Why God Allows Temptations (1st Sunday of Lent, Year A)

 To listen to this homily, click here.

There’s a story told of four different ministers who decided to take some time off together to get away from their congregations and learn more about each another. They found a nice, rustic cabin, far from the parish phones and emails and drop-in appointments. As luck would have it, these four ministers were from different faith traditions but they shared a love for ministry. There was a rabbi, a protestant minister, a priest and a permanent deacon. After a couple of days swapping war stories and commiserating, they decided to tell each other their biggest temptation. 

The rabbi went first and said, "Well, it's kind of embarrassing, but my big temptation is looking at ebay for hours. Once I was late to my own sabbath service because I was trying to win an item." 

"My temptation is worse," said the protestant minister. "It's gambling. One Saturday, instead of preparing a fire-and-brimstone sermon, I went to the race track to bet on horses." 

"Mine is worse still," said the priest. "I sometimes can't control the urge to drink. One time I got so desperate, I actually dipped into the sacramental wine." 

The permanent deacon was strangely quiet. "friends, I hate to say this," he said, "but my temptation is worst of all. I love to gossip - and if you will excuse me, I have some phone calls to make!" 

Well, you don’t have to be a priest, deacon, or rabbi to be tempted. We all have them. Everyone who has lived, from Adam and Eve, to you and me, has to deal with this inconvenient truth. As we enter the first Sunday of Lent, let’s consider a difficult question: Why does God allow the devil to tempt us? Why doesn’t he make it easier to love him and to do his Divine Will? Why can’t he make our good choices easier and our bad choices harder?  

In today’s gospel, we hear that even Jesus experienced temptation. Matthew tells us He was "led by the spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil." The Spirit led him - in order for the devil to tempt him. In other words, temptations have a purpose. They are not just the result of God being distracted or falling asleep at the switch!

But what are some of the reasons God allows us to be tempted? Is there something good that comes out of them, some positive result that keeps God from wiping them off the face of the earth? Well, I believe the first reason that God allows the devil to tempt us is to expose our real selves. I remember the first time I took the test for my motorcycle license. I had driven motorcycles before, mostly off-road and was very comfortable with them. I read through the little book and aced the written test. I then ran out and bought an awesome helmet and arranged to take my brother’s bike for the driving test. When I arrived at the license office to take the test the next day, I hadn’t practiced with my brother’s bike (why would I need to?!) Instead, I spent the time waiting, looking with snobbish disgust at the swarms of drivers waiting to test for some lame and wimpy car with four wheels. Finally my time came and I took the motorcycle driving test. After smashing a number of innocent little cones and laying the bike on the ground, I failed the test. Terribly.     

That temptation exposed my true faults. I was nowhere near as strong or capable as I thought. This painful awareness of personal weakness had a positive side - it gave me a sense of my personal limits. Without failures, we can be tempted to think we are more than we actually are, that we are little gods to be admired by the world. Sooner or later, temptation teaches us a valuable lesson in humility. 

When we recognize our true self, our own weaknesses, we grow in humility - and that leads to the second purpose of temptation: To acknowledge our dependence on God. In response to the devil's temptations, Jesus says that we do not live on bread alone, "but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God." When we see temptation’s true danger, we can and should fall to our knees. We see this even in Jesus.  He went into the desert for forty days, to be immersed in prayer, so he could resist the temptations of the evil one.

When we give in to temptation and sin, we make ourselves loners in the worst sense. In the beginning, we might feel like we are being set free from pesky rules and guilt, but in fact we are falling into bondage. On the other hand, to resist sin requires God's help. It takes humility to ask for assistance, but in the end it leads to freedom. 

From this we see the third purpose of temptation. When we resist temptation, we get stronger. Or, when we fall into a temptation, we get weaker. We become more vulnerable to other temptations like laziness, lust, impatience - whatever sins seem to have our number. But if we turn away from one of those temptations - even the smallest one - we gain strength and can resist them a little better. 

