Jesus, during His ministry, was going about the region of Galilee, bringing healing of soul and body to the people. Through signs and wonders, He was revealing Himself as the Messiah, the only begotten Son of God. In His own words, He was fulfilling the prophecy made by the prophet Isaiah in the Old Testament. He said of Himself, the Spirit of the Lord is upon Me to preach the Gospel to the poor, to heal the brokenhearted, proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, and to proclaim the Kingdom of God. As He traveled by foot with His disciples, He came to the region the Apostle Matthew calls the country of the Gergesenes. This was the east side of the Sea of Galilee, one of the ten cities of the Decapolis (present-day southern Golan Heights). There were many Gentiles there — those who were not part of the people of Israel and who did not follow the Mosaic Law. As such, the people in that area practiced pagan worship and herded swine, both of which were prohibited by Jewish Law. Pagan worship opened people spiritually to interact with false gods, which made them vulnerable to malicious spirits. It is there that Christ encounters two “demoniacs” — men who were afflicted by dark spiritual forces. This was likely the result of their worship practices. These men were fierce and angry, characteristic of such a spiritual state. They were living in the tombs of a cemetery, which symbolizes the deathly state of their spiritual condition of being far from God, Who is the source of life. These two men were experiencing pain and suffering as they resided among the tombs because they were homeless. Their existence was essentially a living death, enslaved to the evil one. Living far from the Light of the Gospel leads to the darkness of demonic possession and spiritual death. The two men, speaking with the inspiration of the dark spirits, recognize Jesus as the Son of God. They ask Him if He has come there to torment them before the end of time because they knew the Messiah would come at the end of the age and put an end to all evil, darkness, sin, and death. They knew that He would come to judge the living and the dead and establish the eternal Kingdom, where there would be no more suffering or sorrow. They ask why He is coming to judge them before the Last Day of Judgment. The truth is that the Lord’s work of our restoration and deliverance from sin and death begins at His first coming, in His Incarnation. It will be brought to completion after His second coming, on the Last Day of Judgment. This was why His earthly ministry included preaching the Good News (the Gospel) and the accompanying healings of the soul and body of everyone who asked for His help. The Lord came to save the suffering and the lost. The demons say to Jesus, if you cast us out, send us away into the herd of swine. Jewish Law prohibited herding and eating swine, which is another indication of the non-Jewish presence in that area. The spirits addressing Jesus are evil beings that oppose God and hate humankind because they were created in God’s image and likeness. They implore Jesus not to send them to the gloomy spiritual realms but rather to animals — in this case, the pigs raised in the area. Symbolically, pigs were appropriate for the unclean spirits’ temporary home because they were regarded as impure under Jewish Law. It is also a demonstration of the incomparable value of human beings, whose salvation comes before all else. The Lord orders the demons to leave the men so they can be brought back to life. The herd of pigs then rush down the steep bank into the sea and perish in the waters. The waters in Scripture appear as both a symbol of death and new life. We see this in the narrative of the Flood, the parting of the Red Sea, and the institution of Baptism. In this case, dark spiritual forces, like the armies of Pharaoh, perish in the waters, whereas the people of God are delivered and eventually brought to the Promised Land. When Jesus encounters them, there is a miracle of light driving out darkness, illuminating the tombs and the lives being renewed. Jesus’ interaction with the two men is a picture of His interaction with humanity and with each one of us personally. We all encounter darkness in this world and the opposition of evil against us. Sometimes, the darkness comes from the demons and sometimes from the passions in our own hearts. Yet, Christ gives us His grace to deliver and restore us when we cry out and draw close to Him. Saint John Chrysostom says, “His providence is not only over all in common, but also over each in particular . . . For where His name was great, He did not greatly display Himself: but where no one knew Him . . . He made His miracles to shine out, so as to bring them over to the knowledge of His Godhead.” The miracle of Christ delivers the two men, and His providence and love are present to bring life out of death to each of us as well. We can experience God’s grace everywhere, and uniquely through the Holy Sacraments, which are miracles like healing and deliverance. We are called to take action and work out our salvation by preserving God’s grace in our hearts. If we do not try to keep the joy of the Gospel, the peace of the Liturgy, and the love of serving those in need, we darken God’s light in us and close the door to Christ and His grace. Jesus wishes to restore us as He restored the two demoniacs to dignity, freedom, peace, and joy. In this world, we can find ourselves in depressing situations and feel imprisoned by our circumstances, people who mistreat us, sickness, injury, misfortune, and failure. Yet, since Christ loves us, He comes to us to save us from sin, death, and physical and spiritual bondage. On the Cross, He overcame sin and death, the powers of the evil one, and the snares of this world. Through the Resurrection, He defeats sin and death and offers us holiness and eternal life. The devil and the world no longer have any power over us if we put our trust in God. The dignity of human life and freedom is God’s will for us because Jesus is the Light of the world, and His presence dispels our darkness. With God’s Word and the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, He brings us back to spiritual sobriety and abundant life. Let us stand before Him in adoration and readiness to serve, seeking His presence above all else. Let us lay aside everything in this world that would seek to imprison us and lead us away from Him. God provides us with deliverance from sin and death, and He shines His light in our hearts to make us beacons of light to the whole world
