The Unclean Spirit
Preaching
Preaching The Miracles
Series II, Cycle B
What's Happening?
This healing story is the first pronouncement story in Cycle B. The pronouncement formula presents a situation, builds to a climax, offers a solution and gives a statement of the issue. In the early church, this format made for easier recall of the story for oral retelling.
While healing on the sabbath is mentioned in this miracle, the main issue is authority. In another Cycle B miracle for Epiphany 7, healing the paralytic (Miracle 4), Jesus observes rumblings and questions among the scribes (Mark 2:6) and challenges them. The fifth miracle in this series (Proper 4), healing the man with the withered hand, also touches on Jesus' authority. However, its main focus is healing on the sabbath.
First Point Of Action
The first two verses state the synopsis of the story. "They" go to the synagogue at Capernaum, and Jesus teaches on the sabbath. Jesus teaches with authority rather than as a scribe would teach. The result brings amazement from listeners.
Second Point Of Action
A man with an unclean spirit cries out to Jesus in the synagogue. He first questions Jesus' role, then recognizes Jesus as a holy person. The unclean spirit voice within the man addresses Jesus with three statements: First, it asks what Jesus has to do with us. Second, it asks if Jesus has come to destroy them. Third, it shows recognition.
Third Point Of Action
Jesus rebukes the unclean spirit within the man. He commands that the spirit be silent and come out of him. Jesus strongly criticizes the evil spirit within the person.
Fourth Point Of Action
The spirit convulses the man and comes out of him with a loud voice.
Fifth Point Of Action
The people in the synagogue who observe this show amazement. They do not know how to explain this. Jesus' actions and authority amaze them. They talk among themselves about it.
Sixth Point Of Action
Because of their talk, Jesus' fame spreads throughout the region of Galilee.
3. Connecting Points -- Conversations
Interviewing The Man With The Unclean Spirit
Asker: People suffering epileptic convulsions look as if they are possessed by something completely beyond their control. Is that what happened to you?
Man: It seized my whole being. It was a stranger invading my body. It had its own voice. The words came out of my mouth. In that sense, they were mine. I would not have spoken them if I were given the choice.
Asker: After certain centers in the brain are damaged by a stroke, some people say things they never would have before the injury. Yet, it is the same person inside. The soul of the person, the essence, remains unchanged. Is that what you mean?
Man: I did not want to claim those words as mine.
Asker: You did not ask Jesus to heal you.
Man: I did in a way because the words came out of my mouth. Sometimes our actions speak for us. They do not keep silent. In that sense I asked for help. However, I was helpless to say, "Jesus, something has gone wrong inside me. It feels as if it were controlling me at its whim." Healed now, I feel like an entirely different person. Now I have hope.
Interviewing The Unclean Spirit
Asker: Bear with me on this one, unclean spirit. It is not my style to think about demons as entities, let alone to talk to them. I do not know exactly who you are or what has taken over the person in this miracle. You are negative. You are destructive. However, thanks to the teachings of this story, I know you are not all-powerful. Evil is hard to put a finger on. I give you more power than you deserve by speaking as if you were a person.
Unclean spirit, you sounded frightened when you spoke out to Jesus. Were you seriously challenged for the first time by someone with more authority than you? You are silent now. Listen, as I have some things to say to you. First, had you not broken the silence, Jesus might not have known you were there.
Unclean Spirit: Evil brandishes no power by being quiet. It thrives on stirring up trouble.
Asker: You recognized Jesus.
Unclean Spirit: Without a doubt.
Asker: The worst thing that could happen to you would be your destruction. When you challenged Jesus, did you hope he had the authority to make a difference?
Unclean Spirit: How perceptive. Sometimes trouble makes itself known with a combination of fear and defiance. I gain power by destroying. I try hard, but ultimately, I cannot stand up to God's power.
Asker: Recognizing something for what it is can reduce its power. Jesus saw bravado for what it was. I still wonder about your asking Jesus what he had to do with you. You used the collective, "us." Does that mean there are several of "you," negative spirits, running around in some nether land? Perhaps "you" refers to you and the person in whose body you live.
I wonder if you are the personification of that dark side in all of us that we do not want to claim. Wherever evil takes hold, the demon called turmoil or the demon called chaos threatens to take over a life. I see one facet of hope as the possibility that we do not have to become our demons. We do not have to lose our identity. When there is mental illness, is it not hope that encourages mental health workers to persevere?
You said, "I know who you are, the Holy One of God." I hear you addressing Jesus with a defiant, cynical voice rather than one of awe. What does the human ear hear when evil appears to speak? What causes people to change from disbelief to a sense of the holy? Is it out of fashion to acknowledge feeling awe in these days of downplaying authority? That might place the person in a secondary position.
Unclean Spirit: I do enjoy scrambling people. Stop a minute, you question box. You are not giving me a chance to get in a crooked word. My turn. Ask in your world of today, what does Jesus have to do with you? What is the relevance of the Holy One of God in your life? How does God care about you?
Somewhere inside each kid on drugs is someone, something, asking the church, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Can you make a difference, Jesus?"
Somewhere inside men and women who suffer the demon of abuse from a spouse or an adult child is someone, something, asking, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Do you still care?"
Asker: These questions you and I have been asking -- how do we know if I am asking them or if some evil force within me is asking them? I need to talk to Christ.
Interviewing Jesus
Asker: Jesus, if I am to be a whole person, then must I not also claim my negative aspects? Is the evil part what I do not like about myself? How did evil get inside me?
