March 4 -- Third Sunday of Lent

Reading 1, Exodus 20:1-17
Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 19:8, 9, 10, 11
Gospel, John 2:13-25
Reading 2, First Corinthians 1:22-25

Today’s Gospel is John’s account of Jesus’ cleansing of the Jerusalem Temple, the most sacred place in Judaism. The authors of Matthew, Mark and Luke place this event at the end of Jesus’ ministry, but John places it during Passover at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry.

Jesus strongly objected to all of the buying and selling going on in the outer courts of the Temple, because he saw faith being turned into a business.

And, as so often happens in John’s Gospel, people misunderstood what Jesus was saying to them. When he said, "Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up,” he was referring to his own body, not to the building. He would die and rise from the dead on another Passover.

What about his opposition to buying, selling and money-changing in the Temple? Has religion once again become a business? There are no easy answers. It’s clear that parish communities need money in order to function. It’s needed for building maintenance, for support of the pastor and staff, for religious education materials, for many of the ministries that go on in the parish, and especially for assisting people in need. But—if collecting money becomes our primary focus, we are in trouble, and Jesus needs to come and overturn our tables.

During this beautiful season, let us turn to Jesus in prayer and listen, really listen to what he has to say to us today. And let us do this as a community. One great example is the Discovering Christ program. Be sure to read Fr. Ed’s column about Discovering Christ in this week’s Assumption bulletin.