Three weeks ago, I met a former seminarian who had just retired from his highly successful career. He was a top executive officer in one of the country’s most prestigious establishments when he left the company. Recently, he was invited to be a consultant in the city mayor’s office. I congratulated him and encouraged him to take the distinctive offer as a unique opportunity for him to put God in the government.
He agreed and promised to do his best. With a hint of apprehensiveness, he also added, “But it will be very challenging, Bishop. I know there will be lots of temptations along the way.”
I could only sympathize with him. Indeed, it takes a saint today to work in places like the government and remain honest and upright. Just think of the horrendous flood control project-realted scandals we are protesting about and continue to denounce in our Trillion Peso March this Wednesday.
Temptation is all around us. It is a reality and an inevitable part of life. No one is spared since the days of our first parents (first reading); not even Jesus, whom the devil acknowledged as the Son of God. (gospel).
Yet, however daunting the temptation may be, we should not to fear for God never abandons us. He cares for us and does not allow us to be tempted beyond our capacity. St. Paul assures us, “God is faithful and will not let you be tried beyond your strength; but with the trial he will also provide a way out, so that you may be able to bear it.” (1Cor 10:13)
God allows temptation in order to test and refine our soul. It is through temptation that we prove our character and come to realize that victory is attained by relying on God’ power rather than our own.
Whenever the days of the board examinations are near, students come and ask for blessing not only for themselves but also for their paraphernalia of pencils, erasers, notes, and the like. Some even request that I personally sharpen their pencils before giving the blessing. While I find their creative ways of seeking divine help amusing, I cannot but also admire their deep faith and conviction that it is only with God’s grace that they can succeed.
I remind them however that while God’s help is essential, God also expects them to do their counterpart of studying and preparing seriously. As St. Augustine vividly puts it, “God provides the wind, but man must raise the sails.”
Today’s readings teach how to prepare and be ready to face temptation. The first reading warns us to avoid the occasion of sin. Our catechism teaches that any circumstance, whether a person, place, thing, or situation, that can incite or entice us to sin is an occasion of sin. It may be a bad barkada, a morally dangerous place, a company of gossipers, sleazy entertainments and many others. What really happened to Eve in the garden of Eden was that even before she engaged in the disastrous dialogue with the tempter, she had already put herself in danger by approaching the forbidden tree.
We avoid the occasions of sin because we are born with concupiscence, an innate inclination to evil, which we inherited from our first parents through original sin. We all experience how hard it is to be good and how easy it is fall into sin. St. Paul laments, “What I do, I do not understand. For I do not do what I want, but I do what I hate.” (Rm 7:15)
It is for this reason that we need not only to be prayerful and vigilant but also to strengthen ourselves with God’s help. This is what Jesus teaches us in today’s gospel. He overcame the devil’s temptation by prayer and fasting. To counteract our concupiscence, we need to strengthen and discipline our will by acts of self-denial. This is what fasting is all about.
Temptation is meant to draw us nearer to God rather than away from him. It is a test that is meant to qualify and take us higher in our ascent of God’s mountain. Much like the board exams that the students are eager to take. They see them as a way that opens them to better opportunities and a higher status in life.
There was a time when we prayed a different version of the Our Father wherein we say, “do not bring us to the test.” Today we return to the traditional version, “lead us not into temptation.” The discussion still continues however since no less than Pope Francis had pointed out that the traditional rendition can be confusing. God does not tempt anyone. As St. James tells us, “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone.” (Jm 1:13) The original Greek, “lead us not” means both “do not allow us to enter…” and “do not let us yield to…”.
It is interesting to note that the new Italian translation of the Our Father changed the former “do not lead us into temptation” to “do not abandon us in temptation.” Personally, I believe that the students’ version when praying the Our Father is still the closest – “do not abandon us in the test” or better still, “do not allow us to fail the test.”
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