Ps 25:4-9
1 Pt 3:18-22
Mk 1:12-15
The Gospel for the first Sunday of Lent is always about
Jesus' temptations in the desert. Each
of the three synoptic gospels places this narrative just after Jesus' baptism
by John. The challenge with Mark's Gospel is that unlike Matthew and Luke he
gives no detail about the temptations. Mark
simply notes that Jesus was tempted. Even
in its brevity, it is an important reminder that Jesus was like us in all
things but sin, that he too struggled with desires, with temptations, with
tests, (call them what you will) just as we do.
Unlike the consistent theme of the gospel reading for this
first Sunday in Lent, the first and second readings are different in each of
the three years of the cycle of readings. Today the first reading describes God's
covenant with Noah, in which He promised that flood waters would never cover
the whole earth again.
The Talmud is a collection of commentaries on the Torah, the
first five books of scripture, or, what
we call The Old Testament. In its commentary on this passage The Jewish Study Bible cites the Talmud which
notes that, the covenant with Noah laid down seven commandments to which all
were obligated. They were: to establish courts of justice, to refrain from blasphemy,
to refrain from idolatry, to refrain from sexual perversion. The covenant
forbade bloodshed and robbery. Finally it demanded not eating meat cut from a
living animal. Those who observed the "seven commandments of the
descendants of Noah" would meet with God's full approval.
With the exception of eating meat cut from a living animal, essentially
avoiding meat that was not first properly slaughtered, the seven commandments are
almost identical to the Decalogue, the Ten Commandments given to Moses. The modern world, especially the U.S., would
do well to take notice that blasphemy, false gods, sexual perversion, robbery,
and murder--including the killing of children in the womb or the ill elderly--have
been forbidden for millennia rather than being inventions of the Catholic
Church.
The second reading from the First Letter of Peter makes
reference to the Torah in recalling Noah.
God waited patiently while the ark was built such that eight persons in
all, and thus all of mankind, were saved through water. Peter correctly links this saving water to
baptism.
Water is a powerful symbol for the Church. It is a symbol of
life and salvation in both the Old Testament and the New. Thus we read about: the
water in which the basket holding the infant Moses floated, the water that was
parted as the Israelites fled Egypt, the water of the Jordan in which Jesus was
baptize, the water mixed with blood that flowed from Jesus' side at the
crucifixion. Water is much more
important to human life than food. We
can live for many days without food. We
can only live a few days without water.
Physicians spend a lot of time, particularly in the hospital
thinking and worrying about fluid balance and adjusting fluids, particularly
for the critically ill. Water is crucial
to our day-to-day physical lives. Vitamins,
organic locally grown food, or any of the food fetishes prevalent today are, in
comparison, completely irrelevant. Water
is even more crucial to our spiritual lives, water is more critical to life of
our souls.
The water of baptism is the only way in which we are able
enter into life. Only after having received this saving water can we partake
fully in the life in the Church. Without
the water of baptism there is no spiritual life. Without the water of baptism there is no
light of Christ. Without the water of
baptism there is no partaking of the Eucharistic banquet. Without the water of baptism there is
nothing.
Nothing.
There is only a void.
There is a void like the one that existed before God said
let there be light. The light of Christ
is visible only to those who have received the waters of baptism. It will never be otherwise.
Lent is described as penitential. However, it should also be transformational. On Wednesday there were two formulae for the
imposition of ashes. I sometimes think they
should be combined into one. The first, "Remember,
thou art dust and to dust thou shalt return" reminded us of our common
mortality. The second, "Turn away
from sin and be faithful to the Gospels" reminded us of our vocation as
Catholics.
As we move from this first Sunday of Lent toward the joy of Easter
we are called to meditate on one and to live according to the other.
Photo of the Franciscan Church of the Annunciation in Ljubljana, Slovenia during Lent. I made my 8-day retreat there last year. This year will be at a nun's monastery as primary celebrant for most of the liturgies while making the retreat.
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