Transcription
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
There are two dangerous mistakes people make about the devil. The first is to become obsessed with him. And the second and far more common today is to pretend he doesn't exist.
Our modern world explains almost everything from a psychological or medical or political or social perspective, but almost never from a spiritual one. It laughs at the devil, reduces him to a cartoon character, or dismisses evil as nothing more than bad psychology, difficult circumstances, or social problems. But today's gospel shatters that illusion. It's one of the clearest reminders in all of scripture that demons are real. Christ doesn't treat the demons as symbols or metaphors. He speaks to them. They recognize him. They know exactly who he is. They fear him. They tremble before him.
The message is clear. The spiritual battle is real. And every one of us is engaged in it whether we realize it or not. And if there's one place the demons want to attack more than anywhere else, it's the Christian family. They cannot harm God himself, so they attack his image. And the demons know something that many parents forget. Children become like their parents. That's why I want you to remember one sentence this morning. If we don't deal with our demons, they will be the ones raising our children.
St. Absorovo famously said, "Aquire the Holy Spirit and thousands around you will be saved." In other words, holiness spreads, peace spreads, love spreads, joy spreads. A father or mother filled with the Holy Spirit transforms an entire home. But the opposite is just as true. If instead of acquiring the Holy Spirit, we acquire unholy spirits. We acquire the passions. We allow anger, lust, pride, anxiety, bitterness, selfishness, gossip, and impurity to rule our hearts. Those things don't just remain inside us, they spread. And every passion we refuse to fight becomes an opening through which the demons seek to influence our homes and shape our children.
And this is exactly what St. Paul teaches in today's epistle reading. He places before us two ways of living. One bears the fruits of the spirit. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. The other is life according to the passions of the flesh. And there's no middle ground. Every day we are cultivating one way or the other, and our children are living in whatever atmosphere we create. Again, if we don't deal with our demons, they will be the ones raising our children.
If my children constantly see me angry, they learn anger. If they constantly see anxiety, they learn anxiety. If they hear criticism and gossip around the dinner table, they learn criticism and gossip. If they see resentment, they learn resentment. If they watch me neglect prayer, avoid confession, skip fasting, and treat church as optional, they learn that Christ is optional. Our children will become far more like the people we are than the people we merely tell them to be.
St. John of Crunchad once wrote that even unspoken passions affect other people. He says that sin and passion hidden in the heart and kept secret can still be communicated to another soul. We often think that as long as we keep our sins hidden, they affect no one but ourselves. But the holy fathers teach the exact opposite. The passions don't stay locked inside the heart. They shape us. They influence those around us. and they create an opening through which the enemy seeks to disturb the peace of an entire home. But when we cut off those passions through repentance, peace and holiness begin to spread as well. Not only within our own soul, but within the souls of our family members as well.
Think about it. Children sense what's happening long before they understand it. They may not be able to explain the atmosphere of a home, but they experience it every single day. and they absorb its spiritual climate. And this influence begins even before a child is born. St. Pirius taught that a child's upbringing begins at conception. The child is already being formed not only physically but spiritually. The prayers of the parents, the peace of the mother, the gentleness and self-control of the father, the love between husband and wife. All of this creates a spiritual environment that surrounds the child.
Think about how careful we are to protect the physical health of an unborn child. We tell pregnant mothers not to smoke, not to drink, not to lift heavy objects. But how much more should we guard our hearts from anger, gossip, impurity and despair? Parents don't give their children only biological DNA. They give them spiritual DNA as well. The soul of the child is already being nourished by the spiritual life of the parents.
St. John Chrysm says that everything should take second place to raising our children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. Our greatest responsibility is not to prepare them primarily for college, careers, or even marriage, but for the kingdom of heaven. Our goal is not to make them rich, but holy. Not merely successful, but virtuous. Not simply comfortable, but lovers of Christ. At the end of our lives, our greatest success as parents will not be measured by what our children accomplished, but by whom they loved. And our goal should be that when we die, our children love Christ more than anything else in the world. Christianity cannot simply be one part of their lives. It must become who they are. Because if our children gain the whole world but lose Christ, then we have failed in the greatest responsibility God has entrusted to us.
But how will children learn that the Christian faith must be at the center of their lives if they don't see it at the center of ours? How can we expect our children to love prayer if they never see us pray? How can we expect them to value fasting if we constantly make excuses? How can we expect them to seek confession if we ourselves avoid it? How can they learn generosity if they never see us give or sacrifice? How can they learn forgiveness if they hear us speak bitterly about relatives, neighbors or fellow parishioners?
