First Sunday of Lent; Year C, 2019

May you, through this Eucharistic celebration of today, realize that Lenten period is God’s time and a pure gift to you, and like Jesus in the wilderness, you are to allow God’s plan to unfold in and through you. Happy Sunday +John I. Okoye

DOCTRINE AND FAITH
(Deuteronomy 26,4-10; Romans 10, 8-13; Luke 4,1-13: First Sunday of Lent; Year C, 2019)

This passage contains one of the most important creedal statements found in the Pentateuch (cf. Deut 6,20-24; Josh 24,2b-13). The text indicates that this profession of faith was part of the Israelite celebration of the First Fruits. The offering of the first fruits of the harvest acknowledged that the land itself was a gift from God. The cultic celebration described here consisted of both action (the offering of the basket containing the produce) and the recitation of the saving acts of God on behalf of the people. The creedal statement itself is an enumeration of the saving events that shaped Israel's faith. It includes an admission of her humble beginnings; a report of her oppression in Egypt; a testimony to her deliverance by God and an acknowledgment of God's gift of the land to them. The wandering Aramean is probably a reference to Jacob, who eventually becomes the father of the twelve tribes. The ethnic bias is clear in this designation. Not only was the ancestor not a Canaanite, but the tradition tells us that both Isaac and Jacob married Aramean women so the bloodline would be pure (cf. Gen 25,20; 281-2). The word for wandering (obed) does not mean nomadic meandering but suggests being lost or being about to perish (cf. Jer 50,6; Job 4,11). It should be noted that it was when Jacob was most vulnerable in Egypt that he became a great nation. This is Israel's way of proclaiming that it was through the goodness of God that it survived and flourished. God intervened with strong hand and outstretched arm. This is an image that depicts military strength. It implies that the God of Israel conquered the forces of Egypt on Egyptian soil in order to deliver the people. This is an unmistakable statement about the indisputable sovereignty of God. Finally, the centrality of land is clear. It was given (natan) by God and the offering of its first fruits is the way of showing gratitude for all the mighty acts of God. 

In the second reading, Paul incorporates three important themes. First, he stresses the singular importance of faith as the basis of salvation. Second, he reinterprets Scripture from a christological perspective. Third, he proclaims the universal character of salvation through Christ. Faith is the central message of this passage and according to Paul, justification comes not through works of obedience or devotion but through faith. While he does distinguish between believing and confessing, one follows and requires the other. Belief without some kind of public confession could be betrayal; confession without interior belief is hypocrisy. Relying on his hearers' knowledge of Scripture, Paul alludes to two prophetic passages. In one (Isa 28,16) Isaiah, Paul claims that Jesus is the cornerstone set by God and those who place their faith in Jesus will not be shaken. In the other (Joel 3,5),he identifies Jesus as (Kurious) Lord. Paul also proclaimedthat God raised Jesus from the dead. Belief in the resurrection was the basis of salvation. According to Paul it was precisely by means of the resurrection from the dead that Jesus became the anointed (Christos) of God. Finally, the efficacy of these awesome realities was universal. There was no advantage in being a Jew, a member of the chosen race nor was there an advantage in being a Greek. It is faith in Jesus, a faith that can be professed by anyone, that justifies and saves. 

