On Sunday, February 22, 2026, the town of Musoma in Mara Region, Tanzania, began the day with heavy rainfall. The ground was completely soaked, and Mwanakwetu could not tell whether this was the long rainy season or the short rains.
When Mwanakwetu woke up and looked at his clothesline—where he had hung clothes the previous day—everything was damp, as if freshly washed. Because of the rain, he was unable to attend the first Mass at 6:30 a.m., since he did not have an umbrella at home. He therefore decided to attend the second Mass instead.
While waiting for the rain to subside, he checked the weather forecast, which showed that in Musoma the temperature was 22°C, humidity was 70%, the chance of rain was 78%, and the wind was blowing at 6 km per hour. Mwanakwetu observed that when humidity and the probability of rain approach 100%, rainfall is almost certain.
He then traveled to St. Augustine Church, Mwisenge Parish, in the Catholic Diocese of Musoma for the second Mass. Upon arrival, the Mass was being led by Father Julius Ogolla, who informed the congregation that this was the First Sunday of Lent. Among the names mentioned for prayers for the deceased was Polycarp Cardinal Pengo.
When the time for the homily arrived, Father Ogolla spent 36 minutes developing his sermon. He began by speaking about the woman who was deceived by the serpent and ate the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden.
“Sin has existed since Adam and Eve, but the law cannot help us overcome sin, because sin began before the law. When God created humanity in the Garden of Eden, He gave Adam the responsibility of naming all the animals. Later, seeing that Adam was lonely, He brought him a woman. When the woman arrived in the garden, trouble followed. You, woman, found Adam living peacefully with his animals; you arrived and brought division. Instead of building good relationships, you cooperated with the serpent.
One might ask: why didn’t the serpent approach Adam to deceive him? The serpent knew the woman was more susceptible. When God first created Adam, He told him he could eat from any tree in the garden except the tree in the middle—he must not touch it, pick from it, or eat its fruit. Even when Eve came, she was informed of this prohibition. As Adam was telling Eve about the prohibition, the serpent heard. Then the serpent approached Eve and said, ‘If you eat this fruit, you will not die; you will be like God.’ Eve did not realize that when God created humanity, He created them in His own image. Eve touched, picked, and ate the fruit, and then gave some to Adam.”
This temptation of Eve still exists today; women continue to face such temptations. Perhaps they no longer come from a serpent, but from tempters. Today’s temptations for women are many. Among them is HUNGER—a mother who is hungry may do anything.
The second temptation is WEALTH—a woman may do anything to obtain wealth.
The third temptation is POWER. For example, if a wife hears that her husband is involved with another woman, it becomes a serious matter; she may do anything, because another woman has invaded her authority and her territory.
Today’s world has many cases—especially many killings—caused by HUNGER, WEALTH, and POWER. Here in Mara Region, we have many minerals; how many people are killed so that others may obtain those minerals? You hear that mining sites are emerging everywhere in Mara—how many people are dying there?
HUNGER, WEALTH, and POWER greatly trouble women—and indeed they trouble humanity as a whole.”
Father Julius Ogolla told the faithful that human life is full of temptations. During this Lenten season, we must strive to overcome them. He urged believers to fast without making excuses, because whether it is HUNGER, WEALTH, or POWER, all of these are only worldly things.
The homily concluded, and Mass continued to its end, while the humid weather continued to blanket Musoma.
When Mwanakwetu returned home, he also listened to Cardinal Luis Tagle, head of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples (Propaganda Fide), who said:
“We have entered the holy season of Lent. On its first Sunday, we are invited to reflect on the temptations Jesus faced. After His baptism, the Spirit led Him into the desert where He prayed and fasted for 40 days. There, the devil tempted Him to prove He was the Son of God by satisfying His hunger and by testing God’s faithfulness to His promises. The devil offered Him all the wealth, power, and kingdoms of the world if Jesus would worship him.
My brothers and sisters, we know this Gospel story. Temptation is an invitation to build our lives on ourselves. Jesus confronted temptation by grounding Himself in the Word of God. Thus, He remained courageous and defeated the devil. But do we follow Jesus’ path? When we face daily temptations, let us root ourselves in the Word of God. Let us respond as the Lord did: ‘Go away, Satan.’ The Word of God brings life. God is faithful, and there is no other God but Him. O God, grant us the grace to rely on Your Word in times of temptation. For You are faithful, and You alone are God. Amen.”
Are you there, Mwanakwetu? Remember:
“Hunger, Wealth, and Power are all only of this world.”
I wish you a good day.
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