A Few Words On "The Word"

March 19, 2006
The Third Sunday of Lent

John 2: 13-25
(Wondering what happened to Mark? Good eye! Because the Gospel of Mark is so short, from time to time in the year of Mark-like today-we borrow from the Gospel of John.)

Should I Tear Up the Place?

Jesus? Yeah, I know him. He's that goody good guy who always obeys his mom, never gets mad, never messes up, never tires of doing good, always knows and believes without a doubt.

But wait. If this is the Jesus you know, then why's he tearing up the place here? And not just any place, but the Temple in Jerusalem-the most holy place of all? He makes a whip! He turns tables over and spills the cash registers on the floor! He yells at people and chases them out! Whazzup with this?!

Jesus is no wuss. Being holy like Jesus does not mean wussing out. Truth is, following Christ, building peace, is not always sweet. Being baptized requires toughening up, doing what needs to be done even if it means-especially when it means-tearing up the place, upsetting "decent people," protesting injustices, getting thrown in jail, being killed. Important: We don't go looking to get busted like this-that's sick, not Christian. But when we're doing what God wants, we do it, no matter the consequences.

Some scholars think that tearing up the Temple was the main reason why the Romans executed Jesus. The Romans didn't care about the religious stuff-Jesus claiming to be the Son of God. But they cared about rebelling. And they cared a lot about collecting taxes to pay for their wars in other parts of the world.

The problem was that Roman coins were stamped with the Emperor's mug, and the Emperor claimed to be god. (Uh, Commandment #2, anyone?) Faithful Jews didn't want to use Roman money-especially not when buying animals for sacrifice in the Temple. Jewish insurgents would often attack and burn down Roman tax offices.

So the rich politicos of Judea-in cahoots with the Romans-had this great idea. Allow the "little people" to use coins without the Big Guy's face on it, and pay their taxes, at the currency exchange in the Temple. The insurgents wouldn't attack the Temple for religious reasons. And of course, there's a finance charge...

Jesus wasn't having it. This system made the rich richer and the poor poorer. It corrupted religion by involving the Temple-and by inference the Living God!-in the military oppression of the people. So Jesus got mad and tore the place up.

But the in-crowd didn't get it. He said if they destroyed the temple, he'd rebuild it in three days. They thought "building." He meant "body." They thought "politics," "economics," "religious institutions," "the way things are." He meant "life." He meant "justice." He meant "love"-- love stronger than death. He meant "the way things could and ought and will be." The "little people," the "losers," "the geeks" all got it, even though they didn't understand it fully until after Easter. Get it?

And oh. Think Jesus always did what his mom told him? Check out Luke 2: 41-51. Never messed up? Mark 8: 22-25. Never tired of doing good? Mark 6:1-6. Never doubted, feared or was down? Mark 15: 33-37. Sometimes it's easier to believe that Jesus is truly God than it is to believe that he is also truly human.

Reflection Question

What situation today might require that we followers of Jesus stop being "nice" and tear the place the up-even if symbolically?

Join us in our Forum to discuss these questions!