Against the strategy of the devil, who plays "the polite" and even rings the doorbell presenting himself as a friend, Pope Francis warned celebrating Mass on Friday 12 October at Santa Marta. Prayer, examination of conscience, as well as "vigilance and calm" as Isaiah taught, are the right answers to unmask the devil's wiles and not end up "on the road to mediocrity and worldliness".

"The devil, when he takes possession of a person's heart, remains there, as if at home, and does not want to leave," the Pontiff said. "That's why so many times when Jesus casts out demons, they try to ruin the person, to do harm, even physically," he said, suggesting to think "of that little boy, whom the father presents to Jesus so that he may be healed, that is, so that the demon may be cast out. And when he comes out the demon leaves him as if dead on the floor. He doesn't want to come out when he's inside. He doesn't want to come out."

"Jesus so many times in the Gospels cast out demons, who were his real enemies and our enemies," Francis pointed out. "The struggle between good and evil," he explained, "sometimes seems too abstract: the real struggle is the first struggle between God and the ancient serpent, between Jesus and the devil". And 'this struggle takes place within us: each of us is in a struggle, perhaps unbeknownst to us, but we are in a struggle'.

Referring to the Gospel passage from Luke (11:15-26) proposed by the liturgy, the Pope pointed out that "Jesus casts out this devil", but "there are always the bad tongues that begin to say: 'but this is a healer, he too has a secret pact with the devil; this is a farce: he casts them out with the permission of their leader, that is, of Beelzebubl'".

This is exactly how, the Pope recalled, "this Gospel passage begins, with a discussion between Jesus and these people". But "let us leave this discussion aside," the Pontiff continued, "and let us go to the end of the Gospel passage. What happens? At the end, the devil is cast out and leaves. And that man, that woman, that boy, that girl, becomes free, liberated, happy, healed, but healed right in the deepest wound of the soul'.

At this point, however, "what does the devil do? Some make a massacre; think of those who were called "legion", because they were many, and when Jesus drives them away they ask him to go to the pigs and there they make a massacre of pigs, because the task of the devil is to destroy. This is his vocation: to destroy the work of God'. In reality, Francis relaunched, "no one can say 'no, I know a devil who does not behave like this'" because "the essence of the devil is to destroy". Yet "we are like children, many times we suck our finger and believe: 'no, but it's not like that, they are inventions of the priests, no, it's not true'".

"In the Gospel the devil destroys," the Pontiff explained, "and when he cannot destroy face to face, because in front of him there is a force of God that defends the person, the devil is more cunning than a fox, he is cunning, and he looks for a way to take possession of that house, that soul, that person". The Gospel passage from Luke repeats to us the words of Jesus: "When the unclean spirit comes out of a man, he wanders about in deserted places seeking relief - that is, he does not know what to do, he does not know what to destroy - and, not finding any, he says: 'I will return to my house - from where Jesus drove him out - from which I came out'".

The devil, the Pope noted, "even in speaking presents himself politely", so much so that he says: "I have gone out". No, in reality 'you have been cast out'. The Gospel passage goes on to point out that the devil, once back in the house from which he had been driven out, "finds it swept and adorned - oh, he likes it! - and so he goes, takes seven other spirits worse than himself, enters and takes up residence there, and the condition of that man becomes worse than the first'. He in fact, Francis insisted, 'before he was, so to speak, a possessed man, because the devil was in there and would not leave him; now he continues to be a possessed man, but without his knowledge'.

"When the devil - said the Pontiff - cannot impose himself by force, cannot destroy a person by clear vices, cannot destroy a people with wars, persecutions, he thinks of another strategy and, dear brothers and sisters, it is the strategy he uses with all of us" And in fact "we are Christians, Catholics, we go to Mass, we pray: everything seems to be in order, yes, we have our faults, our little sins, but everything seems to be in order".

So the devil "plays 'polite': he goes, he sees, he looks for a nice clique, he knocks on the door - "permission? may I come in?" - rings the bell and these polite devils are worse than the first ones, because you don't realise that you have them at home". And 'this is the worldly spirit, the spirit of the world'. 

"The devil either destroys directly with vices, with wars, with injustices directly," the Pope further explained, "or he destroys politely, diplomatically in this way outlined by Jesus". In short, he added, "they don't make noise, they make friends, they persuade you - 'No, it goes, it doesn't do much, no, but it's fine up to here' - and they take you on the road of mediocrity, they make you a 'lukewarm' on the road of worldliness". And it is not easy to realise this: '"Father, I do not have an enemy at home" - "But look, when you go to bed, between the sheets there is a scorpion" - "But it is a friendly scorpion, it does no harm"'. And in doing so 'we fall into this spiritual mediocrity, into this spirit of the world: "But these things are not so bad"'. And "the spirit of the world ruins us, corrupts us from within".

"I tell you: I am more afraid of these demons than of the first ones," Francis stated. And so "when they tell me: 'we need an exorcist because a person is possessed by the devil', I don't worry as much as when I see these people who have opened the door to polite demons, to those who persuade from within that they are not so much enemies: 'We are friends'". Because, as today's Gospel says, 'the last condition of that man becomes worse than the first'.

So the Pontiff relaunched: 'I many times ask myself what is worse in a person's life: a clear sin or living in the spirit of the world, of worldliness? That the devil throws a sin at you - even, not one, twenty, thirty sins, but clear ones, that you are ashamed of - or that the devil is at the table with you and lives, lives with you and it is all normal, but there, he gives you insinuations and possesses you with the spirit of worldliness?"

"I am reminded," the Pope confided, "of Jesus' prayer at the Last Supper: 'Father, I ask you for these, defend them from the spirit of the world'". And "the spirit of worldliness is this: that which the educated demons bring".

"Let us pray, without fear" is the Pontiff's invitation, who wished to recall Isaiah's warning to Ahaz. "When once, the people of Israel saw a great army coming against them, capable of destroying everything, they became afraid and the prophet, in the name of God said: 'watch and calm'". And so, Francis said, "in front of these polite demons who want to enter through the front door like wedding guests, we say: 'vigilance and calm'".

So 'vigilance is the message of Jesus, Christian vigilance'. And in conclusion the Pope also suggested some questions for an examination of conscience on this point: "What is going on in my heart? Why am I so mediocre? Why am I so lukewarm? How many 'educated' people live at home without paying rent?"

[Pope Francis, St. Martha, in L'Osservatore Romano 13/10/2018]