FEAST OF THE DEDICATION OF THE LATERAN BASILICA (YEAR C)

1st Reading          Ezekiel 47: 1-2, 8-9, 12

Psalm                    46: 2-3, 5-6, 8-9 (R. 5)

R://"The waters of a river give joy to God's city, the holy place, the dwelling of the Most High"

2nd Reading        1 Corinthians 3:9c-11, 16-17

Gospel                   John 2:13-22

THE WATERS OF HOPE FLOW TO US

Friends, Peace and Goodness! Today, we were to celebrate the 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). However, today is the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica. The Lateran Basilica was built by Emperor Constantine in 324AD. It is the "Mother Church," the first of Rome's Constantinian basilicas, the seat of the Bishop of Rome (the Pope). We celebrate not only the Lateran Basilica as a Church but what the Church as a building stands for and what significance each individual Church holds for the building up of our faith. Interestingly, this feast falls on the 2nd Sunday of November, a month the Church dedicates to praying for the faithful departed. Thus, this celebration becomes a reminder that from the Church flows life and hope, even to those who await full union with God. Let us go into the readings of the day.

The first reading is from Ezekiel 47:1-2,8-9,12. This is part of the account of Ezekiel's vision of the Temple. The part of the vision we read today is that water flows from the threshold or beneath the Temple towards the East. The imageries in the vision are very big elements for further deep reflection. However, let us take a few. 

Let us look at water. I suggest that it holds a key to unlocking a mystery for us today. Water is a double image. It is an image of life and one of destruction, taking events of Noah's day into consideration. Let us stick to its image as of life. The very fact that the water flows from the Temple mirrors the life-giving power of God. This is very important because Ezekiel was in exile in Babylon at the time he had this vision. A lot had gone wrong. The Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed in 587 BC. The fact of having a vision of the Temple, even while in exile, is itself a glimpse of hope of the end of exile. All shall be well. Life will be restored. Life proceeds from God's dwelling place. That is the power also of worship. 

In fact, the mention of the direction of the flow of the water should also strike a cord. The author mentions its direction as EAST. Why is this significant? The Israelites are in Babylon. The interesting thing is that Babylon is actually to East of Jerusalem. If water from the Temple is flowing to the East, we should begin to understand that God has something hopeful for the exiles. God's graces reach towards us in whatever circumstance we find ourselves. Aside from this, the Sun also rises from the East and indicates the morning, which is the image of new life. The East is actually rich. But, I suggest that we see ourselves also in the East. In the East, we can receive the grace that flows from the dwelling of God.

The second detail from the first reading is that the water from the Temple flows into the Arabah. This is interesting. The Arabah is the desert. The condition here is an image of dryness and lifelessness. The Arabah, I suggest, describes the conditions of exile. Exile is difficult and almost compared to a lifeless state of life. That is the direction life is going. That is the life-giving power of God from the Temple. 

The third element is that the water empties itself into the polluted waters of the sea to freshen them (Ezek. 47:8). The Hebrew word translated as FRESH in the text is RAPHA. Interestingly, "rapha" means to "heal". What is happening is that water from the Temple is healing whatever is contaminated. In the case of the exiles, those who are wounded are healed. In fact, the sea being referred to in the text is the Dead Sea. The problem is that the Dead Sea has a very high salt content. The implication is that it cannot support life. There is lifelessness here again. The nature of the Dead Sea also describes the conditions of the exiles. Conditions around them cannot support life. It is the water from the Temple that heals the situation. This life from the Temple affects all creation. The effect is abundance of food and healing, which means that God provides both physical and spiritual solutions to our individual exiles. 

Let us drink deeply from the Gospel passage from John 2: 13-22. This is a very famous passage of Jesus driving out traders from the Temple. We need to understand that the event is not happening in the Temple itself, but outside, its area. This is because the Greek word used to describe the Temple itself is "Naos", but the area surrounding the Temple is "hieron". In the passage, John uses the Greek word "hieron" to describe the place where the event took place. Buying and selling were allowed to take care of the needs of travellers and to ensure the sacrifice of unblemished animals. In fact, the author says Passover was approaching (Jn. 2:13). You would naturally expect more people in Jerusalem, especially travellers, including Jews living outside home. They return because they are obliged to return and celebrate the three pilgrimage feasts. The Passover is one of them (Exodus 23:17; Deut. 16:16). In essence, buying and selling were to ease the burden of carrying animals long distances and avoiding the risk of bringing in a defective animal for sacrifice. 

Capitalising on the festivity and the population, the sellers would increase prices exorbitantly. What should be life-easing becomes a burden. In fact, the poor cannot afford the animals. In effect, some cannot offer sacrifices. Also, because business was being transacted in the Temple area, these individuals disrupted the worship in the Temple. Hence, focus is being shifted from worship to business. 

Jesus, in driving them out, said: "Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father's HOUSE a MARKETPLACE" (Jn. 2:16). We find the same passage of driving out sellers in the other Gospels (Matt. 21:12-17; Mk. 11:15-19; Lk. 19:45-48). While these ones, the Synoptic Gospels, mention "den of thieves," the author of the Gospel according to John mentions "marketplace". The Greek word the author used there is EMPORION. "Emporion" is not only a marketplace, but one recognised and permanently established as one. The implication is that whatever goes on there becomes a cycle. 

In order not to shift the focus from worship onto business, Jesus drove them away. We cannot make the house of God like the common places. We need to draw a clear line between them. The house of God must carry its sacredness. Let us not destroy the life-giving source either by cheating others or by obstructing their worship. We need to maintain the identity of our worship and the dignity of the house of God. The essence of the Temple is to offer life. Our activities around it should further this life. The presence of God cannot and should not be a burden. Life should flow out. We are agents of it. 

Finally, in Genesis 2:10, the author tells us that "a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden". The author tells us that Jesus spoke of the Temple of his Body (Jn. 2:21). That takes us directly to John's account of the crucifixion. Jesus' side was pierced, and blood and water flowed out (Jn. 19:34). Water flowing from Jesus' side on the cross makes us know that the vision of Ezekiel of the flowing of the water from beneath the Temple finds fulfilment in Jesus' death. The water flows to all and redeems all creation from the exile of sin and death.

Pax et Bonum