Week Beginning March 24, 2024
Temptation to Grow in Virtue
Saint Ignatius of Loyola declares: “Just as the commander of an army pitches his camp, studies the strength and defenses of a fortress, and then attacks it on its weakest side, in like manner, the enemy of our human nature studies from all sides our theological, cardinal, and moral virtues. Wherever he finds us weakest and most in need regarding our eternal salvation, he attacks and tries to take us by storm.” Satan entices us with our heart’s desires in areas we are lacking when our resistance is low. He deceives us so that we might doubt the providence of God and seek our reward elsewhere.
Fortunately for us, we have a choice, and the devil does not have the final word. The same struggles and seductions intended by the evil one to destroy us can instead be used to save us. If we trust in God and rely on His support, we can turn those temptations into opportunities to grow in virtue. Saint Vincent de Paul observes that overcoming these trials is “a source of merit for those to whom God grants the grace of turning all things to good.” Jesus says to Saint Faustina Kowalska in a mystical vision, “know that by fighting bravely you give Me great glory and amass merits for yourself. Temptation gives you a chance to show Me your fidelity” (Diary, 1560). Pope Saint Leo the Great notes: “Virtue is nothing without the trial of temptation, for there is no conflict without an enemy, no victory without strife.”
Putting our faith to the test is a powerful gift from God. Nonetheless, that gift is difficult to accept and requires constant reinforcement. Saint Paul reminds us that “At the time, all discipline seems a cause not for joy but for pain, yet later it brings the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who are trained by it” (Hebrews 12:11). Saint Ignatius of Loyola cautions: “After you have made a decision that is pleasing to God, the Devil may try to make you have second thoughts. Intensify your prayer time, meditation, and good deeds. For if Satan’s temptations merely cause you to increase your efforts to grow in holiness, he’ll have an incentive to leave you alone.”
The Catechism of the Catholic Church references Origen when it states: “There is a certain usefulness to temptation. No one but God knows what our soul has received from him, not even we ourselves. But temptation reveals it in order to teach us to know ourselves, and in this way we discover our evil inclinations and are obliged to give thanks for the goods that temptation has revealed to us” (CCC 2847). Saint Philip Neri encourages us: “Do not grieve over the temptations you suffer. When the Lord intends to bestow a particular virtue on us, He often permits us first to be tempted by the opposite vice. Therefore, look upon every temptation as an invitation to grow in a particular virtue and a promise by God that you will be successful, if only you stand fast.”
This week, pay attention to the things that tempt you frequently and the things that you find irresistible. Therein lie your weaknesses. Use the tests you face as exercises to grow in perfection and become closer to God.
Best wishes to you and your family for a blessed Holy Week!
Week Beginning March 17, 2024
Temptation to Seek God
Saint Ambrose advises: “When we find ourselves in some grave danger we must not lose courage but firmly trust in God, for where there is the greatest danger, there is also the greatest help from Him who wants to be called our ‘help’ in times of peace and in times of tribulation.” God permits temptations to remind us to turn toward Him for guidance through our challenges. Without His grace, we cannot overcome our sinful inclinations. The Catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us that “Such a battle and such a victory become possible only through prayer” (CCC 2849).
Jesus teaches us to pray for God to lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil (Matthew 6:13, Luke 11:4). Through this supplication, we seek the virtue from God needed to avoid yielding to temptation: “We ask him not to allow us to take the way that leads to sin” (CCC 2846). Evil “refers to a person, Satan, the Evil One, the angel who opposes God” (CCC 2851). Because the weakest angels–including the fallen ones–are more powerful than the strongest humans, we require divine assistance to fortify our defense. Self-reliance in the face of evil is futile, but confidence in God’s help brings about triumph. Saint Ephrem the Syrian urges us to “Draw near to God, and Satan will flee from you.”
Although we pray that we will be spared God’s tests, the trials He permits can actually foster our good and promote His glory. The Reverend Thomas à Kempis states: “Yet temptations, though troublesome and severe, are often useful to a man, for in them he is humbled, purified, and instructed.”
We are humbled when we contemplate the omnipotence and greatness of God. We are humbled when we reflect upon Christ’s perfect resistance to his temptations on earth. We are humbled when we place our personal struggles and weaknesses in perspective with all of creation and all of eternity. We are humbled when we acknowledge that we need support from God. We are humbled to think that an infinite and divine being loves us enough to give us that assistance. And we are especially humbled when we fail. Sometimes we have to get knocked down before we realize we should look up. Humble are we who at those times turn to God for mercy. Pope Benedict XVI notes that “Man is never wholly free from temptation…but with patience and true humility we become stronger than any enemy.”
Just as exercise makes our bodies stronger, conquering our trials conditions our souls. Saint Julian of Norwich reminds us that “He did not say: You will not be troubled–you will not be tempted–you will not be distressed. But He did say: You will not be overcome.” With faith in God, we receive sufficient grace to withstand all obstacles. Pursuing the Lord throughout our tribulations purifies us when we let go of lesser things and focus on God. In the light of Christ, our difficulties melt away. The Reverend Thomas à Kempis explains: “Fire tempers iron and temptation steels the just. Often we do not know what we can stand, but temptation shows us what we are.”
In such a way, we are instructed. Temptation defines our limits, shows what our hearts most desire, uncovers our disordered passions, and reveals our true character under duress. Temptation helps us to clarify important issues, because it always presents us with a choice. It gives us the opportunity to prove our love to God or to grow from our mistakes. When we emerge victorious, we instruct others as an example for imitation and as a witness praising the glory of God.
