First Sunday in Lent – February 21, 2021
Fr. Oscar Coelho

In today’s Gospel from the Gospel of Saint Mark, we heard that Jesus, after 40 days of prayer and fasting was later led into the desert and was tempted by the Satan. From the other three Gospels, we also know that Jesus, because of the 40 days of prayer and fasting, was effectively able to overcome the three temptations of the Satan. This Gospel on the First Sunday of Lent, then, gives us an opportunity to reflect on what we need to do during this period of Lent in order to overcome the temptations given to us by the Satan in our day-to-day lives.
Temptations are the first step towards sin. Temptations are little devils knocking on the door of our soul and mind, constantly looking for an opportunity to trip us into committing a sin. Those temptations sometimes, even disguise as something that is good, but is actually bad, is actually a sin, just like we see in the case of Jesus being tempted three times; all of those temptations wrapped as if they were good things for him to choose. Hence, unless and until we fortify our lives with prayer and fasting, we won’t be able to see and distinguish these temptations with clarity, with truthfulness and we will easily fall into sin.  Fasting and the life of prayer, an opportunity given to us during this period of Lent, like Jesus, will help us to see with clarity, and discern with tranquility, when such temptations come knocking at the door of our souls.
The best example of the necessity of having such tranquility, and clarity, is by comparing ourselves and our lives to the fishermen who fish at the sea. A tranquil sea allows the fishermen to see with clarity right to the depths of the sea. No fish can hide from their gaze and escape the sight of the fishermen. However, a stormy sea becomes murky when it is agitated by the winds, and does not allow the fishermen to see clearly, rendering the skills of the fishermen useless. Fasting and a life of prayer, similarly, helps us to be calm and tranquil and to discern the thoughts that come to us—those that are good, those that are sent by God, we will treasure them in our memories; while those that are evil or inspired by the devil, we will be able to see the evil clearly and reject it.
It is in prayer and fasting that we discover the Good, we discover the Truth, that is our Lord Jesus Christ, who as the Responsorial Psalm for today tells us, makes known His Ways, teaches us His Path, and guides us in the Way of the Truth. Let us then, my dear brothers and sisters, take these 40 days of Lent to be on a journey to discover with clarity and tranquility, with prayer and fasting, Jesus, the Way, the Truth and our Life.

Homilía en Español