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Temptation is an enticement to sin, either by something external, (a person, place, or thing) or by that natural inclination to evil inherent in everyone as a result of original sin. No matter how intense the temptation may be, nor how prolonged, there can be no sin unless consent is freely given. Since temptation is a test or a trial to virtue, it may be the cause of great merit. Although God allows us to be tempted by our spiritual enemies, He gives us the grace necessary to resist. St. Paul said, “God is faithful and will not permit you to be tempted beyond your strength, but with the temptation will also give you a way out that you may be able to bear it.” (I Corinthians 10: 13.) Why does God permit temptation? He wants us to merit Heaven. God could bestow eternal life as a pure gift, but His wisdom has willed that we merit it as a reward. He will reward us according to our merit. Temptation is an obstacle that we must overcome. When you conquer a temptation you choose God’s will over your own desires. Since temptation is such a difficult test, to struggle courageously against it is one of the most meritorious acts we can perform. We will not be crowned unless we labor and struggle. The more we have done in order to merit that heavenly crown, the greater shall be our degree of happiness. What does God see when a soul is undergoing a severe temptation? He sees a test similar to those endured by the martyrs of the faith. God showers martyrs and tempted souls with unique graces and looks upon them with infinite love and tenderness. God is very pleased when we remain steadfast as exemplified in Job’s patience amid his trials. When God sees a brave soul severely tested by temptation and yet resisting the evil enticement to sin and clinging to Him through love, He is well pleased. In the frightful moment of temptation, the faithful and steadfast soul is strengthened in virtue and obtains graces for other souls. When God desires a soul to grow in virtue, He often allows it to be tempted against that particular virtue. When He desires a soul to attain extraordinary and heroic virtue, God will allow the temptations to be extraordinary. Sometimes He allows us to endure sickness or humiliations in order to purify our souls. God’s ways are very different from our ways because He does so many things, the reverse of our poor judgment. It is a strange thing how little do Catholics, who make so much of devotion to the saints, really understand true sanctity. We read the lives of the saints and are filled with admiration. When we see their statues in our churches or their figures in stained glass windows we are induced to believe that they were not men and women, boys and girls of living flesh and blood as we are, but some kind of privileged being, some kind of angel in human form. Yet, when we understand them better we find that their lives were very similar to our own. The saints experienced the same kind of trials and temptations; the same sense of failure and shortcomings; the same disappointments. They also knew the weakness of human nature. The saints knew it as much from their own experience of themselves as from what they saw around them. St. Paul describes the spiritual combat in his epistles and encourages his followers to persevere. He bears witness to his great weakness. “For I am delighted with the law of God according to the inner man, but I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind and making me prisoner to the law of sin that is in my members.” (Romans 7: 22.) St. Paul tells us of his firsthand knowledge of temptation. The same may be said of all the saints. All of them who have left any record of their lives in writing tell us how they realized their own great weakness and how they feared for themselves in the face of their temptations. St. Augustine, a man who in his early life had fallen deeply into sin, after his conversion said, “Life spends itself in sorrowing, but there is no amendment.” He found it very hard to recover from his habitual sins and to the end of his life he felt the consequences of his early misdeeds. St. Teresa of Avila, who is noted for her intimate union with God in prayer, confessed that she was so beset with strong temptations for 17 years that she could scarcely hope to be able to persevere. St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori was to the end of his life so overcome with scruples and temptations as to be almost persuaded that God had foredoomed him to Hell. The saints were more like ourselves than we imagine; more like ourselves than the written lives of the saints sometimes let us see. For the written lives tend to dwell on their heroic deeds or extraordinary graces, they often do not tell us about their crosses and temptations. There is no easy road to Heaven, not even for the saints. Holy Scripture teaches, “The life of man upon earth is a [spiritual] warfare. (Job 7: 1.) It does not say that the saints are excepted. Everyone, whether saint or sinner, whether innocent or guilty, whether priest, Religious or layman, has his particular temptation to conquer and in that fight, in that conquest lies the secret of sanctity. A holy monk, named Moses lived as a hermit in Egypt. Having been tempted for a long time by demons, he resolved to visit St. Isidore the abbot to obtain consolation in his trials and strength to persevere. The abbot received him with great kindness and imparted to his afflicted soul all the comfort in his power, using the consoling words of Holy Scripture. Then he said to him, “My son, look towards the west and tell me what you behold.” Moses did so and he answered, “I see a great multitude of evil spirits preparing to attack me.” St. Isidore then said, “Now, turn toward the east. What do you see there?” Moses replied, “I behold an innumerable hosts of angels standing in the midst of a brilliant light prepared to come to my assistance to defend me.” The abbot then stated, “Behold, then, an image of the conflict in which you are now engaged. The number of your adversaries is indeed great, but who can count the multitude of angels God has sent to aid you?” This vision and the inspiring words of the abbot infused comfort and courage into the monk. I’ll close with a short story. In Scotland a circus was held that included a number of wild animals in iron cages. A great multitude of people had come to the circus to see them. Among these animals was a young lion that attracted special attention. The lion-keeper, desiring to enter the cage, opened the door and before he had time to shut it, the young lion quickly raced out of the cage into the midst of the crowd. Immediately, the crowd rushed for the exits of the enormous tent. Everyone, young and old, ran away to safety. Fortunately, the lion was soon captured and again placed in the cage, but the people did not return. They rushed to their homes and on the way formed a firm resolution of never exposing themselves to a similar danger. How differently do many people act when facing an even greater danger—the danger of losing their immortal souls. Instead of running away from the temptation by turning their mind away from it, they yield to the evil suggestion and commit sin. Learn from this example to flee immediately from temptation by praying the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary and you shall certainly persevere.
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Queen of Angels Catholic Church is located in Santa Clarita, California and draws parishioners to the Traditional Latin Mass (Tridentine Mass) from all over Southern CA and the Greater Los Angeles areas.
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