Our petition to God’s Spirit leads us away from sin and lead us not into temptation...

When people hear the word “temptation,” many automatically assume it refers to sexual temptation, since such temptation can be unrelenting. Over the years, this kind of temptation, not without its shame factor, has taken on numerous forms with the introduction of the internet and social media. Gone are the days when the temptation to view pornography meant leaving the comfort of one’s home and traveling, perhaps outside one’s neighborhood, to acquire illicit material. In our present culture, this industry has become a multi-billion dollar business. It now takes only a matter of seconds, in the privacy of one’s own home, to view such filth. No wonder this sin has become such a horrible blight on society.

There are many other kinds of temptation, though, like the temptation to bear false witness, or use illicit drugs, or lie or cheat, or misuse alcohol, or overeat or gossip (particularly on Facebook or other social media).

One great temptation is the pursuit of money. Of course, we all need money to live and we need to save funds for any responsibilities that may arise in the future. However, one important question to reflect on when pursuing riches is this: What will the real cost be to you? Saint Paul wrote to Timothy: “For the love of money is the root of all evils, and some people in their desire for it have strayed from the faith and have pierced themselves with many pains” (1 Timothy 6:10). Perhaps the “many pains” Saint Paul refers to are captured previously in Sacred Scripture as follows: “Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. So guard your heart against the deceitfulness of wealth”(Ecclesiastes 5:10)

Recently, a woman spoke with me about the temptation of rescuing horses for the specific purpose of making a quick buck by immediately placing the acquired animal up for auction. She apparently did not need the money, but wanted to see how much she could amass. I wondered whether she considered the real cost to both herself and, more particularly, to the original owner. Many do something similar with houses, when people are unable to pay their mortgages.

Opportunities to be tempted are all around us. In fact, it can be argued that there exists a hierarchy of temptations, some not so serious, and others very serious, being unethical, immoral or both.

The Catechism warns: “Our sins result from our consenting to temptation; we therefore ask our Father not to ‘lead’ us into temptation” (CCC 2846). Of course, God can never “lead us” into sin or into temptation. God always “wants to set us free from evil [and so] ...we ask Him not to allow us to take the way that leads to sin” (CCC 2846). We ask that He help prevent or otherwise not lead us into the temptation to sin.

Discernment, with the help of the Holy Spirit, enables us to distinguish be-tween trials “which are necessary for our interior growth” and temptation “which leads to sin and death” (CCC 2847). The same Holy Spirit assists us in discerning “between being tempted and consenting to temptation” (CCC 2847). And, lastly, “discernment unmasks the lie of temptation, whose object appears to be good, a ‘delight to the eyes’ and desirable, when in reality its fruit is death” (CCC 2847).

The next paragraph of the Catechism explains that this petition of the Lord’s Prayer implies “a decision of the heart” (CCC 2848). In fact, “such a battle and such a victory become possible only through prayer. It is by His prayer that Jesus vanquishes the tempter, both at the outset of His public mission and in the ultimate struggle of His agony” (CCC2849). In point of fact, “Christ unites us to His battle and His agony” in this petition to Our Father in Heaven. “He urges us to vigilance of the heart in communion with His own” (CCC 2849).

Our Blessed Lord’s constant call is that we be united to Him in all things, in every circumstance of our lives. When we embark upon temptation, often feeling isolated and teetering on feelings of disgust, our loving Savior provides the best of prayers that we might offer to the Father of all. We are not left to wallow in our sin, but are given the means to avoid it: “Lead us not into temptation.” In fact, Sacred Scripture even counsels married couples: “Do not deprive each other, except perhaps by mutual consent for a time, to be free for prayer, but then return to one another, so that Satan may not tempt you through your lack of self-control” (1 Corinthians 7:5)

This petition of the Our Father earnestly pleads that God’s Spirit of discernment and strength places us on the path that leads us away from temptation and the destructive power of sin. The tempter is always Satan, the evil one. Under no circumstances can God ever be the source of our temptations. Rather, He is the One who helps, “lead us not into temptation!”

“God cannot be tempted by evil and He Himself tempts no one; on the contrary, He wants to set us free from evil” (CCC 2846). Nonetheless, we are engaged in the battle “between flesh and spirit” (see Matthew 26:41). As stated in Scripture, in the Garden of Gethsemane before His crucifixion, when the apostles kept falling asleep, Jesus warned, “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak”(Matthew 26:41). Saint Paul tells us in his Letter to the Romans: “You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh, but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ” (Romans 8:9)

In short, this specific petition of the Lord’s Prayer “implores the Spirit of discernment and strength” (CCC 2846)to watch over, help and support the one seeking God’s assistance.

Father Hillier is director, diocesan Office of Pontifical Mission Societies, the Office for Persons with Disabilities and Censor Luborum