First Sunday of Lent
Lectionary: 22
Reading 1
The LORD God formed man out
of the clay of the ground
and blew into his nostrils the breath of life,
and so man became a living being.
Then the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east,
and placed there the man whom he had formed.
Out of the ground the LORD God made various trees grow
that were delightful to look at and good for food,
with the tree of life in the middle of the garden
and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the animals
that the LORD God had made.
The serpent asked the woman,
"Did God really tell you not to eat
from any of the trees in the garden?"
The woman answered the serpent:
"We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden;
it is only about the fruit of the tree
in the middle of the garden that God said,
'You shall not eat it or even touch it, lest you die.'"
But the serpent said to the woman:
"You certainly will not die!
No, God knows well that the moment you eat of it
your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods
who know what is good and what is evil."
The woman saw that the tree was good for food,
pleasing to the eyes, and desirable for gaining wisdom.
So she took some of its fruit and ate it;
and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her,
and he ate it.
Then the eyes of both of them were opened,
and they realized that they were naked;
so they sewed fig leaves together
and made loincloths for themselves.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 51:3-4, 5-6, 12-13, 14 and 17
R. (cf. 3a) Be merciful, O Lord, for we have
sinned.
Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
R. Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.
For I acknowledge my offense,
and my sin is before me always:
"Against you only have I sinned,
and done what is evil in your sight."
R. Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.
A clean heart create for me, O God,
and a steadfast spirit renew within me.
Cast me not out from your presence,
and your Holy Spirit take not from me.
R. Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.
Give me back the joy of your salvation,
and a willing spirit sustain in me.
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth shall proclaim your praise.
R. Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.
Reading 2
Brothers and sisters:
Through one man sin entered the world,
and through sin, death,
and thus death came to all men, inasmuch as all sinned—
for up to the time of the law, sin was in the world,
though sin is not accounted when there is no law.
But death reigned from Adam to Moses,
even over those who did not sin
after the pattern of the trespass of Adam,
who is the type of the one who was to come.
But the gift is not like the transgression.
For if by the transgression of the one, the many died,
how much more did the grace of God
and the gracious gift of the one man Jesus Christ
overflow for the many.
And the gift is not like the result of the one who sinned.
For after one sin there was the judgment that brought condemnation;
but the gift, after many transgressions, brought acquittal.
For if, by the transgression of the one,
death came to reign through that one,
how much more will those who receive the abundance of grace
and of the gift of justification
come to reign in life through the one Jesus Christ.
In conclusion, just as through one transgression
condemnation came upon all,
so, through one righteous act,
acquittal and life came to all.
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.
Or
Brothers and sisters:
Through one man sin entered the world,
and through sin, death,
and thus death came to all men, inasmuch as all sinned.
For if, by the transgression of the one,
death came to reign through that one,
how much more will those who receive the abundance of grace
and of the gift of justification
come to reign in life through the one Jesus Christ.
In conclusion, just as through one transgression
condemnation came upon all,
so, through one righteous act,
acquittal and life came to all.
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.
Verse Before the Gospel
One does not live on bread
alone,
but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.
Gospel
At that time Jesus was led by
the Spirit into the desert
to be tempted by the devil.
He fasted for forty days and forty nights,
and afterwards he was hungry.
The tempter approached and said to him,
"If you are the Son of God,
command that these stones become loaves of bread."
He said in reply,
"It is written:
One does not live on bread alone,
but on every word that comes forth
from the mouth of God."
Then the devil took him to the holy city,
and made him stand on the parapet of the temple,
and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down.
For it is written:
He will command his angels concerning you
and with their hands they will support you,
lest you dash your foot against a stone."
Jesus answered him,
"Again it is written,
You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test."
Then the devil took him up to a very high mountain,
and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in their magnificence,
and he said to him, "All these I shall give to you,
if you will prostrate yourself and worship me."
At this, Jesus said to him,
"Get away, Satan!
It is written:
The Lord, your God, shall you worship
and him alone shall you serve."
Then the devil left him and, behold,
angels came and ministered to him.
MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,
Here we are. Our Lenten Journey has begun. We have lifted our individual crosses, just as Jesus hoisted his own cross upon his shoulders, and we have begun our journey towards Calvary. His burden is our burden, just as our burdens are his. It is a shared journey that will ultimately end in a transformative experience which will bring us closer to Jesus and to a fuller understanding of what Jesus did for us. He had a choice regarding his suffering and death. He did not have to do this. He did not have to suffer for us. He accepted what his Father wanted him to do in order that we could receive the gift of salvation. At a certain point in our history, there was no need for salvation. Salvation was already given to us. It was part of our state of being. Yet, we refused it and chose to embrace our will above that which was God’s. In essence, we chose to be gods ourselves instead of being Children of God. He gave us everything, but we wanted more. This is where we find ourselves today. As a people, our selfishness and earthy desires outweigh things of a spiritual nature which can bring us closer to our creator. In other words, we have this inclination towards things of a physical nature instead of that which are of a spiritual nature; things that are of this world instead of things that are eternal. We have welcomed the desires of the flesh and have dismissed that which had made us perfect. Our lives have then become centered around the dictates of things that, in the end, have no real meaning, for they will all pass away and God will remain.
It is very difficult to emphasize the importance of this event because, even now, we are overwhelmed by the expectations of a society which has its roots in evil. We can find ourselves reacting instead of acting based upon the demands of individuals and people in positions of power who do not have our best interests at heart. We are constantly told what to do and how to behave. We are told what to buy and how to entertain ourselves; being convinced that we will be satisfied if only we do what we are told. In reality, what we are being told are not the right things. In fact, they go totally opposite to what is actually good for us. That good comes only from God. It is through this realization and a relationship with God that the truth of who we really are is realized: that we are Children of God.
Jesus has given us an example from which we can follow. Just as he entered into the desert to fast and to be tempted by Satan, we too have entered into our own desert. We too are encouraged to face our own temptations and fast so as to push back on that which is physical while embracing that which is spiritual in nature. We are encouraged to break the chains of that which bind us to the earth and lift ourselves into the realm of the spiritual. We have the capability of confronting that which separates ourselves from our God and then defeat it as we engage in a spiritual battle between heaven and earth. This battle is very different than any other conflict we might have found ourselves in. The difference is that, when we agree to enter into it, the outcome has already been preordained. We will be victorious. We will emerge transformed by the experience and be better off because of it. Jesus entered into the desert for us and, when we follow, only good things can result.
During this season, there is an expectation of sacrifice and suffering. This goes against everything that we have been taught by a society that emphasizes happy thoughts and the pursuit of happiness. We as Christians instead pursue suffering and giving beyond our means in acts of charity. It is through suffering that true joy is experienced. This joy is experienced together through our community and individually as we concentrate with an extreme furfur on our relationship with our God. The allures of the world are pushed out so we can invite the Holy Spirit into our hearts. It is then that true enlightenment can be achieved. With all these guarantees, why should we not take up the challenge and enter the desert. For in the desert there is an oasis. That oasis is Jesus Christ.
Deacon Tom
