Many interpretations of this verse have been offered, but a line of commentary I find particularly helpful is that of the Desert Fathers, who generally held that Christ was speaking about spiritual warfare. For them, “the violent are taking it by force” points to the truth that gaining the prize of heaven requires a relentless spiritual combat against the world, the Devil, and the self. To enter in by the narrow gate (cf. Matthew 7:13-14), we have to ruthlessly stamp out pride, lust, gluttony, envy, wrath, greed, and sloth—the root of all unhealthy attachments. We must “violently,” as it were, mortify our passions and appetites with vigilance and perseverance. And we have to steadily resist the assaults of Satan. No compromises and no quarter. “Half measures availed us nothing” (Alcoholics Anonymous). Indeed! To be a saint, we must become spiritual warriors (cf. Ephesians 6:10-18) in the Church Militant and fight the good fight to the very end! 

Flannery O’Connor (1925-1964), the great American 20th-century author and devout Catholic from my home state of Georgia, wrote a novel whose premise was based on Matthew 11:12, which is titled The Violent Bear it Away. Like all of her works, she uses shocking narrative and macabre imagery to express a very Christian understanding that authentic spiritual awakening is a difficult, often agonizing, and at times even a “violent” experience in wrestling with and overcoming sin and evil. She seeks to jar her readers out of spiritual blindness and complacency and force them to confront the grotesque reality of sin and depravity that dwells within all of us. In many respects, what she expresses in a fictional way, we experience in a very concrete and visceral way when we enter into recovery and, with brutal honesty, plumb the depths of our fear, pain, traumas, resentments, and the consequences of our actions through working the Twelve Steps. We come to repent of the emotional, physical, and spiritual “violence” our addictive behavior wrought on others, and we undergo a certain “violence” of growth and transformation in shedding the old man and putting on the new (cf. Ephesians 4:22-24).

There is yet another important way to read Matthew 11:12 that is relevant to recovery. To follow Christ is to be countercultural in a world that has largely spurned God and religion. Rejection, antagonism, misunderstanding, alienation, persecution, and martyrdom have all been forms of “violence” Christians have endured for the Kingdom. To be a Christian in recovery requires us to courageously affirm our faith and trust in God despite our culture’s relentless promotion of self-exaltation, self-gratification, and addiction. This can be very scary, unpleasant, and lonely at times. Do not lose heart! As the author of Hebrews encourages us, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that weighs us down and the sins that so easily distract us and with perseverance run the race that lies ahead of us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:1-2).

Reflection Questions

• In what ways does Matthew 11:12 speak to you in recovery? How do you apply Jesus’ exhortation to take the Kingdom of heaven by force?
• How and where have you experienced rejection, misunderstanding, antagonism, alienation, persecution, and martyrdom in life as an addict and as a Christian in recovery? How do you keep your eyes fixed on Jesus in these circumstances?

Daily Mass Readings

First Reading: Isaiah 41:13-20
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 145:1 and 9, 10-11, 12-13ab
Gospel: Matthew 11:11-15

Reflection by Pete S.