THIRD SUNDAY OF LENT
“Stop turning my Father’s house into a market”
When Jesus shows anger, we should take notice. What gave rise to His deep anger in this episode in the Temple? Firstly, ordinary people coming as pilgrims for the Feast of Passover were being exploited by the moneychangers. Secondly, the trading in the Court of the Gentiles was preventing these people from finding a space to worship in what should
be a House of Prayer for all people. In all of this, the House of God was being disrespected greatly. In Old Testament Times, God always had a designated
place in which to meet His people from Abraham a Bethel to Moses at the burning bush to Solomon in his temple. The meeting place within garden as people was always holy ground. It still is. While it is true that God can be in the “book of creation” and
in the faces of people, we should have a heightened sense of awareness, reverence, dignity and respect for His special presence in His house. It’s beannaithe Tigh Dé.
“The House of God is not a place where people meet in a trivial spirit of festivity. There should be religious awe in being face to face with God” (Cardinal Robert Sarah). When Jesus shows anger we need to take notice.
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