Prayer and Fasting to Arrest This Evil

Photo Credit: Pixabay.com

Last week I referred to Jesuit James Martin’s description of an evil spirit as “a real and coherent force opposed to God and one that can overtake people.” This evil is often personified as a being, a demon. But the reality can be that it is a “devouring worm in Gehenna (hell)” (Mk 9:44) that gnaws away at one’s inclination to power and destruction and persuades one to design the destruction of others or institutions for the sake of personal power and greed and hatred. We say a person or persons so persuaded are possessed. And when the person’s chaotic stranglehold persuades others, we can say that such a person or group, be it a destructive leader or a country or an organization, is also possessed. War is such an evil. 

When the father of a boy possessed by evil – recorded in Mark – cries out to Jesus “I asked your disciples to drive out this spirit in my son, but they were unable to do so,” Jesus is moved for two reasons. One, he must cure the boy and second, he must instruct the disciples and the crowd as to why the disciples could not do it. The father’s plea is heart wrenching: “If it is possible for you to do anything, have pity on us and help us.” Jesus tells the father, “All things are possible for one who has faith,” and the father cried out, “I do believe. Help my unbelief.”

The disciples are flummoxed. Why couldn’t they drive out the evil power within the boy? After the miracle had taken place, they went somewhere indoors, and they asked Jesus the poignant question: “Why were we not able to do this?” Jesus’s answer is so relevant for us today. “This kind of evil cannot be driven out except by prayer and fasting.”

Reflection

You are probably very challenged by the evil grounding itself in the deserts of Israel and Palestine and the growing cold of the Ukrainian cities and countryside. Can you reflect on the overwhelming loss of life, innocent life which has resulted in the inability to discuss where we might offer peace? It is true that you cannot physically provide assistance in these war zones. 

But we, as Christians, need to remember the words of Jesus when we cannot work the miracles of peace, when we cannot bring enemies together: “This kind of evil cannot be driven out except by prayer and fasting.” (Mk 9:29)

So, we are left with what we can do: fast and pray. I think this is true as we face the horrible news in front of us and we seek to address it. You and I cannot be in the Gaza Strip. We cannot be in Israel. We cannot be in Ukraine. But we can be in each of these places in spirit. If the heart is open, we can offer fasting maybe one day a week. We can assemble groups to join us. We can assemble groups to pray also. We can ask people in our parishes to join a group for prayer concerning Israel, Palestine, Ukraine. Do it!!

When I was a little girl, I remember attending a prayer group in our parish with my mother during World War II. I remember the devotion of the people who attended, and I remember it was quite a crowd each time we attended with wafting curls of incense during the benediction at the end of the hour prayer time. This took place immediately after the attack on Pearl Harbor. When I would ask my mother why we were going to church, she would say, “We are praying to end the war.”

Let’s do that now. Let’s pray and fast to end the current wars and the suffering of so very many innocent people. Let’s pray and fast! Decide on at least one day a week to fast. Accompany it with every day of deep prayer for the innocent suffering in the wars and for the change of heart needed in the leaders of these wars. They, too, suffer. Mark your calendars now for the days you select to connect spiritually with the suffering of these evil wars.

Remember the words of Jesus: “This kind of evil cannot be driven out except by prayer and fasting.” (Mk 9:29)

I wish all of my readers and my Anonymous Angels a meaningful journeyinto the realm of prayer and fasting. May your hearts be replenished with love as you do this.