Reflection for February 22, 2026

First Sunday of Lent (A)

Genesis 2:7-9; 3:1-7 | Romans 5:12-19 | Psalm 51:3-4, 5-6, 12-13, 14 and 17 | Matthew 4:1-11

​Last Wednesday, we began our Lenten journey with Jesus as we prepare to celebrate Easter. As we begin this season of Lent, our main themes for this weekend are temptation, sin, guilt, and forgiveness.

Fr. Godwin was cruising through a tiny Southern California town like he was auditioning for Fast & Furious: Parish Drift when—whoop whoop—flashing lights in the rearview mirror. Busted. Speeding. The policeman walks up, all serious, and says, “Father, you were going a little… fast.” Fr. Godwin sighs. “Bless me, officer, for I have sped.” He admits he’s guilty, but nope—no holy water discount. He has to show up in court. In court, the judge asks, “Guilty or not guilty?” Fr. Godwin, being honest and freshly humbled, says, “Guilty, Your Honor.” The judge nods. “That’ll be ten dollars. One dollar for every mile you went over.” Ouch. Even heaven has a speed limit. Just as Fr. Godwin reaches for his wallet, the judge squints at him and goes, “Wait… aren’t you that energetic young priest from St. Something-or-Other?” Fr. Godwin gives a sheepish smile. The judge sighs dramatically. “You did break the law. Justice must be served.” Then he pulls out his own wallet, slaps down a ten-dollar bill, attaches it to the ticket, and says, “But I’ll pay it for you.” Plot twist! And he’s not done. He takes Fr. Godwin out for a steak dinner. Yes. From speeding ticket to sirloin in under an hour. Fr. Godwin, chewing thoughtfully, says, “And that, my friends… is exactly how God treats repentant sinners.” You mess up. You admit it. You deserve the fine. And somehow… you still get steak.

Where sin runs deep, God's grace is more. Our First reading from the book of Genesis reflects on the origin of sin among us. Can anything good come out of evil? The controversial idea of a fortunate fall is expressed in a portion of Catholic Liturgy called the “Exultet” whose authorship is often attributed to St. Ambrose of Milan and continues today in connection with the tradition of lighting of the paschal candle during the celebration of Easter. The text reads, “O happy fault, O necessary sin of Adam, which merited for us so great a Redeemer.” The weakness of our First Parents brought about the coming of Jesus and all that he means to us for our lives. It is an example of how even behind unpleasant and, in fact, evil happenings, God’s love can be found at work. Because of sin, humankind must now experience pain and death. But also because of sin, humans can also experience mercy, salvation, and grace in ways they would not have been able to. Our first parents' disobedience allowed God to show his mercy and temperance in their punishments and his eternal providence towards humankind. God is in control no matter how bad things seem to be. He transforms awful to awesome.

A man storms into his doctor’s office looking like a walking fog machine. “Doc!” he wheezes. “I’m coughing my heart out! My lungs feel like they’re hosting a barbecue!” The doctor adjusts his glasses, does the whole tap-tap-breathe-again routine, and frowns dramatically. “Hmm. Not great. But good news! I’ve got the perfect expectorant. Follow the instructions on the bottle exactly, and you’ll be fine in three days.” The man nods like he just received the Ten Commandments and marches out. Five days later, he’s back. Worse. Dramatic. Extra wheezy. “Doctor! You said three days! I’m not better—I’m auditioning for a zombie movie!” The doctor squints. “Did you read and obey the instructions?” “Of course I did!” the man says proudly. “I followed them perfectly!” “Let me see that bottle,” the doctor says, grabbing it. He stares at it. Then flips it over. Then stares again. “Sir… this bottle is completely unopened.” The patient, offended, crosses his arms. “Well, you said to obey the instructions. You never said I had to open it!” Moral of the story: Obedience is good… but common sense is better.

God’s gracious gift of righteousness in Christ is far greater than the devastation of sin that resulted from Adam’s disobedience. In his letter to the Romans, St. Paul gives us a recap and analysis of how sin and death entered the world through the disobedience of Adam and how likewise salvation and eternal life entered the world through the obedience of Jesus. Jesus succeeded where Adam failed; we now have acquittal where before we had condemnation; we have life where before we had death. In short, where as the many have suffered for the sin of one, the many can now rejoice in the righteousness of one.

Four Filipino clergymen—Deacon Manuel, Fr. Alexis, Fr. Nicolas, and Msgr. Cristóbal—were on retreat in Jeju Island, South Korea. Prayer by day… buffet by night. Holiness with a side of kimchi. One evening, feeling extra reflective (and maybe extra full), they decided to confess their biggest temptations to each other. Deacon Manuel clears his throat. “Well… it’s embarrassing. My biggest temptation is bad pictures. I’ve always wanted to keep a secret stash of adult magazines in the parish convent.” The others gasp like someone just replaced holy water with Sprite. Fr. Alexis raises a hand. “That’s nothing. My temptation is gambling. One Saturday, instead of preparing my homily, I almost went to Resorts Dreams Manila to play the slot machines. I nearly preached, ‘Blessed are the jackpot winners.’” Fr. Nicolas sighs dramatically. “Brothers… mine is worse. I sometimes can’t control the urge to drink. I feel like sneaking into Valkyrieeleison and getting so drunk I start chanting the Responsorial Psalm backwards.” They all slowly turn to Msgr. Cristóbal, who has been suspiciously quiet. He folds his hands. “Brothers… I hate to admit this… but my temptation is the worst of all.” They lean in. “I love to gossip.” Silence. “And if you’ll excuse me,” he says, standing up and grabbing his phone, “I need to make a few calls.” And that was the fastest retreat in Church history to end in a group chat explosion.

Lent is a time when we consider more strongly our spiritual struggle against sin. In the gospel, we hear about the temptation of Christ in the desert by Satan after his baptism in the Jordan by John the Baptist. In what ways are you tempted? Temptation is not sin. Temptation is a call to action by an enemy who hopes to lure you into sin. You are tempted in the same way that everyone else is tempted. In the desert, Jesus was tempted by the devil. His temptation carries with it the same structure as the temptation of Israel in the desert. He was tempted with the lust of the flesh, the pride of life, and the lust of the eyes. The Gospel highlights for us one of the central themes of Lent. We are dependent upon God for all that we have and all that we are. Anything that leads us to forget this dependency or to distrust its sufficiency is a temptation from the devil. Satan attempted to get Jesus to put his own needs and potential concerns above the will of His Father. He wanted Jesus to act independently of the Father. He wanted Jesus to sacrifice His secure future for the present. Jesus met Satan’s challenge by trusting His Father to do all things in His time, in His way, and with His result. Like Jesus, will you trust the father in the needs of temptation?


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