If Jesus is tempted in the desert, we must except to be that as well, and not try and escape from the temptation, for we are not above the Master. Our temptations as monks in Norway are no doubt, with a few exceptions, the same as everybody else’s: temptation to be discouraged when confronted with tasks that seem too heavy, temptation to go back like the Hebrews in the desert, to avoid staying in a this place where there is nothing interesting, temptation to fill our immediate needs without waiting, to rest, to seek distractions: “tell these stones to turn into loaves”.
Jesus’ clear answers confound us, they hit their goal immediately and undo the adversary. The tempter is almost laughable, his snares seem crude next to Jesus’ superiority. So where is Jesus’ secret? We should like to know, in order to resist temptations as easily as he does. Jesus’ truth fills him completely, in obedience to his Father. And leads him all the way to the cross, to the Hour when the tempter returns and the battle will be heavier. Nothing can make him deviate from this truth, his heart, his conscience are not divided but unified. Then the temptation is like an arrow that breaks on a rock. Our Christian intention of following Christ, ought to regain that purity during this period of Lent, then the temptation will disintegrate by itself.
That answer is pretty, no doubt, but we are not Jesus, and our heart remains divided and weak. In our monastic situation, where we follow Jesus in the wasteland of the North, we are confronted with this paradox: the wasteland is the place where the temptation is most virulent, we are unprotected, like in these glacial winds that are blowing just now. He who retreats into the wasteland is exposed because there are no hiding places where one may avoid the battle. But at the same time, the desert is the place where God gives manna freely, as sufficient nourishment. Thus, he who is not equipped will not give up, and keeps on walking. This nourishment is essentially the Word of God. It revives our faith and renews our confidence, for it is testimony that God will not abandon his people. It revives our love by recalling the over-abundant generosity of our God. Lord, what should we fear? For you are the Strong one who arewith us in the combat of the desert, and it is good for us to be exposed like that, for we have no other rock than you to give us shelter.
