Commentary on the Epistle and Gospel of the 3rd Sunday of Lent

EPISTLE

Context: The doctrine expounded in Ephesians is the pre-eminence of Christ and the intimacy of our union with Him in the Mystical Body. This intimacy demands that we avoid all the vices of our former unregenerate state, replacing them with Christian virtues. In this moral section of the Epistle, Paul is enumerating particular vices and dangers against which the faithful must guard.

Text: Be imitators of God: as children of God, Christians must resemble Him, and especially in the virtue of love so eminently exemplified in Christ’s death for us.

There follows a list of six terms describing various forms of immodesty, in act or word or thought (covetousness referring to evil desires). These are not even to be mentioned among them as unbecoming to Christians, but to be replaced by sentiments and words of thankfulness to God. The motive: those defiled by immodesty cannot enter the kingdom established by the blood of Christ our God.

For that is idolatry: he who is covetous makes gold, or here perhaps lust, his God.

Lead you astray with empty words: the false teachers were then disturbing the Christian communities in western Asia Minor.

Because of these things: the species of immorality just mentioned.

Children of disobedience: those who resist God’s will.

Partakers: Christians must avoid the sinful actions of their pagan neighbours.

Darkness: their unregenerate past which experienced these sins.

Light: their new sphere, whose fruits are goodness as opposed to sinfulness, justice as opposed to dishonest dealings, truth as opposed to lying.

GOSPEL

Context: The events recorded in today’s Gospel took place in the second year of our Lord’s public ministry. It consists of three parts: the blasphemy of the Pharisees about Jesus’ union with Beelzebub, the return of the unclean spirit to take possession of a man, and the praise of Mary.

The choice of today’s Gospel was based on the circumstances that the solemn exorcism of catechumens took place on this Sunday, when they renounced Satan, all his works and all his pomps. The Gospel was to point out to them Jesus’ triumphant struggle against Satan. It is uncertain whether the praise of Mary was originally included.

Text: The same was dumb: because of the effect that the devil had wrought upon his victim, he as well as the man is referred to as being dumb.

Beelzebub: means lord of flies. Mentioned in the Old Testament as the god of Accaron, it was considered as the god who warded off flies. At the time of our Lord, the Jews applied the name to the prince of devils. The blasphemous accusation was made to suppress the enthusiasm of the people for Jesus and destroy their faith in Him.

Every kingdom divided against itself, etc: unity is an essential quality for the existence of any society; a society divided by discord will soon come to ruin.

If, then Satan, also is divided against himself, etc: it would be a contradiction for Satan to cooperate with anyone in the destruction of his kingdom.

Then the kingdom of God has come upon you: i.e. the messianic kingdom was being established and the kingdom of Satan was being destroyed.

The strong man: Satan, the prince of this world (John 12, 31), held men as his slaves by reason of sin.

If a stronger than he: Jesus overcame the power of Satan, and His fellow-combatants will share in the joys and fruits of His victory. He who is not with me, etc: in this raging conflict man must make up his mind what army he will join, since neutrality is impossible.

The last state of that man becomes worse than the first: the conqueror of Satan was Jesus, but now Israel’s unfaithfulness and pride was leading to a second and worse estrangement from God than before.

Rather, blessed are they who hear, etc: Jesus does not deny that His Mother is blessed, but stressed the fact that obedience to God’s word constitutes a spiritual relationship which is above carnal relationship, and thus He commends His Mother above all (cf. also Luke 8, 21).

The Public Life of Our Lord: Jesus is Transfigured

From The Public Life of Our Lord by Bishop Goodier

Up this mountain Jesus climbed along with His three companions. Evidently this was nothing strange to them. They had grown accustomed to these retirements; of late in particular they had become frequent, as if, after the disappointments of His months of activity, He were preferring to revert to His original method of prayer. They came up the hill, expecting nothing strange; indeed when they reached the summit they were very weary. Here, as was His custom, Jesus went aside to pray; the three left together did likewise, with goodwill enough, but their eyes and their limbs were heavy. In a very short time they were lost in slumber, closely akin to sleep.

But very soon they were awakened. They had come up on the evening; by now it was deep night; yet they found themselves surrounded by light, brighter than the light of day. The light came from the spot where Jesus had knelt down, and in spite of themselves their eyes were drawn towards it. There in front of them standing and looking towards them, was a figure that filled them with fear. Was it Jesus? If so, then He was completely changed; so changed that at first they could not recognize Him. His very countenance was no longer the same. Could it be called human? At all events there were no human words with which it could be described. It shone so brightly that as they looked at it their eyes were dazzled; a light seemed to shine through it from within, brilliant and blinding as the very sun itself. His clothing, too, was shining; His rough workman’s garment was transformed, Solomon in all his glory was never clothed as He. One might call its colour white, yet was it whiter than white, whiter than dazzling snow, whiter than any man could make white, brighter than the whitest light.

