I hope that you get a glimpse of the energy and talent of our teens this weekend as they help us to appreciate the desert scene of temptation experienced by Jesus and triggering the dry journey of Lent. Teens from this year’s annual Passion Play cast will bring to life this week’s Gospel which is just one of the scenes from the play that has been the centerpiece of our Good Friday prayer here at Holy Family for many years. These teens have been practicing very hard, rehearsing and fine tuning their lines, their actions and the overall production of the Passion Play. They will continue to do so for the remainder of Lent and all of us adult leaders, including Dr. Peg Hanrahan, our Director of Teen and Family Faith, Lynn Daugerdas, the Director of the play, and I are encouraging our teens more and more to be aware not only of the production but of the fact that they are leading the community in prayer on one of the most solemn and sacred days of the entire year. Please make plans to pray with them at one of several Good Friday services as they express every aspect of our mission—vibrant worship, life-long learning and PASSIONate community.
This weekend the teens will put drama to a story that is probably familiar to you. Jesus goes into the desert. A place that is dry and desolate. There he encounters evil made flesh in the form of the devil. Physically weak from a lack of food, and emotionally weak because he is disconnected from any other person, Jesus is tempted three times. First, because he is hungry, the evil one tempts with the natural response of filling the physical craving with something to eat—immediately.
How often do we want to fill our hungers with immediate satisfaction or gratification? How often do we respond right away with satisfying any hunger or longing that we have? We do live in what I call a fast food society that encourages us to get everything, from food to cash, immediately. We can order almost anything online and receive it in a matter of days. This fosters a double message – not only is hunger bad, but so is waiting.
I saw the movie “The Founder” recently in which Michael Keaton portrays Ray Kroc who founded the McDonald’s Corporation but not the McDonald’s restaurant. Two brothers named McDonald had a hamburger restaurant in San Bernardino, California in the 1960’s. They provided a departure from the existing model of drive up restaurants with servers wearing roller skates taking food to people in parked cars. Many of you younger folks have absolutely no memory of these restaurants but trust me – they existed, and they were the standard. There may be a few left but they exist only for nostalgia purposes.
The McDonald brothers promised a burger, fries and either a shake or a cola, FAST. No waiting. Obviously the concept has caught on and I, like you I’m sure, at times appreciate the speedy service when I am hungry and in the midst of a busy day.
The devil capitalizes on Jesus’ hunger with the temptation to fill it – immediately. He seduces Jesus with a solution, something that Jesus is surely able to do because he is Jesus. “Turn these stones into bread.” The devil says. Fill the need and fill it now. Jesus responds to the devil’s temptation in the midst of hunger with a scripture quote, reminding the devil and all of us that “we don’t live on bread alone.”
No, we live on a lot more, and one of the things that comprises the “more” is scripture – the very word of God. Jesus reminds us that scripture stories come from the very mouth of God. Scripture is the inspired word of God, and taking the time to read and pray with scripture is a spiritual exercise that will feed our souls in ways that we probably never imagined. As Lent unfolds, let us take our time with praying the scriptures. Let’s let our hunger to know God more through the scriptures sink in. When we physically fast and experience hunger, may that physical feeling remind us of the spiritual hunger that we have for God, and let us be aware that our sacred encounters with God fill something in us that nothing else can. In short , let’s not simply endure being physically hungry if we choose to fast this Lent. Let us use our hunger as a vehicle to grow closer to God in prayer.
As Lent unfolds, please let the environment of our beautiful church influence your Lenten prayer. Let it help you tell the Lenten journey. We have removed the water from all of the fonts and opened up our big font. Each of the six weeks of Lent there will be a different symbol and an accompanying word in that font helping us to make various connections with the major themes of Lent. You will also notice pictures that were taken on our recent trip to Cuba displayed throughout the church and in the sanctuary that will tell another story of people who have had the structure of their churches taken away, stripped and fallen into disrepair, but whose faith, similar to the early apostles, has continued to thrive in their small communities and homes. The government has suppressed the institution of the church, but not the God given faith of the people. The structures of the large church buildings have fallen into disrepair but the service oriented ministry of feeding the hungry, assisting the needy, teaching the young has continued. You will learn much more about the specific church and community that we will be assisting, San Miguel Arcangel (St. Michael the Archangel) in Los Banos in the diocese of Matanzas. We will tell an unfolding story of the church in Cuba and this particular community as the journey of Lent goes by. We will also hold an information night on Tuesday, March 14 at 7:00pm for further information about this unique project.
I want to thank the countless people who made our Gala last Saturday so successful. Thanks to all of you who came to the event, to our sponsors, donors, volunteers, staff and particularly to this year’s chairs Tim and Andrea Farrell, and to Bernie Schaeffer, our Development Director. Your countless hours of work and profound dedication have advanced our ambitious mission tremendously. Thanks a million!!!