Autourina Mains

As we journey through this life, we are faced with much temptations, challenges, hardships and suffering and that is not surprising, because we are told in 1Peter 5:8 “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”

The evil one tries to attack God’s children using multiple weapons: greed, lust, addictions, envy, pride, gluttony, etc., but we are not alone in this earthly battle with the evil one. We are part of the church militant and we are always at war with evil as is said in Ephesians 6: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”

Who are the principalities and powers? Principalities and powers are listed in the hierarchy of the choirs of angels. There are nine choirs of angels: the Seraphim, the Cherubim, the thrones, the dominations, the virtues, the powers, the principalities, the archangels and the angels (guardian angels).

As you recall in the book of Revelation, we are told that a third of the angels followed Lucifer, one of the archangels that turned against God’s plan of salvation, which means Lucifer’s followers were from the choirs of angels, including principalities and powers. It is those fallen angels that are prowling the earth for ruin of souls — but fear not, for we are not alone in our battle.

In Ephesians 6:10-18 we are given a celestial warrior’s armor: “Put on the Armor of God to protect against evil in the world. Fasten the belt of truth around your waist, put on the breastplate of righteousness. As shoes for your feet put whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and sword of the spirit, which is the word of God.”

I love this passage and wanted to share it with you because each piece of the armor plays a significant role in our battle against evil:

• Sword of the spirit is the living word of God, which is found in the Bible

• The belt of truth holds all the other pieces together. We can gain knowledge of the truth about God by reading the Bible, having a daily prayer life and attending Mass regularly.

• Breastplate of righteousness that protects our heart is the next piece that helps protect our heart and our soul. To be righteous is to strive to be ethical and moral. Though we might fail, because as Saint Paul said the soul is willing but the flesh is weak, we still have the opportunity to start with a clean slate when we attend confession which wipes clean our soul and rids us of the burdens of sin.

• Sandals of peace are worn by those who allow Christ into their hearts and surrender all to him. There is a beautiful prayer to help us surrender ourselves to the will of God “Jesus I give myself to you completely. I trust in you and your will for me.” When we trust in the Lord, peace comes over us so that we can share it with others.

• The shield of faith is carried by those who have faith in God. Christ urged people to have faith every time he spoke to them. As he said, “have faith when I declare…” Amen is an Aramaic word meaning have faith, not just believe, but have faith. Christ said if we have faith the size of a mustard seed we can move mountains. Do we have faith that God can deliver us from all evil? If we do, then we have the most powerful shield of faith protecting our heart.

• Helmet of salvation protects our head and our mind and it is given to us by Christ. He gave the power to forgive sins to the apostles who passed it down through the holy sacrament of priesthood. When we go to confession to acknowledge our sins, it is not the priest forgiving us, it is Christ who forgives. The priest is privileged to be the representative of Christ’s church and to administer the sacraments of reconciliation. When we hear the words of absolution, then we get the peace of mind that protects our mind, heart and soul.

• Sword of the spirit is the living word of God which we can find in the Bible.

In times of hardship, remember that you are the child of the most high creator and don’t forget to put on your armor of God everyday by starting your day with a simple prayer: “Good morning Lord, this is your favorite child. I offer this day to you, may your will be done.”

I also love to attend daily Mass and praying the rosary every day because these are weapons given to us to help us in our battle against powers of evil and lighten our burdens.

(Autourina Mains is a cradle Catholic who was born and raised in the Middle East. She is an Assyrian and speaks the ancient Aramaic language, which was used to write the first five books of the Bible.)