How simple it would be to get rid of the dark side simply by saying to it, "Be quiet." We must have the strength to speak to what threatens to drown us. If God wishes well for us, Jesus, then why does evil exist? Why does God not just keep us all well?
Jesus: I would not snatch your adventure of pondering these lifetime questions by giving you easy answers. However, these thoughts might help. First, when the people of my day witnessed something negative and puzzling, they often saw an evil spirit at its origin. For instance, possession by a demon was the common person's answer for an epileptic seizure.
Now, let us return to where you stopped trying to reason with an unclean spirit. You spoke about telling our dark side to be quiet. Our Creator saw that the world was good, but God did not say it is perfect. Negative elements present themselves in our lives. Disease is not a part of the divine order of things. God does not send sickness. God wishes well for us. God stands with us as inner strength in suffering. "For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope" (Jeremiah 29:11).
Asker: Jesus, you and the unclean spirit within the man are the main players of this miracle story. The man is a shell that you never address. Still, you call the spirit "he," as if you were speaking to the man. If you acknowledge that the unclean spirit exists, then not only the man perceives it.
Jesus: I recognize the unholy as well as the holy within the person. The unclean spirit recognizes the holy within me. When we admit the presence of both creative and negative energies, then we can choose the attitude we will take toward them. When I say you must love your neighbor as yourself, most people hear "neighbor" but ignore the "as yourself." With forgiveness, we stop allowing a negative part of us to eat us up. We are free to start over.
Asker: Does it make sense, then, to embrace that part of us that we cannot stand? By forgiving it, we subdue it?
Jesus: One way to avoid letting our negative dimensions gain the upper hand is to see them for what they are. Most of us do not suffer from a serious mental illness. However, to a person suffering from an illness called multiple personalities, each personality does seem real. Each speaks with its own voice. Think of evil as one might a chronic illness that surfaces with acute outbursts.
Asker: Then we must call our demons by name. What about your role in this miracle, Jesus? When something has us within its grip, we are helpless to act or think. Are we too weak to silence and expel this demon ourselves? Must we always give over our demons to a greater power?
Jesus: When something negative dominates our lives, we need an ally to stand with us. That may be a trusted friend who offers encouragement when we cannot find courage for ourselves. Hope for change and the improvement of a person's life is strong in this miracle. What is important here is that the man's turmoil could be quieted. Stilled, it could come out of him; that is, he became well. He got over it. He moved beyond the chaos.
Asker: You gave two commands: "Be silent, and come out of him." Must our demons first be quieted down before they can leave us? The man was a passive observer to the demon that convulsed him. He was completely at its mercy. Is this how certain forms of mental illness act?
Jesus: Adults who have let fear or anxiety consume them, whether as the result of a chemical imbalance or from an overload of pressure, seek someone to address the piece of them that can still listen and respond. If the helper can connect, then the sick person begins to trust that core, best part, and to rebuild a healthy life.
Asker: When we can make decisions, we have a choice between good and evil. What credibility does one with an unclean spirit have? Is that period a time-out from ordinary life? What responsibility does the person whom an evil spirit possesses have? Are murderers able to take responsibility for their actions?
Jesus: The person beneath the disease, the soul of that person, is still valid. A most unsettling word in your English language is "invalid." A chronic condition or disease may cause a person to become an invalid; however, it need not make that person invalid. We invalidate the soul of ourselves or of others if we identify and label only by negative energy.
Asker: You acknowledge a separation between the identity of the person and the negative spirit. Does this encourage us to separate from our essence those illnesses and chronic conditions that invade our bodies? The cancer that compromises the whole body does not have to endanger the integrity of the soul. Still, emotional or spiritual stressors can result in burning out the body. Continued burdens of physical pain can sap the spirit.
Jesus: We are mixtures of creative and destructive dimensions. We are free, metaphorically, to shush the destructive and to cheer the creative forces within us. While I have not used your modern word "integrity," I like it. Integrity is the condition of being held in healthy unity. This basic balance harmonizes mind, body, and spirit.
When one part of an individual is in trouble, the whole person suffers. Sickness or unhealthiness shows itself in many forms. The task of the counselor, physician or healer is to discern the source of the discord that is breaking apart a suffering person, and to nudge the sufferer toward reconciliation.
4. Words
Authority
This miracle is about authority. Authority is closely connected with the power to influence or persuade resulting from knowledge or experience. The authority of Jesus brought a sense of his authenticity. One with authority has dominion: You command, I obey. People who feel the threat of an authority ask, "What gives you the right to command? Why do I feel forced to obey?"
In the Old Testament, authority means a legal right. It takes on further meaning in the New Testament as the power to enable a miracle to happen. Jesus had the authority to overcome the powers of evil. He gave the firm command of authority in quieting and exorcizing demonic spirits.
We must take an attitude toward authority. We either accept its validity or reject it. The words, "But I say to you," lead us to respond, "I am listening" or "So what?" Authority is dynamic rather than static. Persons of recent generations have leaned toward rejecting most external authority figures.
One grants authority to another person or recognizes an accepted source as expert information. Consider the element of freedom or right in authority. Students learn to investigate the credentials of an author before they accept a specific, written text as a legitimate source of information.
Final authority belongs to God. Those who question the authority of Jesus ask who grants Jesus authority, how it is that he claims authority and what makes him expert.
