Semper Reformanda

In the fourth century St Augustine wrote: In essentials unity, in doubt liberty, and in all things charity. It may well have been similar to the thoughts that Jesus had whilst entering the Temple. He had some problem with those who controlled the Temple, and when he entered, a righteous indignation overtook him: he became angry! The rest we know, that he pushed over the tables of the sellers and demanded that they stop making his Father’s house a market.  He teaches us a wonderful lesson, one that is very relevant in Lent.

In essentials Jesus agreed with those who conducted the Temple. He had no argument with the essentials of the Mosaic Law. He allowed them benefit of the doubt in other practices, although he spoke publicly against those who followed the letter of the Law but not the spirit. Temple worship at that time was corrupt, and many Jews boycotted the Temple. However, he had limits, and when the limit was reached he took a stand, and the result is what we hear in today’s Gospel.

The challenge for us is firstly to notice. The righteous indignation caused a stir and also marked out Jesus. Many people walked in and out of the temple, disagreed with what was happening but did nothing about it, whereas Jesus did something. If we do not see we will not be able to act. This calls for openness and awareness. We need to see where the grace of god is active and where it is being thwarted.

Secondly, we need to know our boundaries, what we believe and where our limits are set. If we don’t do that, we will never know when the line is crossed. That is why the Ten Commandments are presented to us the first reading. These are the boundaries for a Christian, the basics of a Christian culture, but they are just the starting point, as they need to be interpreted in the light of contemporary conditions.  I the desert we used to at the Ten Commandments into  contemporary language: put God number one, don’t speak about God badly, keep Sunday holy, respect your parents or kids, do to kill, stay with one man or woman, don’t steal, don’t lie, do not be envious of another’s relationships or possessions. No matter how secular our society becomes or how atheistic our PM is, our society will still fall apart if not lived on these principles.

Thirdly, we need to challenge and be open to being challenged. Totalitarianism thrives on coercion, Christianity on freedom. The times in the history of the Church that she has coerced others or been impervious to criticism or challenge have been our lowest time.  The reformation of the 16^th century was caused in part by the deafness of Church authorities to challenge: as church we must always be open to challenge and reform. The catchcry then, as it was at the second Vatican council and still is today, is Ecclesia semper reformanda, the church is always in need of reform,  always called to be true to the tenets of our faith.

We come back to Augustine, and remember that love and respect is the basis of Christianity and must underpin all we do and say. In essentials unity, in doubt liberty, and in all things love. 

Homily Third Sunday of Lent1 Year B 11th March 2012