Benedictine Sisters of FL

Holy Name Monastery
Founded 1889

Lenten

First Sunday of Lent

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In the liturgical cycle of readings, this Gospel from Mark was originally only two verses – later the church added two more verses – but it is still one of the shortest Sunday readings.  It tells us only that, immediately after His baptism, Jesus was led into the desert by the Spirit to be tempted by the devil, for 40 days.  You’ll notice that Mark, unlike Luke and Matthew, does not outline for us the three temptations of Jesus.  He simply lets us know that the conflict between Jesus and Satan only begins in the desert. The ultimate test will be in Jesus’ final hours on the cross.

We are now six days into our Lenten journey of 40 days.  When did you last walk in the wilderness?  Are you in the wilderness now?   Passing through deserts is an unavoidable part of life.  We do have to pass through them; not get stuck in them.  In the desert, we soon find out we are too weak to go it alone. According to St. John Chrysostom: “The Spirit drags Jesus into the desert, since he wanted to draw the devil there; and Jesus gave occasion to him not only on account of his hunger but also on account of the place: for then most especially does the devil attack when he sees people isolated and by themselves.”  No wonder Benedict urges us not to be isolated in our Lenten journey: “Let the entire community during these days of Lent (together strive) to keep their manner of life most pure.”

We’ve heard the expression “practice makes perfect” so often that the meaning may have lost its impact on us.  Each year at the beginning of Lent we may feel like a skater or a musician who’s been laid up for a year without practice. Lent gives us a jump-start of courage to pick up the practices that will support the values we profess and hold dear.  The biggest temptation most of us have to face is to “give up” because we stumble.  What would you think if you dialed a wrong number and got this recording: I’m not available right now, but I do thank you for caring enough to call me.”  (How sweet!)  But it continues: “I am making some changes in my life.  Please leave a message after the beep.  If I do not return your call, you are one of the changes.”

Lent is God’s call to us to make God and godly values the center of our life.  It is a time for honesty and stability.  The desert of life can be a vast expanse of sand and rock, punctuated by ragged hills, blistered by a relentless sun; a barren land in which little grows.  But, depending on our outlook, the space can be filled with mysterious unexpected experiences.   It can be a place not only of testing but of beauty where faith can grow.  Mirages give us false hope.  A welcome pool of water or a dripping cactus can reveal to us, in the blink of an eye, a reflection of what we really look like.   During Lent we are simply being asked to dare to be convinced that this is a wonderful opportunity to rediscover our true self-worth and the wonder of being the child of a loving God.  We are challenged not to focus on the storm clouds of chronic health conditions or what we DON’T have.   We do well to focus on all that we DO have: our faithful supporters, the friends who DO make contact, the companions who DO treat us gently, our God who, even with all the concerns and pleas that are raised for attention, remembers ME and loves ME with unfailing love.

Personal deserts are unavoidable; they’re part of life. We need Christ and we need the ministry of others if for nothing else than to teach us lessons of dependence and interdependence.  We’ll never be as strong or wise as we’d like to be. We need the grace of God in Christ. We need the ministry of each other and all of God’s people to strengthen us by their prayerful support and good example so that we, too, might take up our crosses and follow Jesus.   We pray that like that voice message said mentioned earlier, we do take the opportunity of Lent to make changes on our lives.  But unlike that voice mail message, may we never hear God’s voice and choose not to return the call.

Let us pray in the words of Pope Benedict XVI: “O God, open my eyes to my weaknesses and my heart to your merciful love.”

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

 

We are six days into Lent …  how are you doing with your resolutions?  Had to make any adjustments?  Remember don’t try to outdo the pace of grace.  It’s not a contest.  The finish line for Lent is still weeks to go – a blur in the distance.

The Sisters’ anniversary of the day our 5 founding Sisters landed to Pasco County FL from Pittsburgh, PA will be celebrated on February 28.  If you are inclined to send an e-card or a greeting in the mail, you can use the address below …   With much gratitude for your loyalty to the Benedictine Sisters. 