God gave Jesus authority as part of the God-person connection. Psalm 111:2-4 suggests the importance of Jesus' works in establishing his authority. "Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who delight in them. Full of honor and majesty is his work, and his righteousness endures forever. He has gained renown by his wonderful deeds; the Lord is gracious and merciful." (See lectionary Psalm 111 for Epiphany 4 in Cycle B.)
Jesus both recognized his authority and claimed it. Otherwise, he would have had no power to cause change or to perform miracles of healing or exorcism. Jesus accepted his authority as subordinate to God. He was accountable to God. He was in divine partnership with his Creator.
Similarly, those new in their professions, such as seminary graduates, medical interns or maintenance supervisors, must claim authority and believe in their capacity to work in that position. If they can, their attitude is contagious. Their work is effective when they elicit the trust of parishioners, patients or workers. Part of claiming authority or accepting responsibility for our actions involves recognizing to whom we are accountable.
To continue God's acting in the world, Christ entrusted to his followers his own authority to heal and proclaim the coming of the kingdom. Hear the gift of Jesus' authority within the context of the Isaiah hope:
For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore (Isaiah 9:6-7).
Today, electronic authorities tease us. Just because the computer says something does not make it right. We must consider the source. Particularly in election years, voters become leery of candidates who seize television authority. Naivete was spent on earlier exposure to empty voices. Such exposure undermines trust. How do we come to accept anyone or anything as authority once we have become clogged with cynicism? How do we move beyond wariness to listen with a more discerning ear to what a candidate offers?
We are in times of accepting few authorities. How do we measure, size up, an authority? Has the highest American authority become fear of a gun? How did it happen that we have reduced the value of people to the level of things having no conscience? How do we turn this view of the world around so we again grant to a human being value, power and authority simply because of the God-connection?
What about our authority? What authority does our God-connection give to us? Elements include, first, the responsibility to be the best we can be in all situations. Second, those with authority accept responsibility to remember they are children of God. Finally, we know we are valid and we count.
Demons
Demons are spiritual beings who recognized Jesus before followers of Jesus did. A demon, a cosmic power opposed to God, is an unclean spirit. The Synoptic Gospels cite twelve references using the word "demon." In the present miracle story, a separate personality spoke through the individual.
People living in Old Testament days believed evil spirits were the bearers of disease and mental problems. They believed evil spirits took possession of a person. They attributed insanity to the presence of an unclean spirit or a demon. Evidence of suicidal impulses suggested demonic possession. Demonism, or spirit possession, also was a folk designation for epilepsy.
The solution to the problem of demons presented a great difficulty requiring more than physical remedies. Healing came from the spiritual dimension. Jesus regarded disease as one manifestation of evil. A connection lay between casting out demons and recognizing the presence of the kingdom of God. If it is the spirit of God that casts out demons, then the kingdom of God has come. Once these negative spirits were removed, individuals led normal, healthy lives.
Exorcism
Exorcism is the practice of expelling evil spirits from persons or places. Exorcists use incantations and perform certain occult acts. Although exorcism was a common practice then, the Old Testament does not speak of it. According to New Testament writings, Jesus did not use incantations or occult rituals. He met the evil spirits with a stronger, good spirit. Jesus cast out demons by his own words and by the "Spirit of God." (See Matthew 12:28.) Jesus gave his disciples the authority to cast out unclean spirits and to cure diseases and sicknesses. (See Matthew 10:1 and Mark 6:7.) Jesus told them to do this using his name. (See Mark 16:17.)
Miracle
A deepening of faith, is that what a miracle is all about? A beginning definition of a miracle suggests an event that appears unexplainable by the laws of nature. As a result, we say it has a supernatural origin. It is an act of God. It is beyond human power.
Today tempts us to explain away the healing miracles of yesterday's Jesus. The people of that day knew little of what we know now about medicine, we say. In their relative medical and scientific innocence, they only called miraculous what they could not comprehend.
Upon closer look, the healing miracles of Jesus open to us a greater depth of understanding. They pull us beyond the range of certainty into the realm of "maybe." Here we begin to reshape dictionary definitions into a definition of the heart. We see a miracle in Jesus' extraordinary capacity to discern the source of a person's suffering. We recognize a miracle in the creation of the human body and spirit. We find a miracle in human resilience, the capacity to heal, the instinct of the body to respond by healing and being as whole and well as possible.
Willingness to consider a miracle fills us with a mixture of doubt and curiosity. The reality of a miracle awakens us and introduces us to the words and emotions of a less sophisticated time -- awe, holy, reverence, admiration. The idea of a miracle invites us to suspend questioning for a moment.
Capernaum
Early in his ministry, Jesus left for Capernaum. Located on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee, Capernaum was an important city in the Gospels. Its prosperity was due to the east-west trade route.
Capernaum became the center of Jesus' ministry. He called it his home. He healed many people there; among them were the man with the unclean spirit (Cycle B, Miracle 1), the servant of the centurion (Cycle C, Miracle 7), and the paralytic (Cycle B, Miracle 4).
Unclean And Clean
The idea of unclean has ancient roots in tribal life. To be unclean means to be contaminated by a physical, ritual or moral impurity. Cleanness, then, is the absence of impurities. Unclean could apply to persons, food, places, or objects. This notion evolved into laws administered by priests.
