During Lent we are called to journey with Jesus as he remains in the desert for forty days. I am struck by the image of Jesus in today’s Gospel—wandering the desolate landscape, surrounded by wild beasts, being tempted by Satan—as a profoundly vulnerable one. It consoles me to know that, “the angels ministered to him,” showing us not even Jesus suffers alone. The love of his Father and the service of the angels help him through those long forty days. If the Son of God can’t go through times of tribulation alone, surely we cannot either.
A year ago I gave birth to my son. While I was filled with joy and gratitude for both of our good health, those first weeks of his life were still shockingly difficult. The sleepless nights were excruciatingly long, and the days blurred as I tried to feed him and heal myself. I could not have made it through that desert time without the help of the angels—my husband, my family, my friends—who ministered to us. As God sent angels to help Jesus through his dark times, so too does God send angels to serve us.
This Lenten season, look for the angels in your life who minister to you and make sure to serve as angels to others through their dark times. God’s love for us and our love for each other will get us through these forty days, and other desert times, after which we will celebrate in the light of Easter Sunday.
Victoria Garcia, MA’18
Victoria Garcia, MA’18 is the assistant director of Intersections at Boston College. She received a master’s degree in higher education from the Lynch School of Education and Human Development. She is passionate about working with faculty and staff to provide college students transformative college experiences through the context of the Jesuit, Catholic mission. Victoria was born in Montevideo, Uruguay, grew up in Miami, Florida, and now lives in Boston, Massachusetts, with her husband and their one-year-old son.