OUR SUNDAY’S IN MARCH

Here we are in Lent, a season of loyalty tests! Lent calls us to several ancient practices: fasting, almsgiving and sacrifice. They are offered to children with the idea that these are “cool” things to do. However, in reality, they are very serious. These practices actually come from the Scriptures with tough words such as “severe”, “demanding”, and “no compromise.”

As we prepare to remember the passion and death of Jesus Christ, view the movie “The Passion of Christ” – Mel Gibson’s masterpiece! If you haven’t seen it – you should! If you have seen it – see it again! It brings up two questions for us to answer; “Can we be faithful to the Cross?” and, “Will I be faithful to the Cross. The pain of the Cross is severe. In fact, the pain of the Cross is the origin of the word “excruciating”, which means “out of the Cross”. We are not called to painful Lenten practices merely for the sake of pain.

When we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we pray that God will not “lead us into temptation.” For what do we pray? The only power Satan possesses, is the power to tempt us. Satan can do nothing with us or to us that is against our will. For Satan to get hold of us, we must cooperate. The role of Satan was to test a person’s loyalty to God. This is precisely what temptation is - a loyalty test!

God’s loyalty to us is such that He did give us the life of His only Son. Do we measure up? What is the depth of our loyalty to God? Can we, will we, go to the Cross?

Our Lenten practices are designed to force us to face ourselves. What do we discover about ourselves in the temptations that are given to us and the ones we create for ourselves? We fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. Only two days are asked of us. Can we do this? Will we do this? We are asked to abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and every Friday during Lent. This is hardly a sacrifice, but can we do this? Will I pass my loyalty tests?

The Most Rev. John P. Walzer, D.D.
Archbishop