February 10, 2008 FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT
10 FEBRUARY 2008, 5:15, 8:00, 10:30
READINGS: Genesis 2:7-9; 3:1-7; Romans 5:12-19; Matthew 4:1-11
SAINT MARY PARISH, VIROQUA
Introduction: Just after he is baptized by John in the Jordan River, Jesus recedes into the desert; there he fasts and prays for forty days.
1. Last June I joined a brother, his wife, and other family members on a tour of Eastern Europe. Among our stops was a visit to Auschwitz, the frightening concentration camp of the Nazi’s that took the lives of so many. We visited the barracks, a museum, even the gas chambers. That night at a rather somber dinner I told my family why the visit meant so much to me. So many of my heroes, my favorite authors, survived that camp. Among them was the psychiatrist, Viktor Frankl. Like his companions in the camps, he endured the most horrible of conditions. Part of the time he functioned as a doctor to them. He also put his reflective mind to work. One of his profound observations was this. In so many cases the physically strong perished, while the physically weak survived. Why? How can this be? In time, he came to a conclusion. The ones who survived were those who had a strong purpose, a reason for living. One had a fiancé; another, a family on the outside; a third wanted to finish publishing a manuscript. He quoted the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, “Whoever has a why for living can bear almost any how.” In the desert-like life of that camp, he observed that people found purpose and meaning in life. They drew strength from this purpose!
2. Dear friends, Jesus went into the desert to pray. There he confronted devils of his own who tempted him. Still, he knew who he was; he knew he had a why for living. It was to serve his Father. Now, Lent is a desert-like experience for Christians. A desert is a place where we can confront ourselves; where we can examine our purposes in life. We might well ask ourselves the question asked by the prisoners of Auschwitz. What is it that we live for? The devil proposed some to Jesus: wealth, power, fame. Is that what we live for? Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” The Church says, “The unreflective life is not worth living.” Our Lent is not as miserable as Auschwitz, but it may be as productive!
First, let us reflect on our own brokenness. All of us need some healing. No, not fixing. Machinery gets fixed. People get healed! The Sacrament of Reconciliation is the best way for us to do that. Next, we reflect on the profound meanings in our lives: our families, our friends, education, community service, our dear Faith. Are not these the very values that give meaning to our lives? Then, let us re-commit ourselves to them now, whole heartedly. With this why we can bear any how.
3. While we reflect in this Lenten desert, we also commit ourselves to action! Each one of us should have a Lenten program. Here are some hints. Call someone who's lonely and say, "I'll be over tomorrow to take you to lunch or take you for a walk or run errands." Go to Confession. Smile more. Read the Gospels. Forgive an enemy. Love someone who doesn't deserve it. Be kinder than is necessary. Exercise. Live one day at a time; make life a work of art.
Conclusion: Remember that a journey which begins in the desert of Lent leads to an oasis, a garden where there is a tomb, an empty tomb!