In the New Testament, the demons that cause insanity are regularly called unclean spirits. People believed that only God could bring a clean thing out of unclean conditions. (See Psalm 51:10: "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me.") This miracle story emphasizes Jesus' gain of authority not only as a teacher but also as one whom the unclean spirits obeyed. Cleansing was part of the redeeming work of Christ as high priest. Sufferers were cleansed by his word. His blood cleanses the whole church. For further discussion about unclean, see Cycle B, Miracle 3.
Sabbath
This exorcism was a sabbath healing. For a discussion of the roles of the sabbath, healing, and Jesus' authority, see Cycle B, Miracle 5.
Scribes
A class of special teachers of the Jewish law, scribes were officials who had charge of legal documents. They served an important role in the foundation of the Jewish religion. As guardians of the Law, they kept close watch on the teaching and actions of Jesus. Their main business was teaching and interpreting the Law, that is, the transmission of traditional legal documents and the preservation of the legal system. These secretaries occupied a special chamber in the royal palace. In pre-Exilic times they held no religious significance.
Scribes and Pharisees were both drawn from the families of the priests, but scribe was a purely secular office. Pharisees, who represented a distinctive class in the community, were a group formed from the scribes. Professional lawyers carried more importance than nonprofessional members of the party. They practiced their legal profession throughout Palestine. The Gospel called Matthew substitutes the elders of the people for the scribes. Given precedence over Pharisees, scribes interrogated Jesus throughout his ministry. See also Miracle 4 and Miracle 5 in Cycle B.
Synagogue
The synagogue, the equivalent of congregation or assembly, was a gathering place used for public worship and instruction. In the New Testament, it appears as a house of worship and a place of assemblage for instruction.
Fear
"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Psalm 111:10). The word "fear" is not spoken in this miracle story. However, it is present in the questions the unclean spirit asks. Fear involves a wide range of emotions from simple apprehension to dread. In the Old Testament, persons express fear whenever a threat appears against their security and particularly their lives. In the New Testament, fear fixes upon worldly fear, timidity, cowardice, and death. When one's own authority is threatened, as with the power of the unclean spirit, fear is fright. When one accepts the authority of another, fear takes on its positive side, awe.
5. Gospel Parallels
Setting
The collection of words of Jesus that we call the Sermon on the Mount ends with Jesus' words about speaking with authority. Mark and Luke place this miracle in Capernaum (Mark 1:21). As if writing to strangers, Luke emphasizes Capernaum as a city in Galilee (Luke 4:31). While both writers stress Jesus' teaching on the sabbath, Mark places equal weight upon the sabbath and Jesus' teaching in the synagogue. Until verse 33, Luke avoids mentioning that Jesus was teaching in the synagogue.
Response Of The Crowds In The Synagogue
Mark, Luke, and Matthew all report that Jesus' teaching astounded the crowds. Mark emphasizes the "new teaching" and Jesus' teaching with authority (Mark 1:22 and 27). Luke emphasizes Jesus' authority and power (Luke 4:32 and 36). Mark says he taught as one having authority and not as "the" scribes (Mark 1:22). Matthew's two-verse summary emphasizes Jesus' teaching as one having authority and not as "their" scribes (Matthew 7:28). Luke says Jesus spoke with authority but makes no mention of scribes (Luke 4:32).
Following the healing, the response was amazement. Mark reports the crowd "kept asking one another" (Mark 1:27) and Luke that they "kept saying to one another" (Luke 4:36).
Mark's version, with shorter, direct sentences, is more spontaneous than Luke's smoother phrasing. Contrast Mark's "What is this?" (Mark 1:27) with Luke's "What kind of utterance is this?" (Luke 4:36) and Mark's "A new teaching -- with authority!" (Mark 1:27) with Luke's "For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits" (Luke 4:36).
One can hear the amazement in Luke's spontaneous phrasing after Jesus commands the unclean spirits, "and out they come" (Luke 4:36). Mark is staid: "He commands 'even' the unclean spirits and they 'obey' him" (Mark 1:27).
Man With Unclean Spirit
Luke, the physician, is more specific in the diagnosis of the sick man, saying "a man who had the spirit of an unclean demon" (Luke 4:33). Mark is brief: "a man with an unclean spirit" (Mark 1:23).
Both writers say, "he cried out," without defining if it were the demon, the man or the unity (or disunity) of both (Luke 4:33 and Mark 1:24). Luke amplifies, "with a loud voice" (Luke 4:33).
Mark's version, saying "Just then," (verse 23), is more dramatic than Luke's straightforward, "In the synagogue there wasÉ" (verse 33).
Except for Luke's preface with the spirit commanding, "Let us alone" (Luke 4:34), Luke and Mark's three direct statements by the spirit are identical:
"What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?" Note, first, the use of "us" rather than "me" and, second, the unclean spirit recognizes Jesus and calls him by name.
"Have you come to destroy us?" and "I know who you are, the Holy One of God" (Luke 4:34 and Mark 1:24).
Responding to Jesus' rebuke, Mark reports the unclean spirit convulses the man. Then the unclean spirit cries out with a loud voice and comes out of the man (Mark 1:26). Luke reports the demon comes out of the man after having thrown him down and that the demon did not harm the man (Luke 4:35).
Jesus' Action
The double command of Mark 1:25 and Luke 4:35 for the unclean spirit to be silent and to come out of the man is the same in both narratives.
Outcome
Mark 1:28 stresses the immediate outcome as "At once" and as Jesus' "fame." Less dramatic, Luke 4:37 says, "And a report about him." Mark says "throughout the surrounding region of Galilee" and Luke says "began to reach every place in the region." Luke already told the region in the first sentence of the story, but Mark now identifies the region as Galilee.
