Possession by an evil spirit

 Two possessed ▪ People can hardly imagine possession by an evil spirit. Many do not believe in it and attribute all possible cases to illness. And yet we recognize its initial stages in everyday reality. Human dignity requires freedom. And yet how many people are enslaved by others? They are subject to foreign orders, the will of another whom they hate in spirit. There are still millions of exiles, prisoners, and enslaved people. Because it is from the outside, we call it violence. But a person is also enslaved from the inside. We often say that someone is “possessed” by a passion, a foolish idea. Occasionally, it reaches the point where they lose control and commit irresponsible acts. We want to help him; we feel sorry for him because he is poor, but we feel helpless as long as he has, as we say, these fixed ideas, e.g., that someone is following him or that his wife is unfaithful. How do such states arise? We leave the explanation to psychologists and doctors, as far as science is concerned. But we also know that strange, disjointed ideas can arise in our heads from the suggestions of others; we are under their influence in a kind of initial hypnosis, and we feel free when we are far from them. But are they really the only people who influence us? The Bible believes in the influence of evil spirits, and even the saints had many experiences with them precisely because they wanted to break free from their influence. What do you have against us, Son of God? ▪ It is known that so-called hypnotists do not tolerate anyone being present during their tricks who would disturb their influence. But even in normal life, a person who wants to influence another to yield to him in everything dislikes the presence of others. In extreme cases, when the influence of the evil spirit seems to be so great that it is a real possession, these people react explosively to the mere presence of a consecrated medal or water. But here again, we are dealing with extraordinary phenomena. In daily life, we observe something similar to a small extent. Someone who, for example, is “possessed” by sexual passion will not easily enter the church. Someone angry with another will not read and meditate on the Gospel. These are two influences that would exclude each other. But that is precisely why a person who is still capable of free decision can voluntarily give himself over to the influence of the second, thereby excluding the first. Saint Augustine had the great experience of being cured of the “possession” of sexual passion by reading the Holy Scriptures. There are words of Christ in them that the evil spirit hates. They begged him not to enter their territory.

 We know that animals have their own reserved circle, into which they do not let intruders. We see this best, of course, with dogs. But people also have their own circles of residence and interests. That is why they build fences and enclosures; that is why states have borders and customs controls. Anyone who penetrates a foreign territory by force is an occupier. Why are there all these protections? People create their own image of life, their own identity. Anything else that penetrates there is disruptive. Unfortunately, they can make a mistaken judgment about what they should or should not consider a foreign element. The saddest mistake is that people sometimes see Christ, his teaching, and his demands as something that disturbs their lives and does not correspond to their personal development. So they ask Christ not to enter their territory. According to the words of St. John, they love darkness more than light (John 3:19), because in the light, the appearance of many objects that appeared beautiful in the dark would change. Darkness is also the natural environment for sleep. Those who wake up and put themselves to work kindle the light. Those who have the desire and strength to continue on the path of goodness love Christ, who is the light that enlightens every person who comes into this world.