Gospel – John 2: 13 -22

Since the Passover of the Jews was near,
Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
He found in the temple area those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves,
as well as the money-changers seated there.
He made a whip out of cords
and drove them all out of the temple area, with the sheep and oxen,
and spilled the coins of the money-changers
and overturned their tables,
and to those who sold doves he said,
“Take these out of here,
and stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.”
His disciples recalled the words of Scripture,
Zeal for your house will consume me.
At this the Jews answered and said to him,
“What sign can you show us for doing this?”
Jesus answered and said to them,
“Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.”
The Jews said,
“This temple has been under construction for forty-six years,
and you will raise it up in three days?”
But he was speaking about the temple of his Body.
Therefore, when he was raised from the dead,
his disciples remembered that he had said this,
and they came to believe the Scripture
and the word Jesus had spoken.

Reflection on the Sunday Gospel

Let us remember we are in the holy presence of God.

Revel in the Revolution

      When I picture Christ, I picture him as though we share the same ethnic and racial facial traits – he is a young, bearded, white male. Christ, in reality, was a poor Jew from the countryside who ministered in Galilee. For some Americans today, if they saw Christ on the street, they may think he looks like a “stereotypical terrorist.” While Christ was not the terrorist some Americans would see him as today, he certainly created a revolution during his time.
Today’s Gospel exemplifies one of Christ’s rebellious ideologies. First, Jesus challenges those selling and trading goods in the temple. While this may be a public disturbance, Christ teaches the disciples and temple barters to treat God’s house as the holy place it was intended to be. Thus, it is fair to ask ourselves: what sacred spaces do we need to treat with respect? Reflecting on our bodies as temples, how do we treat our bodies as holy? Do we treat others’ temples with the dignity that they deserve? It might not take flipping over tables and casting away businessmen; small actions can sanctify the temples of our lives.
Jesus metaphorical description of the destruction of the temple promises the cleansing of our personal temples because of the Resurrection. Neither the Jews or disciples understood what Jesus meant by this at the time, but the author of John’s Gospel spells it out clearly for us – Jesus will make all things new when the temple is destroyed through his death. Only Christ was able to bring a revolution to antiquity through small actions of love and servant leadership. That is why we need to take the time to revel in His revolution.

Mr. Steven Patzke
Saint Raymond High School for Boys

Saint John Baptist De La Salle…Pray for us.
Live Jesus in our hearts…Forever.