"What is your name?"

Luke (8:30) reports that when Jesus encountered a man in the country of Gerasenes who was possessed by multiple demons, he asked the man, "What is your name?" The man responded, "Legion," for he had many demons.

Jesus was already aware of, and knew, who the demons were inside the man. But Jesus' objective was to get the man to see the demons, too. The man had to see them as Jesus saw them - foreign objects covering the soul that had no place in the person. These "demons", like all demons, could only survive in the unconscious darkness of the possessed person's mind.

Once the person became fully aware of them by seeing them in the true Light, they would begin to fade. In the case of the man from Gerasenes, the demons sought shelter elsewhere knowing that they could not survive in this Light of Truth.

Jesus' piercing question, "What is your name?", began to bring definition to the situation. The question was designed to help the man see the true nature of these afflictions in new Light; to see them for what they really were: illusions; something foreign to us and to God that can no longer hide behind the veil of a dysfunctional ego.

Demons can take on various disguises. Sometimes they appear as biases or attachments, sometimes as prejudices. Some are time-travelers: they cling to us as guilt or shame of the past, and others come to us from the future bringing with them worry or fear. Several fed on power or on materialism or on false pride. They come in all sizes and shapes! But they all need you to feel separated from God, from the source of the True Light, because they draw their energy from this separation. If a person is not connected to the One Source of love, that person is powerless against possession.

When we fully recognize and begin to define our demons in the Light of Truth, they begin to fade under the power of God's love and compassion. Often, depending on the strength of our "demons" we may need to enlist the assistance of professional therapists and counselors as well as other members of our spiritual formation team to bring the issues to full Light. The man from Gerasenes needed Jesus' help to identify and expel his demons; so, too, must we often seek this same help from others who are professionally trained.

This reflective exercise begins with you and Jesus. During your contemplative time, imagine that he's alone with you, and asks you, "What is your name?" He's asking you to define your demons. What do they look like? What do they do? What false things are they telling you? Define them; shape them; expose them for what they really are. Take some time with this and write down your responses in your journal. Share your thoughts with trusted advisors and counselors.

May God be with you on your journey!