The Transfiguration of the Lord – A Timeless Revelation of Glory and Its Meaning for Today

The Transfiguration of the Lord – A Timeless Revelation of Glory and Its Meaning for Today

The Transfiguration of the Lord is one of the most profound and awe-inspiring events in the New Testament, a moment where the divine nature of Jesus Christ is revealed in a dazzling display of light and glory. Celebrated annually on August 6 in the Catholic Church, this event holds deep theological significance, offering insights into Christ’s identity, the relationship between the Old and New Testaments, and the call to holiness for all believers. In today’s world, marked by uncertainty, division, and a search for meaning, the Transfiguration provides a powerful reminder of hope, transformation, and the eternal presence of God’s light.

The Transfiguration: A Biblical Account

The Transfiguration is recorded in three of the Synoptic Gospels: Matthew 17:1-8, Mark 9:2-8, and Luke 9:28-36. The event takes place after Jesus predicts His passion and death, a moment of tension for the disciples who are grappling with the reality of their teacher’s impending suffering. Jesus takes Peter, James, and John—His inner circle—up a high mountain, traditionally identified as Mount Tabor in Galilee, though some scholars suggest Mount Hermon due to its proximity to Caesarea Philippi, where Jesus had recently been.

On the mountain, Jesus is transfigured before them: “His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light” (Matthew 17:2, NIV). Moses and Elijah, representing the Law and the Prophets, appear and converse with Jesus, affirming His role as the fulfillment of God’s covenant with Israel. A bright cloud overshadows them, and a voice from the cloud declares, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” (Matthew 17:5). Overwhelmed, the disciples fall to the ground in fear, but Jesus comforts them, saying, “Get up, don’t be afraid” (Matthew 17:7). As they descend the mountain, Jesus instructs them not to speak of the event until after His resurrection, underscoring its connection to the Paschal mystery.

The Meaning of the Transfiguration

The Transfiguration is rich with theological meaning, revealing multiple layers of Christ’s identity and mission:

1. Revelation of Christ’s Divinity: The Transfiguration is a theophany—a direct manifestation of God’s glory. The radiant light emanating from Jesus signifies His divine nature, confirming His identity as the Son of God. This moment echoes the Old Testament theophanies, such as Moses’ encounter with God on Mount Sinai (Exodus 34:29-35), where his face also shone after being in God’s presence. For the disciples, this glimpse of Jesus’ divinity strengthens their faith as they face the looming reality of His crucifixion.
2. Fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets: The appearance of Moses and Elijah is deeply symbolic. Moses represents the Law, given to Israel on Mount Sinai, while Elijah represents the Prophets, who called the people back to covenant fidelity. Their presence alongside Jesus signifies that He is the culmination of God’s plan, the one who fulfills the promises of the Old Testament. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church states, “The Transfiguration gives us a foretaste of Christ’s glorious coming, when he ‘will change our lowly body to be like his glorious body’” (CCC 556).
3. A Foretaste of the Resurrection: The Transfiguration occurs in the context of Jesus’ prediction of His passion, death, and resurrection. The glory revealed on the mountain is a preview of the resurrection, assuring the disciples—and us—that suffering and death are not the end. The event bridges the cross and the resurrection, showing that the path to glory passes through the cross. As Pope St. Leo the Great wrote in a sermon, “The Lord displays his glory before chosen witnesses… to remove from the hearts of his disciples the scandal of the cross.”
4. A Call to Listen and Follow: The voice of the Father, echoing the words spoken at Jesus’ baptism (Matthew 3:17), commands the disciples to “listen to him.” This directive underscores Jesus’ authority as the Word of God incarnate and calls the disciples to trust in His teachings, even when they lead to the cross. It’s a reminder that true discipleship involves obedience and surrender to God’s will.

