“O woman, great is thy faith; be it unto thee as thou wilt.”   

In today’s Gospel, the Canaanite woman implores Jesus to save her daughter, who “is grievously vexed with a devil”.  The message of Lent seems much concerned with devils, and with what can and should be done about them. But what, really, are we to make of such story as this? Who, or what, are these devils?

The devils are very much with us, around us and within us. Basically, devils are wicked, unclean, perverse spiritual powers, or perverse spiritual principles and ideals, by which we are constantly tempted, and often governed. Spiritual perversion is not just a mistake; it’s the willing of a fantasy, the willing of a lie. And he who wills a lie is possessed, consumed and incapacitated by that lie, both mentally and physically. Lent is a season of renewal and reformation. It is a time for the casting out of devils, the unmasking of the perversions of our spirits, a time for the nurturing of our souls by the word of God. We come as the Canaanite woman came, without any particular merit, but welcome, nevertheless, with faith and hope in the abundant charity of God’s grace. Perhaps a crumb is all we seek; but He calls us to be his table guests, to share the rich banquet of his Word.