The Feast of the Dedication of St. John Lateran Basilica, celebrated annually, holds a special place within the liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church. As the mother church of all the Catholic faithful, St. John Lateran serves as a vital emblem of our faith’s unity and the ecclesiastical authority of the Pope.
In today’s Gospel, we see a rare and striking image of Jesus — angry. His heart burns with holy zeal because the temple, His Father’s house, has been turned into a marketplace. Instead of prayer, there is noise. Instead of reverence, there is profit. Instead of worship, there is trade.
And Jesus cries out:
“Stop making my Father’s house a marketplace!”
When a place that represents God’s presence on earth becomes a place of business, it means that the human heart has lost its divine orientation. The temple no longer points to God — it points to self-interest.
But the truth is, this can happen not only in ancient Jerusalem — it can happen in us.li8rig80b’lu[0ol
We turn God’s temple into a marketplace when we come to church without truly praying, when our worship is empty and our hearts are elsewhere.
We turn it into a marketplace when our gestures of piety hide a lack of love, when we judge easily, when we fail to forgive, when mercy has no place in our hearts.
Then the temple of God becomes a market of fake values — appearances without spirit, faith without compassion, prayer without love.
Every time we receive the Body and Blood of Christ, we become the living temple of God.
Our bodies, our lives — are sacred places where God dwells.
Yet how often do we treat these temples carelessly?
We abuse them through harmful habits — through smoking, excessive drinking, sleeplessness, gluttony, or lack of care.
We also desecrate them through immorality, lust, and the rejection of the sacredness of life.
To disrespect our body is to disrespect the temple of God within us.
And because we are all members of Christ’s Mystical Body — the Church — our duty goes beyond caring for ourselves. We must honor and protect the bodies, the lives, and the dignity of others — especially the poor, the sick, the weak, and the forgotten.
When we fail to love, when we fail to show compassion, when we close our hearts to those in need, we dishonor God Himself who dwells in every person.
Today, we celebrate the Feast of the Dedication of the Basilica of St. John Lateran — the mother church of all churches, the cathedral of the Bishop of Rome.
Its architecture is magnificent, its art breathtaking. But the true beauty of the Church is not in marble columns or gilded altars.
The true beauty of the Church is in its people — people who, like Jesus, love with purity, pray with sincerity, forgive with mercy, and live with compassion.
May we cleanse the temple of our hearts.
May we renew the Church that lives within us.
And may the presence of God shine not only in our churches of stone —
but in the living temples of our bodies, our homes, and our hearts.
