My Sisters and Brothers:
On this First Sunday of Lent, we hear in the Gospel the story of Jesus’ journey into the desert. It tells us that immediately after his baptism, “the Spirit drove him out into the desert” (see Mark 1:9-15). It’s interesting to note that Jesus embraced this “desert experience” so very soon after that exceptional meeting with John the Baptist at the Jordan River, but before the beginning of his public ministry. The same Spirit who had just “descended upon Jesus like a dove” then took him to that barren place where he was able to spend time in preparation for the things to come. There, he had time for prayer and fasting, and he was even subjected to the temptations of the evil one.
We believe the forty days Jesus spent in the desert, and what he endured there, serve as a model for us, and as a reminder of our own need for times of renewal and preparation (like this season of Lent that has begun for us anew). I believe we can only fully understand the significance of Jesus’ desert experience, and its meaning for us, from the perspective of its correlation to his baptism by St. John, and to the eventual beginning of his outreach and ministry to others. We could say that everything changed for Jesus after he received his baptism . . . and even though he was the Son of God and could do marvelous things, it was not always “easy” for him. He, like us, had to suffer the temptations of the world and had to pass through challenging periods in order to achieve what he was called to do.
The fact that Jesus faced temptations in the desert immediately after his baptism is a sign for us of the challenges, and even the struggles, that we too will have as committed, baptized people of faith. When we accept our responsibilities as baptized Christians, then we will also at times have to pass through “the desert.” As we begin this season of Lent, we unite ourselves to Jesus in a special way, and we begin our own kind of symbolic and spiritual forty days in the desert.
We are asked during these days to reflect more deeply upon the significance of our own baptisms; we are asked to practice our faith more devoutly, to pray more fervently, to do penance, and to do works of charity. During Lent we may face the temptation to reject the opportunity we have for spiritual renewal (and if we do so, then we will surely miss this opportunity we now have to strengthen our faith).
Our Gospel today tells us that once Jesus completed his time in the desert, that he began to proclaim to all who heard him that “the time of fulfillment had arrived . . . and the Kingdom of God was at hand . . . ,” and the people were admonished “to repent, and to believe in the gospel.” His message is as vital for us today as it was for those people who lived in Palestine two-thousand years ago!
May this season of Lent be a time of renewal for those of us who have professed faith in the Lord Jesus and who have been baptized! During these days, may we be truly renewed again as we strive, like Jesus, to be who and what we are called to be, and as we hope to respond faithfully to our common calling as sons and daughters of our loving Father in heaven!
My friends, as we look forward to the fulfillment of our own baptisms, and as we anticipate the joy of Easter, may we have a good and holy Lent. May this holy season, this “desert experience,” be efficacious for each one of us!
Praise God! Friar Timothy
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On this First Sunday of Lent, we hear in the Gospel the story of Jesus’ journey into the desert. It tells us that immediately after his baptism, “the Spirit drove him out into the desert” (see Mark 1:9-15). It’s interesting to note that Jesus embraced this “desert experience” so very soon after that exceptional meeting with John the Baptist at the Jordan River, but before the beginning of his public ministry. The same Spirit who had just “descended upon Jesus like a dove” then took him to that barren place where he was able to spend time in preparation for the things to come. There, he had time for prayer and fasting, and he was even subjected to the temptations of the evil one.
We believe the forty days Jesus spent in the desert, and what he endured there, serve as a model for us, and as a reminder of our own need for times of renewal and preparation (like this season of Lent that has begun for us anew). I believe we can only fully understand the significance of Jesus’ desert experience, and its meaning for us, from the perspective of its correlation to his baptism by St. John, and to the eventual beginning of his outreach and ministry to others. We could say that everything changed for Jesus after he received his baptism . . . and even though he was the Son of God and could do marvelous things, it was not always “easy” for him. He, like us, had to suffer the temptations of the world and had to pass through challenging periods in order to achieve what he was called to do.
The fact that Jesus faced temptations in the desert immediately after his baptism is a sign for us of the challenges, and even the struggles, that we too will have as committed, baptized people of faith. When we accept our responsibilities as baptized Christians, then we will also at times have to pass through “the desert.” As we begin this season of Lent, we unite ourselves to Jesus in a special way, and we begin our own kind of symbolic and spiritual forty days in the desert.
We are asked during these days to reflect more deeply upon the significance of our own baptisms; we are asked to practice our faith more devoutly, to pray more fervently, to do penance, and to do works of charity. During Lent we may face the temptation to reject the opportunity we have for spiritual renewal (and if we do so, then we will surely miss this opportunity we now have to strengthen our faith).
Our Gospel today tells us that once Jesus completed his time in the desert, that he began to proclaim to all who heard him that “the time of fulfillment had arrived . . . and the Kingdom of God was at hand . . . ,” and the people were admonished “to repent, and to believe in the gospel.” His message is as vital for us today as it was for those people who lived in Palestine two-thousand years ago!
May this season of Lent be a time of renewal for those of us who have professed faith in the Lord Jesus and who have been baptized! During these days, may we be truly renewed again as we strive, like Jesus, to be who and what we are called to be, and as we hope to respond faithfully to our common calling as sons and daughters of our loving Father in heaven!
My friends, as we look forward to the fulfillment of our own baptisms, and as we anticipate the joy of Easter, may we have a good and holy Lent. May this holy season, this “desert experience,” be efficacious for each one of us!
Praise God! Friar Timothy
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