Significance for Today’s World

The Transfiguration is not just a historical event—it speaks directly to the challenges and aspirations of our modern world. In an era marked by division, despair, and a crisis of meaning, the Transfiguration offers several key lessons:

1. Hope Amid Suffering: Today, many people face personal and collective struggles—whether it’s the loss of loved ones, economic hardship, or global crises like climate change and conflict. The Transfiguration reminds us that suffering is not the final word. Just as Jesus’ glory was revealed before His passion, we are called to trust that God’s light can shine through our darkest moments. For those grappling with grief, such as the family of Juan Morales, the Bronx parishioner who passed away from glioblastoma in March 2025 (as mentioned in a previous post), the Transfiguration offers a promise of eternal transformation, where our lowly bodies will be made glorious like Christ’s.
2. A Call to Transformation: The Transfiguration is not just about Jesus’ glory—it’s an invitation for us to be transformed. St. Paul writes, “And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18, NIV). In a world often driven by materialism and self-interest, the Transfiguration challenges us to seek holiness, to reflect God’s light in our actions, and to pursue justice, compassion, and love. This is particularly relevant in addressing social issues like the marginalization of communities, such as the Puerto Rican diaspora during June, when their cultural celebrations are often overshadowed by Pride Month, as discussed in a previous post.
3. Unity in Diversity: The presence of Moses and Elijah alongside Jesus highlights the unity of God’s plan across history. In today’s polarized world, where divisions over race, politics, and identity often dominate, the Transfiguration calls us to recognize the interconnectedness of humanity under God’s love. It’s a reminder to listen to Christ’s voice above the noise of conflict, seeking reconciliation and understanding. For example, the tension between Pride Month and Puerto Rican cultural events in June could be resolved by embracing the shared humanity and struggles of both communities, as both seek visibility and affirmation.
4. Encountering the Divine in the Ordinary: The Transfiguration took place on a mountain, a place of retreat and prayer, but its message extends to our everyday lives. In a fast-paced, technology-driven world, we often lose sight of the sacred. The Transfiguration invites us to create space for prayer and contemplation, to encounter God’s presence in the ordinary moments of life. Whether it’s through attending Mass, praying the Rosary, or simply pausing to reflect on God’s creation, we can experience glimpses of divine glory that renew our faith and purpose.
5. A Witness to Glory: Peter’s reaction to the Transfiguration—“Lord, it is good for us to be here” (Matthew 17:4)—reflects a desire to remain in the presence of God’s glory. Yet, Jesus leads the disciples back down the mountain, into the reality of their mission. This movement from the mountaintop to the valley mirrors our call to be witnesses of Christ’s light in the world. In an age where many feel disconnected from faith, the Transfiguration inspires us to share the hope of the Gospel, to be beacons of God’s love in our communities, workplaces, and families.

Conclusion: A Light That Never Fades

The Transfiguration of the Lord is a moment of divine revelation that continues to resonate across centuries. It reveals Jesus as the Son of God, the fulfillment of God’s promises, and the hope of our resurrection. For today’s world, it offers a message of transformation, hope, and unity—a reminder that God’s glory can break through even the darkest of times. As we navigate the challenges of modern life, from personal struggles to societal divisions, the Transfiguration calls us to listen to Christ, to be transformed by His light, and to carry that light into the world.

In the words of Pope Francis, reflecting on the Transfiguration in a 2021 homily, “The light of Christ does not fade; it shines forth to illuminate the path of every person.” May we, like Peter, James, and John, be transformed by this light, and may we share it with a world in desperate need of hope.

1st Sunday of Lent: Temptation

Today is the first Sunday of Lent.  Today's readings deal with temptation, the fall of man, the public work of redemption, and victory.  

The first reading is from Genesis which speaks in an allegorical sense of how God formed man from the clay of the Earth and breathed life into him.  We were reminded of this a few days ago on Ash Wednesday.  

It continues with the story of how man was placed to live in the Garden of Eden and had access to all, but was warned not to eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Eating of the fruit of this tree would bring about death.  Interestingly enough, the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil as well as the Tree of Life are placed in the middle of the Garden making them more visible and distinct.  Here we see how the test to man is played out.

The story continues with the introduction of a serpent who is cunning and very intelligent.  This serpent approaches the woman named Eve and proceeds to manipulate her by casting doubt to God's command not to eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.  He says to her, "Did God really tell you not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?"  The woman then gives him an explanation as to what they can and cannot do in regards to eating fruit in the garden.  The serpent replies, "You certainly will not die!  No, God knows well that the moment you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods who know what is good and what is evil."  The argument from the serpent was convincing.  The fruit seemed harmless and possibly identical to that of the Tree of Life or any other fruits in the garden.  Plus, what's wrong with becoming gods?  The woman then took some of its fruit and ate it and then shared it with the man.  Immediately they realized that they were naked and sewed fig leaves to make loincloths to cover up.

