Thursday, January 24, 2019

Reflection for Monday, January 28; Saint Thomas Aquinas, Priest and Doctor; Mark 3:22-30

Gospel: Mark 3:22-30
The scribes who had come from Jerusalem said of Jesus, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “By the prince of demons he drives out demons.” Summoning them, he began to speak to them in parables “How can Satan drive out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided he cannot stand; that is the end of him. But no one can enter a strong man’s house to plunder his property unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can plunder his house. Amen, I say to you, all sins and all blasphemies that people utter will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an everlasting sin. For they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.
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Reflection:
What is the antidote to evil possession or who can defeat the devil? It’s our faith in Jesus, only Jesus can defeat the devil. Before we only attribute the presence of the devil to evil possession.  But not anymore today!

The devil of today doesn’t only present itself by way of evil possession. It presents itself in manifold ways such as: greed, lust, covetousness, enslavement to the modernity of time and so forth. Who can defeat the devil today? It’s still Jesus the same Jesus that defeated the devil in our gospel.   

Jesus doesn’t change He is the same Jesus yesterday, today and tomorrow. His power to defeat the devil is still present today as it was present in the gospel. But do we allow Jesus to dwell in our lives? Do we still have time for Him in this era of internet and high-tech gadgets?  

You must at all times give time for Jesus so that you could always ward off the devil from your midst. If you always have Jesus in your life you give no room for the devil to dwell in your life. How do you give time for Jesus? You have to read the inspiring life of Jesus in the bible, you have to be present at Holy Mass. And you have to have your personal prayer time for Jesus every day.  

Do you give time for Jesus even for only a minute every day? – Marino J. Dasmarinas  

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