Word to the Wise
Friday, November 22, 2013 - Friday in the 33th Week in Ordinary Time
[1 Macc 4:36-37, 52-59 and Luke 19:45-48]Jesus entered the temple area and proceeded to drive out those who were selling things, saying to them, "It is written, My house shall be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves." And every day he was teaching in the temple area.
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2013 ST. CECILIA, martyr
In 70 A.D., the Roman army attacked and destroyed Jerusalem and, especially, the temple! This amounted to a physical, moral and spiritual catastrophe to Judaism! The temple was more than a magnificent building. It was the place where God dwelled with God's people, where sacrifice and pilgrimage took place, and where the Torah was taught. The Gospel of Luke was put into writing not long afterward and Luke is trying to interpret the significance of this event in terms of the life of Jesus for the new community of Christian faith.
There is no question that Jesus' action in disrupting the life of the temple served as a catalyst for the Jerusalem religious authorities to find a way to get rid of him. But the significance of his actions escaped his adversaries. History shows that the temple was continually in need of reform because those who were in charge would become corrupt. Occasionally idols from other religious cultures made their way into the precincts! [Read those passages from Maccabees that have been the first scriptures for the past few days.] Many messianic prophecies foretold that the Messiah would restore the temple to its proper glory.
With this in mind, we see that Jesus comes and "cleanses" the temple and then teaches there every day. These are "messianic" actions. In doing so, he shows that God does truly live among God's people who become the new temple of God! The temple building is destroyed but God's temple is not. God continues to dwell with the people through the Holy Spirit. Judaism did survive the destruction of the temple. Christianity also survived the death of Jesus. The Gospel of Luke gives us a perspective to understand how this all occurred. From it all, the lesson of enduring faith as the true temple of God shines out! We have St. Peter's in Rome but we also have humble mission churches. They remain buildings until faithful gather to worship! AMEN