Cheeseburgers in Lent

I realize it's been more than a month since I last posted anything on this blog. That's hard for me to believe, because that month passed very quickly. Because of tests and homework I have not had much time to devote to things like blogging. I still don't, but I thought I could quickly share a homily I delivered in my "homiletics" class (my class on preaching). So, this was not delivered to a real congregation, but to my classmates and to Father Brennan, our instructor. For sake of realism, Father Brennan has us preach in the seminary chapel, while wearing an alb and chasuble, with the microphone turned off, and with everyone else sitting in the back pews. He's trying to get us to speak loudly.

Anyway, I preached based on the readings from the 1st Sunday in Lent, year B. You can read the readings by clicking here.

This is the third Sunday homily I've ever written, and the 2nd one I've ever delivered orally in front of a crowd. Oh, and thank you to Fr Tom Richter for the phrase "I want X, but I want you (God) more." I like it, and I used it in this homily.

The season of Lent is under way. We have already endured one day of fasting and two days of abstinence from meat. But this, of course, is just the beginning. There are a lot of days remaining before we recall the Last Supper and the Crucifixion. So the penance and self-denial are only beginning.

I know. It can get tough. I can see it now. Friday will roll around and you’ll go out with friends or coworkers to the local greasy spoon for lunch. You will sit down at the booth and start skimming the menu for something, anything without meat. And there it is … scribbled on the bottom of the menu in pencil, a last-minute Lenten addition: “Fish Special.” They want to accommodate their Catholic patrons, after all. But there’s a big glob of grease on the menu, right over the word “fish,” and your appetite is completely gone. Meanwhile, your friends are raving about how great the burgers are. And you’re tempted. You’re tempted. You ask yourself, “Will Jesus really care if I eat meat?”

You ask yourself, for that matter, “Will he care if I’m faithful to my Lenten promises to abstain from Facebook, or from television, or sweets?” You wonder, “How big of a deal is this, really?” And you’re about to cave.

In order to strengthen your resolve, let us review a few things God has done for us throughout history. Consider God’s promise to Noah. After the 40 days of the flood, Noah exited the ark and expressed his gratitude to God in worship. In response, God established a covenant, promising that he would never again allow a flood to cover the earth and to destroy us.

The second reading, from the First Letter of St Peter, describes how Jesus suffered for us, the “unrighteous” sinners, to the point of dying on the cross. In the reading we were also reminded of his establishment of Baptism, which was prefigured in the covenant with Noah and which, as Peter wrote, is now the means of our salvation, a free gift from Jesus.

And in the Gospel we heard how immediately after his own Baptism Jesus spent 40 days in the desert: a place of want, a place where Jesus Himself voluntarily experienced hunger and temptation before beginning his own ministry, all in service to us.

God did not have to save Noah and all the animals. God did not have to enter the desert, to suffer want, to endure temptation, or die on the cross. He did not have to provide a means for our salvation, which we have in Baptism. But he did. He did! And God still loves us today.

In this season of Lent we have a special opportunity to remember and to receive that love in the here and now. And so, we give up something good as an expression of our desire for God’s love.

When you are tempted, as in that restaurant, I want you to pray. Pray, saying “God, I really want that cheeseburger, but I want you more.” The effect of this prayer is that we pause, we think of God, and we are reminded of two things: First, we remind ourselves of all that God has done for us throughout history, including his voluntary suffering of hunger and want in the desert. Secondly, we are reminded that, ultimately, our desires are not satisfied by created things, but only by God. We recall that there is more to life than eating, sleeping, working, and relaxing.

This season of Lent is an opportunity for us to regain focus in our lives, and self-denial is a practical aid in achieving that goal. If we enter the desert of Lent, embracing sacrifice in the way Jesus did, we will arrive at the Cross of Good Friday ready to weep for our sins as we yell “Crucify Him!” And we will be ready to accept His gratuitous love, as we join him in carrying the Cross. We won’t be lethargic or apathetic as we stare at Christ, bloodied and hanging there. For when we ponder that horrid scene after a time in the desert of Lent, we will be overwhelmed by his gratuitous love for us.

So when Friday rolls around and you’re tempted, even in the smallest way, don’t cave. Don’t give in! Embrace the want, as Jesus did in the desert. Think of what he has done for you. Think of what he is about to do for you … on Good Friday. And pray “Jesus, I want this thing… But I love and want you so much more.”