Memorial of Saint Andrew Dung-Lac, Priest, and Companions, Martyrs

 Lectionary: 501

Jesus entered the temple area and proceeded to drive out those who were selling things, saying to them,
"It is written, 

My house shall be a house of prayer,

but you have made it a den of thieves."

When the Jewish exiles returned to Jerusalem after their captivity in Babylon, they discovered they could not recreate the religion their ancestors had known. Seventy years had passed; few if any remembered the way things had been. They were children and grandchildren of exiles who had never seen this (ruined) city. Nor could they restore their independent nation; Israel would not reappear until 1948. David's descendants would claim their title but their royal lineage was little more than a family heirloom. 

Their religion had become a private matter observed in families and local synagogues. Although the city rebuilt the temple and resumed the sacrifice of oxen and sheep, pigeons and turtledoves with Levite priests, most Jews lived abroad. They were scattered from India to Spain; in Asia, Africa, and Europe. They kept the ancient faith by adapting the Law of Moses to the new circumstances, by keeping a kosher diet, studying the law and prophets, and singing the psalms. 

Unexpectedly, they had admirers. Gentiles wanted to worship their God and to practice their religion. These strangers had no ancestors who were exiles in Jerusalem, much less slaves in Egypt. They spoke different languages with odd accents and their features were not familiar. 

Plus, some eunuchs wanted to pray with the Jews. These royal officials, castrated as children and assigned to service in  the imperial government, were capable and had connections. They were the kind of friends everyone wants in high places. The Law of Moses had explicitly ruled they should not be allowed "in the assembly of the Lord." 

Fortunately, the spirit of prophecy remained with the returned exiles and a new Isaiah announced, 

To the eunuchs who keep my sabbaths, who choose what pleases me, and who hold fast to my covenant, I will give them, in my house and within my walls, a monument and a name.

And to the strangers without Jewish ancestry, the prophet said, 

And foreigners who join themselves to the LORD,
to minister to him,
To love the name of the LORD,
to become his servants—
All who keep the sabbath without profaning it
and hold fast to my covenant,
Them I will bring to my holy mountain
and make them joyful in my house of prayer;
Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices
will be acceptable on my altar,
For my house shall be called
a house of prayer for all peoples.

The old ways of thought did not disappear; a religion as widespread as post-exilic Judaism could not be expected to agree about everything overnight. Levites still offered sacrifices in the old style; and and there was an expectation that a once-and-future King David would restore properly accredited priests to the temple and kings to the Jewish throne. And the day would come when every nation would worship the God of the Jews. They would study the wisdom of the Torah and the teachings of the Mishnah and Talmud. 

And there were new problems. The world had entered the temple, especially in the form of merchants selling sacrificial animals, and money-changers who accepted foreign currencies in exchange for Jewish coin. The scene in the outer areas of the temple could get pretty raucous. It surprised and sometimes scandalized the innocent, pious pilgrims who came from near and far to worship the Holiness of God. Where they expected an awe-inspiring silence, they found the cacophony of the bazaar. Where they expected the happy generosity, they found skinflints and connivers. Some people, including the Nazarene Jesus, found it unbearable. 

In Saint Luke's version of the story, Jesus's citation of Isaiah demands a renewal of Israel. We should be a holy people, a holy temple, and a holy city. Everyone who comes near us should feel the Holiness of God's presence. As so many of us feel saddened, silenced, and stupefied by the continuing distress of this world, we hear Jesus remind us of our best gift. The world needs us, people who are living stones of God's house. Now more than ever.