This story shows how sin entered the world.  It shows how temptation plays a big role before we fall into sin.  Adam and Eve were told not to eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, but they did at the behest of a serpent who is later identified as Satan or the fallen angel Lucifer.  We know this serpent to be Satan because man is the only being capable of reasoning and speech.  No other animals can reason or talk, so this serpent is another entity who is not human.  Since God only created two rational beings, angels and humans, we know that this serpent has to be an angel and link him to Lucifer because he was cast down from Heaven and was roaming the Earth.  

The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and how it was placed in the garden tells us that God was testing the first human beings.  The human brain is set up in a way to pay more attention to things in the center of attention, so to speak.  This is called the 'attenuator' in cognitive psychology. The term comes from Attenuation Theory proposed by Anne Marie Treisman, a psychologist and academic at Princeton who posits that our brains focus on things that stand out.  When we see a monument or some structure in the middle of everything else we automatically focus attention on it and assume that it is an important thing and become curious about it. Human beings are curious creatures. In fact, they are often more curious that cats who are usually the ones who get blamed for their own deaths due to their curiosities.  With the onset of social media, especially MySpace, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok, we can see now more than ever how curious human beings are. They are so curious that they actually post their antics on these outlets even if they are embarrassing or dangerous.  A study I read showed that if one or two people stand in any place and stare up or just simply stand, after a while, one will see a crowd forming. Human beings in the study were found to be very curious to the point of gathering to observe whatever the situation is. Adam and Eve as the first humans were the same. They took were curious just like their descendants today. Humans look to things that trigger curiosity.

The same can be said of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. This object got the attention of humanity's parents.  The story also shows how human beings will always do the opposite of what they are told.  Usually when we are told NOT to do something, this builds up curiosity to to point that we actually do what we were told not to do. We can observe this in children who often "test" their limits by disobeying parents.  As adults, this behavior pretty much goes unchanged.  In a sense, God was doing the first psychology experiment. As an atheist, I noticed this and began to believe that Scripture is truly inspired by God. Despite being a collection of ancient texts written by common people who did not have doctorate degrees or knowledge in science or psychology, the writers got way to many facts right regarding human behavior and psychology.  Someone way more intelligent and knowledgeable must have been guiding the process.  In life it is usually the things that bring us harm that appear to be good just like the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.  Psychology centuries later figured out what Scripture already told us. 

The Responsorial Psalm is said as a response to the first reading so today's Psalm obviously is from Ps 51 using the refrain, "Be merciful, o Lord, for we have sinned."  The Psalm recited today is a song about mercy and contrition.  We ask God for mercy, ask Him to cleanse our souls and wash us of our guilt.  We admit our failings and recall how God sees our sinful actions.  We ask for the joy of salvation despite our failings so that we can continue to praise God with a clean heart.  This Psalm is meant to ask God for mercy after reading the first reading about the fall of our first parents. Though the sin of Adam and Eve is not our fault, we inherit its effects.  The damage caused by Original Sin opens us up to Actual Sin which is done directly by us and can be Mortal or Venial. 

Original sin is then brought up in the second reading from Romans 5:12-19.  St. Paul opens up the letter to the Romans by saying, "Brothers and Sisters: Through one man sin entered the world, and through sin, death, and thus death came to all men, inasmuch as all sinned."  The rest of the letter goes on to explain how Original Sin brought about the destruction of man.  Evil, death, sickness and other anomalies in nature exist because of the disorder that Original Sin brought to the world. However, only one man who is also God has undone this and His name is Christ Jesus.  Jesus is the "New Adam" who came to restore creation to what it is supposed to be.  Jesus came to do "damage control," so to speak.  St. Paul closes the letter by telling us that just like Original Sin, death etc entered the world through one man, so too does grace, holiness and righteousness entered the world through Christ Jesus who is both man and God.

