From the Pastor
Fr. Mike Comer shares his thoughts on Scripture, spirituality and the challenges of living the Gospel.
welcome to the desert
Feb. 22, 2026
Each year, the First Sunday of Lent is from one of the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) and tells the story of the temptations of Jesus in the desert. This year we read from the Gospel of Matthew. Obviously, Jesus’ 40 days in the desert is the model for our 40 days of Lent. We too go into the desert to pray and fast, and to draw closer to God. We see that Jesus is also tempted by the devil during this time. Jesus rejects these temptations.
The story of the temptations of Christ is paired with our first reading, from the Book of Genesis, telling the story of the Fall. Adam and Eve accept the temptation of the serpent and eat of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. They say yes to Satan, and Jesus says no. Adam and Eve represent all of us, as we, like them, have all fallen for the lies and false promises of the Evil One. Each one of us, like our first parents, have rejected God’s will and plan for us and followed the Great Liar. We are not victims of the Fall—we are volunteers.
The story of the temptations of Christ is paired with our first reading, from the Book of Genesis, telling the story of the Fall. Adam and Eve accept the temptation of the serpent and eat of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. They say yes to Satan, and Jesus says no. Adam and Eve represent all of us, as we, like them, have all fallen for the lies and false promises of the Evil One. Each one of us, like our first parents, have rejected God’s will and plan for us and followed the Great Liar. We are not victims of the Fall—we are volunteers.
In our second reading, St. Paul says that as all have fallen because of the sin of Adam, so all may be saved because of the obedience of Christ. Adam said no to God. Jesus said yes. We who follow Jesus want to learn how to say yes as He did and to reject, with Him, the lies of Satan.
The three disciplines of Lent (prayer, fasting and almsgiving), which I wrote about last week, are spiritual exercises that we do to strengthen our ‘Yes.’ Thinking in terms of physical exercise, as we lift weights or walk or run, we strengthen our muscles and our bodies. The same principle applies when we do these spiritual exercises. Our souls become stronger, more capable of resisting temptation and of choosing the path that God lays out for us.
—Fr. Mike Comer
The three disciplines of Lent (prayer, fasting and almsgiving), which I wrote about last week, are spiritual exercises that we do to strengthen our ‘Yes.’ Thinking in terms of physical exercise, as we lift weights or walk or run, we strengthen our muscles and our bodies. The same principle applies when we do these spiritual exercises. Our souls become stronger, more capable of resisting temptation and of choosing the path that God lays out for us.
—Fr. Mike Comer
