The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary for the First Sunday of Lent invite us to join Adam and Eve and Jesus in an examination of the path we take from temptation to sin.
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| Looks good to us |
The reading from the Book of Genesis describes the first Sin and its Punishment in the setting of the Garden of Eden.
* [2:9] The second tree, the tree of life, is mentioned here and at the end of the story (3:22, 24). It is identified with Wisdom in Prv 3:18; 11:30; 13:12; 15:4, where the pursuit of wisdom gives back to human beings the life that is made inaccessible to them in Gn 3:24. In the new creation described in the Book of Revelation, the tree of life is once again made available to human beings (Rev 2:7; 22:2, 14, 19). Knowledge of good and evil: the meaning is disputed. According to some, it signifies moral autonomy, control over morality (symbolized by “good and evil”), which would be inappropriate for mere human beings; the phrase would thus mean refusal to accept the human condition and finite freedom that God gives them. According to others, it is more broadly the knowledge of what is helpful and harmful to humankind, suggesting that the attainment of adult experience and responsibility inevitably means the loss of a life of simple subordination to God.1
In Psalm 51 we hear a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
* [51:7] In sin my mother conceived me: lit., “In iniquity was I conceived,” an instance of hyperbole: at no time was the psalmist ever without sin, cf. Ps 88:15, “I am mortally afflicted since youth,” i.e., I have always been afflicted. The verse does not imply that the sexual act of conception is sinful.a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.2
The passage from the Letter of Paul to the Romans proclaims Grace and Life through Christ.
* [5:12–21] Paul reflects on the sin of Adam (Gn 3:1–13) in the light of the redemptive mystery of Christ. Sin, as used in the singular by Paul, refers to the dreadful power that has gripped humanity, which is now in revolt against the Creator and engaged in the exaltation of its own desires and interests. But no one has a right to say, “Adam made me do it,” for all are culpable (Rom 5:12): Gentiles under the demands of the law written in their hearts (Rom 2:14–15), and Jews under the Mosaic covenant. Through the Old Testament law, the sinfulness of humanity that was operative from the beginning (Rom 5:13) found further stimulation, with the result that sins were generated in even greater abundance. According to Rom 5:15–21, God’s act in Christ is in total contrast to the disastrous effects of the virus of sin that invaded humanity through Adam’s crime.3
In the Gospel of Matthew we are invited to be present at the Temptation of Jesus in the desert.
* [4:5–7] The devil supports his proposal by an appeal to the scriptures, Ps 91:11a, 12. Unlike Israel (Dt 6:16), Jesus refuses to “test” God by demanding from him an extraordinary show of power.4
Scott McClure imagines Jesus tired and hungry on the outside, suffering while imagining having the authority and respect he knew was his due. However, Jesus’ faith in the Father shines forth and is what enables him to defeat the dragon before him.
Now in the midst of our forty days of Lent, let us place similar trust in God. Though knowing our weakness, let us also realize the strength and grace that God bestows so we, like Jesus and the brave Saint George, may overcome the dragon before us5
Don Schwager quotes “On the Snare of the Devil,” by Ambrose, 339-397 A.D.
"The devil said to Jesus: 'If you are the son of God, command that these stones become bread' (Luke 4:3). Here we learn that there are three principal weapons that the devil likes to carry in order to wound our souls. They are gluttony, arrogance and ambition. Here begins the weapon with which he has already been victorious. We likewise should begin to be victorious in Christ in the very same area in which we have been defeated in Adam - we should be wary of gluttony. The devious trap is set for us when the table is laid for a royal banquet - it is bound to weaken our defences.
"See what weapons Christ uses to defeat the power of the devil. He does not use the almighty power he has as God - what help would that be to us? In his humanity he summons the help common to all - overlooking bodily hunger and seeking the word of God for nourishment.
"Whoever follows the Word is no longer attached to earthly bread, because he receives the bread of heaven and knows the divine is better than the human, the spiritual is better than the physical. Therefore, because such a person desires the true life, he looks for that which fortifies the heart by means of its invisible substance." (excerpt from On the Gospel of St. Luke, 4, 17)6
The Word Among Us Meditation on Matthew 4:1-11 comments that make no mistake, we will be tempted this Lent, ... The devil will try to convince us that God doesn’t care about us or that obeying the commandments will leave us unsatisfied.
Don’t believe it! Hold fast to your Lenten commitments. Stay faithful in prayer. And if you should fall short, remember that you are still a child of God. He loves you and he will always help you. He may even send an angel to comfort you!
“Lord, strengthen me with your grace this Lent so that I can overcome any temptation.”7
Peter Edmonds SJ, a member of the Mount Street Jesuit Community, shares that we visit a desert, a mountain, a well, a pool, a tomb, and a place of execution during Lent. These are the settings for the six gospel stories we hear on the Sundays of Lent in Year A.
In the desert, Jesus lived in God’s presence. He had just heard the voice of God speaking at his baptism and it was the Spirit of God that brought him there. When we hear Jesus speak, he quotes words that God spoke through Moses in Deuteronomy (8:3; 6:13, 16). But he was also tempted and tested by the devil: ‘if you are the Son of God’, the devil taunted him, just as his enemies would mock him when later he hung on the cross (Matthew 27:40). But Jesus refused every temptation the devil put before him. He would not work wonders for himself or test God or indulge in false worship. Lent for all of us is a period when we are to live closer to God. We pray that we may deepen our understanding of our own Christian calling and dignity. Because of our baptism, we are all children of God. We know, as Jesus knew, that we do not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. We do not put ourselves in situations from which only God can rescue us, and we do not worship anything or anyone but God alone.8
Suzanne Guthrie, At the Edge of the Enclosure, offers a meditation on inner demons from Frere Ivan in the Desert and the City.
“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth “(John 16:13a)
Not everyone is called to face the particular trials of St Antony but each one of us has, sooner or later, to confront the terrible demons which we carry inside: the demons of aggression, resentment, pride, sadness, despair.9
Friar Jude Winkler shares the Jewish understanding that God has breathed a Spirit of good in all people. Eve shows our tendency to see good for ourselves in temptation. Paul declares to the Romans that Grace is so much greater than sin. Friar Jude notes the temptation to Jesus is to treat himself as God rather than the Son of God.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, comments that in traditional Christian teaching, Thomas Aquinas and other scholastic philosophers said that people normally do not consciously choose evil, but they choose something that appears good inside of their framework. We have to expose our frame of reference early on if our spiritual journey is to go anywhere. Our egos naturally put together a construct that explains why the things we’re doing are necessary and even good. That is why it is so essential to “discern the spirits” (see 1 Corinthians 12:10). We need support to distance ourselves from our illusions and rationalizations and see them for what they are. To unmask our false or separate self, we need to install a kind of “inner observer” or “fair witness.”
As long as we cling to our prejudices and identify with our preconceived views and feelings, genuine community is impossible. We have to get to the point where we can break free from our feelings and thoughts. Otherwise in the end we won’t have emotions or ideas; they will have us.
Sometimes we meet people who are free from themselves. They express what moves them, and then they take a step back. They play an active part in things, but they don’t think they have a corner on the truth market. Without this kind of “inner work,” of simultaneously putting ourselves forward and taking a step back, community is doomed to failure. Learning this is really hard work. I probably can’t expect it from politicians, but I do expect it from people who know God. It’s the work of detachment, self-emptying, and “fasting” from the need to be right—the disciplines taught by all great religions. This is what makes someone “conscious.”10
The desert journey to connect with our demons and desires is helpful to bring truth to our understanding of our need for the Grace of a humble, and contrite heart.
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