Second Reading: 1 Pet 3:18-22
Gospel: Mk 1:12-15
Season of Lent is a time to
retire to wilderness and be one with God. It is also a time to affirm God as
our master. In the Gospel, Jesus is taken to wilderness immediately after the
baptism. The wilderness serves as means to show one’s fidelity to baptismal promises.
During baptism of Jesus, God the Father acclaimed Him as His beloved Son. Now in
wilderness Jesus with human conditions has to maintain that relationship with
the Father by withstanding the temptation. We notice that Jesus is led to the
wilderness by the Holy Spirit (Mk 1:12). The baptismal grace remains with
Jesus. Together with the power of the Holy Spirit Jesus raises up victoriously
from temptations. As Christian we are called to fight our battle not alone but
with the power of the Holy Spirit which we received through baptism and strengthen
further by the Sacrament of Confirmation. Judas after betraying Jesus fights
the battle all alone, by himself, without seeking God. He feels sorry for betrayal,
throws away the money, yet he gets immersed in the sense of guilt which chokes
him to take his life, similar to the fate of a warrior in the battle who
rejects team work. On the other hand, Simon Peter fights the battle with Jesus,
shows remorse for what he has done then goes back to Jesus and confesses the sin.
This is a warrior who approaches the battle with the power of team work and succeeds.
Lent is a time to fight our spiritual battle together with God, the Holy
Spirit. We sit with Him to look at our sins, seeing through Him will make us sorry
and repent, without Him we feel guilty, distanced and lost.
The distance from Mount Sinai
to the Promised Land is just 11 days of walk, yet people of Israel took 40 years
to cross this distance. God intended this long period of journey for Israel so
that they could be formed well. The people who lived under subjugation in Egypt
suddenly facing full liberty in new place – gained without any struggle – would
lead them to misuse and become irresponsible. To sustain in the land that God
is giving them, they need to undergo adequate training. 40 years of journey
showed them who they are, how quickly they fall away from God, how their
dealings are and so forth. Constant directions and warnings from God made them
strong to withstand Philistines – the giant army in the Promised Land. Had they
rejected this robust training from God in the wilderness, they would have quickly
been swallowed up by Philistines and Amalekites. Thus, wilderness journey is necessary
to face the freedom that God is giving. Jesus by going to wilderness
immediately after baptism gets ready for the freedom that He will be exercising
in the public ministry. Every year season of lent is a time to get ready for all
that come on our way in the rest of the year. If we are disciplined, able to withstand
all trails and temptations these forty days, we gain confidence to go forward
with full gusto. So let’s embark on this journey with humility, with the help
of God, the Holy Spirit.
In the first reading, God is
promising, making a covenant with Noah that He would never again destroy the
earth with flood (Gen 9:11). In the second reading, St. Peter describes the
flood in Noah’s time as purification. Those who came out of the ark after the
flood water are new creation, they embark on a new journey. This is a
prefiguration of our Christian baptism, with water we start afresh from God. As
chaos is washed in the flood, our sinful nature is washed away by our baptismal
water. Those who came out of the ark, start a new life, setting a new order. With
the coming of the Holy Spirit in baptism we have set out on a new journey. Jesus
in the wilderness lives in harmony with wild animals. This symbolizes a new
order, getting back to original order wherein adam and eve lived harmoniously
with entire creation in the garden of Eden. Jesus brings new order.
The second part of the
Gospel is about Jesus’ calling to enter into the kingdom of God with repentance.
During baptism we give our promises by renouncing thrice to the questions about
sin and Satan as well as accepting thrice the mysteries stated in the creed. During
lent we often think of what to renounce but not so much on what to gain and
become. Renouncing is only one part of the conversion story, another part of
the conversion is accepting something. Jesus in the wilderness not only
renounces Satan and his snares but also embraces the Will of God the Father
laid out for Him. This lent should be a means to enter into the Kingdom of God.
Renouncing alone is not suffice, we need to accept the demands of the kingdom
of God. Let these six week form us to take up the demand of our Christian living
in rest of the year. May each of us have a wilderness experience/formation to
combat the evil forces.
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