The Joy of Anticipation

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There were two dieticians who lived very strict lives of diet and exercise. They would eat a healthy diet, watch blood pressure and cholesterol, get exercise and absolutely eat incredibly intentionally and purposefully. Perhaps the great symbol of all of this was the omnipresence of oat bran: cereal, muffins, the ever imaginative addition to more recipes than can be remembered; Oat bran every day. They lived to the late nineties. Both died and went to heaven. One day while walking around and seeing all the wonders one said to the other, “Gee, I never imagined it would be like this.”   The other said, “Just think we could have been here years ago if it wasn’t for all that oat bran.”  … and isn’t heaven the ultimate end we hope for? And Lent is the liturgical season when we consider our spiritual practices, our spiritual exercises, and spiritual diets. And it begins here on Ash Wednesday.

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The nature of temptation

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This coming Sunday is the first Sunday in Lent and the gospel is the temptation/testing of Jesus in the desert. An earlier post today addressed the background of testing/temptation in a broad Scriptural way. This second post narrows that thread to consider the NT witness to the temptation from the four gospels. As well there is a short section on temptation and the human will.

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Testing and Temptation

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This coming Sunday is the first Sunday in Lent and the gospel is the temptation/testing of Jesus in the desert. This is the first of two posts today – both dealing with the scriptural idea and basis of testing and temptation – whether there is a difference and what that says about the intersection of the divine intention and human will.

As often noted, Luke writes with a narrative intent. This is true also for the account of the temptations. Luke 4:1–13 presents a number of key elements linking it to surrounding material, helping to ensure its interpretation as a bridge scene moving Jesus from his reception of the Spirit at his baptism to his public ministry. The most obvious such bridges include references to the other worldly (3:21–22; 4:5), the setting of the wilderness in the vicinity of the Jordan (3:2–3, 4, 21; 4:1, 14), the Holy Spirit (3:22; 4:1, 1, 14, 16), Jesus’ sonship (3:22, 38; 4:3, 9, 41 – If you are the Son of God), the attention to the meaning of Jesus’ mission, and Jesus’ encounter with hostile forces – human and spiritual (4:2–13, 22–30, 33–36).

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Who can be saved?

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Today’s gospel asks: “Who then can be saved?” The answer is found in the first reading, words from the Book of Sirach, a passage that speaks to both the reality of human sin and the infinite mercy of God. Sirach 17:20-24 reminds us that though we may fall into sin, the Lord ever and always calls us back to Himself with love, urging us to repent and turn to Him with all our hearts.

The passage begins by acknowledging the weakness of human nature. “Their iniquities are not hidden from Him, and all their sins are before the Lord.” God sees everything—our struggles, our failures, our sins—but He does not look upon us with condemnation. Instead, He calls us to conversion: “To the penitent He provides a way back, and He encourages those who are losing hope!“

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Leading into the wilderness

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This coming Sunday is the first Sunday in Lent, Lectionary Cycle C. The season of Lent has its own end and purpose, so we should not expect continuity from the previous week that was part of Ordinary Time. Depending on the year and the date of Easter, Ordinary Time might end following the 4th Sunday, the 8th Sunday, or somewhere in between. This year (2025) we will have spent three Sundays with Luke’s “Sermon on the Plain. But here on this first Sunday in Lent we “drop back” to the events immediately following Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan River at the hands of John the Baptist. Fresh from his baptism we find Jesus “filled with the Spirit.” 

Let’s get our bearings with Luke’s promised “orderly sequence” (Luke 1:3).

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The Storehouse of Goodness

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The first reading from Sirach makes some great points. Is the potter a skilled artist? You’ll find out when the pottery comes out of the furnace. Does the fruit tree bear good fruit? You’ll find out when the harvest is ready. Is this person a good, wise and holy individual? You’ll find out when they speak. It will reveal something about their judgments, character and their visual acuity for goodness.

My friend Fr. Zack has a foundational rule for homilies: if you homily has three points, save two for another time.  It’s good advice, but today, I will take an exception to the otherwise excellent rule. I want to talk about three things: judgment, character, and blindness – all preludes to our actions and words in the world.

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Bright Shiny Things

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The Gospel for this coming Sunday is a practical admonition to incorporate your faith, faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, into the very root and being of your day – thoughts, words and actions. Begin with yourself: inspect the fruits of your lived-faith and then evangelize others to do the same.  Our faith should be like our bibles: well used with all the “new shine” worn away. With that in mind, a final thought from Culpepper (152):

Once there was a man who took great pride in his automobile. He performed all the routine maintenance on schedule and kept the car clean inside and out. When he could afford to do so, he began to trade cars every couple of years so that he always had a relatively new vehicle. He also traded up, getting a larger, more luxurious car each time. Then he began to trade every year so that he would always have the current model. Eventually, he got to the point where he would buy a new car, drive it home, and leave it in the garage. He refused to use it because he didn’t want to put any miles on it or run the risk of getting it scratched. So the new car just sat—pretty, but never used. This could be a parable of the way some people treat their faith, becoming less and less active in church while professing more and more strongly that they are committed Christians.

Jesus knew that it would not be easy for anyone to respond to the call to discipleship. The simple call, “Follow me,” meant such a radical change of life. Knowing how difficult it would be, Jesus concluded the sermon with sayings that warn about the urgency of putting discipleship into practice.

Image credit: A detail of The Parable of the Mote and the Beam | Domenico Fetti, 1619 | Metropolitan Museum of Art NYC | PD-US

Friends

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Sometimes a daily reading just does not need any additional commentary:

5 A kind mouth multiplies friends, and gracious lips prompt friendly greetings.6 Let your acquaintances be many, but one in a thousand your confidant.7 When you gain a friend, first test him, and be not too ready to trust him8 For one sort of friend is a friend when it suits him, but he will not be with you in time of distress.9 Another is a friend who becomes an enemy, and tells of the quarrel to your shame.10 Another is a friend, a boon companion, who will not be with you when sorrow comes.11 When things go well, he is your other self, and lords it over your servants;12 But if you are brought low, he turns against you and avoids meeting you.13 Keep away from your enemies; be on your guard with your friends.14 A faithful friend is a sturdy shelter; he who finds one finds a treasure.15 A faithful friend is beyond price, no sum can balance his worth.16 A faithful friend is a life-saving remedy, such as he who fears God finds;17 For he who fears God behaves accordingly, and his friend will be like himself.” (Sirach 6:5–17)

The Foundation

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Although not part of the gospel for the 8th Sunday, most commentators include the following verses as part of the same pericope. It addresses the need for a sure foundation from which to judge and assess one’s commitment to Jesus.

 46 “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ but not do what I command?47 I will show you what someone is like who comes to me, listens to my words, and acts on them.48 That one is like a person building a house, who dug deeply and laid the foundation on rock; when the flood came, the river burst against that house but could not shake it because it had been well built.49 But the one who listens and does not act is like a person who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the river burst against it, it collapsed at once and was completely destroyed.” 

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