First Sunday of Lent, A March 1, 2020
Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette
“Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized that they were naked.” Adam and Eve were naked the whole time, why is it suddenly a problem? Because of what their nakedness covers up. Now, that might seem like a strange thing to say. How can you be covered up when you’re not wearing anything? Because there is more to the world – and our bodies – than what we can see.
When it says their eyes were opened, it doesn’t mean they couldn’t see anything before. It wasn’t that they didn’t see each other’s bodies, but that they could see through those bodies to the deeper truth. But sin opened their eyes to greed, lust, and pride.
After Satan tempts Eve, she sees three things in the forbidden fruit: “good for food,” “pleasing to the eyes,” and “desirable for gaining wisdom.” Now, all three of these things were already available to them. They were in a garden full of food and beauty and God himself walked in the garden, sharing his wisdom. But this tree, this fruit was forbidden. Initially, Adam and Eve didn’t even give it a second look because it was forbidden. They were “blind” to its worldly potential.
After Original Sin, however, the worldly potential was all they could see; Food, beauty, and wisdom become the “triple concupiscence” or the “three lusts.” Lust of the flesh, Lust of the eyes, and the Pride of life. The desire to consume, the desire to possess, the desire to dominate. Before these desires filled their hearts, being naked wasn’t a problem. Now they, and all their descendants, can see each other as things to be consumed, possessed, and dominated. Something God never intended for his beloved children, created in his Divine Image.
And that’s why Jesus comes. To undo the fall of Adam and Eve. Like Adam and Eve, the Devil is there to tempt him and to do it in the same way he did to them. Turning stone to bread aims for the desire to consume. Jumping off the temple to be caught by angels aims for the desire to possess glory. Worshiping Satan to gain worldly political power aims for the desire to dominate.
Jesus, of course, rejects all three temptations which begins to reverse the effects of Original Sin. The final effect is death, which Jesus will reverse in his Resurrection, but it starts here with resisting temptation. One day we too will overcome death through resurrection, but first we have to go through the desert of this life facing temptation.
We are still made in God’s image and we are good, but our eyes are open to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. Except for Jesus and Mary, this is true for every human being. Consuming, possessing, and dominating the world and each other, it’s no surprise the world is a mess.
And that is why we have Lent. That is why this first Sunday always brings us to the temptation of Jesus. The journey to eternal life starts now, in the desert, by resisting temptation. And it’s not as simple as just saying “no.” This blindness is written into the way our bodies and minds work. So, resisting temptation is a life-long project, deciding over and over again to do things that run contrary to these three lusts, these fallen desires. And this can cause us some pain. There is a struggle between the world and the spirit, so spiritual growth often feels like suffering. How can a loving God allow me to suffer? Because suffering is the consequence of sin, but it is also the side effect of spiritual growth, the side effect of learning to see past our nakedness. There are many ways to learn this, but Lent has us focus on three in particular: Fasting, Almsgiving, and Prayer.
The first temptation is food, the desire to consume too much. So, we fast. We push to the opposite side and deliberately consume less. With practice, when it becomes a habit, it becomes easier to say no and eventually, to see past consumption to the real value of the world and of people around us.
The second temptation is beauty – the desire to possess or control what is beautiful. That includes things and experiences and even people. We accumulate stuff, we spend too much time and money on vacations and entertainment, or we try to buy people’s affections. So, we give alms, we push to the opposite side and deliberately give away what we already own. With practice, when it becomes a habit, almsgiving helps us to simply appreciate beauty without wanting to take it for ourselves.
The third temptation is the worst: the pride of life – false wisdom, worldly wisdom, worldly success. Do whatever it takes to get ahead. We’re naturally inclined to rely on our own abilities, our own perceptions. So, we pray, we push to the opposite side, humbly kneeling before God to seeking his plan, his wisdom. With practice, when it becomes a habit, we gradually learn total trust we even begin to see the world the way God sees it.
So, how do you plan to fast this lent? Eating or drinking less? Cutting down on entertainment or technology? It should be something specific and it should hurt a little.
How do you plan to give alms? CRS Rice bowl, the Disch-Declouet campaign, the parish poor box? It isn’t just money either. Will you volunteer? Visit the nursing home or the homebound? It should be something that directly benefits another person but doesn’t directly reward you.
How do you plan to pray more? Come to Mass earlier? Visit the chapel twice a week? Sign up for 40 hours adoration? Subscribe to a daily meditation or read a Catholic spiritual book? Reading more scripture? Notice that Jesus answers every temptation with a scripture quote – the word of God should already be a part of your life.
These things aren’t optional. They don’t earn heaven, but they are signs that you let heaven and grace actually affect your life. Yes, it is hard. Yes, it will mean suffering. But it is a suffering that brings freedom and even joy, growing pains that open your eyes to see past your nakedness. To see the true food, the true beauty, the true wisdom that comes always and only from God himself.