Homily for First Sunday of Lent, Year C (Lk 4:1-14) The Devil has been depicted in art, literature and movies in a variety of manners. Be it the terrifying demon who towered over Bald Mountain in the animated movie Fantasia or Al Pacino s portrayal of Satan as a ruthless lawyer in The Devil s Advocate, there has been no lack of artistic renditions for the Prince of Darkness. Among the most enduring portrayals of Satan in the western mind is the depiction of the Devil in John Milton s 17 th century poetic masterpiece, Paradise Lost. Arrogant, cold, impenitent and above all proud, Milton s Devil has even been considered a hero by some for the way in which he sought to be free of God s dominion and offer humanity the chance to become like God. But a closer reading of this poem shows just how sinister and proud the Devil truly is, and that there is no love, concern or mercy within him. His only desire is to destroy and ruin the children of God by compelling them to succumb to temptation and then fall into sin.
The description of Satan s rebellion against God appears in the first book of Paradise Lost. Here are the words that Milton placed on the Devil s tongue to show how he reacted to his fall from heaven into hell and where he undergoes his transformation from being the light bearer named Lucifer to the adversary known as Satan: `Is this the region, this the soil, the clime, Said then the lost archangel, `this the seat That we must change for heaven, this mournful gloom For that celestial light? Be it so, since he Who now is sovereign can dispose and bid What shall be right: furthest from him is best Whom reason hath equaled, force hath made supreme Above his equals. Farewell happy fields Where joy forever dwells: hail horrors, hail Infernal world, and thou profoundest hell Receive thy new possessor: one who brings A mind not to be changed by place or time. The mind is its own place, and in itself Can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven. What matter where, if I be still the same, And what I should be, all but less than he Whom thunder hath made greater? Here at least We shall be free; the almighty hath not built Here for his envy, will not drive us hence: Here we may reign secure, and in my choice To reign is worth ambition though in hell: Better to reign in hell, than serve in heaven. (Book I, v 242-58)
Better to reign in hell, than serve in heaven. In this one statement, we can see what is at the root of all temptations, including those that were presented to Our Lord in the desert, that Satan will put in our paths. It is the pride of not wanting to serve and love God by seeking to serve ourselves and our own ambitions and desires. NON SERVIAM, I will not serve, lies at the root of how the devil will seek to pull us away from God. By telling our Lord to turn stones into bread, the Devil was tempting Jesus to abandon His trust in His Heavenly Father who would provide for Him in His fast. Satan was suggesting that He reject this time of fasting and preparation for teaching the gospel by using His own divine power to satisfy His bodily needs, and no longer serve His Father s plan of providing us with the example of denying ourselves bodily comforts in order to be shaped into a temperate and humble disciples. So too does the Devil tempt us to not serve the Lord in times of suffering or through self denial, but rather to do whatever it takes to
remove suffering from our lives, even if it is sinful to do so, and to satisfy our every desire, be it for food, drink, entertainment, sex, sensual pleasure or whatever it is that will turn the stones of penance and suffering into the bread of sensual satisfaction. The Devil then offered Jesus the opportunity to no longer serve His Heavenly Father by offering Him power and worldly dominion, the only condition being He must now serve Satan, the one who long ago said he would never serve another but himself alone. Let us not be deceived into thinking that people no longer offer themselves to the service of the Evil One in order to obtain prestige and power! Perhaps they do not join a satanic cult, but many will allow The Devil into their lives to climb the corporate leader, become the world s next great celebrity or athlete, or to obtain ever greater power and control in their government to assert their ideologies and agendas, often in the name of being in the service of the common good, but in reality, wanting only to control and dominate. Like our Lord, we must respond that we serve God and God alone and
adamantly reject the empty promises of Satan to provide us with power and dominion! Finally, the Devil tempted Christ to end His own life, putting His Heavenly Father to the test to send His angels to save Him and show for all to see that Jesus is the Christ, the Holy One of God. The Devil wanted our Lord to serve His own ego and self-assurance that He was invincible and incapable of being harmed, and prove that His Father would not allow anything bad to happen to Him. How often do we fail to serve and love our God by putting Him to the test? Be it a lack of prudence in driving home after a few too many drinks, taking excessive risks during some sporting activity, engaging in sinful sexual activity that harms both the body and the soul, or considering ending our lives because our government may soon say it is no longer illegal to do so, in these moments, we show God, through our thoughts and actions, that we do not want to serve Him and the plans He has for us. Instead, we put Him to the test, seeing just how far we can go before the fall.
Let us never forget that Our Lord has vanquished the Devil through His Cross and Resurrection, and so no baptized man, woman or child belong to Satan, not even when we fall into sin, for we can always be reconciled to him through the great Sacrament of Confession. But let us also be very aware of those moments when we are tempted to no longer serve Our Lord and God; for to make the decision to no longer serve Him can only end in us saying, once and for all, NON SERVIAM, I will not serve, and discover that what comes of this rebellion is a place in the kingdom of darkness