These readings then lead up to the Gospel which is from Matthew 4:1-11 and tells of the story of
Christ's temptation.  After Jesus was baptized by St. John the Baptist, He went into the desert for 40 days. The number 40 in the Bible is a symbol meaning preparation, penance or cleansing, and/or a time of trial/test.  We read that Jesus is in the desert with no food or drink due to fasting. The tempter, or Satan appears to Him and tells Him, "If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become loaves of bread."  

He does this in order to tempt Christ because after fasting 40 days, naturally anyone will be starving and even a slice of bread sounds like an eight course meal. Jesus does not fall for this trick and replies, "It is written:  One does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God." In other words, Jesus is saying that while we need food, it is ultimately God who has the final say as to whether or not we live or die. Eating food does not guarantee our lives or existence and can even kill us.  It is God who is in control of our existence.  

The Gospel account continues with Satan taking Christ to the holy city and placed Him on the parapet of the temple so He could see all from that height.  Satan says to Him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down.  For it is written:  He will command his angels concerning you and with their hands they will support you, lest you dash your foot against a stone."  Here Satan is twisting Scripture to his advantage.  He is quoting from Psalm 91:11-12 showing that Satan does know the Scriptures well and interprets them in a way that will favor his views; hence, he is the "cunning serpent" mentioned in the first reading.  Satan mentions this Psalm in order to test Christ and in a sense, mock God.  He is pretty much telling Christ to commit suicide by jumping off a high place since according to Psalm 91, God will send angels to catch Him.  Jesus replies, "Again it is written, You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test."  Here Christ is correcting the literal interpretation of Satan.  God sends angels and intervenes in space at time as His own discretion, not ours. Sometimes we, especially non-believers doubt God's existence when we hear of children dying, or some tragedy occurring which could have been prevented if God sent angels or even intervened directly.  However, this is not how it works.  We are not the gods of God.  We have no right to demand anything from God or have a sense of entitlement.  

Lastly, Satan takes Christ to a high mountain and shows Him all the kingdoms of the world and tells Him, "All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me."  Here Satan is acting like He is some " Don Corleone godfather" of the world and offers Christ power in the form of governments or kingdoms.  This ties in to Genesis where the serpent tricks Adam and Eve with his sophistry and eventually "takes" the world.  By showing Christ the kingdoms of the world, he is trying to tempt Christ with power.  This imagery was adopted in the movie with Keanu Reeves and Al Pacino called, "Devil's Advocate" where Pacino takes Reeves to the roof of a tall building and shows him the "world."  Human beings love power.  They love attention.  Who would refuse the kingdoms of the world?  The answer is Jesus.  He replies to Satan's offer which Satan thought could not be refused with: "Get away, Satan!  It is written:  The Lord, your God, shall you worship and Him alone shall you serve."  The Devil then left Him be and the angels appeared to assist Jesus.  

Let's recap things:

• First, we read of the fall.  Adam and Eve listen to a serpent and eat of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.  
• Second, the Psalm replies asking God for mercy.  
• Third, St. Paul writes that Original Sin entered the world through one man and one man has undone this named Jesus Christ.  
• Fourth, the Gospel presents Jesus who is God and man being tempted by the "serpent" who annoys Him and offers Him political power.  

Putting all the readings together, we see the links.  Adam and Eve messed things up for listening to a serpent.  St. Paul reminds us of this and tells us that Christ is the one who came to fix this mess. In the Gospel, we see how the same serpent appears to the "new Adam" and tries to tempt Him but fails.  Despite having excellent knowledge of Scripture and the ability to reason, Satan fails.  Christ is NOT Adam and Eve.  He is not stupid nor naive.  Christ is the Son of God, the second person of the Blessed Trinity.  Ironically, Satan despite having this great ability to reason as well as knowledge of the Bible and universe, he did not know Jesus was God.  This is why he was stalking Christ trying to figure out who this guy was.  Satan had no idea who Jesus was and was testing Him to see who He was and if He would fall for the same tricks used to make Adam and Eve fall.  So in effect, we are seeing Genesis 2.0 taking hold, but with a different outcome. With Adam and Eve, they had everything in the garden of Eden, so they should have not been tempted so easily by the serpent. Despite having everything, they fell for the temptation.  With Jesus, things were a bit different. He was in a desolate place, a desert. He had literally nothing, not even food or drink. This means that as a human male, He would have been more inclined to fall into the temptation of satan, but Jesus did not. Unlike Adam and Eve, Jesus did not have a garden with everything. This makes the story of Jesus' temptation very important for us Catholics. We must imitate Christ in fighting the temptation of satan even when we are in a point of hopelessness or when we lack the basics. 

