The three wilderness temptations which our Lord rejected represent the choices of human pride, the original sin. The temptation to turn stones into bread, to political power and to idolatry symbolize the fundamental seductions that distort the truth of our humanity. Needs are looked upon as gods as if they contained the essence of eternity and although we toil and spare no effort to gratify them, the deeper is our feeling of oppression. Our major challenge is to experience God's word as a promise that can be fulfilled and never to conquer Satan. When we know that we are intimately loved, can we face the dark forces of the enemy without being seduced by them. Without God we are just rebels driven by pride to assume what we imagine to be the power of God over others. We may have illusions about the enemy around us and of ways to protect ourselves. But the Lenten journey makes us look inside to face the enemy within. The less we are in a position to own our stories, the more likely it is for us to fall victims to daily seductions. One of the problems of living in a secular society today is the lack of any concept of evil, because of which we ultimately remain unguarded. Never in the history of mankind has it been so easy for Satan to rule and conquer. (These ideas were explained today by Father Rene Camilleri of Malta)