This healing story is the first pronouncement story in Cycle B. The pronouncement formula presents a situation, builds to a climax, offers a solution and gives a statement of the issue. In the early church, this format made for easier recall of the story for oral retelling.
While healing on the sabbath is mentioned in this miracle, the main issue is authority. In another Cycle B miracle for Epiphany 7, healing the paralytic (Miracle 4), Jesus observes rumblings and questions among the scribes (Mark 2:6) and challenges them. The fifth miracle in this series (Proper 4), healing the man with the withered hand, also touches on Jesus' authority. However, its main focus is healing on the sabbath.
First Point Of Action
The first two verses state the synopsis of the story. "They" go to the synagogue at Capernaum, and Jesus teaches on the sabbath. Jesus teaches with authority rather than as a scribe would teach. The result brings amazement from listeners.
Second Point Of Action
A man with an unclean spirit cries out to Jesus in the synagogue. He first questions Jesus' role, then recognizes Jesus as a holy person. The unclean spirit voice within the man addresses Jesus with three statements: First, it asks what Jesus has to do with us. Second, it asks if Jesus has come to destroy them. Third, it shows recognition.
Third Point Of Action
Jesus rebukes the unclean spirit within the man. He commands that the spirit be silent and come out of him. Jesus strongly criticizes the evil spirit within the person.
Fourth Point Of Action
The spirit convulses the man and comes out of him with a loud voice.
Fifth Point Of Action
The people in the synagogue who observe this show amazement. They do not know how to explain this. Jesus' actions and authority amaze them. They talk among themselves about it.
Sixth Point Of Action
Because of their talk, Jesus' fame spreads throughout the region of Galilee.
3. Connecting Points -- Conversations
Interviewing The Man With The Unclean Spirit
Asker: People suffering epileptic convulsions look as if they are possessed by something completely beyond their control. Is that what happened to you?
Man: It seized my whole being. It was a stranger invading my body. It had its own voice. The words came out of my mouth. In that sense, they were mine. I would not have spoken them if I were given the choice.
Asker: After certain centers in the brain are damaged by a stroke, some people say things they never would have before the injury. Yet, it is the same person inside. The soul of the person, the essence, remains unchanged. Is that what you mean?
Man: I did not want to claim those words as mine.
Asker: You did not ask Jesus to heal you.
Man: I did in a way because the words came out of my mouth. Sometimes our actions speak for us. They do not keep silent. In that sense I asked for help. However, I was helpless to say, "Jesus, something has gone wrong inside me. It feels as if it were controlling me at its whim." Healed now, I feel like an entirely different person. Now I have hope.
Interviewing The Unclean Spirit
Asker: Bear with me on this one, unclean spirit. It is not my style to think about demons as entities, let alone to talk to them. I do not know exactly who you are or what has taken over the person in this miracle. You are negative. You are destructive. However, thanks to the teachings of this story, I know you are not all-powerful. Evil is hard to put a finger on. I give you more power than you deserve by speaking as if you were a person.
Unclean spirit, you sounded frightened when you spoke out to Jesus. Were you seriously challenged for the first time by someone with more authority than you? You are silent now. Listen, as I have some things to say to you. First, had you not broken the silence, Jesus might not have known you were there.
Unclean Spirit: Evil brandishes no power by being quiet. It thrives on stirring up trouble.
Asker: You recognized Jesus.
Unclean Spirit: Without a doubt.
Asker: The worst thing that could happen to you would be your destruction. When you challenged Jesus, did you hope he had the authority to make a difference?
Unclean Spirit: How perceptive. Sometimes trouble makes itself known with a combination of fear and defiance. I gain power by destroying. I try hard, but ultimately, I cannot stand up to God's power.
Asker: Recognizing something for what it is can reduce its power. Jesus saw bravado for what it was. I still wonder about your asking Jesus what he had to do with you. You used the collective, "us." Does that mean there are several of "you," negative spirits, running around in some nether land? Perhaps "you" refers to you and the person in whose body you live.
I wonder if you are the personification of that dark side in all of us that we do not want to claim. Wherever evil takes hold, the demon called turmoil or the demon called chaos threatens to take over a life. I see one facet of hope as the possibility that we do not have to become our demons. We do not have to lose our identity. When there is mental illness, is it not hope that encourages mental health workers to persevere?
You said, "I know who you are, the Holy One of God." I hear you addressing Jesus with a defiant, cynical voice rather than one of awe. What does the human ear hear when evil appears to speak? What causes people to change from disbelief to a sense of the holy? Is it out of fashion to acknowledge feeling awe in these days of downplaying authority? That might place the person in a secondary position.
Unclean Spirit: I do enjoy scrambling people. Stop a minute, you question box. You are not giving me a chance to get in a crooked word. My turn. Ask in your world of today, what does Jesus have to do with you? What is the relevance of the Holy One of God in your life? How does God care about you?
Somewhere inside each kid on drugs is someone, something, asking the church, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Can you make a difference, Jesus?"
Somewhere inside men and women who suffer the demon of abuse from a spouse or an adult child is someone, something, asking, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Do you still care?"
Asker: These questions you and I have been asking -- how do we know if I am asking them or if some evil force within me is asking them? I need to talk to Christ.
Interviewing Jesus
Asker: Jesus, if I am to be a whole person, then must I not also claim my negative aspects? Is the evil part what I do not like about myself? How did evil get inside me?
