If I were to describe the devil in the form of a god of something, I would call him the god of suffering. In every case he tempts Jesus with less suffering he can do that because he is the god of suffering. He has a certain control of suffering and how much one receives. Indeed, he offers illegitimate ways out of suffering that then trap his victims in worse suffering. Indeed, Hell is the realm if the lord of suffering.

 

Today, as is traditional on the First Sunday of Lent, we see one of the Gospel accounts of the temptation of Jesus in the desert. This account is from Luke. If we look at it carefully, we can see the three temptations are all forms illegitimate ways out of suffering.

 

The first: Take the easy way out and reject suffering.

If you are the Son of God command these stones to become loaves of bread. The devil being manipulative calling on the Lord to live a life where he does not have to suffer. He is after all the Son of God. Yet, Jesus rejects this course, knowing that to deny suffering when it is unavoidable is to deny its fruit: the greater manifestation of God. It is to take the easy way out and not do what is necessary to manifest the will of God in your life. It is to take whatever steps and to shortcut your life so that you do not have to suffer.

This is the realm of those who do everything from cheating on tests, to stealing, to drug abuse, to changing spouses when the other spouse is no longer of the right age, to rationalizing sin, to not attending mass and even to lying to get what is not rightfully yours. There is a faulty practice in the immigrant communities of marrying someone who is a US citizen just to try to get papers. That is also this sin.  Abortion is in this category as is living off the state and not looking for work. Living together, having sex out of marriage for it is about taking the easy way out and not being committed to the deeper reality of what it means to be human. If you look carefully, this sin causes a form of selfish narcissism.

They are all in this category for they are all about not denying yourself and, therefore, preventing a greater good from happening. This is one way the devil imprisons people in misery for he forces them to dehumanize themselves through taking the easier and comfortable road. When we open ourselves to this temptation, we will find it causes complications and greater suffering for we put ourselves in the realm of the god of suffering by deciding that it is easier to take a shortcut through his kingdom than seeking the way that Christ has set out for us. Then we find there is no way out of his kingdom of suffering. .Our problems increase,  for we put ourselves into the kingdom of suffering. Only God can rescue us.

 

The second: Taking upon ourselves to prevent others’ suffering.

This is highly tempting because it leads us to believe we are doing the right thing when we prevent suffering. Often times we are, but others we are not. This is when we promote laws that address people’s suffering but not their humanity. We make life easy for people but we imprison people in this easiness. We try to make it that others do not encounter the normal human suffering that is not only part of life, but leads to maturity. This is when we do our best not to make others feel bad for losing a game, having a disappointment. It is when we work to prevent a person from living the true ups and downs of life. It is making Christmas perfect. Reliving childhood although we are adults and making childhood nothing but a magical time for children, stunting maturity. This is when we legislate the easy way out for people and undermine the greater good either in our home or in our society or in our nation. It is when we open the door to the easy thing, but not the right thing. It is when we make speaking the truth a crime, especially when it necessarily offends someone.

This is the realm of the communist in all his forms. This is the realm of the person who solves social problems with a pen instead of seeing how each problem affects others. This is the one who teaches workers to get everything they can from the company instead of doing what is best for the worker, the company and the community. This is the person who uses law and government to build the world the way they want it and not the way God wants it. This is the realm of the Catholic university professor who promotes secular teaching like gay marriage in the Catholic church to create a false shortcut to holiness. The legislator who is personally opposed to abortion but will advocate for it. All of which causes greater suffering in the long run.

 

The Third: A God who prevents us from suffering. This is the hardest one to accept. If God exists why is there suffering in the world. Should not God have created a world where there is no suffering. Actually, He did, but through the fall, we introduced suffering into the world.

This is the realm of the one who believes that the proof that God does not exist is that there are wars and violence and hatred and evil. This is the one who believes that if God exists then the world should be perfect. All of which is understandable, but sin which enters the human heart is what causes these evils.

Jesus gave us the solution: Love one another, but when we decide that I should be able to have what I want and God should give it to me and everyone believes the same way, then this is where conflict comes to exist.

Jesus taught us that we are in the world, though not of it. The world, he teaches, is the Devil’s realm. As long as we are in his territory, suffering will happen, because He is the god of suffering.

The only way to defeat the devil as Jesus demonstrates at the end of his life is to endure patiently that suffering which is not preventable. This is the model Jesus lives. It is those who try to shortchange a world where suffering is inevitable who cause more suffering because we are living in the realm of the god of suffering. This is the realm of euthanasia, of putting people in prison so that our world is perfect. It is the realm of the person who makes money teaching people that if their life is not perfect then they are entitled to financial compensation. It is the realm of the person who turns a blind eye to suffering or who teaches that suffering is caused by losing the life lottery.

 

However, we are also called to help others endure their suffering and to the prevent what is preventable.

You and I are called to be ambassadors to the Kingdom of God, which means we are enemies of the god of suffering. The only way to defeat him is to endure that suffering which is unpreventable. It is to embrace commitment, it is to deny oneself so that a greater good may happen. it is to help alleviate other’s suffering by taking it upon ourselves. It is the Corrections Officer who endures the epithets of his prisoners but prays for them every night. It is the Parents who patiently deal with for their children and pray for them every night, especially the one who is most difficult. It is the teacher who works his best for the student who cannot understand the subject. It is to advocate not for convenience but the for good of the person body and soul. It is the spouse who cares for his terminally ill spouse when others say he could have a better life elsewhere. It is the mother and father who choose to embrace the unexpected pregnancy.

 

It is to glorify God in all we do.

 

This is what Jesus does. He does not run from suffering, for he would run right into the realm of the god of suffering. He endures it, he alleviates others from it, he leads others to experience eternal happiness, he warns us that we will endure it and finally promises us who follow Him through it, to eternal life.

 

But if you instead give in to the temptation of the god of suffering, you will find yourself in his realm for all eternity. For he is afterall the god of suffering, but we follow the God of eternal happiness and joy. The one who calls us to endure wrongs patiently, to experience the glory of God.

God bless you,

Fr. Robert J Carr

Fr. Carr is member of the Segundo Elo  of the Canção Nova Community. He is the pastor of Holy Trinity Quincy, MAand is the editor of this blog. He is the author of several books, blogs and hundreds of videos all of which you may find on Youtube.  You can follow him on twitter as @frbobcarr and on Google plus as+FrRobertCarr. Thoughts, comments on the homily? Let us know at Facebook