Email Guidelines Dara's Homilies First Sunday of Lent
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Genesis 2:7-9,3:1-7 ; Romans 5:12-19 ; Matthew 4:1-11
MEDITATION:
This Sunday is the first of the five Sundays of Lent (the sixth is Palm Sunday). Easter Sunday this year will be on April 24.
Lent is derived from today's Gospel which tells of how Jesus spends forty days in the desert dealing with Satan -'the tempter'. That's someone with whom we all have to deal, so Jesus shows the way: Don't even enter into discussion with his proposals, but 'knock him out' with a disciplined heart and the straight-forward guidance of God's Word -"It is written...". The world is full of temptations like animal traps. They have something that attracts the creature to come up close, then 'WHAM!'.
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The offer of turning stones into bread represents how the 'devil' offers a pleasant satisfaction of bodily desires -"eat, drink and be merry" plus, plus, plus!.
The offer of having the rule over many nations represents man's desire for personal power over others. The offer of jumping from the roof like 'superman' with angels to prevent you getting injured represents expecting God to do marvels for us and to prevent all problems. All three represent the many, many different temptations that we all face, and the fact that they can be resisted!
It says that Jesus went to spend fourty days in that 'desert', but that wasn't just a small 'phase' of his life. The number 40 represents 'totality' to the Jews in the Bible, and the 40 days don't represent a period of time but a constant internal attitude of Jesus. It's an eternal attitude of our God. He chooses love always. And he asks us to choose along with Him. Maybe we have done so before, but challenges come our way, and lent is a time to renew our choice.
It's interesting how it gives importance to Scripture. The tempter quotes it and Jesus replies by quoting it too. Jesus doesn't enter into discussions about the subjects, but just keeps quoting. It's a good approval for being 'Verbum Dei' ('Word of God'), but it also shows how the Bible can be manipulated and badly quoted to justify mistakes! But Jesus replies to Satan all three times by quoting Scripture, and that's why it says in Romans 10:9 : 'The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart, for, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved...'.
By the way, the name for 'Lent' comes from an ancient word for 'regrowth' -as in springtime. There's a reason for being forty days (although Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday is actually 46 days). In Jewish culture, the quantity 40 represented totality. In other words, the way of life of Jesus during 40 days in the desert represents a constant way of life throughout his whole lifespan. The flood in Genesis 7 was actually formed in 40 days. I suppose it may represent the fact that the challenges of evil are an inherent part of human life and God provides a way through! To quote Moses preaching to the Jews in Deuteronomy 9 : "For forty days and forty nights, I lay prostrate before the LORD, because he had threatened to destroy you. This was my prayer to him: O Lord GOD, destroy not your people... Look not upon their stubbornness nor upon their wickedness and sin...'. The whole journey from Egypt to the 'promised land' took 40 years. On Mt Sinai in Exodus 24 , Moses spent 40 days up the mountain and recieved the writing from heaven. The flight of Elijah from persecution in 1 Kings 19 took 40 days. In the book of Jonah, the city of Nineveh is actually given 40 days to repent, and they did. 'When the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth... When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he did not carry out the punishment' (Jonah 3:1-10 ). 'Elijah got up, ate and drank; then strengthened by that food, he walked forty days and forty nights to the mountain of God (1 K 19:8).
Christ makes it clear how important it is to give the Word of God (the Bible) a prominent place in our minds. He replies to Satan all three times by quoting Scripture. I like to quote Scripture, but the big difference is that Jesus was totally faithful in putting God's Word into practice. I want to keep clearing up the way I follow him. In fact, the Bible describes his incarnation as the Word of God becoming flesh and dwelling among us (Jn 1:1-2 ).
It's important for us to humbly remind ourselves that we need to be saved! God invites us all, but He won't impose. He won't impose on the proud people who reckon that they have life all arranged and under control for themselves. The gift of Life is much more than may seem, and Jesus went all the way to Calvary in order to convince us and to reveal the Resurrection.
The superficial propaganda of this commercial world often 'captivates' people. Deuteronomy describes how the Jews recalled their exodus from captivity in Egypt , and they gave thanks to God for it by offering symbolic gifts. The offertory procession of our masses has a history! Of course, while symbols and prayers and personal sacrifices are good, Jesus gave priority to the challenges of loving and helping others. Prayers and personal testimony do help, but we shouldn't forget to give people physical help also. Symbolically speaking, "if you give bread to the hungry, then your 'Easter Egg' will taste good!". So in the basket of the offertory at mass, we place our own selves!
The training of Lent in self discipline reminds me of the difficult training for rugby as a teenager. It wasn't pleasant in itself, but it was pleasant to end up physically fit for the matches. It's strange to be writing this now from a wheelchair! But the match is still going on for me. We may wonder why do physical limitations await us all - even death itself? One reason that convinces me is that it makes us make the effort to grow up to the everlasting Easter!
Being faithful to God brings challenges, but Jesus himself leads the way. A good rugby trainer gets his players to train hard, and he shouts instructions from the sidelines as players run around, but it's even better if he goes through the struggle of training along with them. Jesus certainly went through the struggle ahead of us 2000 years ago. And he comes with us today. That's so that his Easter victory can be ours too. The gospel about the temptations is like a call to kick the 'devil.' Jesus was hungry in the desert and thirsty on Calvary, but it was so that the Pascal mystery would be for real. Let's die to our selfishness for lent so that Easter will be for real in us!
By the way, the first Sunday of Lent has traditionally been the time to announce the new Christians who will be baptised at the Easter vigil (catechumens). The name catechumen actually comes from the word catechism which means teaching by question and answer as in the Socratic method. Now it is chiefly as a means of instructing children in the basics of the Christian creed. A person being instructed in this way in preparation for baptism or confirmation is called a catechumen. The five weeks of Lent were for their preparation. Hopefully we will be prepared to renew our baptismal promises on the vigil of March 22. So let's make this Lent a time to renew our determination to reject evil and to choose Christ. We can all be 'renewed' Christians!
If my meditation is very long for you, then perhaps it’s part of your Lenten ‘penance’!
St Teresa of Avila used to say that while self examination is good, it shouldn't take precedence over adoring God. That's what really renews us. So, while it's good to be aware of our faults in Lent, remember that Easter is coming and we should also keep reminding ourselves of the marvellous merciful love of God!
Dara
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