These readings set the stage for Lent. Lent is a period of reflection and renewal. We join Jesus in the desert in prayer and fasting. Satan will eventually show up and stalk each one of us on this 40 day journey. He will tempt us with thoughts that will try to distract us just like he tried to distract Jesus. Satan will present to us all kinds of promises which are lies. Like Christ, we must bear with this annoying character. He is a bug buzzing around trying to annoy us to the point of reacting. We must respond like Christ did with direct rebuttals.  Satan is merely a fallen angel.  Hollywood likes to present him as this power anti-god type entity who has equal power to God, but is on the side of evil.  This is not so.  Satan is a creature just like us. Man has the capacity and intelligence to outsmart this being with God's grace.  One of the best weapons against Satan is ignoring him. Satan has an inflated ego and thinks of himself as this superior being.  He has the power to do minor parlor tricks in nature, but nothing we can't do on our own with our hands or technology. Ignoring him makes him powerless because we are not giving him the credibility he wants us to have in regards to him being this powerful entity.  

During this Lent we should pray more and focus on the meaning of fasting and abstaining from meat. We rely totally on God for our existence.  Christ reminded Satan of this.  The Scriptures remind us that despite man's failings, Christ is there to help him on his feet.  Christ has showed that He is smarter and more powerful that the annoying cunning serpent.    

HERE ARE THE READINGS:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/030120.cfm

1st Sunday of Lent: We Depend on God

Today is the first Sunday of Lent.  Lent is a period of penance, reflection and renewal. It is a preparation for Easter where we partake in the Paschal Mysteries of our redemption which lead to our salvation if we remain firm. Today's readings deal with temptation, the fall of man, the public work of redemption, and victory by depending on God.  

The first reading is from Genesis which speaks of how God formed man from the clay of the Earth and breathed life into him.  We were reminded of this a few days ago on Ash Wednesday (see: http://www.sacerdotus.com/2017/03/ash-wednesday-2017.html). Atheists love to criticize this story. They harass Christians and claim that the story of Genesis disproves God as a mere myth. This is of course nonsense. The book of Genesis is poetry. It is allegory. The chapters on creation were not meant to be literal history or a science text. However, some similarities do exist with the theory of Evolution. God says, "Let there be light." Ironically, photons were the first particles to appear after the "big bang." Photons are light! Moreover, if you read the chronology of the creation account, there is an order to creation, an evolution of creatures.    

It continues with the story of how man was placed to live in the Garden of Eden and had access to all, but was warned not to eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Eating of the fruit of this tree would bring about death.  This was of sin, not the fruit itself (Romans 5:12). Interestingly enough, the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, as well as the Tree of Life, are placed in the middle of the Garden making them more visible and distinct.  Here we see how the test of man is played out. I go more into detail on this in my book "Atheism is Stupid" in the "problem of evil" section. 

The story continues with the introduction of a serpent who is cunning and very intelligent (Genesis 3:1).  This serpent approaches the woman named Eve and proceeds to manipulate her by casting doubt to God's command not to eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.  He says to her, "Did God really tell you not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?"  The woman then gives him an explanation as to what they can and cannot do in regards to eating fruit in the garden. The serpent replies, "You certainly will not die!  No, God knows well that the moment you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods who know what is good and what is evil."  The argument from the serpent was convincing.  The fruit seemed harmless and possibly identical to that of the Tree of Life or any other fruits in the garden.  Plus, what's wrong with becoming gods?  The woman then took some of its fruit and ate it and then shared it with the man.  Immediately they realized that they were naked and sewed fig leaves to make loincloths to cover up.

