(First Sunday of Lent (C): This homily was given on March 1, 1998 at St. Pius X Church, Westerly, R.I. by Fr. Raymond Suriani. Read Luke 4: 1-13.)

Today let me introduce you to three gods—three gods of the late twentieth century. The first is known as "Lord Technology." Lord Technology is a peculiar-looking fellow. He has a head like a computer monitor and a body like a laboratory test tube. His arms and legs are shaped like nuclear missiles, and laser beams shoot out from his fingertips. But he’s very smart. He understands the most complex theories of mathematics and science. And he’s always promising us that the solution to all of our personal and social problems will come with the next great scientific discovery. Last week, for example, he was heard to say that women will soon achieve total freedom and perfect happiness now that they can use the new contraceptive ring that was just developed. The only problem with Lord Technology is that he doesn’t seem to understand the concepts of right and wrong. If you make an attempt to speak to him about "moral laws" and "commandments," bells will immediately go off, his circuits will overload, smoke will come out of his ears and he’ll say, "Error, error. This does not compute!"

So much for Lord Technology. The next god of this modern pantheon is "Lord Politics." Lord Politics, I must admit, is a very classy dresser. He could easily make the cover of GQ magazine. In fact, the only negatives to his appearance are his eyes—his shifty, beady, little eyes. But you hardly notice his eyes once he opens his mouth. That’s because Lord Politics has quite a way with words! He could sell you one acre of swampland in Florida for a million dollars and you would think you were getting a great deal! The only problem with him is that he seems to have a one-track mind. Everything to him is politics. If you ask him, "What’s the most important thing in life?", he’ll answer "Politics." If you ask him, "How can we solve all our personal and social problems?", he’ll say, "Politics." He’s convinced that the only reason people do anything is for a political motive. For example, last month when the pope went to Cuba, he refused to talk about the true, spiritual meaning of the Holy Father’s visit. All he would talk about were the political dimensions of the trip--which were of secondary importance.

Finally, we come to god number three: the one and the only "Lord Entertainment." Now, it’s hard to describe this god with any consistency, because he’s always changing. He has no convictions. He’s not at all interested in promoting what’s true. His only concern is to amuse people. Consequently, to achieve this end, he sometimes dresses in a three-piece suit like Lord Politics. However, at other times, he dresses like Bozo the Clown. And then, every once in a while, he strips down to his "birthday suit" and wears "nothing, nothing, nothing at all." You see, if it will get a laugh--if it will sell tickets to a movie—if it will get high Nielsen ratings--Lord Entertainment will do it, or say it, or sing it. He’s been spotted quite often at our local casinos, but he’s also to be found on radio and on television. He’s even in some art museums. He’s wherever people use vulgarity and immorality to entertain. And in today’s world, that means this god really gets around!

Now why did I introduce you to these three deities this morning (afternoon)? Simple—these are the very same "gods" that Jesus battled in the desert after his forty-day fast. That may not be immediately obvious to us, but it’s true nonetheless. These are the false gods that Satan was desperately trying to get our Lord to worship.

First, Lord Technology: Satan says to Jesus, "If you are the Son of God, command this stone to turn into bread." Now there’s a technological accomplishment if there ever was one—making bread out of rocks! (Believe me, the people at Wonder Bread would love to get their hands on a machine that could pull that off!) Jesus answered, "Scripture has it, ‘Not on bread alone is man to live, but on every utterance that comes from the mouth of God.’" Jesus was reminding the devil that God’s law must be primary in all human activity. And so Jesus would say that ‘technology plus morality’ is good. Technology, used in conformity with the laws of God, is a great blessing. But, our Lord would add, technology without morality is dangerous and destructive. And isn’t this what we’ve seen so often in the twentieth century? The abortion pill; artificial contraceptives; chemical weapons; illegal, synthetic drugs; pornography on the internet—all products of the misuse of technology; all the result of people falling down to worship this false god. In this regard, I heard the other day that the quality of life in the state of Connecticut is worse than it was twenty years ago. (I hate to break the bad news to those of you who live across the river, but it’s true.) According to a recent study, (generally speaking) the lives of people across the border are not as happy and satisfying as they were two decades ago. And just think--twenty years ago nobody had a VCR, nobody had a camcorder and nobody had Windows 95! Back then, people were without so many of the technological gizmos that we all take for granted. And yet, they were happier! If technology alone were the answer to life’s problems, then the findings of this study would be the exact opposite of what they are.

Satan then shows Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and says to him, "I will give you all this power and the glory of these kingdoms; the power has been given to me and I give it to whomever I wish. Prostrate yourself before me, and it shall all be yours." That was the temptation to worship Lord Politics. Satan knew that Jesus had come to this earth out of love for the human race. He knew that Jesus wanted not only to save the world from sin (which was his primary mission); he knew that our Lord also wanted to make the world a better place for people to live in. And so Satan says to him, in effect, "Jesus, let me tell you how to do it: the answer is politics. Forget that conversion and repentance stuff; don’t bother telling people they need to give their hearts to God the Father—the solutions are all political. Get in power, change government structures, institute a few nice programs, and you’ll make the world a much better place for those little earthlings you say you love so much."

Jesus did not fall for the lie—but many people in our modern culture have! They think politics is the answer to everything! Every election year, for example, you hear people say, "If only our candidate gets elected--then things will really change for the better!" But no politician can be effective, my brothers and sisters, if the people he governs have no faith and no morals! All he can do is hire more police to try to stem the violence. Alan Keyes put it well in the last presidential election when he said, "America today does not have economic problems, it has moral problems." And, unfortunately, we are not alone in the world. Lord politics is worshipped almost everywhere these days.

Finally, Satan takes Jesus to the very top of the Temple in Jerusalem, and he says, "If you are the son of God, throw yourself down from here." That was the temptation to worship Lord Entertainment. In essence, Satan was saying, "Jesus, give them a show. You want these people to listen to you—then jump! For heaven’s sake, JUMP! Everyone will see it. The angels will catch you, just like it says in Psalm 91. Then you’ll get a standing ovation. You’ll be a hero! You’ll get an interview with Geraldo Rivera!" Jesus answered, "You shall not put the Lord your God to the test." Jesus would not pervert God’s truth for the sake of a few minutes of applause. But that happens all the time in our culture, doesn’t it? And it’s not just the programs like "Nothing Sacred" which openly attack the gospel. There are many popular songs, novels, magazines, and radio talk shows which also promote lies and immorality—sometimes in subtle ways, sometimes in not-so-subtle ways. And it’s all done for the sake of public acclaim and money. It’s done, in other words, out of reverence for Lord Entertainment. And what about the dirty jokes that Christians sometimes tell about the Church, or Catholic schools, or the sacraments? They tell these jokes to get a laugh, and in doing so they unknowingly bow down to this false god.