Spiritual Combat Sunday
Wisdom 2:12, 17-20; James 3:16-4:3; Mark 9:30-37
Maybe I am old-fashioned, but my best classic is entitled “The Spiritual Combat”. I am drawn to it because it teaches one to attack, as the best means of self-defense. I want to propose the same approach to you today – Spiritual Combat: the enemy is inside each one of us, not outside; and we need to attack it; when the enemy steps outside, then we have the problem of our first reading, it becomes a deadly virus; curtailing it becomes herculean, and it is only conquerable with the assistance of God! But for are the readings of today?
More than 2 millennia ago, here are some of their discussions, “us versus them”: “Let us beset the just one, because he is obnoxious to us; he sets himself against our doings . . . Let us condemn him to a shameful death” (Wisdom 2:12, 20). Are we really different from the people of our first reading? Are our propos different from theirs? On January 6, 2021, some people lost their lives on the United States’ Capitol, over Republicans’ versus Democrats’ divide; you needed to listen to their slogans! On October 20, 2020, many Nigerians were shot and killed at Lekki’s toll gate simply for asking for justice. Our media language is replete with “kill them”, “exterminate them”, “they’re against us”, etc. Yet, we pride ourselves of civility and progress! You see, our readings are still for today!
It really starts with “us versus them”: black against white; rich against poor; male against female; Muslims against Christians; the young against the elderly. The moment these inner feelings of differences and divisions become actions and not just thoughts, corpses, brutality and violence ensue.
Spiritual Combat Sunday is tactics Sunday. It is an invitation to the treasuries of wisdom, to learn the mastery of attacks on one’s vices before they become bullets and bombs raining on others, who are probably better us, whom we’re trying to change. Changing oneself to become like Jesus, who died for the other instead of killing him/her for what we perceive as his/her sins.
If those out to kill the “just” are called the “wicked”, you can judge for yourselves who you are, from your activities and speeches. The failure to respect the humanity of the other, who appears and acts differently from us, both shows the maturity of our desires as evil or good and declares our identity either as just or wicked. Only spiritual combat can help us to make a conscious decision on our identity definition and struggles. Physical assassins are those whose spirit is already conquered; their restoration must begin with a spiritualCombat.
Our gospel exemplifies the first step into becoming a killer and a murderer – the desire to be served and not to serve! While Jesus was teaching his disciples to.pay the ultimate sacrifice for the salvation of others, his disciples discussed their importance among peers and in the views of others. When we cling to life to do evil, we lose the meaning of the conservation of life and its protection.
Spiritual Combat Sunday is the determination to keep a childlike innocence that doesn’t aim at killing, but is determined to defend life with one’s life. It is because a child is free of rivalry, the crave for superiority and vengeance, that Jesus proposes it for emulation. The value we attach to life is manifest in the way we treat others and ourselves. A servant, freely choosing to serve others, is the best protector of life.
The ultimate lesson of Spiritual Combat Sunday is James’ discovery of the source of wisdom – God himself. Besides the example of Christ, who died for sinners and rose again from the dead, James exhorts us to remodel our lives on the basis of “Divine Wisdom”: “the wisdom from above is first of all pure, then peaceable, gentle, compliant, full of mercy and good fruits, without inconstancy or insincerity. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace
for those who cultivate peace.”
Our theories of education, leadership, love and hatred will continue to train future assassins, as long as we refuse to look up to the “wisdom from above” that teaches purity, forgiveness, love, etc.
Spiritual Combat Sunday calls us to become attackers of every inclination in us to sin or do evil. An attacker is one who applies the maxim of “prevention is better than cure”. An attacker stands before the mirror of conscience and takes a censure of his/her negative propensities and attacks them.
Indeed, a comeback is possible. Our political and religious leaderships, that we all serve instead of them serving us, can still make a change by God’s grace. The empty treasuries and pauperization of our fellow citizens are the signs of leaders turned masters and assassins, instead of servants of the people. When you and I refuse to patronize them and hold their feet to the fires of justice and imprisonment, we will save their souls and break the circle of poverty and “man’s inhumanity to man”.
Assignment for the Week:
Find a way to serve those in need this week.