March 13, 2011 — First Sunday of Lent
First Reading – Genesis 2: 7-9, 3:1-7
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 - Psalm 51: 3-4. 7-8. 12-13, 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.
Second Reading—Romans 5: 12, 17-19
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.
Gospel – Matthew 4: 1-11
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.
Reflection
When people purchase a car, they’ll often kick the tires. The habit dates back to the early days of the twentieth century when tires varied enormously in quality, and kicking the tire helped gauge whether or not it would hold up once the customer drove the vehicle off the lot. Kicking is generally a destructive act—it inflicts damage of some sort. But the point of kicking a tire wasn’t to damage it—it was to test it. To make sure it was up to its assigned task of bearing the weight of a carload of passengers.
We test things all the time. Before a type of steel ever goes into construction or a variety of paint ever gets used on the Space Shuttle, myriad tests are performed to make sure that the material will hold up under duress. If we were to watch a video of these tests being performed, and we did not know the context, it might seem strange to us that scientists were setting off explosives around the steel, impact testing the concrete, or blow-torching the paint. And yet, we understand that these tests are necessary to ensure that these materials will be up to their assigned task.
In today’s Gospel, we see Jesus similarly being tested. The Greek word translated into English as, “tempted” is more accurately rendered as “tested.” and the Hebrew word, “Satan” means “accuser.” In the Hebrew Scriptures, the Satan was a member of the Heavenly Court who was
assigned by God to test humans and their fidelity to God under duress. The most famous
example of this is the story of Job, as recounted in the eponymous book of the Bible. In the Jewish tradition, the Satan was not an evil force, but akin to a materials scientist, commissioned by God the Chief Engineer to test the durability of the faith of humans when that faith was stressed. So today, we see Jesus “led by the Spirit [of God] into the desert to be tempted by the devil.” That may as well read, we see “the steel sent by the engineer into the laboratory to be tested by the materials scientist.”
In all of the Gospels, Jesus is led into the desert to be tested IMMEDIATELY after he has
been baptized by John—that is, before the commencement of his public ministry of teaching and healing. Think about it... first Jesus is called/chosen for a particular task (the way that a
particular grade of steel is selected to be used for a building project); but before he can begin that task, he must be tested to make sure he will hold up (the way that the steel undergoes testing in the lab); and it is only once he passes that he can actually be used for the purpose God selected him (only then can the steel be sent to the construction site).
Nearly every major life commitment involves some form of testing in order to make sure we are properly prepared to endure the coming stress of a particular vocation. A medical student is grilled relentlessly (and continues to be scrutinized throughout residency) not so that her self-esteem will be lowered or her own intelligence put into doubt, but so that she will be able to handle the duress of her chosen profession. She may feel called to be a doctor, but before she can carry out that assigned role, she will have to undergo innumerable tests before they hand her an MD. Too, a pair that decides to become engaged undergoes countless instances that test their durability as a couple. These “tests” are not so formal as med school rounds, but are every bit as challenging—things like which family to spend Thanksgiving with and whether to keep separate bank accounts.
Moreover, the testing does not end the moment that the steel is shipped out, the couple gets married, or the doctor receives her MD. Once it is in place, the steel constantly is “tested” by assaulting forces like gravity, temperature, and corrosion. The doctor continues to be challenged every day of her professional career, and any successfully married couple will affirm that the “testing” of their relationship never ceases. What these initial tests hopefully prove is that the material—be it steel or the commitment of the couple in the relationship— is up to the challenge of surpassing these daily tests. Too, with Jesus, the temptations in the desert were not meant to show that Jesus had, once and for all, conquered temptation, but were a proof that he was up to the challenge of fulfilling the task God had asked him to carry out.
The proof was not so much for others—he was in the desert alone, after all—as it was for himself, a reminder to him during times of acute stress, when he was frustrated with his disciples or exhausted from his preaching, that he had already undergone the most severe possible test, and he had come out on top. The same way that God uses the Satan of the Hebrew imagination to test the durability of the people who claim to be faithful to God, so too, we might conceive of trials in our own life as designed deliberately and purposively by God to ensure that we are up to the challenge of meeting future duress and surviving intact.
Whether it be a “test” like not getting a job we had planned for; finding out that a loved one
is sick; or discovering that our significant other no longer wants to move forward with the
relationship—each of these may seem like unbearable and insurmountable challenges as we
undergo them, much as it must have felt unbearable for moments as Jesus in the wilderness. And we may be tempted to lose faith. To give up. To take the easy way out, as Jesus was tempted to give up his task and take the easy way out. Instead, we are called to endure, to have faith, and to trust that these tests are getting us ready for the unique role God has for us in the future.
Reflection Questions
1. Have you ever felt tested in your own life? Do you believe God was at work in the
experience? How so, or how not?
2. What have you learned about yourself from times you have been tested? When you are being tested now, in your current life, do you think back to earlier moments? Is this in any way comforting or reassuring?
3. Are there any times in your life when you are (or were) tempted to take “the easy way out?” How do you handle that temptation?
