Dear friends in Christ

We read the Gospel of this Sunday that Jesus expressed a righteous indignation at the way the Temple was being used for commercial gain: Making a whip out of some cord, he drove them all out of the Temple, cattle and sheep as well, scattered the money-changers’ coins, knocked their tables over and said to the pigeon-sellers, ‘Take all this out of here and stop turning my Father’s house into a market.’ Then his disciples remembered the words of scripture: ‘Zeal for your house will devour me.’

By referring to the destruction of the Temple and it’s rebuilding in three days, Jesus was looking beyond the physical building to that of His own body, which would be raised up on the third day after His death. His risen body is the new sanctuary of God’s presence, the new true temple. It is no longer necessary to enter a sacred building such as the temple in Jerusalem, to meet with God. We need only to turn to Jesus, our risen Lord, and he is not confined to the physicality of a temple or a sanctuary or a church. He can be found anywhere. In fact, after Jesus’ resurrection, the followers of Jesus who lived in Jerusalem continued to worship in the temple, but they also worshipped together in one another’s homes. The communities of believers to whom Paul wrote his magnificent letters all lived a long way from Jerusalem. They gathered together for prayer and the Eucharist in the homes of those members of the community who had the space to accommodate others. There would be no church buildings for almost another three hundred years when Christianity was officially recognised by the Roman emperor Constantine.

As we make the pilgrimage through Lent, we remind ourselves of the need to purify the temples that are our own bodies, so that we are found worthy to receive the Living God, both now, and at the the time of His calling us.

God bless you!

Msgr Kevin Hale