In this week’s Gospel we are invited to follow Jesus into the desert where he will fast for 40 days and nights and then be tempted by the devil. The desert is very much the landscape of Lent – a place of test and trial but also of purification and preparation. Jesus’ desert was a definite place – we went there on our parish pilgrimage back in 2019! The Judean desert is on the Western shore of the Dead Sea – the lowest place on the surface of the earth. Don’t get romantic about such a place – the ground is rocky and hard, the air is thin and the heat oppressive. It’s a place where you can only think about survival – and about what really matters.

But, as our first reading from Genesis makes clear, we are not made for the desert but for the garden. So this journey into the desert is a sign that something is wrong in the world and in us. Jesus literally goes to the lowest point so that the whole earth can be redeemed and brought back into harmony with God. And as his followers we too need to enter the desert so that we can be part of this work of repair and redemption. There are many ‘deserts’ in our world today – societies, even whole countries torn apart by human pride and greed, countless lives devastated by war and poverty. This Tuesday we mark the fourth anniversary of the start of the war in Ukraine – so many lives lost and communities lying in ruins. Next weekend we will learn about how we can play our part in supporting CAFOD’s mission to transform lives around the world, especially in the poorest communities ravaged by poverty, climate change and war.

There are of course ‘deserts’ closer to home – individual lives/families in London devastated by drugs and other addictions. We are also called to recognise the ‘deserts’ of our own lives, when we give in to the devil’s tricks and temptations. In his battle with the devil Jesus shows us how to rely totally on God, When we don’t do this and make wrong choices, the consequences can be tragic. So we need to walk closely with Jesus this Lent and learn from him how to make the right choices, both for ourselves and others so that these deserts can be transformed back into gardens.

With blessings & prayers from Fr Richard, Fr Ephrem & all the parish team
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