This story shows how sin entered the world.  It shows how temptation plays a big role before we fall into sin.  Adam and Eve were told not to eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, but they did at the behest of a serpent who is later identified as Satan or the fallen angel Lucifer.  We know this serpent to be Satan because man is the only being capable of reasoning and speech.  No other animals can reason or talk, so this serpent is another entity who is not human.  Since God only created two rational beings, angels and humans, we know that this serpent has to be an angel and can link him to Lucifer because he was cast down from Heaven and was roaming the Earth (Luke 10:18, Revelation 12:4, Job 1:7, 1 Peter 5:8).  Satan hates humanity and wants nothing more than for human beings to fail (Wisdom 2:24). He is a liar, the father of lies (John 8:44). All deception in the world comes from Satan. Today, we hear of so many crazy ideas on gender, abortion, marriage and even within Christianity. These come from Satan who twists and uses subterfuge in order to deceive man (James 3:15). We must not give in to these lies of the devil.  

The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and how it was placed in the garden tells us that God was testing the first human beings. This makes sense based on the psychology of the human brain. The human brain is set up in a way to pay more attention to things in the center of attention, so to speak.  This is called the 'attenuator' in cognitive psychology. The term comes from Attenuation Theory proposed by Anne Marie Treisman, a psychologist and academic at Princeton who posits that our brains focus on things that stand out.  When we see a monument or some structure in the middle of everything else we automatically focus attention on it and assume that it is an important thing and become curious about it.    

The same can be said of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.  The story also shows how human beings will always do the opposite of what they are told.  Usually when we are told NOT to do something, this builds up curiosity to to point that we actually do what we were told not to do. We can observe this in children who often "test" their limits by disobeying parents.  As adults, this behavior pretty much goes unchanged.  In a sense, God was doing the first psychology experiment. In life it is usually the things that bring us harm that appear to be good just like the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.

The Responsorial Psalm is said as a response to the first reading so today's Psalm obviously is from Ps 51 using the refrain, "Be merciful, o Lord, for we have sinned."  The Psalm recited today is a song about mercy and contrition.  We ask God for mercy; ask Him to cleanse our souls and wash us of our guilt.  We admit our failings and recall how God sees our sinful actions.  We ask for the joy of salvation despite our failings so that we can continue to praise God with a clean heart.  This Psalm is meant to ask God for mercy after reading the first reading about the fall of our first parents. Though the sin of Adam and Eve is not our fault, we inherit its effects.  The damage caused by Original Sin opens us up to Actual Sin which is done directly by us and can be Mortal or Venial (Psalm 51:5, Ephesians 2:2, 1 John 5:16-17). 

Original sin is then brought up in the second reading from Romans 5:12-19.  St. Paul opens up the letter to the Romans by saying, "Brothers and Sisters: Through one man sin entered the world, and through sin, death, and thus death came to all men, inasmuch as all sinned."  The rest of the letter goes on to explain how Original Sin brought about the destruction of man.  Evil, death, sickness and other anomalies in nature exist because of the disorder that Original Sin brought to the world. However, only one man who is also God has undone this and His name is Christ Jesus.  Jesus is the "New Adam" who came to restore creation to what it is supposed to be.  Jesus came to do "damage control," so to speak.  St. Paul closes the letter by telling us that just like Original Sin, death etc entered the world through one man, so too does grace, holiness and righteousness entered the world through Christ Jesus who is both man and God.

These readings then lead up to the Gospel which is from Matthew 4:1-11 and tells of the story of

Christ's temptation.  After Jesus was baptized by St. John the Baptist, He went into the desert for 40 days. The number 40 in the Bible is a symbol meaning preparation, penance or cleansing, and/or a time of trial/test.  We read that Jesus is in the desert with no food or drink due to fasting. The tempter, or Satan appears to Him and tells Him, "If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become loaves of bread."  

He does this in order to tempt Christ because after fasting 40 days, naturally anyone will be starving and even a slice of bread sounds like an eight course meal. Jesus does not fall for this trick and replies, "It is written:  One does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God." In other words, Jesus is saying that while we need food, it is ultimately God who has the final say as to whether or not we live or die. Eating food does not guarantee our lives or existence and can even kill us.  It is God who is in control of our existence.  

