The Cleansing of Jerusalem’s Temple
Jn 2:13-22

It has been reported repeatedly in the media that immediately after Pope Francis’ election, he has been rolling up his sleeves, at least figuratively. The Holy Father has so far been doing some house cleaning, beginning with the Vatican Bank, tackling scandals involving the sexual abuse of children around the world, dismissing a Paraguayan bishop accused of protecting a priest suspected of sexually abusing children, and suspending a ‘bling German bishop’ for luxury lifestyle.

Some people are likening Pope Francis to Jesus himself, by comparing his actions to the story in Jn:2-13-22, the cleansing of the temple where he threw the moneychangers out of the temple in Jerusalem.

What is meant to be a house of prayer becomes a den of thieves (Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:46; Isaiah 56:6-7; Jeremiah 7:11). All kinds of distractions came into the Temple, moneychangers and corrupt influences, those who turned people away from God.

Christian theologians and other spiritual writers have also made a comparison between Jesus’ cleaning of the temple in Jerusalem, and Jesus; cleaning of our hearts and bodies. St Paul refers to the body as a “temple of the Holy Spirit”. In other words ourselves, our body, our whole person is meant to be a temple, a holy place where God dwells and where prayer and union with God is central. It is a beautiful image: rightly ordered, we become temples of the Holy Spirit.

So what is wrong with the temples of our souls? What distractions and corruptions have come into the temple of my heart and body? What would Jesus do to overturn my heart if he had a chance?

One could also see that Jesus was filled with a deep devotion and love for his Father and the things of his Father. His disciples recognised in Jesus a passionate figure – one who was committed to life and to losing it for the sake of truth and fidelity.

Are we filled with a deep and burning love for the things of God and for his Son, Jesus?

May the Lord purify the sanctuary of our hearts, and build us up as living stones into a holy temple. May we be filled with consuming zeal for the house of the Lord, our Church, and our Sacraments. May our communion with the Church of Rome confirm us as a vibrant, loving, hospitable universal Church, a place of welcome for all who seek God’s face.

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