3.29 Perché digiuniamo quaranta giorni in Quaresima?
La Quaresima inizia il Mercoledì delle Ceneri, che prende il nome dalle ceneri con cui in quel giorno veniamo segnati sulla fronte sotto forma di croce. Gesù digiunò per quaranta giorni nel deserto (Mt 4, 1-2)Mt 4, 1-2: Allora Gesù fu condotto dallo Spirito nel deserto, per essere tentato dal diavolo. Dopo aver digiunato quaranta giorni e quaranta notti, alla fine ebbe fame., e noi seguiamo il suo esempio digiunando in Quaresima.
Durante la Quaresima vogliamo ricordarci che senza l’aiuto e la grazia di Dio non siamo degni del dono del sacrificio di Gesù sulla croce.
What do we learn from the temptations of Jesus in the desert?
The temptations of Jesus in the desert recapitulate the temptation of Adam in Paradise and the temptations of Israel in the desert. Satan tempts Jesus in regard to his obedience to the mission given him by the Father. Christ, the new Adam, resists and his victory proclaims that of his passion which is the supreme obedience of his filial love. The Church unites herself to this mystery in a special way in the liturgical season of Lent. [CCCC 106]
Why was Jesus led into temptation? Could he really be tempted at all?
Jesus was truly human, and as part of that he was truly susceptible to temptation. In Jesus Christ we do not have the sort of redeemer “who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sinning” (Heb 4:15). [Youcat 88]
In the Church’s tradition, this journey we are asked to take in Lent is marked by certain practices: fasting, almsgiving and prayer. Fasting means abstinence from food but includes other forms of privation for a more modest life. However, all this is not yet the full reality of fasting: it is an outer sign of an inner reality, of our commitment, with God’s help, to abstain from evil and to live by the Gospel. Those who are unable to nourish themselves with the word of God do not fast properly. [Pope Benedict, General Audience, 9 Mar. 2011]