Certainly, temptation has a purpose. Because God is almighty and loving, he can make good things come out it. But that doesn’t mean we go looking for trouble! I don’t want you all leaving church thinking: “Fr. Schroeder says we should all go and get tempted so that we can learn humility and trust in God. We must avoid temptation and those near occasions of sin; this is an obligation for all of us. However, when unavoidable temptations come our way, we can have hope knowing that with God’s help, they will actually make us stronger, better Christians. 

We are weak, but each time we stand with Jesus, we gain power. That power does not ultimately belong to us, but to God. The power is real, but it’s never our own. So let’s humble ourselves in God’s sight so his strength might be at work in our lives this Lent. Let’s constantly acknowledge the fact that we depend on Him to lead a good life and to be good people. And finally, let’s thank God for his strength, which can bring good out of evil, and the fact he gives it so freely, as often as we ask for it. “The Lord, our God, we shall worship and him alone we shall serve.”

Forgiving Without Exceptions (7th Sunday, Year A)

 To listen to this homily, click here.

About 16 years ago, on October 2nd, 2006, a man in his 30’s walked into an Amish school house in rural Pennsylvania and took 10 young girls hostage. The man was not Amish but he knew the community because he was a delivery driver who serviced some of their farms. After a brief standoff, he fired his weapon repeatedly at his hostages, taking the lives of five of them before turning the weapon on himself. Shock, disgust, sadness, and disbelief immediately followed. The peace of a gentle, private community was shattered as the anger of a profoundly broken person visited death and suffering upon a group of people who had worked so hard to remove themselves from the ills and evils of the world. People everywhere grieved with the Amish as they laid their little ones to rest. But what came next shocked the world almost as much as the tragedy itself. Hours after the lives and futures of their children were taken, one of the grandfathers of the victims expressed forgiveness for the man who had visited this evil upon them. And after the funerals were held, members of the same Amish community showed up at the killer’s funeral to pray for his wife and three young children. In fact, they outnumbered the non-Amish mourners. There was no yelling, cursing, or condemning by those who had been sinned against; only honest prayer and genuine mercy. 

Many who saw this mercy were angry and indignant. The shooting shocked the world but the forgiveness that followed scandalized it! How dare the Amish show mercy to the man who did this! His sin was unforgivable! He deserved to burn forever for what he did. In response, the Amish community was very wise. They did not deny the evil that was done nor did they look at it indifferently. Instead, they reminded people that the perpetrator was still a child of God. He had parents, a wife, children, and a soul. And now he was standing before a just God. What need was there for more hatred and suffering? 

The forgiveness offered by the Amish of Lancaster County, is a powerful illustration of the gospel we just heard. Of all the things Jesus commands his followers, this call to be merciful is perhaps  the most difficult of all. There is no exception for certain crimes or classes of people. And it is NOT a suggestion or meant only for those who drive buggies instead of cars! Truth be told, in many cases, the command to practice mercy is actually humanly impossible. No parent can summon the power to forgive a person who hurts their child; it is a grace that can only come from Almighty God, Who first forgave us when we did the same to his Son! And most importantly of all, this type of mercy doesn’t start with a life-altering tragedy; it builds within little acts of forgiveness that are offered day after day. It grows out of a generous and gentle heart that refuses to become hardened by the slights and offenses we endure as part of our daily life. 

But this decision to embrace mercy and offer forgiveness is largely foreign to our world. For many, the world is a ruthless, indifferent place where it is better to be lucky than good. Life often appears to be unfair and evil afflicts both the righteous and the wicked with no distinction. The world will tell you and me that there are only two responses to suffering: passivity or viciousness. The lie of passivity says that you have no control over what happens to you, it suggests you might have even deserved it, and you must identify as a victim; who you are is defined by the worst thing done to you. This passive approach to evil and those who hurt us is unholy and only perpetuates sin in the world. 