How simple it would be to get rid of the dark side simply by saying to it, "Be quiet." We must have the strength to speak to what threatens to drown us. If God wishes well for us, Jesus, then why does evil exist? Why does God not just keep us all well?
Jesus: I would not snatch your adventure of pondering these lifetime questions by giving you easy answers. However, these thoughts might help. First, when the people of my day witnessed something negative and puzzling, they often saw an evil spirit at its origin. For instance, possession by a demon was the common person's answer for an epileptic seizure.
Now, let us return to where you stopped trying to reason with an unclean spirit. You spoke about telling our dark side to be quiet. Our Creator saw that the world was good, but God did not say it is perfect. Negative elements present themselves in our lives. Disease is not a part of the divine order of things. God does not send sickness. God wishes well for us. God stands with us as inner strength in suffering. "For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope" (Jeremiah 29:11).
Asker: Jesus, you and the unclean spirit within the man are the main players of this miracle story. The man is a shell that you never address. Still, you call the spirit "he," as if you were speaking to the man. If you acknowledge that the unclean spirit exists, then not only the man perceives it.
Jesus: I recognize the unholy as well as the holy within the person. The unclean spirit recognizes the holy within me. When we admit the presence of both creative and negative energies, then we can choose the attitude we will take toward them. When I say you must love your neighbor as yourself, most people hear "neighbor" but ignore the "as yourself." With forgiveness, we stop allowing a negative part of us to eat us up. We are free to start over.
Asker: Does it make sense, then, to embrace that part of us that we cannot stand? By forgiving it, we subdue it?
Jesus: One way to avoid letting our negative dimensions gain the upper hand is to see them for what they are. Most of us do not suffer from a serious mental illness. However, to a person suffering from an illness called multiple personalities, each personality does seem real. Each speaks with its own voice. Think of evil as one might a chronic illness that surfaces with acute outbursts.
Asker: Then we must call our demons by name. What about your role in this miracle, Jesus? When something has us within its grip, we are helpless to act or think. Are we too weak to silence and expel this demon ourselves? Must we always give over our demons to a greater power?
Jesus: When something negative dominates our lives, we need an ally to stand with us. That may be a trusted friend who offers encouragement when we cannot find courage for ourselves. Hope for change and the improvement of a person's life is strong in this miracle. What is important here is that the man's turmoil could be quieted. Stilled, it could come out of him; that is, he became well. He got over it. He moved beyond the chaos.
Asker: You gave two commands: "Be silent, and come out of him." Must our demons first be quieted down before they can leave us? The man was a passive observer to the demon that convulsed him. He was completely at its mercy. Is this how certain forms of mental illness act?
Jesus: Adults who have let fear or anxiety consume them, whether as the result of a chemical imbalance or from an overload of pressure, seek someone to address the piece of them that can still listen and respond. If the helper can connect, then the sick person begins to trust that core, best part, and to rebuild a healthy life.
Asker: When we can make decisions, we have a choice between good and evil. What credibility does one with an unclean spirit have? Is that period a time-out from ordinary life? What responsibility does the person whom an evil spirit possesses have? Are murderers able to take responsibility for their actions?
Jesus: The person beneath the disease, the soul of that person, is still valid. A most unsettling word in your English language is "invalid." A chronic condition or disease may cause a person to become an invalid; however, it need not make that person invalid. We invalidate the soul of ourselves or of others if we identify and label only by negative energy.
Asker: You acknowledge a separation between the identity of the person and the negative spirit. Does this encourage us to separate from our essence those illnesses and chronic conditions that invade our bodies? The cancer that compromises the whole body does not have to endanger the integrity of the soul. Still, emotional or spiritual stressors can result in burning out the body. Continued burdens of physical pain can sap the spirit.
Jesus: We are mixtures of creative and destructive dimensions. We are free, metaphorically, to shush the destructive and to cheer the creative forces within us. While I have not used your modern word "integrity," I like it. Integrity is the condition of being held in healthy unity. This basic balance harmonizes mind, body, and spirit.
When one part of an individual is in trouble, the whole person suffers. Sickness or unhealthiness shows itself in many forms. The task of the counselor, physician or healer is to discern the source of the discord that is breaking apart a suffering person, and to nudge the sufferer toward reconciliation.
4. Words
Authority
This miracle is about authority. Authority is closely connected with the power to influence or persuade resulting from knowledge or experience. The authority of Jesus brought a sense of his authenticity. One with authority has dominion: You command, I obey. People who feel the threat of an authority ask, "What gives you the right to command? Why do I feel forced to obey?"
In the Old Testament, authority means a legal right. It takes on further meaning in the New Testament as the power to enable a miracle to happen. Jesus had the authority to overcome the powers of evil. He gave the firm command of authority in quieting and exorcizing demonic spirits.
We must take an attitude toward authority. We either accept its validity or reject it. The words, "But I say to you," lead us to respond, "I am listening" or "So what?" Authority is dynamic rather than static. Persons of recent generations have leaned toward rejecting most external authority figures.
One grants authority to another person or recognizes an accepted source as expert information. Consider the element of freedom or right in authority. Students learn to investigate the credentials of an author before they accept a specific, written text as a legitimate source of information.
Final authority belongs to God. Those who question the authority of Jesus ask who grants Jesus authority, how it is that he claims authority and what makes him expert.
