Man Is Protector & Provider
Satan tempts man away from flourishing within his masculine gifts and responsibilities through deception and distraction. Man simply cannot be the protector and provider God created him to be if he does not first have mastery over his own desires and passions and the temptations Satan sends his way. When Jesus goes to the desert after His baptism, He is tempted for 40 days—temptations against His flesh, worldly possessions/power, and pride. With perfect virtue, Christ resists, staying faithful to the Father’s will.
In his apostolic exhortation to men called, Into the Breach, Bishop Olmsted unpacks about Jesus’ experience in the desert as it relates to our understanding of the masculine.
Temptation against the flesh: Satan firsts tempts Jesus to prematurely break His fast by encouraging Him to turn a stone into bread. Jesus holds steady with perfect self-mastery over his appetite. Why does this matter? The enemy attacks by appealing to our bodily desires—spiritual exercises such as fasting condition these muscles of self-mastery. When our appetites are met by virtue, we are less likely to give into temptations that violate our dignity or the dignity of those around us. For example, sexual desire must be met with a chaste heart to safeguard the dignity of both man and woman. Here, men must be held to the highest standard of Christ-like virtue—they must lead with chastity as the protectors they were created to be.
Temptation against possession and power: Second, Satan tempts Jesus with all the kingdoms of the earth and their glory, but Christ rejects such deception. How often is a man judged on the material life he provides for his family? Large home? Expensive cars? Top schools? Fancy vacations? In today’s culture, success, especially for men, is measured by the accumulation of the “things.” Man truly provides for his family when he forms a domestic church within which their necessary physical needs are met, and their spiritual life flourishes. Man cannot lead his family to eternal life with material wealth.
Temptation against pride: Third, Satan tempted Jesus to use His power for selfish purposes, but He rejected the very idea of glory without a cross. Christ accepted death on a cross to give suffering redemptive power. He knew the temptations we’d face, the crosses we’d carry, and the wounds we’d suffer. In today’s culture, men are chastised for embracing their God-given masculine gifts and duties. In weakness, this chastisement is met with machismo or relinquishing their male identity and expectations—pride deceives them into saying, “not your way God, my way.” God’s design for masculinity is the image of Christ—selfless, humble love, and love is never proud.
On this Corpus Christi Sunday, we are reminded that everything we long for, our hunger for love and happiness, is abundantly fulfilled through the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. This Sunday, let us pray for the faith of the men in our life that they humbly accept their God-given duties as protectors and providers, that they have the courage to grow in Christ-like virtue, especially in the face of temptation, and that they seek strength and sustenance to flourish as the men God created them to be through the gift of the Eucharist.
This week, as we meditate on the gift of Christ’s Body and Blood, we invite you to pray the Anima Christi, especially when receiving the Eucharist. We pray that the Lord’s precious Blood sanctifies and strengthens the men in our life as they strive to become the men God has created them to be. We pray Christ heals their wounds, defends them from the enemy, and keeps their hearts close to His, forever and ever.
Don’t forget to sit with your child and this week’s Pray, Grow, and Serve!