The other extreme is viciousness. In this view, we recognize we do not deserve to be hurt but we take our response too far. We want to hurt the offender like they have hurt us; in most cases, we actually want to hit back harder, teach them a lesson, make sure they can’t do it again. You know what I mean! If they take my eye, I’ll make sure they never see again. If they knock out my tooth, I’ll make sure they eat out of a straw! This approach quickly gets out of hand and lowers those who are hurt into the same place as the perpetrator. As Ghandi wisely observed, “an eye for an eye and soon the whole world goes blind.” 

The way of Jesus, the path of forgiveness even towards our enemies and those who hurt us without remorse, is the only way that fully honors our dignity while making a better world possible. This way of mercy and love for enemies is something unique to Christianity; no other religion has this mandate. It is the one thing that forms our hearts to be like the heart of Christ. It empowers us to move beyond being victims of the evil of others to becoming victors. It transforms us to look like Jesus by loving like Jesus who prayed for those who hung him on the cross, asking his Father to forgive them even as they took his life. This love is what will make us worthy of heaven, this mercy is what enables us to rise like Jesus and live forever in paradise. Anything less and we will not receive the gift of the resurrection. 

One last thought. I believe many people see this mandate of mercy as a sort of weakness or surrendering power. No one likes to give up control or be made a victim. What I am slowly learning is that Jesus’ command to forgive and show mercy is the most powerful thing of all; there is nothing weak about it. Jesus is not commanding us to be doormats or weaklings, to allow others to hurt us or invite suffering; he is telling us to love fiercely as he did when faced with it. When someone tries to take something from us, when they try to lessen us by sinning against us, there is nothing more powerful than being able to say, “you wanted to take this thing from me that is mine but I choose to give it instead. And no matter how much anger, hatred, or evil you wish to inflict, my choosing to love and forgive will always be more; it will always overcome the worst you can do. Any coward can hate but only the strong and victorious can show mercy! This is the command to perfection we are called to!

Each of us is called to love fiercely and forgive without exception; anything less and we will not be living as Christ calls us. Do not excuse yourself from this command and do not try to live it by your own strength. We need his grace to love like this! Practice mercy in little ways now. We all have people in our lives who have hurt us. Don’t wait for them to deserve your forgiveness because they never will. Give mercy generously as God has given it to us. And then you will be always be a victor over any wrong against you and perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect!

Be Good When No One Is Watching! (6th Sunday, Year A)

 To listen to this homily, click here.

Several years ago, there was a trend on social media where a parent tested their little children by setting some tasty treats in front of them and leaving the room. The kids were instructed to leave the snack untouched until the parent came back, which was only supposed to be a few moments later. The children were not told they were being recorded on video. As you can imagine, many of the youngsters failed the test almost immediately. A few of them, probably oldest children, driven by guilt and perfectionism, kept their paws off the prize but most gave in to the temptation to at least eat something while they thought their parents were out of sight. 

These videos were hilarious because they were so relatable. Any parent knows that without constant supervision, it doesn’t take long for children to find their way into mischief. Also, even with the best intentions, if someone thinks they are all alone, they tend to say and do things they might never do around others. Breaking the rules doesn’t seem like such a big deal if no one sees it! This is true of both adults and children!

Which begs the question for you and me: How do we see God’s law and commandments? As a way of life that brings freedom and joy? As a code to follow which brings blessing and salvation? As a gift which is wise and timeless? I hope so! But is it possible that we often see God’s law and commandments as a burden, as foolish and out of date, as restrictive and keeping us from happiness? 

To put it another way, are we not like those little children, with an irresistible treat in front of us, waiting for a chance to stuff our faces? Do we look for ways to get around God’s laws, are we willing to break them if we think no one will notice? If we were given a free pass or we knew we wouldn’t get caught, what laws or commandments would we stop observing? Isn’t there a part of us that keeps the law and commandments, not so much because we love them, but simply because we don’t want to get in trouble or be punished? 

