3rd Sunday of Lent
My dear parishioners,
God is Good!!! All the time!!! And all the time!!! God is Good!!!
During their long stay at Mt. Sinai, the people of Israel receive instructions as God’s covenant partners. The Ten Commandments address issues that had marred human relationships with God and neighbor since creation. If the people of Israel succeed in obeying these commandments, those relationships will heal dramatically.
The first thing to notice is that the cleansing of the temple comes at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry in the Gospel of John. The synoptic Gospels place it in conjunction with Jesus’ passion. While historically the synoptics are probably more accurate, John’s purpose is theological indicating how the risen Lord and his authority has replaced the authority of the Temple.
The action of Jesus in the Temple. Only John mentions the oxen, sheep, and doves being sold in the temple area as well as Jesus having made a whip of cords. The action of Jesus is a prophetic act that points beyond the buying and selling. The commerce is not the problem. The issue is in fact the entire temple system which Jesus, by his actions, symbolically condemns. The key to interpret Jesus’ action in the Temple is the quote from Ps 69:9, “Zeal for your house will consume me.” Here “consume me” refers to Jesus’ crucifixion.
The misunderstanding. The Jews do not understand what Jesus has done and therefore they challenge his authority by requesting a sign. This, of course, leads to a misunderstanding which is a method John’s Gospel uses to move the reader below the surface of the story where the deeper meaning lies. The misunderstanding centers on the meaning of Jesus’ comment about destroying this temple and he will raise it up again in three days. The Jews take Jesus’ words literally whereas they are meant to be understood symbolically. Jesus is talking about “the temple of his body.”
The disciples remember. While all this action was unfolding, even the disciples are not sure what Jesus is doing or what it means. It is only later, when they are able to reflect back in light of their experience of the resurrection, that they grasp what Jesus meant. It is through this remembrance that the disciples came to believe the Scripture and the word Jesus had spoken. The story concludes with reference to many people believing in Jesus based on the signs he was doing. Jesus, however, is not taken in by this at all. He knows how fickle this surface commitment is. These people are merely sign chasing and Jesus knows this full well and so he has no intention of trusting himself to them.
Excerpts from “Sunday Homily Helps”, is used by permission of Franciscan Media. www.FranciscanMedia.org.©2018. All rights reserved
Sincerely in Christ,
Fr. Aloysius