Faith Formation Reflections and Resources

The Sunday liturgies of the season of Lent offer us much material for reflection. For starters, the first Sunday of Lent always has the gospel reading about Jesus being tempted by the devil in the desert. This year’s version (there are three versions, one each from the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke) is from the Gospel of Luke and outlines the three temptations from the devil we are accustomed to hearing: 1) “command this stone to become bread”, 2) “worship me” and “I will give you this power and glory”, and 3) “if you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here…” Jesus did not succumb to these temptations; instead, he used Scripture to refute the devil. Interestingly, the gospel concludes with the sentence: “When the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from him for a time” (italics added). If the devil was going to tempt Jesus again, what will the devil do to us…and how will we respond?