Dear Sisters and Brothers
Lent is always a gift to us, if we are willing to accept it. But in this Year of Faith it could be the best gift, the timeliest gift, the gift we desperately need, whether we realise it or not. I suppose the fundamental questions to ask oneself at this special time are: What; Who; Why? What do I believe? Who, or in whom, do I believe? Why do I believe? For many of us these three questions are three questions too many. It is easier not to ask questions and just carry on doing what we have always done and snuggle down into what we think is the security of Tradition. Others ask the questions, but really don’t want to hear answers because they might demand a change of direction. Others still, feel that the very questions are beneath them and so shouldn’t even be considered.
In the Gospel for today Jesus is also asked three questions to which he gives three answers:
Man does not live on bread alone.
You must worship the Lord your God and serve him alone.
You must not put the Lord your God to the test.
Trying to live a life of faith in our world today will always be difficult. But it can be made harder when we live in a family, a community, or a society which, at best, sees faith as a rather eccentric private pursuit or, at worst, as an affront to a free, mature and sophisticated humanity whose duty is to eradicate it. In answering the Tempter in the Gospel, Jesus reminds us all that Man does not live on bread alone, but on everything that comes from the mouth of God (Dt. 8.3). In essence we are more than physical, material beings. Right at the heart of each of us is the “divine spark” breathed into us at creation (Gen.2.7). We will never be satisfied with the things of this world alone. That deep restlessness within us will never be calmed here. We thirst for God, and only in him will we find peace. Jesus comes to lead us to that place of safety, free from evil and distress (Psalm 90).
When someone tries to be something that they cannot be; when they try to live their life in a way that is not possible for them; when someone spends so much time and effort hiding behind one form of mask or another, we say they are living a lie, they are deceiving themselves and heading for nothing but frustration and heartache. Yet so many of us have taken such a path, through our individual choices, as a reflection of our prevailing culture, in an attempt not to stand out from the pack. In this way we think we will gain true freedom, greater self-fulfilment, and real happiness. You must worship the Lord your God and serve him alone. Jesus reminds the Tempter and us that we are not self-created, we were made by God. We are his creatures, and through Baptism, in Jesus, we become his sons and daughters. That is where our true freedom, fulfilment and real happiness lie – worshipping him and serving him alone.
“But, what about us?” you cry. “This can’t apply to us. If we were anything like you have just described we wouldn’t be here listening to your letter in the first place. Without putting too much of a shine on it, we know who, what and why we believe. You are preaching to the converted again!”
I am sorry, of course we are people of faith, we believe. Also if we were to take the second reading on its own then that would be the end of the matter: By believing from the heart you are made righteous; by confessing with your lips you are saved. But let’s also hear what Jesus’ third answer is: You must not put the Lord your God to the test. St James in his Letter reminds us: You believe in the one God – that is creditable enough, but the demons have the same belief, and they tremble with fear. (Jas 2.19) Our faith has to be faith in the person of Jesus Christ the Son of God made flesh who out of love for human kind gave himself up for us. Our faith has to lead us to respond with love in return for love. And our faith has to urge us on to embrace the way of Christ and live our lives in love of him and our brothers and sisters; otherwise it is only a sounding gong or a clashing cymbal (1Cor.13.1). It will be no better or more profitable for salvation than the faith of the demons. And we will be truly putting our God to the test by holding on to a dead and sterile faith.
So open your hands and your hearts wide to receive the gift of this Lent in the Year of Faith. Take the opportunity to look at your own faith in the light of what Jesus is teaching in today’s Gospel. As you reflect more deeply on your faith, let it lead you to the One in whom you believe, so that you may respond to his life-giving love and witness to that love by sharing it with all your brothers and sisters. In that way you will make this Lent a gift given and received and pray the prayer after communion at this Mass truly as your own:
Renewed now with heavenly bread, by which faith is nourished, hope increased, and charity strengthened, we pray, O Lord, that we may learn to hunger for Christ, the true and living Bread, and strive to live by every word which proceeds from your mouth. Through Christ our Lord. Amen
Yours in blessed hope,
+ Terence Patrick
Bishop of Middlesbrough