of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
NOVEMBER 20, 2015 – WEEK THIRTY THREE – FRIDAY – A CLEANSED BUT UNREPENTANT TEMPLE

NOVEMBER 20, 2015 – WEEK THIRTY THREE – FRIDAY – A CLEANSED BUT UNREPENTANT TEMPLE

(Luke 19:45-48)

Prayer: O Jesus, make me your purified disciple.

Imagination: (Picture Jesus cleansing the Temple)

Context:

In all four gospels, Jesus cleanses the temple. (Therefore, it is a very important event). Luke, in his gentle manner, omits many details known from the other gospels. He focuses on Jesus’ continued teaching and the leaders’ desires to kill him.

Gospel Text (Read slowly, possibly aloud.)

When Jesus entered the temple, he began to cast out the sellers, and the buyers saying, “It is written “My house is a house of prayer but you have made it a den of thieves”.

He was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the rulers of the people sought to destroy him but they had no idea of how to achieve it because all the people were listening to him, attentive to every word.

Thoughts: (Read all. Ponder the ones that attract you.)

  1. Luke venerates the temple. He alone tells the Temple stories of Jesus’ parents presenting Jesus (at 40 days) and finding Jesus (at 12 years.
  2. He omits all the details of the buying and selling, merely mentioning “sellers and buyers”.
  3. Luke’s focus is always prayer. Jesus calls the temple “a house of prayer.”
  4. Man has changed God’s temple into a “den of thieves.”
  5. Jesus sanctifies the temple. Now, he can teach without distraction.
  6. Jesus has attacked the Temple’s financial interests. This is the final straw. He must be destroyed.
  7. The people are purified. They are free to listen and cling to his words, attentive to all his teachings.
  8. After the resurrection, the apostles will call them to repent.

Affections: (When one touches your heart, use your own words.)

  1. O Jesus, Your body is the new temple.       Your mystical body, the Church, is where you dwell.
  2. Cleanse me, Jesus. Purify me.
  3. Do not let me steal your glory and honor.
  4. Make my soul a “house of prayer” in which I proclaim you as Lord.
  5. If you purge me, sinful powers will not control me.
  6. Jesus, teach me and I will be attentive to your words.

Resolutions: (Possibly you might want to make your own.)

  1. I will try to find a Church so I can pray.
  2. I will ask Jesus to purge my sinful desires.

Thought for the Day: (To recall your meditation)

All the people were listening to him, attentive to his word.