Parish Lent Focus 2012


"Building A Temple of Grace"
The image of the Temple is often used in the scriptures. The Temple of Jerusalem – the same one where Jesus taught yet from which he also ‘cast out’ the money changers – was (and still is) the center of the Jewish faith. As such, it was also their symbol of identity – to the extent that it was later destroyed by the Romans as part of an attempt to wipe out the Jews as a people.

But we are more interested in the idea of the temple as a metaphor. Jesus himself indicated this when he said “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.” His followers took his words literally and were confused – how could Jesus rebuild in three days a destroyed temple that took 46 years to construct? But scripture says, “. . . he was speaking about the temple of his body.”

So, this Lent, let us reflect on the symbol (or metaphor) of building a ‘Temple’. Temples are deliberately constructed – they are not accidents. They are built one block upon the other, with the stability and strength of each level dependent upon its lower foundation. Temples are holy places, worthy of respect and care. They are also expressions of faith, which we hope will be worthy of the God we worship. Temples are built to be beautiful, to be loved, to last for eternity.

If we start from Jesus’ metaphor, we can look at three levels to play this out:
1 - First there is the temple of Jesus’ body – in retrospect we understand now, as the apostles later did, that Jesus body was destroyed in the Crucifixion and raised up in glory after three days – through which we as the Church now have the possibility of forgiveness of our sins should we truly repent.
2 - Secondly there is the temple of the Church – not the building but the Church through all time and places, through which Christ gives his saving grace to the world. As baptized members of this Body of Christ, we participate in building up the Church in the world through our faith and ministry.
3 - Thirdly there is the Temple of our own selves, body and soul. In our lives we have the opportunity to work at building, respecting and offering the temple of ourselves, through the grace of God.



It is in this third area that we can experience a ‘disconnect’. In our human weakness we forget that we cannot become perfect temples of God by our own efforts alone. Just as building a physical temple by our own hand can take untold effort and years of labor only to have it thrown to the ground in a day, so it is for us with all our self-help programs and good intentions. We cannot forget the most important building block – the grace of God. Only with God’s grace and love, and a continuing right relationship with God, can our temples be built up in an instant and last for all eternity.

And here is the thing about God’s grace – we cannot earn it, purchase it, work for it or even deserve it. We can only receive it! If the best things in life are free, then the best thing in life is Grace, freely given, in infinite quantities, available to all who are open to it.

So, this Lent, let us build together a holy temple through our repentance, our sacrifice, our fervor and our faithfulness, and pray to God for his grace so that our temple may be strong, and last through all eternity.

Week 1: Repentence
Week 2: Sacrifice
Week 3: Fervor
Week 4: The Gift Of Grace
Week 5: Faithfulness


Week 1: Repentence


God made a covenant with Noah, that God would never again destroy the earth because of the sinfulness of humanity. A covenant is an agreement between two parties. If this is God’s part of the agreement, what is our part? Our part is to repent from our wrongdoing – to recognize our weakness and humanity, and offer it up to the service of God for the building up of his Church on earth, rather than tearing the Church (and ourselves) down through our sins. God’s agreement with Noah was a NEW covenant, a fresh agreement, a new Creation after the earth had been wiped clean by the waters of the flood. When we repent our sins, particularly through the sacrament of reconciliation (confession), we too are made new and enter into a new covenant with God through our baptism. The first thing Jesus said in Galilee when he emerged from the desert and the temptations of evil was “Repent!” This is the first building block of the temple of our lives . . .



Week 2: Sacrifice

Our human lives are finite. We cannot help but make choices. If we decide on one path, then another must be abandoned or not taken at all. If we decide to repent and follow Jesus then we have to make certain choices to set aside those things that do not help us build our lives as holy temples of God. More often than not, following the path of faith involves making the more difficult choices. It is easier to lie in on Sunday morning than get up and go to Mass. It is easier to feed an addiction or justify a behavior than to take steps to overcome it. It is easier to “hang on to our fishing boats”, than to just drop it all and follow the Lord. It is easier to stay in our comfort zone than make changes in our lives.

The second building block is to find the willingness to make sacrifices in order to devote our lives to God. We may not all be called to make the sacrifice with which God tested the faith of Abraham, nor may we be lucky enough to experience a manifestation of God’s glory like those who witnessed the Transfiguration . . . but we can pray for the grace to take the actions necessary to live lives worthy of our faith.


Week 3: Fervor

“Zeal for your house will consume me.” This is the scripture quote that the disciples of Jesus recalled when he cast out the merchants and money changers from the Temple at Jerusalem. Many times we tend to model our faith on some passive understanding a “hippie Jesus” wisely pronouncing gentle teachings on love and tolerance. Yes, this is a part of our faith, but it is just one part. The image of Jesus as an enraged zealot taking it upon himself to disrupt ‘business as usual’ at the temple in the name of respect for God’s house does not always sit so well with us. Instead it challenges us. Is our faith confined to an hour on Sundays and sending the kids to RE while we get on with our lives, or are we zealous about our faith: living it out with acts of ministry and mercy; writing our congressmen about the current attack on our freedom of religious conscience; taking the Ten Commandments and the ‘Golden Rule’ (Love God and Love Your Neighbor as yourself) as our guide for right living; proactively teaching our kids how to live a Catholic, prayer-centered life; making our families and our Church community the center of our lives instead of the TV . . . the list goes on!

‘Fervor’ is the third building block in our temple, along with ‘Repentance’ and ‘Sacrifice’. It is where our faith comes to be about more than passive words, concepts and ideas – but an active and alive example of God’s grace in the world.


Week 4: The Gift Of Grace

Grace is truly a gift given. It is available freely, with no strings attached, to whoever should sincerely ask for it. This does not mean that we should sit back and not make an effort - it just means that anything we achieve is not through our efforts alone, but by the grace of God. Moses did not part the Red Sea by his own power; Jesus did not heal the sick without the Father working through him, or rise from the dead on the Third Day without the grace of God . . . neither do we influence anything in our lives in a meaningful way without the grace of God working through us. We cannot truly repent without grace, or sacrifice sincerely, or maintain our fervor and faith without the help of God.

The greatest act of grace ever, was when God fulfilled the promises of old and sent his Son Jesus Christ into the world to banish sin and destroy death forever by his death on the Cross and rising to New Life. By sending Jesus on this path, this miracle of Grace also became available to each and every one of us. Grace is the most important building block of all – let us pray that we can receive it as freely as it is given to us!


Week 5: Faithfulness

Through history, God has been faithful to his people with his promises. God has asked only our own faithfulness in return. “I will place my law within them and write it upon their hearts: they will be my people and I will be their God.” This quote from today’s scripture from Jeremiah sums up a relationship, for that is how it is with us and God. We have a relationship with him, and like any other relationship in life it is one that must be nurtured and grown. By sending us his Son and by making his continued grace, love and guidance present in our lives, God has done his part. By building up our lives as temples of God we also do our part in this faithful relationship. By repenting our sins, by making choices and sacrifices, by following Christ with sincere hearts and meaningful fervor and action, by accepting the gift of God’s grace, by being faithful to the God who loves us, our temples will be tall and strong, with solid foundations and soaring spires that reach all the way to heaven, where one day we hope to live unity with God, and all the angels and saints, forever and ever.