My name is Legion; for we are many

 Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes.  And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, because he had often been bound with shackles and chains.  And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him.  And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones.  When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him.  And he cried out with a loud voice and said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I implore You by God that You do not torment me."  For He said to him, "Come out of the man, unclean spirit!"  Then He asked him, "What is your name?"  And he answered, saying, "My name is Legion; for we are many."  Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country.

Now a large herd of swine was feeding there near the mountains.  So all the demons begged Him, saying, "Send us to the swine, that we may enter them."  And at once Jesus gave them permission.  Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea.   So all those who fed the swine fled, and they told it in the city and in the country.  And they went out to see what it was that had happened.  Then they came to Jesus, and saw the one who had been demon-possessed and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind.  And they were afraid.  And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine.  Then they began to plead with Him to depart from their region.  And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him.  However, Jesus did not permit him, but said to him, "Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you."  And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled. 

- Mark 5:1-20

Yesterday, we read that after a day spent teaching in parables, when evening had come, Jesus said to disciples, "Let us cross over to the other side."  Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was.  And other little boats were also with Him.  And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling.  But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow.  And they awoke Him and said to Him, "Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?"  Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Peace, be still!"  And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.  But He said to them, "Why are you so fearful?  How is it that you have no faith?"  And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, "Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!"

Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes.  Jesus and the disciples have come across a stormy Sea of Galilee, to the "other side."  This is an area in Galilee with many Gentiles who live among the Jews.  The Gentile influence in this story (the raising of the swine) is clear.  These are Jews who have taken on Gentile practices.  The raising of swine was forbidden by the Law (Deuteronomy 14:8).

And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, because he had often been bound with shackles and chains.  And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him.  And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones.  When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him.  And he cried out with a loud voice and said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I implore You by God that You do not torment me."  For He said to him, "Come out of the man, unclean spirit!"  Then He asked him, "What is your name?"  And he answered, saying, "My name is Legion; for we are many."  Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country.   We're always struck by the extreme isolation of this man.  He lives in the tombs, among the dead -- not in community among the living.  He's wild and uncivilized, frequently bound with shackles and chains which can't hold him.  He pulls apart the chains and breaks the shackles in pieces.  He is untamable, according to the text.  But the soul of the man knows Jesus, and falls down before Him (the word translated as worshiped means to prostrate oneself, as in a position of worship).  But the unclean spirit speaks; the spirit's name is Legion, for they are many who are tormenting this man.

Now a large herd of swine was feeding there near the mountains.  So all the demons begged Him, saying, "Send us to the swine, that we may enter them."  And at once Jesus gave them permission.  Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea.   So all those who fed the swine fled, and they told it in the city and in the country.  And they went out to see what it was that had happened.  Then they came to Jesus, and saw the one who had been demon-possessed and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind.  And they were afraid.  And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine.  Then they began to plead with Him to depart from their region.  In the Jewish perspective, the swine are unclean animals.   Some commentators see these swine-herders as Gentiles, but tradition generally sees them as apostate Jews.  Their own response to Jesus affirms a sense of a broken spirituality:  they care more about the lost income from the swine than the restoration and healing of the man who was possessed by the legion.  They beg Christ to depart from their region.  

And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him.  However, Jesus did not permit him, but said to him, "Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you."  And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled.  The Decapolis was a Greek-speaking region of ten cities, of mixed populations of Gentiles and Jews.  The restored man is no longer isolated, wild, and abandoned to the tombs.  He becomes, in effect, a type of evangelist, witnessing to the great things the Lord has done for him. 

 The extreme isolation of this man tells us about his tremendous loneliness.  He's "occupied" by a legion of demons, an invading army, so to speak, of a hostile power.  The violence with which he's afflicted, and his out of control life, teach us about the destructiveness of this demonic influence (as does the mass suicide of the 2,000 swine).  But when Christ appears, the man immediately prostrates himself before Him, an act of adoration, of worship, and of obedience and loyalty.  His Savior has found him.  It's an awe-inducing thought to consider that Christ has led the disciples on this mission across the stormy night sea to come here to this man deserted by community and besieged by a host of demons.  In Tuesday's reading, Jesus taught, "Whoever does the will of God is My brother and sister and mother."  This man abandoned to the tombs finds community, even family, in Christ.  Christ is not only Liberator and Redeemer, freeing him from a legion of demons, but He's also the true Leader, the One who can bring this man back into community with a purpose and with belonging.  The formerly demon-possessed man doesn't just return to his friends, as Christ told him to do, but he returns with a mission, a part of something, a witness to the great things the Lord has done for him.  In that sense he's been "sent out," like the apostles will be.  The people marvel in response to his testimony, and through him more are brought to Christ.  If we think about this story in a modern context, we can find great parallels to mental illness.  Perhaps above all, we may come to understand the extreme isolation that comes with such affliction or with the pain of abandonment in many forms.  Christ as Lord, in His healing ministry, becomes a center that draws all into community and relationship.  The power of His love is the overriding energy that no other force can match.  My study bible tells us that this story demonstrates several things.  First, people are protected under God's providence -- otherwise, the demon-possessed man would have come to the same end as the swine.   It teaches us the great value of human beings to God.  It also shows us that demons have no power over creation, but are subject to the will of God, as they could only enter the swine at Christ's command.  But the restoration of this man is the great story of Christ as the One who comes to save, and to build His Church -- to establish a depth of relationship through faith.  There is no more profound call to wholeness than one of belonging and community.   In God's love is the capacity for restoration, whether we speak of abandonment or trauma or any other kind of desolation.   There is no more powerful remedy to isolation, because grace reaches deep into the places that need healing in ways that nothing else -- no other force, human or otherwise -- can go.  It is our Creator who gives to us a greater and deeper sense of community than the one that was lost to begin with (see Psalm 27:10).