Many of us can certainly relate to the “insane” person of the Gerasene demoniac. As addicts, we were just like him if we consider with any real honesty our reckless and dangerous lifestyles, our complete lack of restraint in our disordered appetites, our obsessive and paranoid thinking, and our deceptive, manipulative scheming, all of which wounded our relationships with God and neighbor, and profoundly disfigured our dignity as beloved children of God. We had become inhabitants of the tombs of the spiritually dead, crying out in twisted, tormented agony, nightmarishly harming ourselves in repetitive self-abuse with the ruinous “stones” that were our various addictions. Our lives had truly become more than just unmanageable—they had become hellishly insane.

But we would fail to appreciate the full import of this Gospel story if we simply gloss over the fact that the Gerasene demoniac was an actual tortured individual exorcized by Christ of a real and malevolent demonic possession. He is not just a literary metaphor for our modern scientific and often biologically reductionist understandings of mental illness and addiction. Demons in their supernatural malice and hate are very much in our midst and play an insidious role in how we can spiritually deteriorate in addiction. They relentlessly seek to drive us literally “insane,” which etymologically comes from the Latin “in” (not) and “sanus” (healthy) to create “insanus” (not healthy, unsound). They seek to inflame our pride, foment our disordered desires and appetites, induce physical, psychological, and spiritual harm, and, above all, isolate us from the love and mercy of God.

All of this is to say that we ignore the reality of the demonic in our lives at our own peril! The hard work of our recovery is placed in jeopardy if we do not avail ourselves ceaselessly of the effective weapons for spiritual combat—prayer, the sacraments, Eucharistic adoration, the Saints, recovery fellowship, a sponsor, mental healthcare, a spiritual director, and even a diocesan exorcist in the most difficult situations involving demonic oppression, obsession, and possession. Our Lord clearly warns that we should remain vigilant lest the demon(s) return and defile the temple of our souls anew (Matthew 12:43-45).

Christ’s encounter with the Gerasene demoniac ended in victory as Our Lord healed the man of the evil within him. Let us go forth in our own victories in the Lord as He heals us daily in recovery, and let us carry our hopeful message to others (Step 12) just like the former demoniac who “went off and began to proclaim…what Jesus had done for him; and all were amazed” (Mark 5:20).

Reflection Questions

• How do you relate to the Gerasene demoniac in your life of addiction and recovery?
• Have you had any experience with demonic oppression, obsession, or possession?

Daily Mass Readings

First Reading: 2 Samuel 15:13-14, 30; 16:5-13
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 3:2-3, 4-5, 6-7
Gospel: Mark 5:1-20

Reflection by Pete S.