The Fruit of Lent

The evangelists tell us that after his baptism, Jesus retired for forty days in a deserted place, solitary and inaccessible, where only the wild beasts lived. (Mk 1:13)

After the episodes at the Jordan, the Poor One of Nazaret left the savage scenery of Judea and moved on to the pleasant region of his native Galilee. From now on, everything would be different in both style and content.

Jesus does not draw impassioned crowds into the solitude of the desert like the Baptizer, but he himself goes out to meet the people, moving like a shepherd and troubadour, a wandering pilgrim, in the plazas and marketplaces, in their small synagogues, in the exterior esplanade of the Jerusalem temple area.

The Poor One of Nazareth has no fear of the tide of happiness, the Alleluia resounds over our roofs. Everything is now different.

The proclamation of the Kingdom will no longer be a call for divine judgement which would take place in the near future. No. Salvation is decided and accomplished in the present; and is not the result of a terrible penance like that publicly commended by John the Baptist, but a gift offered by the Father.

Extracted from the book “The Poor one of Nazareth”, by Fr. Ignacio Larrañaga