Mother Church invites us to celebrate Sunday, March 06, 2022, as the First Sunday of Lent in the Church’s Year C. As we enter the Lenten season, it is appropriate to ask the question: What is Lent?
The word ‘lent’ does not have any religious or Christian meaning, being an old Anglo-Saxon word for spring time, lencten. It describes the gradual lengthening of daylight after the winter solstice. So it is a word that is associated in Europe with the weather, marking the transition from winter to spring. It’s not clear how it became associated with Christianity, but it is the period coming about a month and a half after Christmas during which the whole Church goes on retreat for six weeks, that is, for 40 days, for an annual spiritual renewal. It prepares us to celebrate Christianity’s most fundamental belief, i. e., that Christ died, rose from the dead and is alive. In the absence of this belief, there is no Christianity.
For the next six weeks, beginning on Ash Wednesday, we meditate on two main themes: 1) the renewal of our baptismal promises and how faithful we have been to them, and 2) a spiritual renewal of faith and conversion through the three pillars of Lent, namely, fasting, prayer and almsgiving. By these means, Lent readies the faithful to celebrate the paschal mystery after a period of closer attention to the Word of God, and more ardent prayer.
Why does Lent last forty days? Early in Christianity, the discipline of fasting became associated with the number 40 in imitation of Christ’s 40-day fast in the desert, of Moses’ 40 days on Mount Sinai, of Elijah’s 40-day fast on his journey to Mount Horeb and of the 40 years the Israelites spent in the desert.
During Lent, penance, metanoia, should not only be inward and individual but also outward and social, and should be directed toward works of mercy on behalf of our brothers and sisters, especially those who are less fortunate than we are. We should strive during this period, therefore, to take a greater and more fruitful share in the Lenten liturgy and penitential service.
In today’s liturgy, both the Lenten themes of baptism and penance are present. The Gospel of Luke reminds us that the passion of Christ is a struggle against the forces of evil. In Deuteronomy, in the first reading, Moses asks the Israelites to show gratitude to God, who rescued them from slavery in Egypt, by offering him the fruits of the first harvest from the Promised Land. In the second reading, Saint Paul asks the Romans, and through them all of us, to deepen our faith in God who raised Jesus from the dead. In the course of this Eucharist, let us pray for the grace of conversion.
First Reading: Deuteronomy 26: 4-10.
Moses said to the people: ‘The priest shall take the basket from your hand and lay it before the altar of the Lord your God. Then, in the sight of the Lord your God, you must make this pronouncement: “My father was a wandering Aramaean. He went down into Egypt to find refuge there, few in numbers; but there he became a nation, great, mighty, and strong. The Egyptians ill-treated us; they gave us no peace and inflicted harsh slavery on us. But we called on the Lord, the God of our fathers. The Lord heard our voice and saw our misery, our toil and our oppression; and the Lord brought us out of Egypt with mighty hand and outstretched arm, with great terror, and with signs and wonders. He brought us here and gave us this land, a land where milk and honey flow. Here then I bring the first fruits of the produce of the soil that you, Lord, have given me.” You must then lay them before the Lord your God, and bow down in the sight of the Lord your God.’
Comment
Deuteronomy, the second Law laid down by Moses before the Israelites entered and took possession of the Promised Land, is the fifth of the first five books of the Old Testament. The first is Genesis, which deals with the origin of the world, of mankind and the people of Israel; the third is Exodus, which recounts the Israelites’ escape from Egypt; the fourth is Leviticus, which gives the lists of the laws of the priests of the tribe of Levi; and the fifth is Numbers, which gives the list of those who came out of Egypt and wandered about in the desert. These five books form a unit known collectively as the Pentateuch (from the Greek word for five books), or as the Torah (the Hebrew word for the Law).
Deuteronomy recounts the main events at the end of the forty years the Israelites spent wandering in the desert under Moses. They have set up camp within sight of the Promised Land and they are about to embark on its conquest. Moses, whom the Lord will not allow to cross into this land, addresses them by giving them his last will in farewell speeches. He tells them how they are to behave once they cross the River Jordan and reminds them of the main events that occurred during the Exodus and urges them to keep the Law of the Covenant.
In this reading, Moses tells the Israelites how to make the offering of the first fruits of the harvest to the Lord. In what is seen as the Old Testament’s profession of faith, he tells them that the offering of the first fruits is an appropriate way for Israel to express gratitude for the great deeds God has done for them. They, the sons of Jacob, who is described as the ‘wandering Aramaean’, have to thank God who has worked wonders by liberating them from bondage in Egypt and settling them on the Promised Land, a land flowing with milk and honey. The Exodus from Egypt is the resurrection and the birthday of the Jews as a people, an act of God that they should never forget.
It is the prayer of the first fruits, which show that the people of Israel are no longer a wandering people but have now settled on a land of their own. They can now enjoy a much more settled life which differs dramatically from what knew when they wandered in the desert for forty years.
What lesson do I draw from this reading? I see a loving God, a caring God, who takes his people by the hand and leads them through the valley of darkness to light. He is indeed my refuge, my stronghold, my God in whom I trust. Amen.
Second Reading: Romans 10: 8-13.
