Introduction
The season of lent is upon us again. This season, which calls us to introspect into the very core of our lives as humans, as Christians, and as pilgrims on a journey towards heaven, reminds us of our nothingness without the grace and mercy of God. Indeed, the whole episode of the Calvary experience is a manifestation of God’s undying love for humanity, for you and I, who though shrouded in the cloak of sin and death, are being raised once more to the dignity of being called ‘Sons and Daughters of God’, washed clean by the blood of the lamb and made heirs of God’s kingdom. During this period, we not only commemorate the paschal triumph of Christ over sin and death, but we also commemorate our own victory over the lures of temptation and the guilt of sin, gaining by this feat, the crown of salvation (Jas 1: 12). Today we have come to embark on a spiritual journey, drawing grace and strength from the fruits of the cross. The season of lent is a period not only to relive the mysteries of the passion, death and resurrection of Christ, but more importantly, it is the period we learn to appreciate and carry our own crosses and follow the footprints of the divine master. However, as laid down by Christ in the scriptures, no one can follow the way of the cross if we still remain glued to the pleasures of our old ways of life; in fact, a true disciple is one who is willing to ‘leave his or her cloak behind’ like Bartimaeus, and then follow Christ (Mk 10: 46-52). Therefore, our task today is to identify the ‘cloaks’ that burden us and hinders us from following Christ, in order that we may truly reap the fruits from the tree of life, and this we will reflect upon using the temptations of Jesus as our focal point as coded with the letters FWD. FWD – Flesh, World and Devil: a reflection on the temptations of Jesus (Lk. 4: 1-13) For the purpose of this reflection, we shall be looking at Jesus’ temptation from the optical gaze of Luke’s gospel and this we shall interrogate it under the FWD code, which I choose to call the ‘3 gods of temptation’.
1st Temptation (Lk. 4: 1-4): The Flesh
Object: Satisfaction of the Flesh Symbol: The Hunger for Bread Vices described: Appetite, Gluttony, Excessive comfort, desires of the flesh and immoralities The understanding of the object of satisfaction, bread, goes beyond physical nourishment that satisfies hunger. Jesus’ first temptation relates to the human desire to satisfy the demands of the flesh. As a dynamic being, the human person is always on a constant search for satisfaction, comfort, achievements of set goals and objectives, which is a testament to man’s God-given gifts of inventiveness, creativity, industry and productivity. However, this search for satisfaction does not permit man to encroach into the rights, dignity and value of those within his immediate space; in other words, a search for our ‘daily bread’ does not inform denying others the right to theirs through selfishness, greed, oppression, theft and corruption. A quick look at our society today reveals that many of those considered as poor today were not made so by the accident of birth, or social class or even the failed policies of the state; they are poor because they are surrounded by many who possess the weapons of oppression and who, driven by greed and selfishness, snatch the ‘bread’ from the poor, the weak, the marginalized, the vulnerable and less privileged. Jesus warns that our pursuit of bread should be guided by the principles of God as contained in his word. Just as you desire a comfortable life, good health, basic amenities of food, shelter and clothing, peace and security, so too do those around you deserve the same. If our daily ‘hustles’ fails to acknowledge the humanity of others, then it is not in consonance with the injunction of Christ to ‘love God with all our hearts and then to love our neighbours as ourselves’ (cf. Mk. 12:30-31). Another dimension to the interpretation of bread is in relation to the bread of life, the body of Christ, whose member we are. We cannot participate in the mystery of Christ body if we do not align with the word of God. Jesus the word of God and the bread of eternal life calls each of us to be nourished by his word and strengthened by his body, making us become ‘one body, one spirit in Christ’, thus configuring us into the dwelling place of God, the temple of the Holy Spirit.At the last supper, Jesus used the image of the bread to symbolise communion and fellowship which exists within the members of his body, his family, who are nourished daily by his word and sacrament. This means that the bread also symbolises a family bond, a common banquet, a communion of love.
However, if the members of Jesus’ body are one family with him, and if he constantly purifies and preserves the sanctity of this family through his word and sacrament, then the need to preserve the sanctity of every earthly familybecomes imperative. Thus the first temptation of the flesh can also point to the appreciation of family bond, where ‘common bread’ is shared daily on the table of love. There is a clarion call today to preserve the dignity and sacredness of marriages (union of flesh) and family life, as this is the most attacked social institution in our society. With the ever rising cases of divorces, separations and marital conflicts in many homes, there is a great need to look critical at the structure of this sacred bond between a man and a woman joined together as husband and wife, and this is one area the Knights and Ladies are called to become more active and sensitive to. Amongst your ranks are husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, grandparents and preservers of the sanctity and dignity of marriage and family life. The question is, how well are we preserving this sanctity and dignity within our homes, the church and the society? How well have you been able to control and overcome the desires of the flesh as it affects our marriages and families, and how have you been able to impact positively into the lives of the next generation with regards to understanding what marriage is all about and how to value it in other to address the many challenges confronting marriages today. Many families crumble today because God is no longer at the center of their union, but rather selfishness, greed and ego now dominates the relationship between family members, all of which are fuelled by the inordinate desire of the flesh.