This week, practice seeking God when you are tempted. Let your temptations humble, purify, and instruct you. Consider the words of Saint Patrick: “Hence, then, I give unwearied thanks to God, who kept me faithful in the day of my temptation, so that today I can confidently offer Him my soul as a living sacrifice–to Christ my Lord, who saved me out of all my troubles.”
Week Beginning March 10, 2024
Temptation of the Faithful
So, you’re feeling tempted? Congratulations! “Satan always tempts the pure,” notes the Venerable Fulton Sheen. “The others are already his.” If you wish to obey God, temptation inevitably follows. Sheen states, “Satan stations more devils on monastery walls than in the dens of iniquity, for the latter offer no resistance.”
Saint Basil the Great explains: “As the pilot of a vessel is tried in the storm; as the wrestler is tried in the ring, the soldier in the battle, and the hero in adversity: so is the Christian tried in temptation.” Pope Saint Gregory the Great adds that “There are in truth three states of the converted: the beginning, the middle, and the perfection. In the beginning they experience the charms of sweetness; in the middle the contests of temptation; and in the end the fullness of perfection.”
Saint John Vianney warns: “So, you will ask me, who then are the people most tempted? They are these, my friends; note them carefully. The people most tempted are those who are ready, with the grace of God, to sacrifice everything for the salvation of their poor souls, who renounce all those things, which most people eagerly seek. It is not one devil only who tempts them, but millions seek to entrap them.”
Saint Cyril of Jerusalem offers some hope, because “The soul possesses freedom; and though the devil can make suggestions, he doesn’t have the power to compel you against your will.” Saint Francis de Sales confirms, “We know for certain that he cannot enter our soul except by the door of our consent.” Be careful, because Saint Ambrose points out that “The devil’s snare doesn’t catch you unless you are already nibbling on the devil’s bait.”
Saint Peter reveals: “Be sober and vigilant. Your opponent the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for [someone] to devour. Resist him, steadfast in faith, knowing that your fellow believers throughout the world undergo the same sufferings. The God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory through Christ [Jesus] will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you after you have suffered a little” (1 Peter 5:8-10).
Although it is reassuring that God strengthens us through our struggles, it is important to note that God also sends trials to test His faithful. Recall the conversation between Tobias and the archangel Raphael (Tobit 12:12-15). Affirming our faith in times of difficulty builds our perseverance. “Blessed is the man who perseveres in temptation, for when he has been proved he will receive the crown of life that he promised to those who love him” (James 1:12).
Your assignment this week is to hang in there. Stay watchful, and look beyond the traps on your path. Turn to the Lord, and trust in God’s pure love for you. “In this you rejoice, although now for a little while you may have to suffer through various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold that is perishable even though tested by fire, may prove to be for praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:6-7). Pray to use the obstacles in this life to help you pass through the contests of temptation toward the fullness of perfection. Enjoy this Laetare Sunday. You are more than halfway through Lent, and Easter is within sight!
Week Beginning March 3, 2024
Temptation of Christ
Every year on the First Sunday of Lent, we recall the temptation of Jesus in the desert. Led by the Holy Spirit, he retreats into the solitude of the wilderness for forty days of prayer, fasting, and private reflection prior to his public ministry. The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains: “At the end of this time Satan tempts him three times, seeking to compromise his filial attitude toward God.” (CCC 538). During his struggles, Jesus relies on his Father for the ultimate satisfaction of his hunger. As Jesus resists each temptation, he responds to the devil with a quote from the Book of Deuteronomy. “Such a battle and such a victory become possible only through prayer. It is by his prayer that Jesus vanquishes the tempter” (CCC 2849).
Recognizing our broken condition as sinners, we begin our Lenten season with this important reminder: “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15). C. S. Lewis observes that “Christ, because He was the only man who never yielded to temptation, is also the only man who knows to the full what temptation means.”
Jesus endures the tests of his temptations not so that we do not face temptation, but rather so we know how to face temptation. Pope Saint John Paul II reminds us: “There is no evil to be faced that Christ does not face with us. There is no enemy that Christ has not already conquered. There is no cross to bear that Christ has not already borne for us, and does not now bear with us.”
When evil is near, our first response should be driven by our faith. Study scripture for guidance, turn to God in prayer, and know that Jesus understands and accompanies us. Prior to temptation, however, we should remain ever-watchful. Saint Thomas Aquinas notes that Jesus allows himself to experience temptation not just to teach us by example, but also to serve as a warning. Temptation is coming to all of us.
How we respond to that temptation determines if we grow in grace or shrink in sin. Pope Benedict XVI reveals: “The patience and humility required to defeat the enemy come by following Christ every day and from learning to build our life not outside of him or as if he did not exist, but in him and with him, because he is the source of true life.” When we open our hearts to the Lord, we become single-focused on life with God and better prepared to overcome any trials.
This week, think about how you can handle temptation like Jesus does. Do you humbly seek divine assistance, or do you boldly rely on your own willpower? Do you dismiss Satan with support from scripture, or do you use pride to prove yourself? Are you able to place eternal rewards over temporal ones? Take comfort in the wisdom of Saint Alphonsus Liguori: “He who trusts himself is lost. He who trusts in God can do all things.”