In the gospel story, the narrative of the temptation of Jesus states that Jesus was under the influence of the Holy Spirit. The temptations themselves occurred in three different places: the wilderness, on a high mountain, on the parapet of the Temple in Jerusalem. In each instance Jesus is challenged to prove he is the Son of God. In each instance he replies to the tempter with a reference to a passage from Deuteronomy. Jesus never directly addresses the question of his divine sonship, but he always shows himself to be faithful as Israel was not. The temptation to produce bread recalls Israel's hunger in the wilderness and God's graciousness in supplying the people with manna. Here the devil insinuates that if he has divine power, Jesus should be able to produce the bread his body craves. To this Jesus responds that God's words (the Commandments) are as essential for life as bread (Deut 8,1-3). The second temptation occurs on a high place from which Jesus and the devil can view the entire inhabited world (oikoumenes). There seems to have been a tradition that evil forces exercised ruling authority over the world. This will be changed when the Messiah appears and takes back control of the world. It is out of this concept that the devil can offer to relinquish power in return for Jesus' homage. Jesus rejects this proposal with a quote from Scripture (Deut 6,13). The third temptation takes place in Jerusalem, the city that is the centre of divine activity, according to Luke's theology. This last test was an attempt to force God's hand. Quoting a passage from the Scriptures (Ps 91,11-12), the devil challenges God's promise of protection, suggesting that Jesus see whether God will in fact preserve him from harm. Jesus counters the devil's baiting with his own choice of scriptural passage: Do not put God to the test (Deut 6,16). Three times the devil tempts Jesus; three times Jesus proves his allegiance to God. Israel may have failed in the wilderness, but Jesus remains faithful. This episode of temptation was over, but the encounters between Jesus and the devil were not finished. The evil one departed only for a time. 

Lent is God's time. We see this in today’s readings. It is a time when we are reminded that we are but dust of the earth and there is nothing we can do to win our salvation. It is a pure gift from God. Lent also warns us not to try to force God's hand. Like Jesus in the wilderness, we are to allow God's plan to unfold in and through us. Finally, Lent is a time for us to actively enter into the mysteries of the death and resurrection of Jesus, and there to marvel at what God has done for us. We begin the Lenten season knowing that salvation is not something we can achieve on our own merits. There is no advantage to being a Jew or a Greek, simply being faithful to devotional practices or not. Lent is not a season for us to concentrate on what we are going to do to be saved. It is a time for us to reflect on what God has done for us by bringing us to salvation. What happens to us during this season comes out of the goodness of God. What happens to us in faith comes by way of the resurrection of Jesus, which is God's seal on the ministry of Jesus in the Holy Spirit. Lent is less a time for us to be doing religious things than for us to be open to the transformative things God wishes to do for us. For Paul this is the basis of our faith. This same theme is picked up in the responsorial psalm, where the psalmist turns to God knowing that only through God's power can salvation be accomplished. It is God's intervening activity that saves, not our Lenten practices, regardless of how sincere or difficult they may be. 

The temptations of Jesus are the same temptations we face when we are inclined to think that somehow we are in control. While the goals of the temptations may be admirable-feed the hungry, bring the world under the control of good, trust in God's power to protect us-we often choose to accomplish them in ways that are less than admirable. We try to perform the extraordinary so what we do reflects favourably on us. We use brute force in order to achieve control. We put God to the test rather than live peacefully with God's plan as it unfolds within and around us. We seek to become the super-hero, the super-minister, the super-Christian, on our own. In his responses to the tempter Jesus constantly defers to the power of God: it is not by bread alone. . . worship only God. . . do not put God to the test. In a real sense, these temptations are a reminder that the fundamental temptation is to deny our human limitations and to refuse to let God be God for us. Lent is a time for us to remember that we are dust and not merely to wear it on our foreheads. 

Remembrance is more than an intellectual activity. It is participation in the reality of what is being remembered. Lent, which is the season to allow God to free us so we might not succumb to the temptations that besiege us on every side, will be transformative only for a people who remember what God has done for them in their past. Just as ancient Israel remembered God's care for them from the time of the calling of their ancestors to the events in their own lives, so Lent is the time to remember the events of the paschal mystery. More specifically, it is a time to enter into them and identify ourselves with them. If we are honest with ourselves we will have to ask why this remembering of, this identifying with, the mysteries of God has not transformed us already. Perhaps that is why we have Lent each year, so that again and again God can offer us the salvation only He can give. May we, therefore, in the Eucharistic celebration of today be bestowed with grace to allow God in this Lenten period to transform our weak nature. Happy Sunday! +John I. Okoye