From the Director of Religious Education
Happy first Sunday of Lent! The season of penance and sacrifice! What’s so happy about that? I look forward to Lent because, by Easter time, I usually feel renewed.
The first and second readings remind us that sin entered the world through one man who fell to temptation but that through the obedience of a New Adam, Jesus Christ, many would be made righteous. Jesus is obedient to the will of the Father, even to death on the cross.
In today’s Gospel, we hear about Jesus’ temptation in the desert. I want to invite you to reflect on two verses of this passage. The first one, “Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.” and the second, “One does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.”
Jesus followed the Spirit into the desert because he was preparing himself for what was to come. The beautiful thing about all of this is that the Spirit is there, always present and one with Christ, in the desert, in his ministry life, and even on the cross. In Jesus’ agony, he cries out “Father, why have you forsaken me”. It’s not that he is questioning the Father, rather he is praying psalm 22. This is why Jesus spent time in the desert, to prepare himself for such a moment, where he would rely on the strength of the Spirit when he needed it most. The passage about one not living on bread alone but rather on the word that comes from the mouth of God means that we truly are dependent on God’s mercy. Every breath we take, every success we gain, and even every trial we must endure is a result of God’s living Word. We are given the liberty to walk alone or walk in the Spirit.
As we begin our Lenten journey, I pray we all invoke the Holy Spirit to be our guide like he was for Jesus in the desert. Let us go forward with hope, courage, and piety knowing that we do not walk alone but that the Spirit goes before us. May we recognize our dependency on God’s mercy and goodness so that we can truly submit to conversion in Christ; that the cross we received on Ash Wednesday be engraved in our hearts to remind us who we belong to and who we will return to.
And so, I leave you to reflect on one more verse, “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?” – Psalm 139.
Happy First Sunday of Lent, may the Spirit be with you!
Peace, Sandra Dominguez
Director of Religious Education
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