PO Box 2450, St. Leo, FL 33574 

 

First Reading:   Genesis 9:8-15         Second Reading:  1 Peter 3:18-22
Gospel:   Mark 1:12-15

 

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First Sunday of Lent

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This weekend’s Gospel tells us that Jesus fasted 40 days and then the intense temptations began.  First about food – about self; then, about stones – the temple, Jesus’ immediate surroundings, His community.  The third temptation was related to political power, the kingdom, the whole world.

Jesus enjoyed good food, a good meal with friends.  Walking through fields of grain, he savored the wheat kernels.  In Cana, He supplied first-rate wine.  He sent his disciples ahead to arrange for supper the night before He died.

Years ago …  many years ago, a retreat master from Atchison told this story – at least this is my memory of the story.  Why I remember this particular story from among all the spiritual wisdom our retreat directors have offered – I have no clue.  The story goes that a certain monk wanted to do something really heroic for Lent.  From his earliest years, this man relished a good piece of sausage.  He savored it, his mouth watered when he thought about a full breakfast with eggs and sausage.  So, for Lent he decided to give up sausage.  It was not too hard because they rarely had sausage in the monastery, and certainly not during Lent. So, he put a small sausage link in his room where he could smell it everyday.  After a while, he hardly noticed the scent, so he hung the sausage head-high just inside the doorway so he’d run into it each time he entered his room.   As that became commonplace to him, he decided to hang the sausage over his bed where he would see it last thing at night and first thing in the morning.

As the days of Lent went by, he gradually lowered the sausage until it was just above his nose.  In a few days even that was no challenge, so on Palm Sunday he started lowering the sausage into his mouth for a few seconds – dreaming of the taste of sausage on at Easter Sunday breakfast.  All through Holy Week, he lowered the sausage into his mouth for a few more seconds every day.  Until on Good Friday this now holy, self-disciplined monk – ate it!

In Jesus’ first temptation, the devil is trying to entice Him away from his mission so he can avoid suffering and death.  Aren’t we, too, sometimes tempted to turn aside from our Lenten mission?  When we are tired, hungry, feeling drained of energy on many levels, it is then that the devil is grinning with glee at the prospect of getting us to throw in the towel on all our good resolutions. Beware the wiles of the devil – he is cunning.

In the second temptation, the devil insists that Jesus is entitled to divine safety and protection.  Whenever you are tempted to amaze people with your grand ideas, remember Jesus’ reply: “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”

In the third temptation, the devil wants Jesus to compromise good by using the wrong means.  We too, can be tempted to meet legitimate human needs using the wrong means.

The Gospel story of Jesus’ temptations occurs at the outset of his ministry, so to speak his first day on the job. He is confronted with three major enticements but he outfoxes the devil and goes on to win His crown.  You know the saying “Today is the first day of the rest of your life.”  Did you see the story about the deputy who landed his first job?  A local sheriff was looking for a deputy, and one of the applicants, who was not known to be the brightest academically, was called in for an interview. “Okay,” began the sheriff, “What is 1 and 1?” “Eleven,” came the reply. The sheriff thought to himself, “That’s not what I meant, but he’s right.” Then the sheriff asked, “What two days of the week start with the letter ‘T’?” “Today & tomorrow,” replied the applicant. The sheriff was again surprised over the answer, one that he had never thought of himself. “Now, listen carefully. Who killed Abraham Lincoln?” asked the sheriff. The jobseeker seemed a little surprised, then thought really hard for a minute and finally admitted, “I don’t know, Sir.” The sheriff replied, “Well, why don’t you go home and work on that one for a while?” The applicant left and wandered over to his pals who were waiting to hear the results of the interview. He greeted them with a cheery smile, “The job is mine! The interview went great!  First day on the job and I’m already working on a murder case!”

On Tuesday this coming week we (the Benedictine Sisters of Florida) will celebrate the 134th anniversary of that day in 1889 the “interview went great!”  Those 5 Sisters hit the floor running their “first day on the job.”  And, we’ve been running ever since.  The heritage of our five founding Sisters has been our inspiration for good works.  God bless them and all who have gone before us on their faith journeys – those who came as academy and prep school students; those who came and stayed awhile; those who discovered their life path elsewhere and those who spent their lives as life-members in our community.

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

 

First Reading:   Genesis 2:7-9; 3:1-7         Second Reading:  Romans 5:12-19
Gospel:   Matthew 4:1-11
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