail me out!
Oh, Lord, I want to be "possessed" by:
You
&
You alone!
Lord I want to spend some time in silence, in your presence...
"Speak Lord, your servant is listening."
Amen
JoAchen
Sunday, Fourteenth, September, 2014
PS
These Reflections are neither pure scientific exegetical interpretations nor highly theological explanations.They are my devotional meditations mainly meant for my personal renewal and spiritual growth and thereby helping me to come closer to my God and to my fellow humans.
Thank you for reading them.
As I keep holding you in my daily prayers, I request you to include me too in yours.
Thank you,
JoAchen
A demon possessed in the Synagogue
(Mk 1)
It, sure, was a frightening sight!
She was a real beautiful young girl in her late teens with a sick and pale complexion, yet having a cute little face, sparkling eyes and dry, rosy lips.
But her head was clean shaven!
She was very weak, frail and fragile to the point of emaciation. There was some eerie feeling about her. She was skinny-boney. She used to puff and pant frequently.
Very often she would turn violent and would make all sorts of scary noises. She would frequently fly into howelling rage and even utter filthy, abusive language.
On and off, she would produce very coarse voice of a man as well as weird inhuman sounds.
She lived with her parents in our village. Though we kids were not allowed to go anywhere near her house, we used to sneak in just to have a fleeting glimpse of her from a safe distance. She was treated by several physicians but her situation did not improve.
A number of times priests, who were specialized in exorcism, were brought in to pray over her and to drive out the demon in her.
Hardly anyone spoke about her in public and whenever they did, they did it in hushed whisper. It was almost a taboo to talk about.
These are my earliest recollections of a so- called demon possessed person.
Usually, a possessed person tends to be violent and tardy.They are either confined to asylums or they are let off to wander around in the open.
But to find a possessed person in a place like synagogue, a place of prayer and worship, is very unusual.
Elsewhere in the gospel they are found wandering in a cemetery among the tombs or are forced to take refuge with pigs.
Apparently, the demon-possessed brother must have been on his best behavior while sitting in the synagogue.
Or else, he would have been thrown out.
Probably, the rest of the congregation may not have even noticed him as a possessed person.
It is only when he saw you, O Lord, his hitherto hidden identity was revealed.
Lord, why is it so?
How come that a human being, one of your children, is so completely taken over and, so to say, remote-controlled and his life is being ruined by the evil spirit?
Lord, is it his fault?
Lord, how come that an evil spirit is able to have such a sway over a person and torment and forcefully take over his or her life?
How could his or her Creator allow such a thing to happen?
Yes, the Satan did it with Your servant Job.
Sure he did it with your permission, right?
Though your servant Job was not possessed, he was mercilessly tormented.
Despite his persistent pestering you for a satisfactory explanation and for the "why" of it all, he was not given an answer.Though he didn't get an answer, you did not abandon him, right?
You strengthened him to persevere all through his ordeal.
And finally you rewarded him in abundance.
But with regard to this demon possessed brother, you freed him from the shackles of the Evil One. You freed him from the constraints and controls of the demon.
You did it against his wish and will.
Lord, in spite of knowing and acknowledging that you are the Son of God, how come that he did not want to be freed from the clutches of Satan?
It shows that he was totally under the iron grip of the evil one and was unable to make an informed choice, right?
This demon-possessed brother even felt at home in his tormented state. He made it very clear to you that he wanted very much to be left alone and undisturbed. He seemed to be sadistically satisfied with his present pathetic plight.
Dear brother, though you did not want to get rid of the demon who had been possessing you, the Lord of Life forcefully threw him out from your life.
How do you feel now?
Don't you feel relieved?
Don't you feel afresh?
Don't you feel a new beginning, a much better life?
Don't you feel the regret for missing so long this new found peace and joy?
Don't you feel real bad that you resisted the Lord for casting out the demon in you?
Don't you feel immensely grateful to the Lord for forcefully evicting the Evil One from your life?
Dear brother, I love to listen to you and to the saga of your demon-possessed life and the new life the Lord has gifted you with.
Dear brother, I shall spend some time with you in silence.
Do speak to me and share with me all that you love to.
I want to be strengthened by your sharing.
Speak to me, my brother......
Looking at my life, O Lord of Life, I am happily and humbly grateful to you that I am not possessed and my life is not totally taken over by the Evil One.
Thank you Lord, for protecting and preserving me and many others from the slavery of Satan.
But, Lord, I am very much obsessed with all sorts of thoughts and desires which at times end up with compulsive behaviors.
This is a sort of possession in which I am no more in control of myself.
Lord, as I glance through my life, many a times, I have been obsessed with the thoughts of anger, revenge, retaliation, lust, ambition and envy and what not.....
At times I feel powerless against these obsessions.
I feel as if I am under the control of some other powers outside myself.
Oh, Lord,
Many times, I have yielded to them.
Oh, Lord,
I feel guilty!
Oh, my Lord and my God,
"Mea culpa,
Mea culpa,
Mea maxima culpa!"
Oh, my Lord, like the possessed person went unnoticed by the synagogue congregation, others have often failed to notice or suspect me of my obsessions.
I have stage-managed to act myself a good priest.
Yet, whenever I am caught and confronted, I fly into an irrational rage or keep on justifying myself and my actions.
I keep denying or keep blaming others for my failures and misdemeanour.
Lord, I keep strutting around with the borrowed feathers of piety and religion!
Though it is obvious to those who know me, I am naive and oblivious!
l love to lace my conversations with witty asides and thus keep the common folks in good humor.
Lord, that's me many a times!
Lord, do to me as you did it to the possessed brother.
Lord, do order my obsessions to come out of me and leave me.
Lord, you better do it,
not just once,
but as often as it is needed.
Just as the possessed brother was incapable of realizing that he was under the spell of Evil One and just as he never felt the need to be exorcised,
So am I, Lord!
Lord, as you know, there are many of your children like me, who are often obsessed and under the iron grip of the Evil One,
Deliver us, Oh, Lord!
At times I do see the demon controlled aspects of my life and try to make a feeble and often unsuccessful attempt to shrug it away.
"Oh, Lord come to my help!"
Lord, wherever you find me possessed of my obsessions:
Be it in the "Synagogue", of my priestly ministry,
Be it in the "marketplace" of my social life,
Just barge in and bail me out!
Oh, Lord, I want to be "possessed" by:
You
&
You alone!
Lord I want to spend some time in silence, in your presence...
"Speak Lord, your servant is listening."
Amen
JoAchen
Sunday, Fourteenth, September, 2014
PS
These Reflections are neither pure scientific exegetical interpretations nor highly theological explanations.They are my devotional meditations mainly meant for my personal renewal and spiritual growth and thereby helping me to come closer to my God and to my fellow humans.
Thank you for reading them.
As I keep holding you in my daily prayers, I request you to include me too in yours.
Thank you,
JoAchen
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