God gave Jesus authority as part of the God-person connection. Psalm 111:2-4 suggests the importance of Jesus' works in establishing his authority. "Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who delight in them. Full of honor and majesty is his work, and his righteousness endures forever. He has gained renown by his wonderful deeds; the Lord is gracious and merciful." (See lectionary Psalm 111 for Epiphany 4 in Cycle B.)
Jesus both recognized his authority and claimed it. Otherwise, he would have had no power to cause change or to perform miracles of healing or exorcism. Jesus accepted his authority as subordinate to God. He was accountable to God. He was in divine partnership with his Creator.
Similarly, those new in their professions, such as seminary graduates, medical interns or maintenance supervisors, must claim authority and believe in their capacity to work in that position. If they can, their attitude is contagious. Their work is effective when they elicit the trust of parishioners, patients or workers. Part of claiming authority or accepting responsibility for our actions involves recognizing to whom we are accountable.
To continue God's acting in the world, Christ entrusted to his followers his own authority to heal and proclaim the coming of the kingdom. Hear the gift of Jesus' authority within the context of the Isaiah hope:
For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore (Isaiah 9:6-7).
Today, electronic authorities tease us. Just because the computer says something does not make it right. We must consider the source. Particularly in election years, voters become leery of candidates who seize television authority. Naivete was spent on earlier exposure to empty voices. Such exposure undermines trust. How do we come to accept anyone or anything as authority once we have become clogged with cynicism? How do we move beyond wariness to listen with a more discerning ear to what a candidate offers?
We are in times of accepting few authorities. How do we measure, size up, an authority? Has the highest American authority become fear of a gun? How did it happen that we have reduced the value of people to the level of things having no conscience? How do we turn this view of the world around so we again grant to a human being value, power and authority simply because of the God-connection?
What about our authority? What authority does our God-connection give to us? Elements include, first, the responsibility to be the best we can be in all situations. Second, those with authority accept responsibility to remember they are children of God. Finally, we know we are valid and we count.
Demons
Demons are spiritual beings who recognized Jesus before followers of Jesus did. A demon, a cosmic power opposed to God, is an unclean spirit. The Synoptic Gospels cite twelve references using the word "demon." In the present miracle story, a separate personality spoke through the individual.
People living in Old Testament days believed evil spirits were the bearers of disease and mental problems. They believed evil spirits took possession of a person. They attributed insanity to the presence of an unclean spirit or a demon. Evidence of suicidal impulses suggested demonic possession. Demonism, or spirit possession, also was a folk designation for epilepsy.
The solution to the problem of demons presented a great difficulty requiring more than physical remedies. Healing came from the spiritual dimension. Jesus regarded disease as one manifestation of evil. A connection lay between casting out demons and recognizing the presence of the kingdom of God. If it is the spirit of God that casts out demons, then the kingdom of God has come. Once these negative spirits were removed, individuals led normal, healthy lives.
Exorcism
Exorcism is the practice of expelling evil spirits from persons or places. Exorcists use incantations and perform certain occult acts. Although exorcism was a common practice then, the Old Testament does not speak of it. According to New Testament writings, Jesus did not use incantations or occult rituals. He met the evil spirits with a stronger, good spirit. Jesus cast out demons by his own words and by the "Spirit of God." (See Matthew 12:28.) Jesus gave his disciples the authority to cast out unclean spirits and to cure diseases and sicknesses. (See Matthew 10:1 and Mark 6:7.) Jesus told them to do this using his name. (See Mark 16:17.)
Miracle
A deepening of faith, is that what a miracle is all about? A beginning definition of a miracle suggests an event that appears unexplainable by the laws of nature. As a result, we say it has a supernatural origin. It is an act of God. It is beyond human power.
Today tempts us to explain away the healing miracles of yesterday's Jesus. The people of that day knew little of what we know now about medicine, we say. In their relative medical and scientific innocence, they only called miraculous what they could not comprehend.
Upon closer look, the healing miracles of Jesus open to us a greater depth of understanding. They pull us beyond the range of certainty into the realm of "maybe." Here we begin to reshape dictionary definitions into a definition of the heart. We see a miracle in Jesus' extraordinary capacity to discern the source of a person's suffering. We recognize a miracle in the creation of the human body and spirit. We find a miracle in human resilience, the capacity to heal, the instinct of the body to respond by healing and being as whole and well as possible.
Willingness to consider a miracle fills us with a mixture of doubt and curiosity. The reality of a miracle awakens us and introduces us to the words and emotions of a less sophisticated time -- awe, holy, reverence, admiration. The idea of a miracle invites us to suspend questioning for a moment.
Capernaum
Early in his ministry, Jesus left for Capernaum. Located on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee, Capernaum was an important city in the Gospels. Its prosperity was due to the east-west trade route.
Capernaum became the center of Jesus' ministry. He called it his home. He healed many people there; among them were the man with the unclean spirit (Cycle B, Miracle 1), the servant of the centurion (Cycle C, Miracle 7), and the paralytic (Cycle B, Miracle 4).
Unclean And Clean
The idea of unclean has ancient roots in tribal life. To be unclean means to be contaminated by a physical, ritual or moral impurity. Cleanness, then, is the absence of impurities. Unclean could apply to persons, food, places, or objects. This notion evolved into laws administered by priests.
In the New Testament, the demons that cause insanity are regularly called unclean spirits. People believed that only God could bring a clean thing out of unclean conditions. (See Psalm 51:10: "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me.") This miracle story emphasizes Jesus' gain of authority not only as a teacher but also as one whom the unclean spirits obeyed. Cleansing was part of the redeeming work of Christ as high priest. Sufferers were cleansed by his word. His blood cleanses the whole church. For further discussion about unclean, see Cycle B, Miracle 3.