The Gospel account continues with Satan taking Christ to the holy city and placed Him on the parapet of the temple so He could see all from that height.  Satan says to Him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down.  For it is written:  He will command his angels concerning you and with their hands they will support you, lest you dash your foot against a stone."  Here Satan is twisting Scripture to his advantage.  He is quoting from Psalm 91:11-12 showing that Satan does know the Scriptures well and interprets them in a way that will favor his views; hence, he is the "cunning serpent" mentioned in the first reading.  Satan mentions this Psalm in order to test Christ and in a sense, mock God.  He is pretty much telling Christ to commit suicide by jumping off a high place since according to Psalm 91, God will send angels to catch Him.  Jesus replies, "Again it is written, You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test."  Here Christ is correcting the literal interpretation of Satan.  God sends angels and intervenes in space at time as His own discretion, not ours. Sometimes we, especially non-believers doubt God's existence when we hear of children dying, or some tragedy occurring which could have been prevented if God sent angels or even intervened directly.  However, this is not how it works.  We are not the gods of God.  We have no right to demand anything from God or have a sense of entitlement.  

Lastly, Satan takes Christ to a high mountain and shows Him all the kingdoms of the world and tells Him, "All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me."  Here Satan is acting like He is some " Don Corleone godfather" of the world and offers Christ power in the form of governments or kingdoms.  This ties in to Genesis where the serpent tricks Adam and Eve with his sophistry and eventually "takes" the world.  By showing Christ the kingdoms of the world, he is trying to tempt Christ with power.  This imagery was adopted in the movie with Keanu Reeves and Al Pacino called, "Devil's Advocate" where Pacino takes Reeves to the roof of a tall building and shows him the "world."  Human beings love power.  They love attention.  Who would refuse the kingdoms of the world?  The answer is Jesus.  He replies to Satan's offer which Satan thought could not be refused with: "Get away, Satan!  It is written:  The Lord, your God, shall you worship and Him alone shall you serve."  The Devil then left Him be and the angels appeared to assist Jesus.  

Let's recap things:

1. First, we read of the fall.  Adam and Eve listen to a serpent and eat of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.  
2. Second, the Psalm replies asking God for mercy.  
3. Third, St. Paul writes that Original Sin entered the world through one man and one man has undone this named Jesus Christ.  
4. Fourth, the Gospel presents Jesus who is God and man being tempted by the "serpent" who annoys Him and offers Him political power.  

Putting all the readings together, we see the links.  Adam and Eve messed things up for listening to a serpent.  St. Paul reminds us of this and tells us that Christ is the one who came to fix this mess. In the Gospel, we see how the same serpent appears to the "new Adam" and tries to tempt Him but fails.  Despite having excellent knowledge of Scripture and the ability to reason, Satan fails.  Christ is NOT Adam and Eve.  He is not stupid nor naive.  Christ is the Son of God, the second person of the Blessed Trinity.  Ironically, Satan despite having this great ability to reason as well as knowledge of the Bible and universe, he did not know Jesus was God.  This is why he was stalking Christ trying to figure out who this guy was.  Satan had no idea who Jesus was and was testing Him to see who He was and if He would fall for the same tricks used to make Adam and Eve fall.

These readings set the stage for Lent. Lent is a period of reflection and renewal. We join Jesus in the desert in prayer and fasting. Satan will eventually show up and stalk each one of us on this 40 day journey. He will tempt us with thoughts that will try to distract us just like he tried to distract Jesus. Satan will present to us all kinds of promises which are lies. Like Christ, we must bear with this annoying character. He is a bug buzzing around trying to annoy us to the point of reacting. We must respond like Christ did with direct rebuttals and dependence on God.  Satan is merely a fallen angel.  Hollywood likes to present him as this power anti-god type entity who has equal power to God, but is on the side of evil.  This is not so.  Satan is a creature just like us. Man has the capacity and intelligence to outsmart this being with God's grace.  One of the best weapons against Satan is ignoring him. Satan has an inflated ego and thinks of himself as this superior being.  He has the power to do minor parlor tricks in nature, but nothing we can't do on our own with our hands or technology. Ignoring him makes him powerless because we are not giving him the credibility he wants us to have in regards to him being this powerful entity.  

