FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT, MARCH 9, 2025

Martirio de Santiago el Menor, Pedro Orrente (Murcia, 1580 - València, 1645)

MASS READINGS

Gospel Luke 4:1-13

Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days, to be tempted by the devil.

He ate nothing during those days, and when they were over he was hungry.

The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”

Jesus answered him, “It is written,

One does not live on bread alone.”

Then he took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a single instant.

The devil said to him, “I shall give to you all this power and glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I may give it to whomever I wish. All this will be yours, if you worship me.”

Jesus said to him in reply, “It is written           

You shall worship the Lord, your God,                       

and him alone shall you serve.”

Then he led him to Jerusalem, made him stand on the parapet of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written:           

He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you, 

and:           

With their hands they will support you,           

lest you dash your foot against a stone.”

Jesus said to him in reply, “It also says,           

You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.”

When the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from him for a time.

REFLECTION

"Then he led him to Jerusalem, made him stand on the parapet of the temple."

How tall was the temple of Jerusalem? Could you see the whole valley beyond it from it's highest point? How far would you be able to gaze?

After Jesus' death and resurrection, the apostle St. James the Less became the Bishop of Jerusalem. At some point he also wrote the Epistle of St. James in the New Testament. His mother was Mary of Cleophas who was at the foot of the cross. She was also related to the Virgin Mary.

Some years ago we were lucky to see an exhibition of the treasures from El Prado and other Spanish museums. In it there was a painting showing St. James the Less falling from some stairs. The curator explained the picture as follows: Jerusalem's high priest wanted St. James the Less, then Bishop of Jerusalem to say that Jesus was a mere mortal. Since the apostle would not apostatize, he was thrown from the steeple of the temple into the ground. And because he did not perish he was then stoned, and ultimately bludgeoned to death by one of his accusers.

Now the twist of the story, the curator then mentioned that the steeple where the apostle was thrown from, is that same where the devil tempted Jesus.

Whether this is real or just a pious legend, it really made an impression on me.

We all get tempted. Maybe not to the extent to wish for all the kingdoms of the earth, or to apostatize, but we do get tempted based on our own weakness: to overeat, to steal some change at the store, to show up to work and not do anything productive, to gossip or jeer against someone.

What do we do when we get into that steeple? That is the choice. Sometimes it is easy to step out of it. Sometimes we entangle ourselves with bad behaviors and it is difficult to paddle back towards a life of virtue. Thank God for the sacrament of Confession!

I keep telling myself I'll do better, and I can do it. I found out that for some behaviors, the only way for me to change them is with an accountability partner. White knuckling and praying sometimes is not enough. Having someone walk the same way as you do might also be a way the Lord wants us to follow since by myself I cannot change. Sometimes we need someone to help us step out of that steeple and turn back towards God.

Let's pray to St. James the Less to persevere to the end despite the difficulties we might encounter.

God bless y'all!

Sources:

https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/audiences/2006/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20060628.html