Fr Kevin Kilgore

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Genesis: 2:7 – 3:7

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.

The Word of the Lord.

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Mark Twain once said, “The best way to get rid of temptation… is to give into it.”

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Temptation.

We all feel it … and sometimes we give in. 

It’s something human beings have struggled with since the Garden of Eden. 

Our first reading takes us back to the beginning, that moment when Adam and Eve first sinned. 

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Satan appears in the form of a serpent.

Slithering towards Eve, he allures her into eating from the tree of knowledge. “Did God really say, ‘You shall not eat from any of the trees in the garden?” he hisses.

“No, God knows well that the moment you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods!”

Notice Satan does not deny the existence of God when manipulating Eve; he is far more cunning than that. Rather, he tries convincing her to doubt her need for God.

“Your eyes will be opened…and you will be like gods!” he says.

Free. Independent. Self-sustaining. No need for God.

This becomes a marquee tactic of the devil – not to make us doubt God’s existence, as much as convincing us not to care that God exists, or has our well-being in mind.

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The moment Eve looks at the fruit, she concludes three things: it is, “good for food, pleasing to the eyes, and desirable for gaining wisdom.” 

Then, she takes it and bites into it.

Most of our temptations stem from that moment. 

Although God commands Eve not to eat the fruit – doing so would be poisonous to her body and soul – she perceives it as, “good for food,” something pleasing to her physical appetite. 

Often, we face the same temptation – to bite into things that seem pleasing to our appetites in the moment, but really do us harm. 

For example, do we ever overindulge in things like food, drink, betting, social media, or the internet? 

We can spend hours draining ourselves, wasting our time… and for what good?

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One way to combat this temptation to overindulge is to fast, creating a stronger sense of self-discipline and balance this Lent.

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Secondly, Eve finds the fruit, “pleasing to the eyes.” 

Lured by its shape and color, she bites in. Then, she shares it with Adam. Chances are, they both went back for more, even though God commanded them not to.

Today we’re lured by a different kind of “fruit” – a nice pair of shoes, a fashionable purse, a new set of golf clubs, a fancy car, a bigger home. 

Things that seem, “pleasing to the eyes.” 

We acquire them, but more is never enough. Somehow, having more leaves us feeling just as restless weeks or months later as we did before.

What lures me? What do I find myself constantly wanting more of?

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One way to assuage that desire for more is to give alms to those who have less. As Saint Francis of Assisi reminds us, “It is in giving that we receive.”

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Finally, Eve finds the fruit, “desirable for gaining wisdom.” 

Although God warns her not to touch it, she cannot turn away. So, she does what she wants, instead of what she should. 

This is, perhaps, the most common temptation of all: pride. Thinking that we can have whatever we want or do whatever we want, even when our conscience tells us otherwise.

When do I ignore my conscience and do what I want instead of what I should?

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One way to humble ourselves into doing the right thing is through prayer.

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“The best way to get rid of temptation,” Mark Twain once said, “is to give into it.”

While witty, we know that isn’t true. The best way to get rid of temptation is to fast, give alms, and pray as the Lord has taught us.

Are we willing to do that – to become more like Christ – this Lent?

May God bless our journeys ahead.

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Image credits: (1) Oswald Chambers (2) National Catholic Register (3) QuoteFancy

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Isaiah: 58: 1-9

Thus says the Lord GOD:
Cry out full-throated and unsparingly,
lift up your voice like a trumpet blast;
Tell my people their wickedness,
and the house of Jacob their sins.
They seek me day after day,
and desire to know my ways,
Like a nation that has done what is just
and not abandoned the law of their God;
They ask me to declare what is due them,
pleased to gain access to God.
“”Why do we fast, and you do not see it?
afflict ourselves, and you take no note of it?””

Lo, on your fast day you carry out your own pursuits,
and drive all your laborers.
Yes, your fast ends in quarreling and fighting,
striking with wicked claw.
Would that today you might fast
so as to make your voice heard on high!
Is this the manner of fasting I wish,
of keeping a day of penance:
That a man bow his head like a reed
and lie in sackcloth and ashes?
Do you call this a fast,
a day acceptable to the LORD?
This, rather, is the fasting that I wish:
releasing those bound unjustly,
untying the thongs of the yoke;
Setting free the oppressed,
breaking every yoke;
Sharing your bread with the hungry,
sheltering the oppressed and the homeless;
Clothing the naked when you see them,
and not turning your back on your own.
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed;
Your vindication shall go before you,
and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer,
you shall cry for help, and he will say: Here I am!

