Manor College Certification Program
We are coming to the end of the magnificent Letter to the Ephesians. The lector read the portion that tells us to draw our strength from the Lord’s power, and to put on the armor of God. The litany of battle gear is laid out with a spiritual meaning because the battle is not against things as tangible as flesh and blood but against invisible forces in high places. Any soldier knows that when your enemy is in your sights you stand a much better chance of victory, but when the enemy is hidden in the brush you can be ambushed from any angle and you are in far greater danger.
Six pieces of equipment are mentioned: what today we might call a belt, probably a holster, and that is truth; a breastplate—what we would call a flack jacket—and that is a sense of justice in our hearts; what we would call combat boots, and that is the “good news of peace.” Then there is the shield, which is faith; then the “helmet of salvation;” and finally the sword which is the Holy Spirit: God’s message.
Truth is buckled around our waist, it keeps everything together. It prevents things from sticking out and getting snagged, but it is also what holds our weapon, whether sword or side arm. Justice is an attitude in our hearts, it is the fruit of love. Both truth and justice must be so interiorized so that they act instinctively. In a battle a soldier doesn’t have time to stop and figure it all out but must act immediately and decisively. Combat boots not only protect a soldier’s feet, they enable the soldier to trample on things that would otherwise snare or trip him. In this case, the combat boots are the attitudes of the Christian suffused with the energy that comes from receiving the Good News. This Good News should so invigorate the Christian and he or she can walk over the very things that trip up others. It is, in a word, zeal.
Faith is the shield, and it must be flexible and fleet; it needs to be moved swiftly into position if it is to protect the soldier. Obviously the soldier must be very aware of his or her surroundings if the shield is to be of any use. Many an individual has lived a life of reasonable faith only to be blindsided by a tragedy that turns him or her bitter and—like a soldier lured into an ambush—entices the hapless victim away from his or her allegiance to God.
Now the “helmet of salvation” is a bit harder to understand. Today a soldier’s helmet might have all kinds of equipment attached to it, such as special sights, binoculars and goggles, microphones for being in contact with others, especially the officers. In the time of Jesus, Roman soldiers wore a standardized helmet. It enabled them to recognize their fellow soldiers at a glance immediately. A soldier who stops to figure out who’s friend and who’s foe in the thick of battled is probably going to get killed. But what is this helmet that is construction from “salvation?” Salvation, the blessed assurance that we are on our way to Paradise if we remain faithful and do our best—even if we fail at times and need to rely on the mercy of God for deliverance—should show on us. We should have a generally cheerful and expectant glow on our faces. People should recognize us by our disposition as people committed to kindness and mutual support. Finally, there is the sword, defined in the letter as being forged from the Holy Spirit and which is God’s message, God’s orders to his soldiers in the field. This is the ultimate weapon. Every time we come to this Eucharist that sword of the Spirit is sharpened. Don’t we hear the priest say, “send your Holy Spirit upon us and these gifts presented here?”
The enemy—like any invading army—is not seeking simply to kill us off, the enemy wants to take possession of what we have for its own purposes. Our battle is against supremely intelligent and supremely hostile forces attacking our attitudes by corrupting our minds. This enemy wants to destroy something beyond individuals and their virtues, it wants to destroy the Church. An invading army will kill anyone in its way, but its object is also to route the defending army as a whole, to send it scattering before it in flight so that it can advance. It is not simply a question of individual soldiers, it is also a question of the army as a whole.
Now our battle is a war of liberation, as the Gospel makes clear. The woman had to be freed from that evil spirit that kept her—as Jesus said—in shackles. Every soldier in the thick of battle must literally fight for his life, to be liberated from the threat of the enemy; but an army not only defends, it also goes on the offensive to rescue. It must prevent the enemy from picking off individuals, but it must also hold its ranks. If a warrior falls, ranks must be closed lest the enemy advance in the breach.
This marvelous letter stressed unity from beginning to end. If an army has no unity, no cohesion, it will fail. We need to stay united, to prevent dissention from scattering the forces of good so as to be victorious in this war of liberation. Let us resolve to hold the lines in the face of the evil assault by holding fast to each other so that we might protect this precious treasure that is the Church and enjoy the fruits of victory.