Sabbath
This exorcism was a sabbath healing. For a discussion of the roles of the sabbath, healing, and Jesus' authority, see Cycle B, Miracle 5.
Scribes
A class of special teachers of the Jewish law, scribes were officials who had charge of legal documents. They served an important role in the foundation of the Jewish religion. As guardians of the Law, they kept close watch on the teaching and actions of Jesus. Their main business was teaching and interpreting the Law, that is, the transmission of traditional legal documents and the preservation of the legal system. These secretaries occupied a special chamber in the royal palace. In pre-Exilic times they held no religious significance.
Scribes and Pharisees were both drawn from the families of the priests, but scribe was a purely secular office. Pharisees, who represented a distinctive class in the community, were a group formed from the scribes. Professional lawyers carried more importance than nonprofessional members of the party. They practiced their legal profession throughout Palestine. The Gospel called Matthew substitutes the elders of the people for the scribes. Given precedence over Pharisees, scribes interrogated Jesus throughout his ministry. See also Miracle 4 and Miracle 5 in Cycle B.
Synagogue
The synagogue, the equivalent of congregation or assembly, was a gathering place used for public worship and instruction. In the New Testament, it appears as a house of worship and a place of assemblage for instruction.
Fear
"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Psalm 111:10). The word "fear" is not spoken in this miracle story. However, it is present in the questions the unclean spirit asks. Fear involves a wide range of emotions from simple apprehension to dread. In the Old Testament, persons express fear whenever a threat appears against their security and particularly their lives. In the New Testament, fear fixes upon worldly fear, timidity, cowardice, and death. When one's own authority is threatened, as with the power of the unclean spirit, fear is fright. When one accepts the authority of another, fear takes on its positive side, awe.
5. Gospel Parallels
Setting
The collection of words of Jesus that we call the Sermon on the Mount ends with Jesus' words about speaking with authority. Mark and Luke place this miracle in Capernaum (Mark 1:21). As if writing to strangers, Luke emphasizes Capernaum as a city in Galilee (Luke 4:31). While both writers stress Jesus' teaching on the sabbath, Mark places equal weight upon the sabbath and Jesus' teaching in the synagogue. Until verse 33, Luke avoids mentioning that Jesus was teaching in the synagogue.
Response Of The Crowds In The Synagogue
Mark, Luke, and Matthew all report that Jesus' teaching astounded the crowds. Mark emphasizes the "new teaching" and Jesus' teaching with authority (Mark 1:22 and 27). Luke emphasizes Jesus' authority and power (Luke 4:32 and 36). Mark says he taught as one having authority and not as "the" scribes (Mark 1:22). Matthew's two-verse summary emphasizes Jesus' teaching as one having authority and not as "their" scribes (Matthew 7:28). Luke says Jesus spoke with authority but makes no mention of scribes (Luke 4:32).
Following the healing, the response was amazement. Mark reports the crowd "kept asking one another" (Mark 1:27) and Luke that they "kept saying to one another" (Luke 4:36).
Mark's version, with shorter, direct sentences, is more spontaneous than Luke's smoother phrasing. Contrast Mark's "What is this?" (Mark 1:27) with Luke's "What kind of utterance is this?" (Luke 4:36) and Mark's "A new teaching -- with authority!" (Mark 1:27) with Luke's "For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits" (Luke 4:36).
One can hear the amazement in Luke's spontaneous phrasing after Jesus commands the unclean spirits, "and out they come" (Luke 4:36). Mark is staid: "He commands 'even' the unclean spirits and they 'obey' him" (Mark 1:27).
Man With Unclean Spirit
Luke, the physician, is more specific in the diagnosis of the sick man, saying "a man who had the spirit of an unclean demon" (Luke 4:33). Mark is brief: "a man with an unclean spirit" (Mark 1:23).
Both writers say, "he cried out," without defining if it were the demon, the man or the unity (or disunity) of both (Luke 4:33 and Mark 1:24). Luke amplifies, "with a loud voice" (Luke 4:33).
Mark's version, saying "Just then," (verse 23), is more dramatic than Luke's straightforward, "In the synagogue there wasÉ" (verse 33).
Except for Luke's preface with the spirit commanding, "Let us alone" (Luke 4:34), Luke and Mark's three direct statements by the spirit are identical:
"What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?" Note, first, the use of "us" rather than "me" and, second, the unclean spirit recognizes Jesus and calls him by name.
"Have you come to destroy us?" and "I know who you are, the Holy One of God" (Luke 4:34 and Mark 1:24).
Responding to Jesus' rebuke, Mark reports the unclean spirit convulses the man. Then the unclean spirit cries out with a loud voice and comes out of the man (Mark 1:26). Luke reports the demon comes out of the man after having thrown him down and that the demon did not harm the man (Luke 4:35).
Jesus' Action
The double command of Mark 1:25 and Luke 4:35 for the unclean spirit to be silent and to come out of the man is the same in both narratives.
Outcome
Mark 1:28 stresses the immediate outcome as "At once" and as Jesus' "fame." Less dramatic, Luke 4:37 says, "And a report about him." Mark says "throughout the surrounding region of Galilee" and Luke says "began to reach every place in the region." Luke already told the region in the first sentence of the story, but Mark now identifies the region as Galilee.
