The Holy Temple
Nov. 24: Memorial of Saint Andrew Dung-Lac, Priest, and Companions, Martyrs
The ancient Temples1 are not the same as the churches we attend today. Christianity isn’t nearly as small a population, so we can’t all go to a central location, as the Jews did at the time of the Second Temple.
Yet, we’re allowed to encounter God in a direct way that the ancients didn’t have—the Eucharist! We should be grateful for that.
Reading 1
1 Mc 4:36-37, 52-59
Judas and his brothers said, "Now that our enemies have been crushed, let us go up to purify the sanctuary and rededicate it." So the whole army assembled, and went up to Mount Zion.
Early in the morning on the twenty-fifth day of the ninth month, that is, the month of Chislev, in the year one hundred and forty-eight, they arose and offered sacrifice according to the law on the new altar of burnt offerings that they had made. On the anniversary of the day on which the Gentiles had defiled it, on that very day it was reconsecrated with songs, harps, flutes, and cymbals. All the people prostrated themselves and adored and praised Heaven, who had given them success.
For eight days they celebrated the dedication of the altar and joyfully offered burnt offerings and sacrifices of deliverance and praise. They ornamented the facade of the temple with gold crowns and shields; they repaired the gates and the priests' chambers and furnished them with doors. There was great joy among the people now that the disgrace of the Gentiles was removed. Then Judas and his brothers and the entire congregation of Israel decreed that the days of the dedication of the altar should be observed with joy and gladness on the anniversary every year for eight days, from the twenty-fifth day of the month Chislev.
Here we see the origin of Hanukkah, a celebration of the victory of the Maccabean Revolt. This is when they built and dedicated the Second Temple, the one Jesus and His apostles attended.
The purpose of the Temple is to be a holy place;—“holy” meaning “set apart.” It’s not meant to be part of regular, daily life, but a place for encountering God. The Jews of 2nd Century BC celebrate their ability to have this sacred space. We’ll see what their descendants do with it a century and a half later in today’s Gospel.
Responsorial Psalm
1 Chr 29:10bcd, 11abc, 11d-12a, 12bcd
R. We praise your glorious name, O mighty God.
"Blessed may you be, O LORD,
God of Israel our father,
from eternity to eternity."
R. We praise your glorious name, O mighty God.
"Yours, O LORD, are grandeur and power,
majesty, splendor, and glory.
For all in heaven and on earth is yours."
R. We praise your glorious name, O mighty God.
"Yours, O LORD, is the sovereignty;
you are exalted as head over all.
Riches and honor are from you."
R. We praise your glorious name, O mighty God.
"You have dominion over all,
In your hand are power and might;
it is yours to give grandeur and strength to all."
R. We praise your glorious name, O mighty God.
David is singing this song after contributing many riches to the construction of the first Temple (which he won’t live to see). In a sense, David is giving these things back, because all of his riches and honor came from God in the first place.
Worship is, after all, a form of justice—what we owe to God.
Alleluia
Jn 10:27
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord;
I know them, and they follow me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
We go to mass and read the Bible to hear God’s voice. The way to show we’re listening is that we actually follow what we hear.
Gospel
Lk 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. The chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people, meanwhile, were seeking to put him to death, but they could find no way to accomplish their purpose because all the people were hanging on his words.
After the Maccabees went so much trouble consecrating the Second Temple, here there great-great grandchildren are using it as a shop to sell things. That’s not holy, not “set apart;” it’s just like any other building in the city.
Jesus comes in and asserts His authority—this is His Father’s house! He’ll see it respected.
The scribes and chief priests were jealous of that authority, but they couldn’t find any way to condemn Him. Why? Because He was right, and they knew it!
We should regard our churches the same way Jesus treated the Temple—a place for encountering God. We shouldn’t let anything interfere with that.
We read about Solomon’s and the Second Temple today.