The Shadow Side
Dear Sutton and Savannah,
Rules are helpful in that they set boundaries. And, I truly hope that some of the boundaries we set as parents were helpful. However, rules don’t typically help with desire. Actually, if there is a true desire, rules against it probably just add fuel to the flame. And if you want to turn the flame into an inferno, keep the desire a secret. I wish all of us were better at talking about the very human nature of desire, impulses and emotional reactions. I think that in isolation they quickly become toxic, but when integrated they become incredible sources of energy for movement and growth. My generation could use a lot of help from your generation in doing this.
-Dad
Inside Out Lectionary Letters
Year A - 1st Sunday in Lent (Texts, Art, Hymns)
Readings for February 22, 2026
Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7 / Psalm 32 / Romans 5:12-19 / Matthew 4:1-11
Summary of Matthew 4:1-11
The journey of Jesus into the wilderness, to be tempted, is found in this weeks gospel reading. The story follows Jesus’s baptism and precedes the beginning of what has come to be described as his public ministry. The wilderness is likely a desert area between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea. The area was remote enough to feel alone, close enough to the temple for the second temptation and walking distance from a higher-altitude lookout to see expansive space in the third temptation. Jesus fasted for an extended period of time and the temptations he experienced have powerful implications for the inner journey.
Scripture as a Mirror of the Soul
The wilderness or desert is a great description of the unconscious. Jesus was led to this place. It was not a punishment, a place of shame, nor a place of exile. It was a place where he felt led. Likewise, the divine leads us again and again to the expanse of the unconscious. It is the path for expanded spiritual understanding, a necessary experience for greater self-awareness, and creates the conditions for the reformation of identity. The exploration of the unconscious allows us to face our shadow side, and in so doing we begin to see ourselves through a new lens.
The unconscious breaks through in numerous ways. This often happens when we feel the emotions associated with not being in control; fear, anger, embarrassment, shame, exuberance, surprise, nervous laughter. It occurs when our response is grossly out of proportion to the circumstances that elicited our response. And it occurs at night when the defense mechanisms are down and the unconscious creates unexpected storylines and images in dreams. Here, on the path between the conscious and the unconscious, we often meet the shadow side of our self.
There are many temptations the shadow side presents to us. The first is to ignore it, which is particularly dangerous in that it can create havoc in the inner spaces of the unconscious as it clamors for our attention. We are also tempted to surrender to it, giving in to compulsions, urges and desires with no boundaries or guardrails. The movement toward spiritual wholeness is integration.
The passage tells us that Jesus was tempted. There is no temptation unless there is an energy within that desires that which is being offered. Jesus didn’t deny the desire or the impulse. He was hungry. Bread sounds good when you are hungry. He desired power. Power is attractive when you feel powerless. And the acclaim or allegiance of others was appealing, all the more so when one feels alone.
The shadow side invites us into the inner conversation of identity. We are constantly tempted to center our identity around our basic needs (food, shelter, clothing), or our position of power (vocation, role, title), or the way others think of us (acclaim, followers, family-of-origin memories). The shadow side forces the conversation about our true identity, encourages us to remove the mask, and invites us to explore the divine impulse and rhythms of the authentic inner self.