Homily of His Excellency Msgr. Selim Sfeir Maronite Archbishop of Cyprus
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
“But when the Pharisees heard this, they said. “This man drives out demons only by the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons.”
After having performed an extraordinary exorcism, our Lord is outrageously blasphemed. Blinded by their jealousy they not only malign our Lord, but they actually misunderstand reality.
This is very instructive: without faith in Jesus Christ, without belief in the Incarnate Logos, a person will become blind and will not be able to judge reality correctly. Faith in Jesus Christ gives us a tremendous advantage; we are able to make sense of reality and we will even be able to discover the hidden logic of evil.
In this world, the devil and his angels have an extraordinary solidarity in their desire to enslave mankind. In hell there is only the solidarity of suffering and pain. We can only imagine how the demons and the damned ruthlessly provoke each other, attack each other, and destroy each other. But in this world, God permits the demons to forge an infernal unity to tempt us and to try us. God permits this solidarity of evil so as to incite us to an even greater solidarity in the Body of Christ. God permits this unity of evil to bring forth a greater good. It is only through temptation, through trial, we can prove our Love for Jesus.
Every day we are faced with the realization that evil has an extraordinary unity. No matter where we turn, we can see the devil, with the help of the wicked, deeply united in their diabolical plans. But in Christ, there must be a greater unity because by Baptism we have one Father, one Faith, one Family. Unity among the followers of Christ must be our greatest passion. We must pray for this, we must work for this, we must believe in this. The only thing the devil needs to triumph is disunity in the Body of Christ.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, when I see evil appear to triumph, help me grow in faith. Never permit me to divide the Body of Christ with rash judgment or critical spirit. Grant that I may always be united to You, and than do with me what You will.
† Selim Sfeir
Maronite Archbishop of Cyprus