“They brought to him all who were ill or possessed by demons.” The Jews didn’t see those two as separate, you know. If you were ill at that time, disabled, or behaviorally aberrant, a demon was possessing you & God was punishing you at the same time, pure & simple. The more serious your affliction, the graver your sin. It’s absurd, even funny, to assume that these days. Imagine, kung trinangkaso ka, o sinisikmura, o inatake sa puso, ay, dinedemonyo ka kasi may kasalanan kang ginawa. But in Israel, people took that for granted.
Must’ve been a sight to behold, sisters & brothers: the whole town gathered at the door, the Gospel says, at evening after sunset; Jesus laying hands upon head after head; Jesus whispering into ear after ear, “Come out of this man, this poor child, this mother;” muted gasps of surprise & joy, watered by tears.
Sisters & brothers, did Jesus himself believe that illness & disability were sin & demon-driven? Well, since he was a very devout Jew, he must’ve. At the back of his head, he must’ve seen the afflicted as sinners, sure. But that was why he knew that people came for healing because they wanted to be forgiven. And Jesus honored that. There was no illness so severe Jesus couldn’t heal it. Therefore, there was no sin so grave, he refused to forgive it. How could he refuse? If the blind weren’t led in or the paralyzed carried over, they limped, hobbled, or crawled to him, after dark! They were desperate for God’s forgiveness. Well, it was cooler at night, for sure. But I bet, the darkness was also a friendly shroud from public attention & shame. May sakit ka na nga, kahihiyan ka pa sa lipunan.
Sa imagination ko tuloy, parang naging confessional box ‘yung bahay kung saan naro’n si Hesus. People came in the dark to expose their demons to the Light…of the World, & exposing them, to be rid of them. Even if only to Jesus & to their fellow sinners in what was to be the last darkest night of their lives because tomorrow would be a brand new day.
Speaking of exposing demons, a little challenge I often face as a confessor is when some penitents end up exposing not their own “demons,” but their demon of a mother-in-law, their demon of a neighbor, ang demonyong ex-husband, etc. I’m sure they’re not initially aware of it. The sacrament of reconciliation, after all, should be safe space for unburdening. But I’d had to verrrry gently remind them, that since this was their confession (I mean, “Bless me, Father, for I have sinned,”) it’s our demons we want exposed & dealt with. And it’s very funny because after saying that, & asking, “So, what sins do we wish to confess today po?” Some end up saying, “Umm, wala naman ako masyadong kasalanan, Father!”
Speaking of not exposing their own demons, the 5 CEO’s of social media were grilled by the US Senate 3 days ago. Did you see some clips? They were made to answer for online negligence that bled into runaway sextortion, drug dealing, sexual predation, peddling of unrealistic beauty standards which triggered depression, eating disorders, & most tragically, suicide…of youth. Perfect examples of illness & disabilities caused by sin, if I may say so. Despite their own employees sounding alarms, the CEOs put them on mute. Zuckerberg, for one, refused recommendations to hire more employees who could code stricter guardrails & algorithms for young users. And when a senator asked him, “Have you compensated any of the victims? Don’t you think they deserve compensation for what your platform has done? Are you willing to set up a fund from your own money, you’re a billionaire, to compensate these people?” Zuckerberg? Silence…that screamed no. His apology a few moments later was too little, too late, & limp. Another senator asked the CEOs one by one if they would support the Earn It Act which incriminates tech companies complicit in child sex abuse & exploitation. It was unbelievable. They all answered with a spin. ‘Yun bang sagot-pulitiko. Smooth-spoken, silver-tongued, sounding like a yes. But it was really, “No.” The image in my head was a stone wall painted with a delightful nature scene.
The platforms that enlighten our minds, through the gadgets that light up our faces—they also traffic darkness. We, grown-ups, have often fallen for the dark that dresses up as light. Can you imagine the youth, how much more readily, more gladly they can be deceived? Incidentally, how long does it take our kids to look away from their gadgets when we want their attention? If they don’t, do we insist that they do? Or do we just say, “Oh, I’ll leave them alone. At least they’re not noisy, making a mess, strangling each other, so I can work in peace & quiet”? In the peace & quiet of our homes where we & our kids no longer talk much, whom are we listening to? Who’s got our full & unflinching attention?
See, sisters & brothers, whether in Senate halls, billionaire’s suites, or just our humble homes, it’s really true: evil’s enduring modus operandi is deception. That’s what makes us sin in ways that make us sick. But when darkness falls, we already know where to go. We already know whom to seek. Doesn’t matter if we limp over, hobble, or crawl. We just go. For there is no illness he cannot heal, no emptiness he cannot nourish, no sin he will not forgive. We just have to look away from our gadgets & go.
Homily delivered by Fr. Arnel Aquino, SJ
5th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Cenacle Retreat House