“And whilst he prayed

He was transfigured before them

And the shape of his countenance was altered

And his face did shine as the sun

And his garments became white and glittering

And exceeding white as snow

So as no fuller on earth can make white.”

For awhile the three men were spell-bound. They forgot themselves, they forgot their surroundings; they were lost, paralysed, carried utterly beyond themselves, dead yet alive, in the fascination of the vision before them. It was glory, it was triumph; it was magnificence beyond imagination; it was an ecstatic moment, when eye, and mind, and heart, and soul, each beheld with its own peculiar power of vision, and was caught, and enthralled, and enraptured, carried out of life, yet thereby made to feel in the very essence of their being the utter joy of living. It was heaven; it was freedom from all bondage; it was the light which was the life of men, the light shining in the darkness, the light enlightening every man that cometh into the world. Jesus Christ, the Light, the Life, the Son of the Living God! Their hearts were fit to burst with the fulness of it all, the fulness of all grace, of all truth.

Presently they became aware that there were not alone; besides themselves were other spectators of the vision. As their eyes grew more accustomed to the dazzling brightness, or as they turned away for relief, they discerned two men— or were they men? They seemed too full of light, too majestic!—standing on His either side, and holding conversation with Him. They were holding serious discussion, as three men might who had gone apart to make some plan for future. What were they discussing? That, too, they soon discovered. One spoke of the first son of Eve, Abel, slain by his brother, Cain; of Isaac offered in sacrifice by his father, Abraham, of the blood of the lamb that was spread upon the door-posts in Egypt, and saved the Hebrews from the angel of death; of the lamb that was killed and eaten to commemorate the great delivery; of the cross uplifted in the desert to save the people from their doom; of the sacrifices, of the scapegoat, of all those signs that pointed to Him who was to come, and therefore

“Of his decease

That he should accomplish in Jerusalem.”

Then spoke the second figure. He dwelt on the message of the prophets, their words, their warnings, and their doom; on the suffering that awaited everyone who spoke the word of God to this stubborn and stiff-necked people; on the picture of the Messias that had grown in ever darker colours as the ages had advanced; on the prophecy contained in the story of Israel itself, perishing and again its dead bones given life. Long was his tale; prophecy followed prophecy, but the sign foreshadowed was clear to demonstration. The prophet spoke, too,

“Of his decease

That he should accomplish in Jerusalem.”

In a dazed state the three men listened, overcome by what they saw, hearing the words that were said, paying little heed to their significance; only long afterwards, when at last the whole drama was complete, did it all come back upon them. In the present they could not think; only by degrees, from the words that were said, from an interior recognition, they came to perceive who were these two that spoke with Jesus. They were Moses and Elias; Moses the Giver of the Law, Elias the founder of the school of the prophets.

For some time these three figures standing in the brightness held their conversation. At length there came an end; the two that had come began to fade away into the surrounding mist of the light. Then speech returned to Peter. He was still beside himself; being more spontaneous, more enthusiastic, he was more beside himself than the others. What he said he scarcely knew, nor did he greatly care but his bursting heart must say something, whatever words came first to his mind. And what words could more express his heart at that moment than words of joy in prayer? Oh! The delights of such prayer as this! Oh! The satisfaction of living forever thus alone with the Lord! This was indeed to live; this was the light, the life; and since it was that, why, then let it go on forever! Let the weary world go by, the weary, disappointing world! Here on this mountain, with him, Peter, as the rock foundation, Jesus and they would begin forthwith to build their Church, and the gates of hell should not prevail against it.

The Temptation of Our Lord in the Desert

from the Summa of Saint Thomas Aquinas ( III, q. XLI, a. 1 )

"Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil." Matt. IV, 1

Our Lord wished to be tempted; first that He might strengthen us against temptations. Hence Saint Gregory says: “It was not unworthy of our Redeemer to wish to be tempted, who came also to be slain; in order that by His temptations He might conquer our temptations, just as by His death He overcame our death.”

Secondly, that we might be warned, so that none, however holy, may think himself safe or free from temptation. Wherefore also He wished to be tempted after His baptism, because, as Saint Hilary says: “The temptations of the devil assail those principally who are sanctified, for he desires, above all, to overcome the holy. Hence also it is written (Sirach 2): ‘Son, when thou comest to the service of God, stand in justice and in fear, and prepare thy soul for temptation.’ ”

Thirdly, in order to give us an example: to teach us, to wit, how to overcome the temptations of the devil. Hence Saint Augustine says that Christ “allowed Himself to be tempted" by the devil, "that He might be our Mediator in overcoming temptations, not only by helping us, but also by giving us an example.”

