Ukrainian Catholic ChurchAustralia, New Zealand and Oceania
Homily by Fr. Myroslav Vons on the Fourth Sunday of the Great Lent
March 29, 2025
The Gospel mentions that the son “has a dumb spirit.” What does it mean to be dumb? It means to be unable to speak, to explain, to have closed lips. Sometimes it happens that we deliberately close our mouths. We allow the spirit of dumbness to control us. Why? Because we do not speak the truth. The truth is that evil must be punished. The truth is that we cannot confess once a year but receive Holy Communion every Sunday. The truth is that tradition is not more important than our faith.
Glory to Jesus Christ!
How many times in our lives have we wanted to give up, to stop, to retreat? How many times have we wanted to turn around and go back? How many times in our lives have we given up because we were powerless? At such moments, God sent someone to us, and we often heard the following words: “I believe in you,” “You can do it,’ “You are strong and you will overcome it,’ and ‘Find the strength to believe, go on.’
Today the Gospel shows us how the father also lost all hope and faith. And God, through his great mercy and fervent love, rekindles the heart of this father, giving him faith and joy.
“If you can help us…”
The man is not sure that Jesus Christ can help. So he asks, using the word “can,” not believing that this Teacher-Jesus can save his son. This man had already spoken to Jesus’ disciples before, and they had not helped him. Even before that, he had probably gone everywhere he heard about healers and witch doctors to save his son. To save him, at any cost, because the father loved his son so much.
Jesus asked him, “If you can? This question of Jesus to the man is full of surprise, fatherly guidance, and strong love. We can only imagine how the father of the son felt when Jesus looked at him. But surely in Jesus’ gaze the man saw the great love of a father for his child. The same love that this man felt for his son, for whom he was ready to face many challenges. Feeling this love, the father burst into tears. He cried because he realised that only his strong faith would save his child. Faith that does not contain the words ‘maybe,’ ‘possibly,’ or ‘probably.’ Faith that is concrete, that gives a concrete result, faith as small as a mustard seed that can do incredible things.
“I believe; help my unbelief!”
This is a great insight that the man received from the Lord. The Lord who saw the man’s heart. The Lord, who, like a good teacher, believed in the abilities of his student and shared his knowledge with him. And this man realised that faith is a gift from the Lord. A gift that is given, but which everyone has a duty to develop, cherish, and appreciate. He realised that his heart was not sufficiently inflamed with true faith and love for the Lord.
What is important for us to remember from this Gospel passage?
1. Each of us makes decisions that lead either to our salvation or to our destruction. The path of faith is a constant training as if in a gym. A path that needs a coach who will always believe in you more than you do. To believe and to ignite you with this faith. Jesus Christ is always with us, as the prophet Isaiah says: “Trust in the Lord always, for in the Lord, in the Lord, is your everlasting fortress” (Isaiah 26:4).
2. Everyone knows the truth, but not everyone cares about it (Ukrainian folk proverb). The Gospel mentions that the son “has a dumb spirit.” What does it mean to be mute? It means to be silent. To be unable to speak, to explain, to have closed lips. Sometimes it happens that we deliberately close our mouths. We allow the spirit of dumbness to control us. Why? Because we do not speak the truth. The truth is that evil must be punished. The truth is that we cannot confess once a year but receive Holy Communion every Sunday. The truth is that tradition is not more important than our faith. The truth is that God is with us, even when the whole world is against us.
3. We must fight evil, but not with our bare hands. The disciples were sure that they could heal the man, but they failed. Not because they were not good or because they did not try. No, they lacked the means. You need the right resources to defeat evil. And the Lord tells them frankly: to overcome evil, you need two means—prayer and fasting. Use them, and you will win. But the problem is that sometimes we think that what the Lord said worked once. And now there are other times. Different people. However, what was 2000 years ago, what is now evil, is the same evil. And the Lord’s universal advice is valid today and will always be valid. We just need more faith, more self-discipline, and sincere prayer.
Finally, St. Francis of Assisi said, “Preach the Gospel always, and if necessary, with words.” Every time, no matter what it is, it needs good preachers of God’s Word. And, therefore, each of us who call ourselves Christians. Let our deeds in the spirit of truth and love speak stronger and louder than our words. And this is possible as long as we believe in the words of Jesus Christ, who said, “All things are possible to him who believes” (Mark 9:23).
