1st Sunday of Lent year A - Homily for 26th February 2023

On this First Sunday of Lent, the readings highlight the discord created by sin and how we are to respond to the temptations in our life.

The book of Genesis in the Old Testament presents before us two creation narratives. The first narrative is found in the first chapter wherein we have the creation of the world in six days and God resting on the seventh day. The second narrative from which we have an extract as the first reading is found in the second and third chapters detailing the creation of humankind and the first sin by Adam and Eve. Being mindful of the fact that there are different literary styles employed in the Bible, we need to go beyond the literal, word-to-word meaning and look at the main message that the writer is trying to convey.

The reading highlights the relationship between the land or earth and human beings. Humans are created from it; their job is to cultivate it and on death, they return to it. The text says “God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” These words signify that human beings have within them the gift of life that was given by God himself. Contrary to the modern scientific view that human beings are simply a collection of chemicals and electrical impulses, the text highlights the spiritual nature of human beings. God further provides a good place – the Garden of Eden in which humans may live. In the middle of that garden are two unique trees, the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The two trees are probably two aspects of the same reality: the mystery of life and human freedom. The most common understanding of knowledge of good and evil is virtual omniscience or the state of knowing everything. Fundamentally, human beings are called to have faith in God and not professed self-sufficiency of knowledge. The key to this story is not in the details of who ate the fruit or whether it was an apple or an orange, but rather in the importance of obeying God.

The narrative then moves to the description of the serpent deceiving Adam and Eve. The serpent, again not to be taken literally, represents that which is opposed to God— the forces of evil. The serpent misrepresents God as one who is unkind and unfairly restrictive. The seeds of doubt are sown - Is God’s way really the best way? Why not I choose for myself?

Adam and Eve give in to the temptation and the results of disobedience are immediate. They notice their nakedness, they are ashamed of their bodies and cover themselves. The sin of disobedience causes a threefold alienation. First, humans get alienated from God - Man transfers the guilt of the sin to God “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate.” Second, man blames the woman for his actions, signifying that humans also got alienated from each other. Third, humans get alienated from the very land from which they were created. The harmony created by God between Himself, humans and creation is turned into chaos by sin.

In the second reading taken from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, Paul reflects on the reality of sin in our lives. Sin and death are traced back to the disobedience of the very first person, Adam. As human beings, because we are the descendants of Eve and Adam, we all are sinners. To add to it, there is nothing that will stop us from making the same mistake. There is no vaccination to prevent us from sinning. Thanks be to God, Paul declares, our lives are not hopeless. Sin and death may have come into the world through the trespass of one man, but it was through the grace of one man that we have been given the gift of new life. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, our sins have been forgiven, and we have been made righteous as we stand before God. Jesus’ gift overcame Adam’s fall. The grace bestowed by Jesus Christ our Lord will lead us to eternal life.

In the gospel taken from Matthew, we come across the narrative of the temptations of Jesus in the wilderness. The passage immediately before the temptation narrative is of the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan. At Jesus’ baptism, the heavenly voice announces, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” The temptations in the wilderness are in effect a test of the identity of Jesus. The temptations begin with “If you are the Son of God….the tempter or devil is trying to sow the seeds of doubt in the mind of Jesus, just as he had tried with Eve.

The three temptations try to divert the proclamation of God's kingdom so that it will become a kingdom according to the standards of this world. The devil tests Jesus to turn stones into bread for his personal convenience; Jesus, however, will multiply loaves of bread but only for others.

The devil then challenges Jesus to prove his identity by throwing himself down and letting the angels rescue him. Jesus asserts that genuine faith doesn’t doubt God at every turn and insists that God must do one miracle after another.

The devil tests Jesus by offering him all the kingdoms of the earth; Jesus will receive all power in heaven and earth, but not by seeking it and only when it is given by God.

Jesus' refusals to have his goals distorted are all quotations from Deuteronomy chapters 6-8, where during the forty-year testing of Israel in the wilderness God spoke through Moses to the people who were tempted to rebel against the divine plan by their complaints and false worship. In the end, after Jesus has demonstrated that he is the Son of God who completely serves God’s will, Satan is dismissed.  

The three temptations faced by Jesus are faced by each one of us every day. The temptation to choose short-term physical pleasure over long-term spiritual joy, the temptation to choose pride over humility, and the temptation to choose power over service. We all must have heard that tiny little voice whispering to us and urging us to choose luxuries and bodily pleasures, it asks us to show off our talents or the new electronic gadget that we have purchased and it tells us to get back at others when we are in power. How are we going to respond to that voice? Will we be like Adam and Eve and give in to temptation or will we be like Jesus and stand our ground?

I pray that this Lenten season may be one where we reconcile with God, others and nature and through the grace of Jesus Christ be able to choose good over evil in our day-to-day life. May God bless us all.