As we begin Lent it is an opportunity to imagine what it must have been like to witness John the Baptist and the countless women and men who had gathered to hear his message and be baptized with water, to have seen Jesus baptized and to hear God say, “This is my Son, the Beloved with whom I am well pleased.” We journey forth in Lent desiring that we will hear God say, you are my daughter, you are my son, with you I am well pleased. It all begins with water. The waters of baptism gave us life. Lent reminds us we must rise from those waters and journey forth.
Many of us may think about past Lents when, perhaps as children, we may have engaged in “competition” to see who could give up more during Lent, many abandoning the promise quickly. As we grow older we realize it is not what we give up but rather what we are doing to continue Jesus’s ministry. In the Gospel of Ash Wednesday, however, we are reminded that we should never draw attention to what we are doing as a Lenten discipline, whether it be an act of charity, spending more time in prayer or doing without a favourite item. Whatever we are doing, it should allow us to prepare for the celebration of Easter.
There can be no more dramatic Lenten image than the scene described in Jesus’ temptation by the Devil. Jesus, weakened by the lack of food and water, is confronted by the Devil who seems to offer Jesus a way out of His situation and yet, despite the temptation and His weak body, Jesus refuses and after the Devil departs Jesus gets refreshment from God.
The images Matthew gives us of the struggle between good and evil is one we all experience. It hopefully allows us to begin our Lenten journey by recognizing that Lent is all about choosing the world of light and life over the world of darkness and death. It is about trusting in Jesus’ promise that if we choose to unite ourselves to Him we also rise with Him to eternal life. Let the waters of Baptism flow over you as you rise from the water and be refreshed in the love and mercy of God. May we allow the Holy Spirit, which we received at Baptism, to guide each of us as we walk together as sisters and brothers united in our desire to draw our strength from the life-giving waters of Baptism. Like Jesus, we cannot just sit in the water. We must rise and live the promise He offers.
We here in North America are exceptionally fortunate to have so much water available to us. Many of us, unlike the multitudes in drought stricken countries, enjoy the refreshing waters of a pristine lake or stream cooling us in the summer, refreshing us daily. May this Lent be an opportunity for all of us to rise from the waters of Baptism and accept the invitation of Jesus to follow Him on our life journey fully aware of the promise He offers us in the waters of Baptism. He extends the invitation to all of us to see ourselves as sisters and brothers united in a desire to share the love and mercy of God with all the members of the human family.
Fr. Ian Riswick, who is a priest friend of Sister Magdalena Vogt cps and chaplain of the Missionary Sisters of the Precious Blood in Toronto