RCL Lent 1A [i]
22 February 2026
Parish of Saint Helen’s West Point Grey
Vancouver BC
As I prepared for my final year in seminary, I hoped that I would be able to take one of Fr Griffiss’ famous final-year theology seminars. There were several reasons for their fame. First, Fr Griffiss was a great teacher. Second, he always chose topics that were unusual. And finally, the seminars were always held in his home and beer was served.
In my final year Fr Griffiss chose the topic of evil. Our first week was spent discussing what the seminar should be called. Are we talking about the ‘problem’ of evil? Are we talking about the ‘challenge’ of evil? Are we talking about the ‘origin’ of evil? We finally chose ‘the symbolism’ of evil.
Now it’s important to know what a symbol is. A symbol is a sign that draws us into the experience of something deeper than the sign itself. For example, if one of us were to knock down a stop sign, there would be consequences, but few feathers would be ruffled in the wider community. But, on the other hand, if one of us were to bring out a Canadian flag and either burn it or throw it on the ground to be trodden upon, then more than a few feathers would be ruffled. A stop sign is just a sign, but a flag is a symbol.
From the first moment that human beings became capable of distinguishing between one thing as good and another as evil, we have wondered how to grow in our ability to discern good from evil. Those of us who are people of religious faith have questioned why, if the universe is the creation of a loving God, evil exists at all. It is this question that our first reading today tries to answer.
In the Genesis narrative of creation, all that God creates is good. Human beings are created to tend the garden of creation and to enjoy its bounty. Only one thing is to be kept from our reach – the knowledge of good and evil. But, for reasons we do not know, God has placed a tree with this knowledge in the centre of the garden. Yet one of God’s creatures, the serpent, knows what is hanging on that tree and, for reasons that also remain mysterious, the serpent is prepared to subvert God’s purposes by seducing the two humans into eating that fruit. And the rest, as we say, is history.
To be able to discern what is good and what is evil is to become more God-like in being life-giving or being life-denying. But knowing how to discern between what is good and what is evil is acknowledge that we have the power to choose. We are not simply pawns on a chessboard subject to the will of unknown players. Why God would allow creatures such as ourselves to have such power remains an endless topic of speculation. But, in the end, it is a power we have and a power that we must learn how to wield. Both in the Scriptures and in Christian writings, this power is sometimes described as choosing between two paths.
When I think about discerning how to be more confident in choosing the good path, the path that is life-giving, I find myself returning to a verse from the prophet Micah where this precise question is asked and the prophet, speaking for God, responds: “[The Lord] He has told you, O mortal, what is good, and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice and to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God?” [ii]
Do justice and we will walk on the good path. Defining justice is not easy and often can descend into partisan debates. But I find a good working definition in one of our baptismal commitments: “Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?” [iii] When we respect the dignity of every human being, victim and perpetrator, friend and foe, family and stranger, we are on the path of justice. For example, no one can deny the tragedy of the shootings in Tumbler Ridge, and we join with people throughout this country and the world who mourn and pray for the victims and their families and friends. But justice demands that we also consider the perpetrator and ask questions about how she and perhaps others in remote communities throughout our province and country do not have access to the mental health supports that might prevent such violence from become an outlet to their inner turmoil.
Love kindness and we will walk on the good path. Once again, I find some guidance in the baptismal covenant: “Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbour as yourself?” [iv] In the Hebrew of Micah, the word used is love chesed. Chesed can be translated in many ways, one of which is ‘steadfast love’ or ‘never-failing love’. Chesed is the love God shows to us, a commitment to the long haul, we might say, not just a convenient act of generosity when it suits us. In his letter to the Christians in Philippi, one of my favourite New Testament texts, Paul gives what I think is a good description of ‘loving kindness’:
If, then, there is any comfort in Christ, any consolation from love, any partnership in the Spirit, any tender affection and sympathy, make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or empty conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests but to the interests of others. [v]
When Jeffrey was ordained to the diaconate, the bishop told him, “At all times, our life and teaching are to show Christ’s people that in serving the helpless they are serving Christ himself.” [vi] What was said to Jeffrey was also said to all of us, so that we might walk the good path.
Walk humbly with God and we will walk on the good path. Once again, the baptismal covenant calls us in this way: “Will you persevere in resisting evil and, whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord?” [vii] Whenever we see arrogance and self-interest claim precedence over humility and the common good, we can be sure that we are seeing the road signs to the evil path. When Paul in his letter to the Galatians speaks about the fruits of the Spirit, he might as easily be describing the signs of humility:
By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. . . . If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another. [viii]
When we see these things, when we experience these things in ourselves, we are walking on the good path.
Earlier this week a quotation from Stuart McLean, the Canadian storyteller, came across my Facebook feed. His words capture, in my view, the good news of choosing the way of life rather than the way of death, the Christ-like path rather than the counterfeit path often put before us in our daily lives. I give Stuart the final say.
It is not said enough. So, I’ll say it again: The world is a good place full of good people. And when we act out of that, when we act out of hope and optimism, and faith in our fellow human, we act out of our best selves. And we are capable of doing great things, and of contributing to the greater good. Hope and optimism are not synonymous with naivety. We should be looking to the future with flinty and steely eyes, for sure, but they should be wide open with hope, not squinting in fear. [ix]
[i] Genesis 2.15-17, 3.1-7; Psalm 32; Romans 5.12-19; Matthew 4.1-11.
[ii] Micah 6.8 (NRSVue).
[iii] The Book of Alternative Services (1985), 159.
[iv] The Book of Alternative Services (1985), 159.
[v] Philippians 2.1-4 (NRSVue).
[vi] The Book of Alternative Services (1985), 655.
[vii] The Book of Alternative Services (1985), 159.
[viii] Galatians 5.22, 25-26.
[ix] Stuart McLean, The Vinyl Café Notebooks as quoted at https://thecaptivereader.com/2011/05/24/the-vinyl-cafe-notebooks-stuart-mclean and accessed on 21 February 2026.
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