Lent 3 (Oculi) | Luke скачать в хорошем качестве

Lent 3 (Oculi) | Luke

Lent 3 (Oculi) March 8, 2026 Luke 11:14-26   In the late 1940s, a thirteen-year-old boy lived just outside Washington, D.C. He was a normal young man, living in a middle-class home, with a mother and father who took him to church, a Lutheran church, for that matter.   Like many young boys, he was curious about life, including good and evil. Like a child around Halloween, he wondered whether spirits spoke to the living, whether the grave was the final resting place, or whether something lingered in the shadows and darkness.   The boy’s curiosity was ignited by an aunt he admired and deeply loved, a reminder of how important family is for children. The aunt was a spiritualist, which means she believed the living could communicate with the dead, and that the dead still spoke with the living, like a medium or a psychic.    While children today fiddle on their phones and play video games, this young man played with the Ouija board, a game-like device from the 1940s that was mass-produced with the idea that it’s fun to communicate with the dead.    Not exactly the kind of game I’d like to play around with.   Well, when the boy’s aunt died, he experienced a deep period of sadness and despair, and his family noticed significant changes in his behavior. Over time, they began to see strange things happening around the house—scratching noises on the walls or under the floor. Furniture moved by itself across the floor, objects were thrown off shelves, and a vase floated into the air before crashing to the floor.    As the days went by and the strange occurrence continued, the family noticed the boy was acting differently, becoming quiet during the day and screaming uncontrollably at night. His behavior was erratic, unusual, and quite scary.    What were the boys’ parents to do?   They did what any faithful Christian parents would do: they went to their pastor at the Lutheran Church they attended to seek his help. Their pastor was not only a dedicated student of the Scriptures but also interested in psychology, so he reached out to his psychologist friends as well, thinking they might be able to diagnose the young man with a mental disorder.    However, the psychiatrist couldn’t diagnose the young man with any specific mental illness. They had no medical explanation for what was happening. So, the Lutheran pastor suggested that an exorcism be performed on the boy. Not having any experience with exorcisms himself, the pastor recommended that the parents contact a Roman Catholic priest. And so, they did.   The boy was taken to Georgetown Hospital in Washington, D.C., where an exorcism was performed on him. Nothing seemed to take hold, and the boy remained unchanged.   As time went on, the mother believed that whatever was possessing her son was giving her a sign to return to where she grew up, in St. Louis, MO, and so the family did.   Once the family arrived in St. Louis, a cousin, recognizing the challenges, reached out to the church again, requesting help. Eventually, three priests ministered to the boy and conducted the rite of exorcism night and day.   On the night of Easter Monday, 1949, it is said that the possession reached a climax, and after days and nights of continuous prayer, reading Scripture, and commanding the demon to depart, the demon relented and left the body of the young boy, restoring his life.    For some of you, this might have been a difficult story to hear this morning. Others may have read it or seen it on the big screen. This reveals the real story behind the book and movie, “The Exorcist.”   An interesting aspect of the real story of the Exorcist reveals that the boy’s family was Lutheran, not Roman Catholic. However, they still went to the Roman Catholic Church for help, as described. The Lutheran pastor felt unprepared for such a battle.   It’s a fascinating story that few of us would probably believe today, but that’s exactly how Satan would like it. As St. Paul writes, “Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.” (2 Corinthians 11:14)   We Lutherans do get squeamish when we talk about exorcisms. Heck, many don’t even like the bulletin cover this morning. But an exorcism? It sounds so full of evil and darkness.   But Martin Luther did not share this belief; he believed demonic possession to be as real as the devil. He once wrote to a fellow pastor engaged with a woman who was demon-possessed, The first thing you and your congregation ought to do is this: pray fervently and oppose Satan with your faith, no matter how stubbornly he resists. About ten years ago, we had an experience in this neighborhood with a very wicked demon, but we succeeded in subduing him by perseverance and by unceasing prayer and unquestioning faith. The same will happen among you if you continue in Christ’s name to despise that derisive and arrogant spirit and do not cease praying. By t...