9781644135945

The Light of the World
Meditation
There is joy in the song of the liturgy today. “He shall cry to Me, and I will hear him” (Introit).
Christ is in the desert, praying and fasting. The Church has gone into the desert with Him. “He
shall cry to Me” during the holy season of Lent, “and I shall hear him. I will deliver him and I
will glorify him; I will fill him with length of days” at Easter, at our resurrection to the everlasting
life of heaven. The season of Lent is a preparation for the glory of Easter morning, and the
beginning of our glorified life in heaven. The season of Lent gives us the assurance of salvation
and of our deliverance from sin through Christ. As Christ rose from the dead and was exalted,
so shall we also rise and be exalted. Truly this is a time of grace. For this reason the liturgy of the
first Sunday of Lent is characterized by joy, confidence, and longing for Easter.
“At that time Jesus was led by the spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. And when
He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterwards He was hungry. And the tempter [came]
to Him” (Gospel). Like Christ, the Church and her children are led into the desert during the
season of Lent. Lent is a time of self-denial and of suffering. During this time we, too, shall be
tempted by the devil, the flesh, and the world. Three times the tempter approached Christ. “If
Thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.” Then the devil took Him
up to the pinnacle of the temple in Jerusalem and said to Him: “If Thou be the Son of God, cast
Thyself down; for it is written: That He hath given His angels charge over Thee.” On the third
attempt the devil took Christ up to a high mountain. There he showed him all the kingdoms of
the world and their glory. “All these will I give Thee if falling down Thou wilt adore me.” But all
these temptations were futile, for “behold, angels came and ministered to Him” (Gospel). In
Christ, His Church and we His members were also tempted. Christ’s victory over the temptations
of the devil was really our victory. His victory prefigures and assures our victory over sin and
the devil. Such a victory, however, can be assured only to those who are closely united to Christ
through His Church. As living branches of the vine, filled with His vitality and strength, they
share in His victory. If we are thus united to Christ, we have little to fear from the tempter, for
His strength supports us. Of ourselves we are weak and easy victims of Satan, but in Christ we
are strong and invincible. The closer our union with Christ, the greater our strength.
The liturgy of the Mass today offers us two excellent helps in our struggle with the temptations
of Satan, the world, and the flesh. The two weapons offered to us are the word of Christ
and the body of Christ. Christ’s body is offered in the oblation and the Communion of the Holy
Sacrifice. From the altar on which the Holy Sacrifice is celebrated springs the fountain from
which we drink in Holy Communion the strength of Christ. Strengthened by this nourishment,
we answer the solicitations of the devil, “Begone Satan.” Here at the altar the Church and her
children draw the strength to resist the tempter and his enticements. “It is written,” and we are
confident that the enemy will not overcome.
The liturgy of Lent also offers us the word of Christ in Holy Scripture. In every Mass new
texts and maxims are presented to us. Holy Scripture is our spiritual food. “Not in [earthly]
bread alone doth man live, but in every word that proceedeth from the mouth of God” (Gospel).
Every word of Holy Scripture which the liturgy presents to us in the lessons of the Divine Office
and the chants of the Mass, comes from the mouth of God. Every word is issued by the Spirit of
God and helps to bring the tempter to nought. Can the tempter, the world, and the flesh injure
us if we take refuge in these means provided for us, in the word of God and in the Eucharist?
220