Word to the Wise
Thursday, October 31, 2024 - Thursday in the 30th Week in Ordinary Time
[Eph 6:10-20 and Luke 13:31-35]Draw your strength from the Lord and from his mighty power. Put on the armor of God so that you may be able to stand firm against the tactics of the devil.....So stand fast with your loins girded in truth, clothed with righteousness as a breastplate, and your feet shod in readiness for the Gospel of peace. In all circumstances, hold faith as a shield, to quench all the flaming arrows of the Evil One. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. With all prayer and supplication, pray at every opportunity in the Spirit. [Ephesians]
The Letter to the Ephesians comes to a close with quite a pep talk! The words seem to echo the old Roman adage: If you want peace, prepare for war! The extended metaphor is very militaristic, describing a Roman soldier's battle gear. Since the letter was written during the heyday of the Roman empire, the image would have been quite familiar to the audience, (and to movie audiences in our own time!).
It seems a bit strange to me that the interior peace that so many desire in their spiritual lives must be constantly maintained in struggle! We Dominicans have had a program since the 17th century called the Angelic Warfare Confraternity, dedicated to the struggle to maintain chastity in living. Jesus tells the disciples to "be on your guard, for I am sending you out as lambs among wolves!" [Luke 10:3]
The "battle," if we want to take the metaphor for a measure, is fought on two fronts: interior and exterior. Passions and desires on the inside are fed from the outside. The interior battle may be the hardest one. We could be in solitary confinement and still have to wage that struggle. Those who struggle with addictions of whatever kind know that struggle well. The devil wears many uniforms and sometimes we have to challenge what seems benign with the words, "Friend or foe?" Prayer and the word of God ("the sword of the Spirit") must be accompanied by real behavioral action if we want to have "the peace of God which surpasses all understanding." [Philippians 4:7]. AMEN