The Catholic Church invites us to celebrate the Holy time of Lent. Lent
is an important time. It is a very sacred time. During Lent, the Church invites
us constantly to prepare for the celebration of the mystery of Easter. This
sacred time leads us to Holy Thursday, when we evoke the Last Supper and the
institution of the Holy Eucharist. On Good Friday we meditate the passion and
death of Jesus, and, finally, on Easter Sunday we celebrate with joy the
resurrection of Jesus Christ.
It is very important that we live this period of Lent in a spirit of
repentance and joy: repentance because we know that we are sinners in need of
God's forgiveness and of his help; and joy because Jesus is alive and he is our
pledge for a better life in this world, which will lead us to eternal life. St.
Paul teaches: "For now we see (God) as in a mirror, dimly, but then we
will see Him face to face!" (1 Cor 13, 12).
In the gospel selection for the first Sunday in Lent we read that "Jesus was
led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil"
immediately after his baptism. Jesus was a real human being. At the time of his
baptism, "a voice from heaven said, 'This is my beloved Son, whom I
love!" and at the same time, the devil became his enemy.
When we were baptized we became sons and daughters of God and his
beloved friends. So, immediately Satan became our enemy. He always comes to
tempt us because he wants us to become enemies of God like him.
The temptations of Jesus are a very important lesson for us, more than
for Jesus of Nazareth. In fact, because Jesus is truly God, he cannot sin. However,
we are only human beings, and we are sinful. Satan, therefore, can easily
mislead us into sin.
But who is the devil? Satan is a bad creature, but he is not ugly, as
the painters depict him. We all fear the devil. He is an unclean spirit, as
the Bible teaches us, for he lures us with things that look good and beautiful,
but that cause division and suffering. It is enough for us to remember the result
of the temptations of the devil on Adam and Eve and on us. The Bible tells us
that when Adam and Eve believed the words of Satan and disobeyed the Creator,
"the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked" (i.e.
unprotected) and "When they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the
garden ... the man and his wife hid
themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden."(Gen
3: 7-8). Thus, the harmony was broken that existed among human beings, and
between them, and the Creator and all other creatures. This is the devil's work
even today. Let us remember that anything that sows discord and strife is the
devil or it is his work. No one should believe the devil, never!
Let us remember that the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness to be
tempted by the devil, not as a policeman who accompanies an accused in court or
in jail. No! The Holy Spirit accompanied Jesus as a defence lawyer and a
comforter. The Holy Spirit also acts in this way for us in our daily lives. He
is the Spirit of Truth, a defence against the devil who is the spirit of lies.
For this reason, during every temptation, Jesus responds with the words
of the Bible inspired by the same Holy Spirit. We must study the Word of God,
in order to overcome the wickedness of the devil.
Finally, let us recall how Jesus responded to the temptations of the
devil. When the devil asked Jesus to turn stones into bread, Jesus replied:
"It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that
comes from the mouth of God.'" When the devil asked Jesus to throw himself
down from the top of the Temple Jesus replied, “Again it is written, ‘Do not
put the Lord your God to the test.’” When the devil asked Jesus to worship him,
Jesus said to him, " Away with you, Satan! for it is written, ‘Worship
the Lord your God, and serve only him.’”
Therefore, we need to hear the words of God, for they are life-giving;
we should not test the Lord, because he deserves our trust; we must worship God
alone, because he is the true God, and there is none other God but Him.
Let us then ask our Father in heaven to bless us, and our brother Jesus
to save us, and the Holy Spirit, our Comforter, to protect us. Amen.
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