The Word of the Lord.

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I remember as a child playing a game with my cousins. We’d jump into our grandfather’s pool and see how long we could hold our breath for: ten, twenty, thirty seconds.

Sometimes the winner would have to wait underwater for over a minute until second place was squirming, nearly blue in the face!

It was a pointless game, really. Boys being boys.

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But that feeling of repression – of holding our breath in until we nearly fainted – reminds me of a potential pitfall we face during Lent.

In addition to praying and giving alms, many of us give something up – caffeine, impatience, alcohol, social media, chocolate, etc.

The trick is doing so without becoming a grouch. Nobody wants to be around a “hangry,” irritable person. If fasting from caffeine only makes you tired and snappy, then something’s wrong.

As the prophet Isaiah warns the Israelites in our first reading: “Your fast ends in quarreling and fighting, striking with wicked claw. Would that you might fast so as to make your voice heard on high!”

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Yes, fasting can be painful at times. But it’s meant to direct our attention to our deepest hunger – our hunger for God – and towards the real hunger that many face without choice.

“Share your bread with the hungry, shelter the oppressed and the homeless, clothe the naked when you see them,” Isaiah says. 

Do everything with a joyful, loving disposition. Then the Lord will hear us when we cry.

Otherwise, if we’re just holding our breath until Easter, then we might as well dive underwater until we’re blue in the face.

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Image credits: (1) Catholic Daily Reflections (2) Pinterest (3) Kindness Blog

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Gospel:

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Take care not to perform righteous deeds
in order that people may see them;
otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.
When you give alms,
do not blow a trumpet before you,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets
to win the praise of others.
Amen, I say to you,
they have received their reward.
But when you give alms,
do not let your left hand know what your right is doing,
so that your almsgiving may be secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

“When you pray,
do not be like the hypocrites,
who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners
so that others may see them.
Amen, I say to you,
they have received their reward.
But when you pray, go to your inner room,
close the door, and pray to your Father in secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

“When you fast,
do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.
They neglect their appearance,
so that they may appear to others to be fasting.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you fast,
anoint your head and wash your face,
so that you may not appear to be fasting,
except to your Father who is hidden.
And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Ash Wednesday is a penitential day, reminding us of our need for conversion. As the prophet Joel urges us in our first reading, “Return to the LORD with your whole heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning; rend your hearts, not your garments.”

Every time we turn on the news, we see the effect that sin has on our world. Whether it’s yet another video of a missile being fired into an apartment home, a school, or even a nursery in Ukraine.

Or the unfathomable earthquake in Syria and Turkey that claimed the lives of 46,000 people… followed by the aftershock on Monday morning.

As Saint Paul says, “all of creation is groaning in labor pains… waiting to be set free.”

Meaning, sin is mysteriously stitched into our world – even into the earth itself – causing heartache and wreaking havoc. 

But not only in faraway places. As one Russian novelist put it, “If only it were all so easy. But the dividing line between good and evil cuts through every human heart.”

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We gather here to pray, not only for the world around us, but also that we ourselves would be set free from sin, and inwardly changed this Lent.

In what ways does sin have a hold on me? Why do I need to repent?

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Acknowledging our sins – and striving eagerly to overcome them – is only part of the picture. 

While prayer, fasting, and almsgiving are necessary, the penitential nature of Ash Wednesday – and Lent at large – must be balanced with the anticipation of the joy of Easter Sunday. 

Remember, the first word that Jesus says to his disciples after the resurrection is, “Peace.” In Hebrew, “Shalom.”

Shalom means wholeness; harmony; stillness. It implies that something has been broken, and restored. 

In many ways, “shalom” describes what Lent, and our Christian journeys, is all about. It’s about acknowledging where we are broken, then allowing the Lord to slowly make us whole.

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When you step forward and a minister traces a cross of ash on your forehead, take seriously the words: “Repent, and believe in the Gospel.” 

Humbly acknowledge those areas in your life where sin has its stronghold. But rejoice, knowing that God has come to save you. 

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Image credits: (1) Church of the Little Flower, Ash Wednesday (2) Faithward.org (3) Journey to Shalom