Ukrainian Orthodoxy		Orthodoxie ukrainienne

Victim No Longer!

Very Reverend Ihor Kutash kutash@unicorne.org

(Twenty-third Sunday after Pentecost)

Today's Gospel (Luke 8:26-39) tells the terrible story of the pigs who were drowned because of the action of evil spirits which possessed them after they were commanded by Jesus to leave a man who had been their victim. It is also the wonderful story of the man who was restored to society by Jesus' act.

Which story do we focus on? They are both there in the one story! It is often the case that people think more readily about sensational, dramatic things which deal with horror, rather than on those dramatic things which, although less striking, are good and beautiful. Those who are able to plug into this human trait often find great success in the media.

But what is really more dramatic: the drowning of the pigs or the restoration of the man who had been victimized by the malign spirits? Which side of the story is of paramount importance to us? The people of the region seemed to have been much more impressed by the loss of the pigs. The man's good fortune was of little consequence to them. They asked Jesus to leave their neighbourhood. They didn't think of asking Him to heal or free any other victims of evil or disease. They were, perhaps, afraid of further costs to them.

So here we have a choice. Do we choose to live in the positive - in freedom and victory, even though these may be quite costly to us? Or do we choose to continue to live as victims and watch other victims struggling under the burdens placed upon them by evil choices - their own or those of others?

It is good to realize that Jesus has the power to overcome the demons, the forces of evil and oppression. Often when we see this sort of confrontation in the popular media, it seems almost as though it were the evil ones that had nearly all the power, whereas the good can only manage to squeak by, if it does get that far. This is not the case at all! The evil spirits could not continue to occupy the life of the man whom God had decided to set free. They knew that. They didn't even try to ask for an extension. They begged only for another victim.

We may see it as being cruel of God to let them abuse the pigs. On the other hand, the benefit of that was that the power of evil was shown for the horrible, mindless, destructive thing it is. There is no craftiness, no victory, no exaltation in drowning pigs. It is only vindictive, malicious cruelty. We can think of that when evil seems to be so seductive a choice for us - as it sometimes is, especially when we are thirsting for vengeance, or itching to gain something - be it goods or power - through some dishonest, underhanded act. Do we really think it could be good to place ourselves at the mercy of these desperate entities which showed off their character by drowning the pigs?

Let us end this meditation by turning away from the horrible sight of the possessed man and the pigs, towards the joyous sight of the man restored to health and sanity and communicating freely with his Liberator, his Creator and choose, consciously, deliberately and consistently to be with HIM!

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