Homily 709 – 22APE
Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Church, Ames, Iowa
November 1, 2026
Epistle:  (215) Galatians 6:11-18
Gospel:  (38) Luke 8:26-39

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, One God.

There is so many hidden meanings in the Gospel today.  One would have to have lived during the time of Christ, the Roman occupation of Judea, to fully comprehend what the messages of the expulsion of the demons from this Gadarene man would entail.

I want to try the best I can to catch you up a bit on the environment.

Let’s start with location.  The country of the  Gadarenes, opposite Galilee, was known as Decapolis, or “Ten Cities”.  Deca – ten, polis – city.  They were Roman cities.  That fact comes with baggage.

Romans were occupiers.  Jews in Judea considered themselves oppressed.  The Messiah, it was popularly believed, would be a political as well as spiritual redeemer.  In other words, in the mind of the average Jew of the day, overthrow Roman Rule, and lead Israel to freedom and independence.  This was the expectation, at least.

Jews who lived in these cities would be considered collaborators by the Jews in Jerusalem or in other places throughout Judea.  They were like the tax collectors, working for the Roman occupiers.

So, that is the setting.  Jesus was heading into Roman territory, with the expectation that He would stir conflict with the Romans.  And that sorta kinda happened.  But not really.

We need to talk about the name of the demons possessing the man.  Jesus asked the name, and the reply was “Legion” for there were many.

Legion also indicated another thing – a detachment of 5,000 Roman soldiers, and a backup force of another 5,000.  10,000 Roman soldiers, ready to march anywhere to keep the Jews in line if necessary.

It just so happened that this area was the home of the Tenth Roman Legion.  So, the man was possessed by “Legion”, and so it was a pretty short leap from the “legion” possessing this man, and the “Legion” of soldiers occupying Judea.

To add another dimension to this, the emblem of the Tenth Roman Legion was a wild boar or pig.

An unclean animal for Jews certainly, but also a very dangerous wild animal.  This occupying force of Romans was the polar opposite of holiness in this setting.

Instead of Jews living a life led by and under God, they were occupied by unclean and impious and blasphemous Romans.  So sending the “legion” demons into the swine, the pigs, at their behest:  That imagery wasn’t lost on the Jews in the area.

As mentioned, the Jews in the area weren’t exactly on the most favored list in Jerusalem.  The fortunes of the Jews were significantly tied more to the Romans than to the Sanhedrin or the High Priest or the Temple.

When Christ allows the demons to depart to the swine, what do those around the event actually see?  What goes through their minds?  How is this perceived?

I suspect they saw the Messiah demonstrating His ability to crush the Romans at will.  The collaborating Jews would then become subject to the revenge of the faithful Jews in Jerusalem.  To say they were scared would be an understatement.  They were terrified.

So the locals begged Jesus to leave, which He did.

It would be easy to end here, but that would miss something rather important.  Jesus demonstrated the ability to overthrow and control the Romans through the expulsion of the demons.  Yet, He didn’t overthrow nor control the Romans.

What the people expected Him to do, He didn’t do.  He didn’t overthrow the Romans.  So if He wasn’t illustrating the overthrow of the Romans, what was Christ illustrating here?

It is, in short, the occupation of our own hearts of the unclean forces of this world.

These unclean forces, which we would love to believe were from external sources like the demons, actually don’t come from external sources.

The enemy is us.  Our fallen nature is the problem here.  The ego, what the fathers call “pride” and what the Lord refers to as “self”, is what gets between us and God, and occupies the land of our soul.  We try to oust it, but we cannot – it is part of us, after all.

The ego serves as a barrier.  Barriers work two ways – they allow us to be shielded, but they also prohibit the healing forces to enter our persons.  The same barrier that preserves our fallen self-image prevents Christ from attending to our needs.

The only thing we can do is destroy it.  Just like the “legion” cast out of the possessed man destroyed themselves.  We have to cast out the ego, destroy the pride, and tear down the barrier that tries to protect us.  The protection provided keeps Christ at a distance, unseen, unfelt.

When that barrier is removed, and we stand before the mirror without a barrier, naked as Adam and Eve were naked, then – only then – can Christ operate within us, and begin to heal us.  We can either ask Him to leave, or embrace what is happening, even though it may be painful.

Christ is fighting and struggling to get to us to heal us.  He is standing, waiting for us to invite him in.  We cannot do that while the barriers remain.  It does no good if we invite Him in but don’t open the barrier.

And when we open the barrier, Christ, the Great Physician, can then begin the treatment for our healing, and for our unification with Him.

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, One God. Glory to Jesus Christ!