Is The Church a Den of Thieves?

The Gospel of St. Mark tells us when Jesus arrived in Jerusalem the crowds greeted him with an enthusiastic, “Hosanna!”, for they considered Jesus to be a great prophet.  Jesus received a hero’s welcome!  That happened on what we now call Palm Sunday.  It did not take long for all for that to go awry.

While in Jerusalem, upon entering the temple area, he began to drive out those selling and buying there.  He overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves.

That was out of character for Jesus, the humble peacemaker who taught us to love our enemies. He said that the Temple is a “house of prayer”, but they had turned it into “a den of thieves”! Jesus was outraged at what was going in the Temple, especially since the chief priests and scribes had allowed it to happen.

That was then and this is now. Today, it is not the Temple that is being desecrated, it is The Catholic Church!

Throughout Salvation History, God has made several Covenants with mankind.  One was between God and King David, in which David’s role was to build that very same Temple.  The New and Eternal Covenant was made by Jesus. The New Covenant does not invalidate the Old Covenants.  Jesus’ Covenant fulfills them all.  Jesus would not, and could not, do that if He were not God!

Jesus, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, gave us His Church just as God the Father, the First Person in the Blessed Trinity wanted the Temple.  Both are sacred.  Both are where the Word was taught, and the faithful worshiped God.  However, there is a difference.  In the Temple,God was present in The Holy of Holies.  Today, the Temple has been destroyed.   Jesus told the Pharisees that He would rebuild the Temple in three days.  He was referring to His bodily Resurrection from the dead.  Jesus Body, the Temple, is now The Catholic Church!

Imagine how Jesus is going to deal with the sexual scandals that are happening in His Church while “the chief priests and scribes had allowed it to happen”.  He probably won’t turn over any tables.  He will lower the boom!

Jesus’ Church is a “house of prayer” that has been turned into a den of perversion.  Just as the Temple was still holy ground after it was scandalized, so The Catholic Church is still holy. There is a very small contingent who have done grave evil in this holy place.  They might be treated as Jesus treated the fig tree that did not bear fruit.  They may wither and die.  However,  The Church will remain. We know this because Jesus said so, 2000 years ago, “Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.”

So, although the Catholic Church is under attack, yet again, we – as the Lay Apostolate – will dutifully pick up the pieces, pray with all our hearts, and persevere in the relentless spiritual warfare that is hell bent on our destruction.  And, the GOOD NEWS is, WE WILL WIN!