Luke 11: 14-23
Now Jesus was casting out a demon that was mute; when the demon had gone out, the one who had been mute spoke, and the crowds were amazed. But some of them said, “He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.” Others, to test him, kept demanding from him a sign from heaven. But he knew what they were thinking and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself becomes a desert, and house falls on house.
If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? —for you say that I cast out the demons by Beelzebul. Now if I cast out the demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your exorcists cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out the demons, then the kingdom of God has come to you.
When a strong man, fully armed, guards his castle, his property is safe. But when one stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, he takes away his armor in which he trusted and divides his plunder. Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved.
Division Within Our Own Hearts
In today’s Gospel, evil is doing what evil does best: creating chaos and confusion, so much so that the crowd questions the source of Jesus’ healing power. Jesus responds to the crowd’s questions and calls for a sign from heaven with a warning that the divisions caused by this chaos and confusion will lead to destruction and demise – “a kingdom divided against itself will be laid to waste.” We are all divided – sometimes listening or being attentive to, or experiencing gratitude for, the ways in which Jesus’ love and mercy draw order out of chaos and peace from suffering, and other times ignoring, questioning, or being distracted from, or resistant to, recognizing God’s miraculous work in our lives.
During Lent, I feel this division within myself in a particular way, feeling the familiar urge to mindlessly scroll through Instagram while trying to be more mindful or resisting the temptation to multitask in an attempt to be more present. Today, ask God for the grace and the strength to resist the things that distract or divide us from God’s loving and miraculous work in our lives.
—Jackie Schulte is the Dean of Faculty Formation at Creighton Preparatory School in Omaha, Nebraska.
Prayer
So act, good Jesus,
that, in my relationships with whatever neighbor
and in all I do for the furthering of your Father’s glory
and the salvation of others,
I form myself on your pattern;
that I be a genuine reflection of your moderation,
gentleness, humility, patience, graciousness, tireless zeal,
in a word, all of your virtues;
and, in order to engrave them in my soul,
live eternally in me.Amen
—Jean-Pierre Médaille, SJ