Scripture says: The Word, that is the faith we proclaim, is very near to you, it is on your lips and in your heart. If your lips confess that Jesus is Lord and if you believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, then you will be saved. When scripture says: those who believe in him will have no cause for shame, it makes no distinction between Jew and Greek: all belong to the same Lord who is rich enough, however many ask for his help, for everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
Comment
In the winter of the year AD 57, in the comparative quiet of the city of Corinth, Paul wrote what was to be his greatest masterpiece: his Letter to the Romans. It is Paul’s longest letter to any community. It deals with the key aspects of the teaching and redemptive work of Christ. Someone has described it as the longest, most influential and most rewarding of Paul’s undisputed letters. It may well be the last he wrote. He seems to have written it from Corinth during the stay recorded in Acts 20:3.
Paul did not found the Church in Rome. It was probably founded by Jewish Christians from Judaea or by Jews who had been converted to Christianity while on pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Paul had never visited nor evangelized the Church of Rome and he longed to visit them, Rome being the most important city in his world. He is therefore writing to people who have already been evangelized by others, notably Saint Peter and other earlier converts to Christianity. Saint Paul is planning to travel to the Iberian Peninsula and hopes he can get some help from the Christians of Rome.
The doctrine that Paul develops in this letter concentrates on three major elements: the need of all people for the unmerited justification that can only be found in Jesus Christ; the new life of hope and freedom in Christ that God’s love has given to all; and the problem of the failure of Israel, God’s favoured people, to attain this life.
After the Old Testament profession of faith, in the first reading, this passage from Romans serves very much as Paul’s own profession of faith. He proclaims that God has freed, not only the Jews but the Greeks as well. To Paul faith is not only in the heart but also on the lips. If it is reflected on in the heart, it must find concrete expression in our acts of love and charity. We must commit ourselves to the spread of the Gospel by the way we live our Christian lives and the way we believe in and proclaim the Gospel. To him, we declare our faith when we proclaim that God raised our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead to save us, Jew and Gentile alike.
What does this passage teach me? It tells me that I need to deepen my faith in the Lord during this Lenten season. Our faith, as Saint Paul tells us, consists in confessing that God raised Jesus from the dead and that he is alive.
Let us pray: “Lord Jesus Christ, you came among us first as the suffering Servant of God. When you come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, be our peace and our salvation, for you have redeemed us with your precious blood. You live and reign in the unity of the Father and the Holy Spirit, One God forever and ever. Amen.
Gospel Acclamation: “Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory! Man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory.
Gospel: Luke 4: 1-13.
Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit through the wilderness, being tempted there by the devil for forty days. During that time he ate nothing and at the end he was hungry. Then the devil said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to turn into a loaf.’ But Jesus replied, ‘Scripture says: Man does not live on bread alone.’ Then leading him to a height, the devil showed him in a moment of time all the kingdoms of the world and said to him, ‘I will give you all this power and the glory of these kingdoms, for it has been committed to me and I give it to anyone I choose. Worship me, then, and it shall all be yours.’ But Jesus answered him. ‘Scripture says: You must worship the Lord your God, and serve him alone.’ The he led him to Jerusalem and made him stand on the parapet of the Temple. ‘If you are the Son of God,’ he said to him, ‘throw yourself down from here, for scripture says: He will put his angels in charge of you to guard you, and again: They will hold you up on their hands in case you hurt your foot against a stone.’ But Jesus answered him, ‘It has been said: You must not put the Lord your God to the test.’ Having exhausted all these ways of tempting him, the devil left him, to return to at the appointed time.
Comment
As mentioned earlier, Lent commemorates the forty days Jesus spent in the desert in preparation for his years of preaching, which will culminate on the cross and in the triumph of Easter. Forty days of prayers and penance, and at the end of them the temptations of Christ, which the liturgy recalls for us in today’s Gospel.
It is the first time the devil intervenes in the life of Jesus, and he does so openly and in an aggressively direct manner. He puts our Lord to the test; perhaps he wants to find out if the hour of the Messiah has actually arrived. Our Lord is about to begin his public ministry and the devil is eager to see if he is up to the task.
The question is: why does Jesus allow Satan to tempt him? Through this temptation, Christ gives us an example of humility, and teach us to overcome the temptations that we undergo in the course of our Christian lives. If we are not prepared to meet temptations, we would open the door to a great enemy, that is, discouragement and gloominess. Jesus wants to teach us by example that no one should consider himself or herself exempt from any type of trial.
The Devil tempts us by taking advantage of the needs and weaknesses of our human nature. After fasting for forty days and forty nights, our Lord is physically very weak. He is in the wilderness and has not eaten for forty days and forty nights. He feels hungry just like any other man in such circumstances. This is the moment the tempter chooses to come forward with the proposition that He should turn the stones that lie around into the bread he needs and longs for so desperately.
This passage of the Gospel teaches us too to be particularly watchful over ourselves and over those whom we have a special obligation to help in their moments of weakness and tiredness. It is such moments that the devil chooses to tempt us more fiercely, so that our lives may turn away from God’s will and follow a different path.
Let us always remember that God is always beside us. Whenever we are confronted with temptation, he says: Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world (John 16:33). We should therefore place all our trust in him because without him we would achieve little or nothing at all by ourselves. As the Psalmist so eloquently puts it: The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? (Ps 26:1).
How do we overcome temptations? Through prayers, of course! As Mathew says: “Watch and pray, that you may not enter into temptations (Mt 26: 41). If we are to overcome temptation, we must repeat with confidence the words of our Saviour himself: Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. During this Lenten season, let us pray for the grace to be strong against all temptations that may lead us away from the right path. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to be our guide and our support in this journey towards Easter. Amen.
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