“ But he was speaking about the temple of his body .” Is the Gospel telling us our bodies are temples ? Did this happen or is this a fable meant to convey our value is God-given and not bought or exchanged ? Our bodies are temples that deserve care and attention , and are not to be subjected to consumerist tendencies , but safeguarded from potential evil .
Am I trying to guilt trip us here ? No . I think we all fail to measure up from time to time . We try other avenues and other stuff to get closer to God . We fill up our bodies and our minds with clutter and forget the simplicity of being a follower of Christ . We forget our bodies , our lives , are for a purpose .
This Gospel passage and the season of Lent calls us to be vigilant . Our lives become cluttered when we fail to eschew the lures of the world . Whenever we complicate our faith , we end up inadvertently distancing ourselves from one another and therefore from God . May we take a good , hard look at the temples — our bodies , our lives — with which God has gifted us . What needs cleansed ? Are we bold enough to allow Jesus to enter in and cleanse us ? Do we allow others who recognize our gifts to help us declutter and refocus on what really matters ? Our bodies are temples where the Holy Spirit dwells , and from there urges us to fulfill the purpose to which we are called .
Focus on : Community
One of the best aspects the volunteer year was having a community with whom to share my experience . We learned from the collective wisdom that was present among us , and we were fortunate that some members of the community — the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa — just happened to have a bit more seasoned wisdom . We kept one another true to the purpose for which God called us . Community was often an exercise in recognizing God in one another ; it served as a means for going back to our ministry sites and engaging people who were different from ourselves but seeing they all reflected God ’ s image .
Service Suggestion
My suggestion is that we seek out those who need to declutter their homes . Maybe there is someone you know who needs help cleaning out their attic or basement . As we help others remove their clutter , we can consider the detritus in our own lives that needs attention . We are a community of faith ; when we help others we always help ourselves in the process .
About the Author : Anthony Butler , Dominican Volunteers alum
Anthony Butler served with Dominican Volunteers USA in 2005-2006 as an assistant teacher at Visitation Catholic School in Chicago . He has since served on staff with the program and completed his MA in Theology at Catholic Theological Union . He has taught high school theology and was campus minister at Saint Joseph ’ s College in Rensselaer , Ind . Tony is currently the DRE at St . Augustine Parish in Rensselaer . He is married to another former volunteer , Brenda , and they have two young children .
John 2:13-25
“ Take these out of here , and stop making my Father ’ s house a marketplace .”
~ prayer ~
We pray , Merciful Lord ,
We thank you that we are imprinted with your image .
Help us to admit when we are complicating our faith
And may we always allow you to cleanse us .
Surround us with loving people who reflect your image
And let us know when we need to simplify our lives .
This we ask through the holy name of Jesus .
Amen