"PUT ON THE WHOLE ARMOR OF GOD..."

The Holy Apostle enjoins the faithful, "Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."  For indeed, the demonic hosts--though invisible to our material eyes and cloaked in darkness--fill the air around us, seeking to deceive (if it were possible) even the elect.

Such is the spiritual warfare we baptized Christians--as members of the Militia of Christ--have been called to engage in, and only he who endures unto the end will be saved.  But too often we fail to direct our God-given anger toward the real source of our tribulations--both as individuals, and as a society.  For the true enemy of the human race is the demonic host that ever strives to destroy us (just as they murdered the herd of swine in today's Gospel).  It is much easier, though, to demonize our brothers and sisters in the flesh who have (just like us) been deceived and led astray by Satan.

And so we toss our darts of venom toward those whom we hold responsible for the evils in this world.  And so we vilify politicians (take your pick... it's all Bush's fault, or it's all Obama's fault--as though evil is not a constant in this fallen world that will be with us until the end of time)--and we somehow think that a political regime change will magically restore this fallen world to a state of Paradise!  Or... we may choose to vilify the Jews, Masons, Jesuits--or any other institution we consider to be responsible for the present state of the world.  Or perhaps it is the Media, the entertainment industry or Big Business that we consider responsible.  Yet St. Paul never said our warfare is against flesh and blood... quite the contrary!

Lest I be misunderstood... it is doubtless needful from time to time to defend our compatriots and our Faith against those visible forces aligned with Satan--by physical force, if necessary.  Nevertheless, it is essential that we never lose sight of the fact that our primary struggle is against Satan himself--the father of lies and the sower of chaos and confusion in  the world.  And this struggle begins not out there in the world where all sorts of bad things are happening, but rather within our own souls. 

Jesus never condemned the demoniac he encountered in Gadara, while delivering him from the legion of demons that had for so long held him in bondage....  What then of you and I, who willingly consent to the counsel of the demons time and again--giving in to wicked temptations with barely a fight?  It is surely not for us to judge the weakness of a brother, but rather to look unto ourselves--ceaselessly calling upon God to deliver us from the Evil One.