Today’s scriptures are trying to drive home this point: God’s law is meant to change our heart and make it more like his. It is not just a list of rules to follow to keep God off our back. This process starts with our actions and external behavior but that’s only the beginning. The law and commandments are part of a relationship. Jesus expands and deepens the commandments because he is inviting us to a deeper, more intimate friendship with the Father. This new friendship requires a heart that is even more pure and sensitive to the will of God. These expanded laws help us to have such a heart if we embrace them with love. That is why it is no longer good enough to pat myself on the back for resisting the urge to steal, lie, lust, and kill. Many of us would, if we could! As followers of Christ, we must be willing to surrender even the feelings and desires which starts me on the path to harm another. We cannot just resist the sinful action but must be cleansed of the willingness to harm or use another person. Jesus wants us to live forever with him and the father in heaven. But this is not just about acting more like God, we must also love like the Father and that transformation happens by cleansing our desires, emotions, and affections. We want to preserve and protect that relationship with the Lord. To live the commandments this way requires faith and trust! It also moves our motivation towards love instead of fear and obligation.

One last observation about the social media videos I mentioned; of course the whole thing was light-hearted and funny but it was unfair from the start. The proper thing would have been to never put those little kids in the situation where disobeying their parents was so easy and hard to resist. Jesus shocks us with his over-the-top advice on how to avoid similar situations when it comes to God’s law and commandments. He tells us to be ruthless in cutting off the things that lead us to sin with the image of plucking out eyes that look away from God and chopping off hands that want to embrace sin. Should we interpret this literally? No! Should we take it seriously? Yes! Each of us has a responsibility to do our best in trying to avoiding whatever leads us or others into sin.   

There are countless struggles and situations that apply uniquely to each person here and we can’t go into the details of what must be cut off and plucked out for every one. However, I would like to make a single direct and concrete encouragement to you based my ministry as a priest over 15 years. We are all citizens of an online world, whether we like it not. The internet its not going anywhere and we need to find ways of living with it that are practical and realistic but always protecting our families and values. Jesus’ command to cut off and cast out applies to each of us in some way regarding our online behavior and use of technology. For a growing number, that will truly mean getting rid of a smartphone that allows us to be online all the time and easily drawn into sin. For others, it will mean finding ways to stop impulse shopping that promises fulfillment but only delivers debt and clutter. For parents, it means monitoring your children’s time and access online so that they are protected from the many corrupting influences that hate innocence, prey on the young, and discourage young minds with perverted fantasies and impossible comparisons. So many adults struggle to contain their addiction to screens and harmful curiosity; why are we so naive and careless to think we can place unrestricted access to the internet before our children and expect they will not be harmed? For many people, social media and online anonymity make them feel like no one sees them and that is why people often act very differently than they would person-to-person. For Christians, we must be willing to take an honest look at how our use of the internet and technology affects our souls and the spiritual well-being of others. Most of us need to be willing to make changes to avoid the things that lead us and the people we care for into sin. While it may seem drastic to the world around us, nothing is more important than our eternal well-being and the spiritual health of our children who are often put in impossible situations.

Thankfully, we have many things working to our advantage! We have a God who loves us perfectly, 24/7, for all eternity. He does not have bad days nor does he lose his temper or become passive aggressive. His laws are always for our own good and any commandment he has given will help us in some way to live in peace with each other and grow in love for him. He is infinitely patient with us and will always forgive our failures and shortcomings; all we have to do is ask, especially in the sacrament of confession. 

The commandments of God and the laws of the Church are so much more than rules. Every one of them, no matter how small or mysterious, serves to protect us and draw us closer to God. They are the road leading to everlasting life, perfect love, and unshakeable peace. Imagine how much happiness it brings God when we keep his commandments out of love rather than fear or obligation!

Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord, the psalmist says. May we be among the blessed of God’s children keeping his commandments with love and faith and never grow weary of helping others to do the same!