March 9, 2014 --1A Lent – Knowing who you are

March 9, 2014 --1A Lent – Knowing who you are -- C the K, 11:30 & 1:30 Spanish
Genesis 2:7-9, 3:1-7, Romans 5:12, 17-19 & Matthew 1:1-11
Genesis 2:7-9; 3:1-7: The LORD God formed man out of the clay of the ground and blew into
his nostrils the breath of life, and so man became a living being. Then the LORD God planted a
garden in Eden, in the east, and placed there the man whom he had formed. Out of the ground the
LORD God made various trees grow that were delightful to look at and good for food, with the
tree of life in the middle of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Now the
serpent was the most cunning of all the animals that the LORD God had made. The serpent asked
the woman, "Did God really tell you not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?" The woman
answered the serpent: "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; it is only about the fruit
of the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, 'You shall not eat it or even touch it, lest
you die.'" But the serpent said to the woman: "You certainly will not die! No, God knows well
that the moment you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods who know what
is good and what is evil." The woman saw that the tree was good for food, pleasing to the eyes,
and desirable for gaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; and she also gave some
to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and
they realized that they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for
themselves.
Romans 5: 12, 17-19 (short version): Brothers and sisters: Through one man sin entered the
world, and through sin, death, and thus death came to all men, inasmuch as all sinned. For if, by
the transgression of the one, death came to reign through that one, how much more will those
who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of justification come to reign in life through
the one Jesus Christ. In conclusion, just as through one transgression condemnation came upon
all, so, through one righteous act, acquittal and life came to all. For just as through the
disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so, through the obedience of the one,
the many will be made righteous.
Matthew 4:1-11. At that time Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the
devil. He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry. The tempter
approached and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become
loaves of bread." He said in reply, "It is written: One does not live on bread alone, but on every
word that comes forth from the mouth of God." Then the devil took him to the holy city, and
made him stand on the parapet of the temple, and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw
yourself down. For it is written: He will command his angels concerning you and with their
hands they will support you, lest you dash your foot against a stone." Jesus answered him,
"Again it is written, You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test." Then the devil took him
up to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in their magnificence,
and he said to him, "All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me."
At this, Jesus said to him, "Get away, Satan! It is written: The Lord, your God, shall you worship
and him alone shall you serve." Then the devil left him and, behold, angels came and ministered
to him.
Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of
Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor
any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the
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March 9, 2014 --1A Lent – Knowing who you are -- C the K, 11:30 & 1:30 Spanish
Genesis 2:7-9, 3:1-7, Romans 5:12, 17-19 & Matthew 1:1-11
We have begun the season of Lent. Firstly, it’s important that we
understand what Lent is about. What is Lent supposed to be about? What’s it
supposed to do? Usually Lent is seen as a rather serious time – a spiritually
solemn, somber time for soul-searching – a time for prayer and penance. And so it
is. But Lent is more . . . much more than our prayer and penance . . . much more
than what we do.
Listen to how the Church presents Lent
to us in the preface of today’s liturgy. The
preface is the prayer we pray right before the
Eucharistic prayer. And there we hear: For by
your gracious gift each year your faithful await
the sacred paschal feasts with the joy of minds
made pure…and participating in the mysteries
by which they have been reborn, they may be
led to the fullness of grace that you bestow on
your sons and daughters.
The Church would have us regard Lent as a joyful season. Elsewhere the
Church calls Lent the springtime for our spirits. It’s a time of freshness, of new
budding life. During this joyful springtime we prepare ourselves for the greatest of
all Christian feasts -- Easter, the feast of resurrection and new life. As we begin
our journey toward Easter, we might do well to individually look ahead at our
destination; at what Lent is leading us toward.
Secondly, there’s an ancient, ancient homily by an anonymous author which
appears in the Roman breviary for Holy Saturday. The Roman breviary is a prayer
book put together especially for priests and monks. And so this homily is what the
Church would have us reflect on as we prepare for Easter. The author imagines the
risen Jesus descending into hell and crying out: Adam, Adam, arise! Come
forth! For now – into eternity – you and I are one. You and I are one, undivided
person. You and I are one, Jesus says, one, undivided person. Easter, this greatest
of all our feasts and celebrations is given us to help us to understand, to appreciate
and even, if we can, to somehow taste our being one with Christ . . . our being one,
undivided person with Christ. That is our resurrection. That is our new life . . .
our true life.
