With increasing frequency, school children may get the impression that they are being called to become a traditional healer (a sangoma, or ngaka, or igqirha). They think that their ancestors are giving them the vocation and the gifts to heal people of many of the ills that beset society. Not wanting to give up their schooling but also not wanting to go against what they believe to be the will
of their family ancestors, the young people are pulled in two directions. This can cause great emotional stress, which sometimes becomes too much and manifests in convulsions or “fits,” even in the classroom at school. This is not attention-seeking behaviour.
Maybe Jesus is encountering such a person in the synagogue who is torn between his desires and a sense of social obligation. This tension shows itself in the man having
convulsions. In Jesus’ day, they didn’t have the modern psychological understanding. Many common illnesses were thought to be ‘unclean spirits’ or ‘demons.’ Nowadays, we certainly don’t regard every emotional disturbance as though it is caused by an impure spirit. Also, epilepsy is understood as a neurological condition which can often be treated with medication.
People who suffer from similar conditions benefit enormously from
professional psychological or medical care. The man in today’s gospel passage is healed by Jesus’ authoritative care. Jesus knows what he is doing and has mastered how to treat the man’s condition. The spirit listens to Jesus and leaves the suffering person in peace. We read this in a number of other gospel encounters.
Our ancestors are often good and respectable people who have gone before us, and we hope to follow them into the
community of saints gathered around God. We owe them our love, remembrance, and respect (hlompo / ukuhlonipha) and pray to God for them. Ancestors wish us well and pray to God on our behalf. They are not malicious or mischievous and do not wish us to experience misfortune. They have no authority over us and certainly don’t command our obedience. We need to make our own decisions and take responsibility to live our lives according to God’s plan.
Emotional conditions cannot be “exorcised.” In extremely rare cases, in the Catholic Church, there is one exorcist in each diocese, and he or she is always a very holy person, close to Jesus, who has been appointed by the bishop. In some cases, family elders can “negotiate” with ancestors and explain that the person is suffering from emotional stress. When it is performed for the good of the person in question, this ritual often brings healing and
peace.
Reflections by Peter Knox SJ
