RBWords

     My seminary education took place during and immediately after the Second Vatican Council, which meant during a period of tremendous change.  However, the ceremonial process of steps toward ordination to the priesthood remained the same till after I was ordained in 1971.  This included tonsure, porter, exorcist, lector, acolyte, subdeacon, deacon and finally priest!  If you didn't read too quickly, you might catch that word, "exorcist!"  The ceremony simply required that I put my hand on "the book of exorcisms" as a symbolic acceptance of the "office."  I never saw the book again and I never saw what was in it to begin with!  It was two or three years later, when the book and movie, THE EXORCIST, came out that I gave much thought to the matter, and that was because my student parishioners were getting the idea that their roommates were possessed!   Not long after my ordination to the priesthood, the whole ceremonial process was changed and the "offices" of porter and exorcist were "suppressed" or just assumed as a kind of general thing.

     The gospel scripture today presents us with Luke's rendition of what Mark had written earlier.  It's the first seminary curriculum in pastoral theology!  The job description includes "power and authority over all demons" and "to cure diseases," "to proclaim the Kingdom of God" and "to heal the sick."  Scripture scholars argue about whether Jesus actually "sent" the Twelve out (and in Luke there is a second "sending" of the "seventy-two) during the period of his own ministry.  But the job description is obviously one that the early Christian community recognized as the work and lifestyle of an active disciple!   There were no courses in "curing diseases" and "healing the sick" in my seminary.  I learned about the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick "on the job," as it were.  I can definitely say there was nothing about exorcism, although in my time as a pastor in San Antonio, I was asked a number of times to bless a house whose owners thought had an evil spirit in it!

     Our baptismal commitment is our "sending."  We can proclaim the kingdom of God.  We can be attentive to all those who suffer even if we can't do more than first aid or CPR.  When it comes to exorcisms, I think the best thing is to keep the phone number of the bishop on hand so he can send the officially appointed "exorcist" to deal with the matter.  Prayer and support are the best we ordinary mortals can offer in those cases.  Today's gospel does remind us that the lifestyle of a disciple preaches as loudly as the words of a disciple.  Having read it, we can all say we've attended a seminary!   AMEN