Do Not Be Carried Away by False Teaching
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Something stood out in the Gospel readings this past Sunday: ”The woman saw that the tree was good for food, pleasing to the eyes.” (Genesis 3:6-7) and “[the devil] showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in their magnificence” (Matthew 4:8).
Sin is like fishing (no offense to those who like to fish). There is always a hook, a lure before the catch. Sin baits us to the hook. If one takes the bait, sin becomes inevitable.
The first two temptations of Jesus started with bait…”If you are the Son of God”. The temptations were not just bread and immortality. First, bait was thrown into the water to entice Jesus. If Jesus had any doubts about His divinity or wanted to prove His divinity to the devil, He might be lured into sin. The last temptation used different bait…the eyes.
The tree was pleasing to the eyes of Eve. She could not take her eyes off of it and began to fantasize about having the fruit. She could not look away. The more she looked, the more she desired. If she could have only looked away and dwelled on God’s Word, like Jesus in the desert, maybe she could have avoided sin.
Nearly 3,000 years later King David was lured into sin. “[David] saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful.” (2 Samuel 11:2). Once again, it was the eyes. David could not take his eyes off of her and began to fantasize about her. One sin led to another, as happens so often. If only David could have looked away, maybe he could have avoided sin and its consequences.
When the eyes look at something that is pleasing, desire enters. The more one watches, the more one desires. This is how favorite videos and TV shows are formed. The first episode is pleasing to watch so more episodes are desired. There is nothing wrong with having a favorite show or watching videos. But the desire to watch can lead to the consuming of one’s life by the show or by searching for new videos to watch. The inability to look away sets the hook to sin. It is the beginning of addiction to pornography and leads to some marital affairs.
It is not just lust that begins with the eyes, “Thou shall not covet.” Coveting begins when the eyes see something pleasing that someone else has, but we lack. The hook is set, desire begins and envy leads to sin. Anger can result from seeing another person do evil and getting away with it. Pride can arise when one sees another becoming envious to one’s own success. There are a multitude of sins that begin with the eyes.
The words of Jesus in Matthew 5:29 are well-known to many, “If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away.” Jesus obviously did not mean this literally; but controlling the eyes is very important in the spiritual battle to resist temptation.
Fortitude is the moral virtue that ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good. It strengthens the resolve to resist temptations and to overcome obstacles in the moral life. Pray to the Holy Spirit for fortitude. Seek fortitude. Be aware of all the hooks that bait us into sin. And “Watch out for your Eyes!”
Each day, we walk our path of life. The path may be easy or strenuous, narrow or wide, short or long. We have the freedom to choose any path, and to change paths at any time.
Those long, strenuous paths require more preparation before taking the first step and periodic renewal of supplies and rest. But, by the end, the walk is much more satisfying and enlightening. The greater the effort, the greater the reward.
Our Lord does not abandon us, regardless of the paths we take. He is there to guide, comfort and heal. But the paths we take and the preparations we make are still of our own choosing.
Catholic Paths was created to help Catholics choose their paths and prepare for their daily walk with teachings, inspirations, meditations and prayer. May each step of your daily walk bring you one step closer to unity and joy in our Lord.
"God only, God everywhere, God always!" - St. Bernadette
