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The temption forms an introduction to the ministry of Jesus in
Luke's Gospel. The Holy Spirit is the dynamic force that leads
Jesus to combat with Satan. The first temptation circles round
the theme of bread. Throughout His ministry Jesus will get into
trouble with the Jewish authorities about the type of company He
keeps at meals. Here, at the beginning of the Gospel, there is a
conflict with the forces of evil over the theme of bread. The
second temptation portrays Jesus as a king. Subtly Luke alters
the description of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem in 19:38 to
emphasise that Jesus is a King. The third temptation focuses on
the Jerusalem temple, a place of God's saving activity in the
infancy narratives, in the preaching of the apostles and in the
ministry of Jesus. At the end we are told that Satan departed until the "appointed time" which is the time of the passion (22:53). Jesus is tested, and He remains faithful to the word of the Father. There is an example proposed to Christians who will have their own difficulties in living out the faith in the midst of persecution. Be faithful to the Lord. Lord, keep me in Your love and give me the strength to overcome the many temptations of this world. |
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P R A Y I N G W I T H T H E C H U R C H
| INTENTION : |
That, with the committed help of all believers, the
scourge of poverty may come to an end, eliminating the
intolerable social and economic inequality in the world
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One might also say that poverty is the negation of economic and
social rights and that the poor who suffer from absolute poverty
are denied the most fundamental right which is the right to life.
The international community too is becoming progressively more
aware of the gravity of the problem and has declared solemnly to
fight and reduce extreme poverty by 2015. Besides, how can we not
realise the situation growing worse in spite of the increase in
available resources. The problem of unequal distribution of resources in its correct setting is an ethical one, since it is a problem of justice: the poor are in the first place victims of injustice. In the era of globalisation we can no longer tolerate a world in which the very rich live side by side with the poor, the property less who lack even the essentials with people who shamelessly waste what others desterately need. One of the more evident worrying consequences of this phenomenon is in fact the progressive increase instead of the decrease of inequalities, in both poor countries and rich countries, and between the North and South. Let us pray that the scourge of poverty may come to an end | |
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