Fourthly, in order to fill us with confidence in His mercy. Hence it is written (Hebrews 4:15): “We have not a high-priest, who cannot have compassion on our infirmities, but one tempted in all things like as we are, without sin.”

As stated above, Our Lord of His own free-will exposed Himself to be tempted by the devil, just as by His own free-will He submitted to be killed by His members; else the devil would not have dared to approach Him. Now the devil prefers to assail a man who is alone, for, as it is written (Ecclesiastes 4:12), "if a man prevail against one, two shall withstand him." And so it was that Christ went out into the desert, as to a field of battle, to be tempted there by the devil. Hence Ambrose says that “Christ was led into the desert for the purpose of provoking the devil. For had he,” i.e. the devil, “not fought, He,” i.e. Christ, “would not have conquered.” He adds other reasons, saying that “Christ in doing this set forth the mystery of Adam's delivery from exile,” who had been expelled from paradise into the desert, and “set an example to us, by showing that the devil envies those who strive for better things.”

Also, it was becoming that Christ should wish to fast before His temptation. First, in order to give us an example. For since we are all in urgent need of strengthening ourselves against temptation, as stated above, by fasting before being tempted, He teaches us the need of fasting in order to equip ourselves against temptation. Hence Saint Paul (2 Corinthians 6:5-7) reckons “fastings” together with the “armor of justice”.  Secondly, in order to show that the devil assails with temptations even those who fast, as likewise those who are given to other good works. And so Christ's temptation took place after His fast, as also after His baptism. Hence since rather Chrysostom says: “To instruct thee how great a good is fasting, and how it is a most powerful shield against the devil; and that after baptism thou shouldst give thyself up, not to luxury, but to fasting; for this cause Christ fasted, not as needing it Himself, but as teaching us.”

Thirdly, because after the fast, hunger followed, which made the devil dare to approach Him. Now, when “Our Lord was hungry,” says Saint Hilary, “it was not because He was overcome by want of food, but because He abandoned His manhood to its nature. For the devil was to be conquered, not by God, but by the flesh.” Wherefore Chrysostom too says: “He proceeded no farther than Moses and Elias, lest His assumption of our flesh might seem incredible.”

Overcoming the Overwhelm

The following is a brief article from a long-time executive which might prove helpful to many in organizing our busy lives.  It must be noted that its aim is the natural.  One should never discount, however, the importance and the need to use common sense and even natural prudence, remembering that grace is to permeate a well-formed nature.  As the old Catholic saying goes:  One must pray as if all depends on God, but work as if all depends on oneself.  May these words of advice help us to better prepare for a most generous and grace-filled Lent.

We all experience those days or weeks where there is just so much coming at us that we almost feel paralyzed. You know you need to do something, but you don’t know which something. And we pressure ourselves with a constant reminder that we have more to and need to do it better!

We all get overwhelmed. We all have a longer list of things to do than we have time in the day. We all feel everything is important. We all want to do everything right now so we can get on to the next thing.

I felt the pressure cooker when I became vice president of a large company. About a week into the job, I realised I had to have an organized plan not only in order to get everything done, but equally as important, to fight the feeling of being constantly overwhelmed. I was fine with admitting my feelings (to myself), but I needed to have a game plan for when that overwhelming feeling crept in.

Whether they admit it or not, this happens to us all. The important difference is in what we do about it. I came up with this list to guide me:

·       Keep the Main Thing the Main Thing

·       It’s about Priority Management — Not Time Management

·       Make Time — Don’t Find Time

·       Plan Your Day — Don’t Just Show Up Today

·       Make Decisions — Don’t Just Shuffle Paper

·       Extend the Game

·       Make Time to Think

·       Simplify, Simplify, Simplify

Keep the Main Thing the Main Thing

It’s always about what is most important, and I work hard to tackle and complete that first. This takes discipline and focus.

It’s about Priority Management — Not Time Management

My priorities are all about what I need to do, not what I want to do. I structure my day with my priorities placed in my schedule first. Then I build in anything else I want to get done.

Plan Your Day — Don’t Just Show Up Today

Build a schedule that you can sustain. Start the day with a plan.

Make Decisions — Don’t Just Shuffle Paper

This is a reminder to me that decisions are part of each day. I need to do my due diligence and then make the decision. Period.

Extend the Game

This is a saying in sports that means you have to get more of the clock. In basketball we may foul an opponent, so they have to shoot free throws and then we get the ball back with no time having come off the clock. I do the same thing now If I have more to pack in a day, I may get up at 4:00 am and not 5:00 am, extending my day.

Make Time to Think

We can’t make quality decisions unless we put quality thought into them. Don’t get caught on the treadmill of the workday, make time to think. Good decisions are a priority for success.

Simplify, Simplify, Simplify

For me, simplification takes away a lot of the hesitation I get with complexity. Complexity causes doubt; doubt causes hesitation; hesitation hurts productivity.