During this Lent we should pray more and focus on the meaning of fasting and abstaining from meat.  We rely totally on God for our existence.  Christ reminded Satan of this.  The Scriptures remind us that despite man's failings, Christ is there to help him on his feet.  Christ has showed that He is smarter and more powerful that the annoying cunning serpent.    

Please help this ministry by donating via PayPal or Www.gofundme.com/Sacerdotus.  Your gift will help me continue this work and expand it.

You can also help by purchasing my books. My latest book, "Introduction to the Catholic Church" will truly benefit Catholics and others curious of the Catholic faith. You can purchase it in paperback for $12 or Kindle Ebook for $9.99.
see: http://www.sacerdotus.com/2017/02/new-book-introduction-to-catholic.html

Readings: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/030517.cfm

Here are some reflections from holy writers:

What does the devil first say? “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become loaves of bread.” The focus is not upon hunger but divine Sonship. Thinking to cheat him with supposed compliments, the devil suggested, “If you are Son of God,” remaining silent about his hunger in order that he not seem to allege that he indeed was hungry and not upbraiding him for it. For unaware of the greatness of the economy which was unfolding, he supposed hunger to be a reproach to him. So flattering him smoothly, he makes mention of his dignity only.
How then did Christ respond to this? In order to put down the devil’s pride and signify that there was nothing shameful in Jesus’ hunger nor unbecoming to his wisdom, he brings forward precisely the point that the devil had passed over in silence to flatter him. Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone.”
In this way the devil begins his temptation with the necessity of the belly. Mark well the craft of that wicked demon. Note at what precise point he begins his struggling and how well he remembers what he does best. For it was by this same means that he cast out the first man and then encompassed him with thousands of other evils. Now by the same means here he again weaves his deceit: the temptation to indulge the belly. So too even now one may hear many foolish people say their bad words by thousands because of the belly.
— St. John Chrysostom
(344 - 407)


Source: “The Gospel of Matthew, Homily 13.3,” quoted in Manlio Simonetti, ed., Matthew 1–13, Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2001), 59.

“Throw yourself down.” It is the devil’s voice by which he desires that everyone should fall down. “Throw yourself,” he says. He is able to persuade, but he cannot cast down. “He will give his angels charge concerning you; and upon their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.” This we read in the ninetieth psalm. Clearly the prophecy here is not about Christ but about a holy man. The devil therefore is a poor interpreter of the Scriptures. Certainly, if he really knew what was written about the Savior, he should have also said what follows in the same psalm against him: “You will tread on the lion and the adder, the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.” Concerning the help of the angels, he speaks as though to a feeble man. Concerning his being trampled underfoot, he is silent like an artful dodger.
Jesus said to him, “It is written further, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’” The false arrows from the devil’s own scriptures he breaks with the true shield of the Scripture. And it should be noted that he cited the necessary testimony from Deuteronomy that he might show the sacraments of the second law.
— St. Jerome
(354 - 430)


Source: “Commentary on Matthew, 1.4.5-7,” quoted in Manlio Simonetti, ed., Matthew 1–13, Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2001), 61.

But now for the third time, the full ambition of diabolical power is at work. The Lord was taken to a very high mountain. All the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them would be his, he was promised, if only he would fall down and worship. His answer broke through all the devil’s suspicions. The devil had enticed Adam with food and led him from the glory of paradise to the place of sin—to the region of the forbidden tree. And he had corrupted him with ambition for a divine name by promising a future similar to that of the gods. In this same way all the power of the world is arrayed against the Lord. The possession of all this is offered to the devil’s very Creator, so that in line with the order of the ancient deceit, he whom the devil did not entice with food nor move from place, he would now corrupt by ambition.
But the Lord’s response put the matter on a higher plane. He said, “Begone, Satan! For it is written, ‘The Lord your God shall you worship, and him only shall you serve.’ ” The devil had to live with the outcome of such great recklessness. His crimes were being discovered. He realized that the Lord his God must be adored in the man. By this effective response, the Lord gave us a decisive example. With human power having been disdained and with worldly ambition being held of little account, we also should remember that our Lord and God alone must be adored, especially when the devil’s honor has become the common business of every age.
— St. Augustine
(354 - 430)


Source: “On Matthew 3.5,” quoted in Manlio Simonetti, ed., Matthew 1–13, Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2001), 63-64.