Now imagine the opposite. Imagine a home where the family stands together for evening prayers. Where parents and children make prostrations together, where they quietly pray the Jesus prayer together. Where the Wednesday and Friday fasts are kept faithfully. Where confession becomes a family event. where attending vespers or another weekday service is simply part of family life. Where what we say and how we speak of others is holy and loving. Those things don't merely teach children about Christ. They bring Christ into the home. Every decision that brings you closer to Christ brings your children closer to Christ. And every decision that pulls you away from Christ pulls them away as well.
And the demons know this. They know that they don't need to destroy your family in one dramatic moment. They simply need to keep everyone busy. Keep everyone distracted, keep everyone scrolling, keep everyone entertained, keep everyone convinced that there will always be more time later, more time for prayer, more time for church, more time for repentance. But later is one of the devil's favorite words because later may never come.
Brothers and sisters, one of the greatest weapons being used against our children today enters our homes willingly. In fact, we actually hand it to them. Phones and electronics, endless entertainment, constant noise. We even use them to babysit our children. We allow screens to disciple our children more than Christ disciples them. The demons want to fill our children's minds and hearts with impurity. And they often do that through the senses, through their eyes and their ears. The holy fathers teach that the senses are doorways to the soul. As parents, it is our responsibility to guard those doors and not leave them unchecked. We must know everything our child does on their phone or electronic device, what they watch, what they listen to, who they speak to, who influences them.
As parents, we cannot simply hand our children over to the world and hope for the best. Every image they see, every voice they hear, and every influence they welcome is helping to shape the kind of person they will become. If we are not intentional about forming them in Christ, someone or something else will gladly form them. Just as we would never leave the front door of our home wide open every night, we should never leave the doors of their souls unguarded. And the truth is, if we are careless about what enters through their eyes and their ears, we shouldn't be surprised when the passions enter their hearts.
So what does a home look like when Christ rules it rather than the passions, rather than the demons? It's a home where Christ isn't simply talked about on Sunday, but lived every day. It begins with the relationship between husband and wife. One of the greatest gifts parents can give their children is not a perfect marriage, but rather a humble and repentant one. Children need to see parents who ask forgiveness, who forgive one another, and who fight for their marriage. St. John Chrysum says that when harmony prevails between husband and wife, children are raised well and whole household flourishes. So to raise good children, you need to love each other.
A home filled with the Holy Spirit also has structure and discipline, not harshness, but loving discipline. The demons love chaos. They love homes without order, without prayer, without routine, where everyone does whatever they want, whenever they want. Because chaos feeds the passions. Christ forms disciples. Christ brings peace, order, and self-control. That's why homes need prayer together. Homes need meals together. Homes need chores and responsibilities. Homes need family time. Again, structure is key. The spiritual life is disciplined. It's cultivated through faithful habits. This is how children become spiritually mature.
A home filled with the Holy Spirit is filled with joy. And our children learn from us what joy looks like. Joy is one of the fruits of the spirit that St. Paul speaks about today. If they only see parents who complain, who are never satisfied, and who constantly chase the next pleasure, they will look for happiness in the things of this world. But if they see parents whose joy comes from prayer, gratitude, repentance, and the presence of Christ, they will discover where true joy is found. They will learn, as St. Picus once said, "Where there is Christ, there is paradise."
Finally, let me bring you back to today's gospel. I want you to notice something striking. The demons cry out to Christ, "What have you to do with us, oh son of God?" In effect, they're saying, "Leave us alone. Mind your own business." Then, after Christ frees the two possessed men, the whole city comes out and begs him to leave. Isn't that what we often do? We want Christ to bless our families but not interfere with our priorities. We want him to save our children but not ask us to change. Sometimes we even criticize those who become more serious about their spiritual life. A young person begins fasting faithfully, praying more, attending more services, going to confession, and people say, "You're spending too much time at church." But bringing our children closer to Christ can never be too much.
My beloved family, this world is passing away. Careers will end. Money will disappear. Houses will be left behind. Even our bodies will return to the earth. But our souls and the souls of our children will live forever. So let us fight the battle where it matters most. Let us repent of our passions. Let us root out anger, lust, anxiety, pride, resentment, and every hidden sin. Let us acquire the Holy Spirit. Let us make our homes places of prayer, forgiveness, peace, discipline, and joy. Because if we acquire the Holy Spirit, our children will breathe that holy atmosphere every day of their lives. But if we do not deal with our demons, they will be the ones raising our children.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.