1st Sunday of Lent (Fr. Vinner)
My Sisters and Brothers in the Lord,
On Wednesday we began the season of Lent which is our preparation for the Easter celebration of Jesus’ resurrection. It is a time in imitation of Jesus spending forty days in the desert. Jesus fasted in the desert, and overcame the devil’s temptations. Jesus never sinned but in the desert he was tempted, and during these forty days of Lent we remember Jesus in the desert as we try to overcome temptation in our lives and to overcome sinfulness. There is practically no hiding place or shelter in the desert and the difficulties of the desert make whatever is inside a person come to the surface. The desert tests and shows up a person as he/she is. Lent is an invitation to us to take the courageous step of “going into the desert” and not hiding from what lies hidden deep within us. Lent is a time to put our souls before a mirror and see ourselves as we really are.
Lent is an invitation to allow our sin and darkness and wounds come to the surface so that we can deal with them and allow them to be healed by the grace of Jesus. During these forty days of Lent, we do not hide from our sinfulness or prevent God speaking to us or healing us during this Lent. It is only when we admit something that we can deal with it. The first stage in overcoming anything is to admit the problem. If we remain in denial we miss out on the grace of God to heal us and renew us and make us whole. During Lent we say no to the devil’s temptations to continue committing sin, and instead we trust in our heavenly Father like Jesus in the desert. The words of Jesus can be our words this Lent, “Man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (Matt 4:4) Lent is not only about helping others, about doing something, it is also very much about the type of person we are.
Our first reading today, from the Book of Genesis, gives us the story of how our ancestors saw sin come into the world. We call this first sin the original sin and that first sin is passed along to all of us so that we are born into a world already touched and marked by original sin. The teaching of this reading is clear: sin exists and touched our ancestors and touches all of us.
The second reading, from the Letter to the Romans, picks up this teaching and expands it a bit. The last bit of this second reading is what we need to hear, over and over: “For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so, through the obedience of the one, the many will be made righteous.” We hear clearly that although we all suffer the consequences of sin, so also every one of us can share in salvation and redemption. Our ancestors all suffered under sin and had no way to salvation and redemption until the coming of Jesus Christ, who is our Lord.
The Gospel of Matthew that we hear today is about Christ in the desert. As Jesus begins His public life, the evil one, the devil, comes to try to seduce Him. Jesus has taken on our human life. Jesus had to fight temptation, just as we do. But Jesus never chooses sin and death. We do. But because Jesus chose life and the will of His Father, Jesus has broken the hold of sin and death on all of us and allowed us to become free from sin in Him. Even at the beginning of Lent, we must keep our eyes focused on the death and resurrection of Jesus. It is only the death and resurrection of our Lord which allows us to be saved. Our freedom from sin is a gift of Jesus to us. Jesus was willing to die for us so that we could have the power to live His life and also triumph over sin and death. In Lent we try to strengthen our understanding of this mystery of salvation. We try to strengthen our bonds with Jesus the Lord. We practice penances of good works so that the love of Jesus overflows through us to others. Lent is a time to practice the hard discipline of love: love of God and love of others.
Give up for Lent:
- GIVE UP speaking unkindly. Instead, let your speech be generous and understanding. It costs so little to say something kind and uplifting. Why not check that sharp tongue at the door?
- GIVE UP your hatred of anyone or anything! Instead, learn the discipline of love. “Love covers a multitude of sins.”
- GIVE UP your worries and anxieties! Instead, trust God with them. Anxiety is spending emotional energy on something we can do nothing about: like tomorrow! Live today and let God’s grace be sufficient.
- GIVE UP TV one evening a week! Instead, visit some lonely or sick person. There are those who are isolated by illness or age. Why isolate yourself in front of the “tube?” Give someone a precious gift: your time!
May God Bless you,
Fr.S.Vinner HGN.