Finally, we call Jesus the Word of God. He is the Word that identifies
me. His Father is my Father. His Spirit is my Spirit. His life is my life, and his
temptations are also my temptations. Jesus’ temptations in today’s gospel speak
directly to our temptations to accept ourselves as anything less than God’s beloved
child. Our Lenten journey is a journey of discovery. We prepare ourselves to
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March 9, 2014 --1A Lent – Knowing who you are -- C the K, 11:30 & 1:30 Spanish
Genesis 2:7-9, 3:1-7, Romans 5:12, 17-19 & Matthew 1:1-11
search out and discover our true name, our true life in and with Christ . . . the life
that can never be taken from us not by sin and not even by death.
It’s good that in Lent we become aware of our need for prayer and
penance. But above all our needs is to let God do what the Church prays for
during this season; to let God bring the image of Christ to clarity and completion
within each of us. This Lent let us learn to shift our attention to what God is doing
within us. Let us prepare ourselves to be surprised! Let God astonish us!
Spanish Translation
Hemos comenzado el tiempo de Cuaresma. El primer punto, es importante
que entendamos lo que significa esta temporada de la iglesia. ¿Qué tiene que ser de
Cuaresma? ¿Qué se supone que para hacer? Generalmente Cuaresma es la
temporada anual de la iglesia para examinar nuestro corazón y alma. Un tiempo de
oración y penitencia. Pero Cuaresma es más de las tres disciplinas de oración, el
ayuno y la limosna. Escuchan el prefacio. El prefacio es la oración que rezamos
antes de la plegaria eucarística.
Porque Cristo nuestro Señor, al abstenerse durante cuarenta días de tomar
alimento, inauguró la práctica de nuestra penitencia cuaresmal y, al rechazar las
tentaciones del enemigo, nos enseñó a sofocar la fuerza del pecado; de este modo,
celebrando con sinceridad el misterio de esta Pascua, podremos pasar un día a la
Pascua que no acaba.
La Iglesia quiere que consideremos la temporada de Cuaresma como un
tiempo de alegría. Hay una otra imagen de este tiempo que es la primavera para
nuestros espíritus. . . nuestras almas. Es un momento de frescura, de una vida
nueva como el crecimiento de las flores. Durante esta primavera alegre nos
preparamos para el más grande de todas las fiestas cristianas... Pascua, la fiesta de
la resurrección y la vida nueva. Como comenzamos nuestro viaje hacia la Pascua,
miráramos a nuestro destino.
El segundo punto, hay una homilía antigua por un autor anónimo que esta
escrito en el Breviario para el sábado Santo. El Breviario es el libro de oraciones,
salmos y cánticos que los sacerdotes y monjes cantan cinco veces cada día. El
autor nos presente Jesús resucitado que esta desciendo abajo a los infiernos y grite:
Despierta, tú que duermes, levántate de entre los muertos, y Cristo será tu luz. . . .
Levántate, salgamos de aquí. El enemigo te sacó del paraíso; yo te coloco no ya
en el paraíso, sino en el trono celeste.
Pascua, este más grande de todas nuestras fiestas y celebraciones se nos da
para ayudarnos a entender, a apreciar Cristo. En este evento participamos en
nuestra resurrección. Es nuestra nueva vida... nuestra vida verdadera.
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March 9, 2014 --1A Lent – Knowing who you are -- C the K, 11:30 & 1:30 Spanish
Genesis 2:7-9, 3:1-7, Romans 5:12, 17-19 & Matthew 1:1-11
Por último, Jesús es La Palabra de Dios. En el principio era la Palabra, y la
Palabra estaba ante Dios, y la Palabra era Dios . . . y la Palabra se hizo carne,
puso su tienda entre nosotros y hemos visto su Gloria.1 Su padre es mi padre. Su
espíritu es mi espíritu. Su vida es mi vida, y sus tentaciones son también mis
tentaciones. Las tentaciones de Jesús en el Evangelio de hoy hablan directamente a
nuestras tentaciones aceptarnos a nosotros mismos como algo menos que el amado
hijo u hija de Dios.
Nuestro camino cuaresmal es un viaje de descubrimiento.
Nos preparamos para buscar y descubrir nuestro verdadero nombre, nuestra
verdadera vida en y con Cristo... la vida que nunca puede quitar (tomar) de
nosotros por el pecado y la muerte.
Es bueno que nos hagamos conscientes de nuestra necesidad de oración y
penitencia en Cuaresma. Pero sobretodo es nuestra necesidad para permitir Dios
haga lo que es la misión de la Iglesia durante esta temporada; para que Dios traiga
la imagen del Cristo a la claridad y perfección de cada uno de nosotros. Esta
Cuaresma nos permite aprender a cambiar nuestra atención a lo que Dios está
haciendo dentro de nosotros. ¡Nos preparamos a sorprender!
1
Juan 1:1-2, 14.
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