Dear parishioners, visitors & friends,
Each year we begin our observance of the Holy Season of Lent with the celebration of Ash Wednesday. This year we have an interesting coincidence as Ash Wednesday was celebrated on the same day as Valentine’s Day. Last Wednesday, I hope all roads led to the Church and not to the garden. I hope people spent more time in the chapels, places of prayers and Churches in fasting, prayers and meditations than they did in the gardens. There is no contradiction between what happens on any Valentine’s Day or Ash Wednesday. They are all about love. The only difference is that Ash Wednesday deals with real and deeper love. It talks about love that is often enshrined in the messiness of human life and love that often ends in death. Quite often when we speak about love, we think of emotions and feelings whereas Ash Wednesday reminds us that genuine love goes beyond mere warm feelings or attractions. Genuine love is about making ‘the decision to love another unconditionally’ and being open to the grace from God that enables a person to sacrifice and to give oneself freely to God and for the good of others. This is nothing but the Good news as proclaimed by Jesus Christ and testified by many messengers of the good news.
The gospel of this first weekend of Lent opens as Jesus Christ freely allowed Himself to be led by the Spirit and driven into the wilderness where He was tempted by Satan. This event in Mark’s gospel comes immediately after Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan. We remember that as Jesus was baptised, the heavens were torn open, the Spirit descended upon him, and a voice came from heaven and said: “You are my beloved Son” (Mark 1: 11). No sooner was the glory, the statement of endorsement and affirmation over than the Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness where Jesus was tempted.
As mortals and broken people, we are not precluded or immune from daily temptations.In our daily life, we are often tricked, deceived and lured into doing things or saying things that do not reflect our true identity as redeemed sons and daughters of a loving God. But the choice is always ours to make. We can either fall into temptations or overcome temptations. In the Book of Genesis (Gen 2:7-9; 3:1-7), Adam and Eve made the choice to fall into the temptation, while Jesus in the gospel made the choice to overcome temptation.
Often we choose to mark our Lenten observances, by giving up things like alcohol, coffee, chocolates or some other food or drinks we like. But how often do we think of giving up the distractions that often lead us into temptation? No one who is distracted can overcome temptation. Jesus was able to overcome the tempter because He was focused on prayer and meditation. He knew that the love of God was greater than any worldly gift. His mind, heart, soul and whole life was centred on God’s love for Him. As we solemnly observe this Holy Season of Lent in preparation for the celebration of the Trid-uum and the feast of Easter, may we, like Jesus, journey into the wilderness in our individual lives which may include our appetites, emotions, feelings, desires, or areas of our lives where we feel terribly vulnerable, overwhelmed or challenged. Lent is about putting our distracted life into perspective. Let’s not be afraid of spending some time in those barren areas of our lives and let’s not be afraid of confronting the demons that tempt us daily.
God bless you all.
Fr. John Ikechukwu Echewodo
Saints of the Day
