The word “tame” in our culture usually connotes or refers to an animal that has been domesticated.  But if you look up the definition of the word, you will also find that to “tame” means to subdue, to cultivate, to bring under control, to inhibit, rein in, tone down, to deprive of spirit. The Greek domnanai (to tame) means “to conquer.” The antithesis of this word from which we get the word “adamant,” means to “not conquer” or to be “invincible.” One who is “tamed” is trained to obey other people. One who is wild on the other hand is in Greek a “therion” –a wild beast, untamed, savage, one given free reign.

Today’s scripture reads a bit like a Tarzan story. Immediately after Jesus’ baptism, he is driven into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit, where he spends forty days in the wild, tempte…