Jn 2:13-25
No doubt, the merchants in the Temple were shocked by Jesus’ astonishing attack on the commercial situation that had evolved out of the Law’s mandate to offer sacrifice. It is hard to believe that they were not baffled and blind to the corruption and distortion of faith that Jesus was confronting and exposing.Most likely, the vast majority of the merchants started their job with a great deal of good will. Not only did they have an opportunity for a good job to support their family, they were able to express their faith and support the community of believers in professing their religious responsibilities and obligations. It surely started out for most as a win/win situation.
How did it come to the point that led to Jesus’ radical challenge: “Stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.” (Jn 2:16) These activities had slowly but inevitably moved away from service to God to service for profit. The pull of the deception of easy money ate away at the spiritual foundation of their ministry in support of the most sacred place of worship in the Jewish faith, the Temple in Jerusalem.
This misrepresentation and self-deception is a common experience for those involved in religion either as professional workers or as committed volunteers. The Golden Calf never is far from the surface in the world of religion or in any place dealing with the human heart. Money has an awesome pull that misleads and betrays in the service of God and religious institutions even though committed to an exalted goal.
The question is, how did the merchants in the Gospel story, along with us today, slip from the good-willed Temple workers and servants of the people to be servants of the Golden Calf and the profit motive.
The answer for the Temple workers and all of us is the deceptive power and demands of the ego. The ego’s agenda is to make us the center of all activities. When it comes to religion and spirituality, the ego has singular powers to deceive us. It produces false motives, drawing us away from service and sacrifice. The ego has despicable capabilities to center on the selfish motives rather than God’s priorities. It has determined the way of the world since Adam and Eve ate the apple. Of course, the ego’s power of deception is not limited to the religious sphere. All other facets of life are drawn to the deception and corruption of the Golden Calf.
Any movement away from the clutches of the Golden Calf is a demanding venture. Our Lenten tasks of prayer, fasting and almsgiving can be a great help in freeing us to walk with Jesus in new freedom and growing clarity.
There are many second and third level messages in John’s Gospel. Today one of these deeper messages is that Jesus is proclaiming a new order of worship. The cleansing of the Temple signifies a new order of worship that will center around the body of Christ. He is the new temple. Our Lenten journey is preparing us to celebrate the Pascal Mystery of Christ’s death and resurrection. John’s message is beckoning us to move on from the external piety and rituals of the old temple to a more insightful and truly spiritual worship centered in Jesus Christ. The cleansing of the Temple is really about the cleansing of our hearts so we may worship with a growing integrity that highlights the person of Jesus Christ.
Our celebration of Lent aims to facilitate this cleansing of our hearts and our worship. Our religious practice will always be in need of a purification and deliverance from the corrupting power of our basic selfishness. Today’s gospel is a call for authenticity and a Lenten conversion in our life as we journey with Jesus to Jerusalem these forty holy days.
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