Today is the first of Lent. I like the image of the season of lent as being a time when we ascend the holy mountain of God, a time we are able to rise up to that place of holiness and reconnect with our Lord during this holy season, but if we are truly seeking to reconnect with our Lord, it also needs to be a time of letting go and a time of emptying ourselves. An American writer, Henry Thoreau lived by himself for two years in a woods in New England. He said he went into the woods to confront the essential facts of life, ‘lest when I come to die, I should discover that I had not lived.’ Without some kind of reflection or discernment in our lives we cannot hope to live worthwhile lives on a human level much less on a Christian one. Did you ever think about what it would be like to live your life without ever reflecting on it? You and I need to take a step back if we want see what God has in store for us. We need to get away from all the noise if we want to hear him.
In today’s Gospel we read after Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit, He returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days. Jesus went into the desert to get away from all the noise so he could reflect on his journey before it even began. He went into the desert to pray and be united with his heavenly Father only then could he face the temptations that would come before him. He is able to resist them because he knew who he was and because he was united with His Father. I recently read how temptations can become moments of grace for us as they move us to call upon the name of the Lord in our powerlessness. Did you ever think of temptation as a moment of grace? I found that to be an interesting concept, but it is grace that moves us to call upon the name of the Lord when we find ourselves struggling.
If we hope to overcome temptations we need to spend time in the desert - we need to spend time in prayer. Maybe the question we need to ask ourselves during lent is where do we put God in our lives? If we put him first, he will put us first, but we also need to die to ourselves and let go of all the things that distract us if we hope to grow in our faith. Spending time in the desert helps us to find ways to improve our lives and become aware when we need to slow down - when we are moving too fast.
I have to admit that it's very chilling to hear the devil quote scripture. In fact it makes me question how he thinks he can get away with quoting scripture when he never follows it, but he knows Jesus follows it, so he uses it against him. It’s like a lawyer trying to twist the facts so it fits his agenda and believe me the devil has an agenda. His agenda is to mess up salvation history for all of us but his biggest shortcoming is his lack of humility because he honestly believes he’s smarter than God. Now that’s pretty arrogant coming from “a being” whose very existence came from God.
St. Maximus of Turin commented on the temptation of Jesus when he was asked to turn stone into bread. He begins by stating that the devil thinks that Jesus is just a man and doubts his divinity - so when he sees Jesus is hungry, he thinks he can easily persuade him: If you are the Son of God tell this stone to become bread. Jesus responds not only by refusing to do what the devil asks but he refuses to admit he has the power to change it. He instead quotes scripture by stating that one cannot live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. In other words, Jesus is telling him that mankind cannot be dependent on the bread of the earth - but on the bread of life. The devil then shows Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and tells Him it can all be his if he worships him to which Jesus responds it is written you shall worship the lord you God and him alone shall you serve. The devil then takes Jesus to the very top of the temple and says to him If you the son of man throw yourself down from here for it is written: He will command his angels to guard you and their hands will support you lest you dash your foot against a stone. Jesus replies: it also says you shall not put the Lord your God to the test and the devil departs from him for a time. The saddest part of this passage is that - he only departs for a time.
St Augustine said that our pilgrimage on earth cannot be exempt from trial and that we can only progress in life by means of trial and that no one knows himself except through trial. He also states that St Augustine also states that Jesus made us one with him when he chose to be tempted by the devil and that had he not been tempted he could not teach us how to triumph over temptation. In our reading from Romans we hear the importance of proclaiming the word as St Paul tells us that - the word is near you - it is in your mouth and in your heart and that it is the word of faith that we preach and that as followers of Jesus we need to confess with our mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord and that if we believe in our hearts, God raised him from the dead, we will rise.
I was at the funeral of a friend of mine this past Friday. He died rather suddenly. I learned just four weeks ago he had cancer. He was 65 years old. The homilist compared him to the Shepherd Boy King David causing me to think about how as a priest, he was a shepherd to so many. When I went to see him in the hospital, he was already unconscious. I prayed a rosary with a friend of his who he met on an airplane many years ago when she just happened to be sitting next to him. She told me he was on the way to see his brother in Arizona which is where she’s from. Somehow, they began discussing a book she was reading when he told her that it sounded very catholic to him. She then asked him why he would say it sounded catholic to him. He then said that he was a Catholic priest. (because he was on vacation, he didn’t have his clerics on) Now I don’t know how many people would feel if they learned they - happened to be sitting next to a catholic priest - but for the next few hours they visited with one another. She mentioned some of the challenges she was facing in her life and that she had just separated from her husband. Throughout the conversation Fr Dave kept reassuring her that Jesus loved her. She told me - he made such an impression on her that a few days after she got home she walked into a catholic church and told the priest she felt she was supposed to become catholic. The priest welcomed her and enrolled her in RCIA and she was received into the church at the Easter vigil . A few years later she taught RCIA and became a 3rd Order Carmelite all because Father Dave told her when she was faced with so many challenges - that Jesus loved her.
How often do talk about Jesus to others. Perhaps the next time you’re on an airplane and you get into a conversation with someone, you might want to look for an opportunity to share your faith with them. Now that doesn’t mean they’re going to convert but it may open up a window - that may cause them think about Jesus.
When I began my homily I mentioned how Lent is a time for us to ascend the holy mountain of God so that one day we can rise up to that place of holiness. Lent is also a time for us to help others ascend that holy mountain so that one day they too can be with our Lord. We help them ascend that mountain every time we share our faith with them. Remember the words of St Paul: The word is near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart and when you preach the word and - confess Jesus is Lord - and believe in your heart - God is raised from the dead - you shall be saved and - through your preaching the word to others - they will be saved too. Like David the Good Shepherd we need to be - good shepherds to others so that one day - they too will receive salvation from God - and try to remember as often as you can - to remind people that - Jesus loves them. it just may help them to begin to reflect on their lives and come to know the love and mercy of Jesus