2nd Temptation (Lk 4:5- 8): The World
Symbol: Thirst for power, fame, pursuit of wealth, position Vices: Greed, Covetousness, ambitiousness, pride The second temptation focuses on man’s quest for power, position fame and wealth, and this has become the bane of our society today. The social context of our society is one that creates a huge gulf between the rich and the poor, the upper class and the lower, and this has further created tension and imbalance with the system. Jesus was presented with the ‘pleasure’ of owing the world and all in it, but was quick to dismiss the devil and his plot by reminding him that he (Jesus) is God himself and owns all. However the message for us today is a simple reminder that all the world offers, all its glamour and glee, wealth and comfort, is nothing but a passing reality. All that matters is our union with God and the conviction that one who has God has everything. As Knights and Ladies, this second temptations poses a lot of questions to you: – What is your intention of becoming a Knight/Lady? – Is your membership born out of the desire to flaunt ones ego, pride, wealth or position? – As knights and Ladies, do we consider the interest of others or is it only about our prestige or interest? – Has the quest or hunger for power/position begun to create cracks of division amongst the members of this noble order? The role of the Knighthood is essential in the growth and mission of the Church.
As defenders of the Church faith and doctrines, there is a need for knights and Ladies to be equipped with the faith of the Church, and this defence of the faith begins with your respective families by becoming models of light and good character to your spouses and children, then carrying this light to the society, the church and wherever one finds oneself. I once heard an elderly priest call Knights, ‘those who think they know all about the faith and yet they know nothing but are never humble enough to admit they know nothing’ – in as much as I do not subscribe to this definition, there is a need to sound a note of caution that a Knight or Lady who is not welled armed and combat ready to defend the Church and her faith, becomes a vulnerability in the preservation of the Church’s faith and doctrine. Hence there is the need to do more work as Knights and Ladies. To this I wish to ask that, if possible, even the criteria for admission into this noble order needs to be reviewed and fortified in order to avoid admitting members who may become ‘infections’ to the system. Let admissions not be done only on face value but sincerity, diligence and credible screening, with the interest of God and the Church at heart. Ask yourself this: Are you a KNIGHT or a NIGHT (Food for thought)
3rd Temptation (Lk 4: 9-13): The Devil
Object: The Devil Symbol: The voice of sin Vices: Gossips, envy, character assassination The third temptation of Jesus relates to the ‘voice’ that directs our actions. Whose voice speaks within us, God or the devil? The mind is always in a constant battle, drawn at the crossroad between doing the will of God, or falling for the deceit of the devil. The voice we permit into our lives and which directs our actions informs our perception of life and our relationship with everyone around us.
– Whose voice coordinates your relationship with your spouse or children?
– Who do you listen to as a leader within your sphere of leadership?
– As a Knight or Lady, does the Spirit of God coordinate your daily decisions and move you on the path of virtue, or do you derive pleasure doing the bidding of the evil one by exhibiting a life filled with vices of all sorts? The voice of the evil one can come through evil counsels or advices we get from family members, friends or colleagues, even from fellow Knights or Ladies, and these evil counsels have damaged many marriages, many homes, and has even posed a major threat to the bond of the Knighthood.
Be careful who you listen to.
Be careful of those you run to advice or counsels.
Do not be an agent of dissention, division and tension through gossips and character assassination.
Grab your dvd remote control devices!!!
While reflecting on the FWD, my mind was directed to the common meaning of the abbreviation, which is to Forward or Fast Forward as seen on the common remote controls for our television sets or audio devices. If we attempt to draw a connection between the function of the FWD button on our remote controls with our reflection of Jesus’ temptation, we will arrive at the following: 1. To skip the areas we do not wish to view (old ways of life controlled by the desires of the Flesh, the World and the deception of the Devil) 2. To hasten to the area we want to see (Foster our relationship with God, hasten to connect more intimately to the heart of divine love) Therefore, a life of grace occurs when we press down the FWD button, which means: 1. An avoidance of sin by defeating the FWD (Flesh, World and Devil). 2. To hasten back to God (Here we can re the prodigal son – ‘rise and go back to your father).
Admonition for today
Today, beloved in Christ, we are called to look inward and come to the consciousness of our sins. During the Stations of the Cross, at the twelfth station we all kneel in an act of contrition because Jesus died for no fault of his, but for our sins, however each time we fall back to sin, all we do is to nail Christ again and again to the Cross. The truth is that we cannot continue on the road to Calvary if we do not press down and crush the temptations of the flesh, the world and the devil still disturbing us. Are we those still caught up in the acts of fornication or adultery, blackmail, fraud, corrupt practices, injustices of any kind, oppressive and tyrannical rule, not to even talk of kidnap and murder? Have we been bad husbands or wives or bad role models to our children? Have we constantly refused to reconcile with Christ at confession because we are too shy of our sins? How long will we remain rooted in sin, how long before we realise that evil pays us no good except condemnation and eternal damnation? This should be our thought for reflection for today.
Conclusion
We end today’s talk with the words of the psalmist in Ps 130: 3, ‘if you O Lord should mark our guilt, Lord who would survive?’ Indeed, if God were to deal with each of us according to our faults, none of us would be here today. This calls for a sincere and sober reflection. Is sin the best way for meto reciprocate God’s love? Does my way of life bring glory to God’s name or am I one who honours God only with lip service while my heart are very far from him? Do I still worship and deify the three gods of temptation, FWD? God is telling us to go into ourselves and reveal the truths about our relationship with him. Glory to Jesus!
• A retreat paper delivered to the Order of the Knights of St. Mulumba Nigeria, Isolo Sub-Council; by Rev.Fr. Okem Anthony OSJ, a priest o the Oblates of St. Joseph.
