February 25, 2009
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Breaking Open the Word By James Cavanagh March 1: First Sunday of Lent Scripture readings: Overview: The readings in Lent prepare us to celebrate the paschal feast at Easter. The readings from the Old Testament recall the saving deeds of God, which look forward to God’s definitive act of redemption in Christ. The covenant that God makes with Noah in the first reading anticipates the New Covenant, which is not limited to a single race or nation but is with “all living beings.” God promises that he will never again destroy the earth by a flood. Water that once brought death and destruction will become the means by which God saves his people. In the second reading, St. Peter explains that the flood waters prefigure baptism. Through the waters of baptism, God wipes away sin in order to save sinners. The brief narrative of Jesus’ sojourn in the wilderness in this week’s Gospel reading evokes the memory of fallen man’s exile from paradise. In the desert Jesus unites himself to all human beings who are surrounded by wild beasts and tempted by Satan. It is here that Christ, the second Adam, begins to restore the harmony of creation lost at the beginning. Christ’s work of redemption began in the Judean desert and culminated on Golgotha where evil was defeated once and for all. Key verse: “He remained in the desert for 40 days, tempted by Satan” (Mk 1:13). “Catechism of the Catholic Church”: “Driven by the Spirit into the desert, Jesus remains there for 40 days without eating; he lives among wild beasts, and angels minister to him. At the end of this time Satan tempts him three times, seeking to compromise his filial attitude toward God. The evangelists indicate the salvific meaning of this mysterious event: Jesus is the new Adam who remained faithful just where the first Adam had given in to temptation” (Nos. 538-539). Pope Benedict XVI: “The Spirit’s first command leads him into the desert ‘to be tempted by the devil.’ It is a descent into the perils besetting mankind, for there is no other way to lift up fallen humanity. Jesus has to enter into the drama of human existence, for that belongs to the core of his mission; he has to penetrate it completely, down to its uttermost depths, in order to find the ‘lost sheep’ to bear it on his shoulders and to bring it home” (“Jesus of Nazareth”). Application: During Lent the Church invites us to join Christ during his 40 days in the desert and to accompany him on his way to Jerusalem and to join him in his passion. It is a time of soul-searching, self-examination and repentance; of prayer, fasting and almsgiving. It is an especially good time for us to reflect on the significance of our baptism and what it means to be the People of God, the Body of Christ and the Temple of the Holy Spirit. |
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