For daily readings, see http://www.usccb.org/nab/110908.shtml
St. John Lateran, although it is one of the four major basilicas of Rome, is not the most famous. When most of us think of Rome, we think of St. Peter’s and its magnificent square. We think of the Pope celebrating Mass in the square or insider St. Peter’s basilica, or appearing at his window from his apartment overlooking the square. Throughout the history of our Church, however, the Pope has appeared more times at the Church of St. John Lateran, the oldest western Church, and the mother of all other Churches, including St. Peter’s. The popes lived for many centuries on the property given by the Laterani family in Rome, and the Holy See was housed there, before eventually being moved to its current location on the Vatican hill overlooking St. Peter’s. While St. Peter’s has always been a greatly significant Church, since it is built on the site of St. Peter’s crucifixion, since it is built over the place where St. Peter was buried, and since it houses the relic of the chair St. Peter sat upon, St. John Lateran has the distinction of being the first Church built by Constantine, and dedicated as the cathedral Church for the bishop of Rome. While there is no doubt that St. Peter’s is more famous today – many people who go to Rome never visit St. John Lateran – it is important to know that St. Peter’s is a daughter Church of St. John Lateran, and that St. John Lateran is the Pope’s principal Church, even if he has to take a short cab ride to get over there.
Any celebration of the dedication of a Church, especially a Church like St. John Lateran, the mother of all western Churches, gives us a chance to reflect on why we build Churches, how we use them, and what kind of Churches we should build. As we remember from David’s conversation with the Lord in the Old Testament, David was embarrassed that he lived in such opulence as king of Israel after all his great military victories, while God, whose presence was signified by the stone tablets of the law, was made to dwell in a tent, the ark of the covenant. David resolved to build a magnificent temple for the Lord, and although David’s desire was holy, he was reminded by the Lord that no temple David could build could adequately house God, who Himself made the world and all it holds. The same stands true for today, our Churches, no matter how beautiful or magnificent, can never adequately ‘house’ the glory of God or ‘house’ His presence. God does not need us to build a house for Him – this was the message to David that still holds true today.
So why do we build beautiful Churches like this magnificent chapel built in the 1980s by Msgr. Krische and many others who wanted to have, and to pass on, a beautiful chapel in which students, faculty, staff, and visitors to the University of Kansas could gather and worship God. God does not need this Church for Himself. It was rather a recognition on the part of those who built this Church of the need we have to give witness to our faith. We do this all the time as human persons. We give witness to who we think we are, and give witness to what we believe, by the way we dress, by the kind of houses we build, by the way we decorate our rooms. We surround ourselves with things that indicate who we are and what we believe – what is important to us. In the same way, building a Church is something we need to do to give witness to who we are as the people of God. St. Paul says to the Corinthians in tonight’s second reading – You are God’s building. Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the spirit of God dwells in you? St. Paul tells us how easy it is to forget the dignity given us by Christ. Through Him we have become the very sons and daughters of God. That is why we build Churches, so that we do not forget. A Church like St. John Lateran, the first church built in western Christianity, and every one built after it, are meant to serve as necessary reminders of who we are. They are sacraments of who God has chosen us to be, temples of His glory. It is true that each person in this Church today is infinitely more valuable than this Church itself. This Church, although extremely important because it houses the Blessed Sacrament, is here only to facilitate the transformation of human persons into becoming the body of Christ temples of the Holy Spirit. God does not need a house made by human hands to dwell in, but we need a place where we can accomplish our transformation to becoming people in which God can dwell. This is why we build Churches, to remind ourselves of what we are becoming, what our true destiny is.
If you ever visited Rome you know that there are countless Churches which are more magnificent than this Church, Churches that have a tremendous capacity to lift hearts and minds to God, and yet you also know that these Churches mostly sit empty. It is important to try to think about why this is. Jesus experienced the Jerusalem temple as a busy place, but busy not because people were coming there to be transformed by God, but because they were there to do business. So he cleared out the temple, in a fit of righteous anger. Jesus in turn warns us against turning our Churches, which are supposed to be sacred spaces dedicated to intimate and deep encounters with God, into utilitarian spaces that are more about us than about God. There is a great temptation not to build great Churches or to make Churches multi-purpose facilities, thinking that God is more than willing to come and meet us where we are, even if we do not build a great Church or if we use it as a meeting hall. The humility shown by our Lord in being born in a manger in obscure Bethlehem does indeed show that He is willing to come be with us wherever we are. Yet we must remember that the Lord came among us not only to be a companion to our humanity, but to open the gates of heaven to us, and to transform us through the gifts of grace that come from heaven. Our Churches then are sacraments of what we imagine heaven to be like. They are not so much places to celebrate our like-mindedness in having chosen to worship God in the same style. No, they are places not where we choose God, but places where He chooses us, and showers down the grace that even now is transforming us into citizens of heaven. It is a tragedy in my own mind that some of the most magnificent Churches sit empty, because people are afraid of becoming all that God is calling them to be, whereas pedestrian Churches are oftentimes packed, because this is where we feel most comfortable, expecting God to conform Himself to our expectations of who He is. Jesus in the Gospel points to a continual need we have to cleanse our Churches from utilitarianism. Our Churches are never to become places where we come to purchase God with our capital, but places where we allow Him to purchase us and to draw us to a destiny beyond our imagining. +m
Any celebration of the dedication of a Church, especially a Church like St. John Lateran, the mother of all western Churches, gives us a chance to reflect on why we build Churches, how we use them, and what kind of Churches we should build. As we remember from David’s conversation with the Lord in the Old Testament, David was embarrassed that he lived in such opulence as king of Israel after all his great military victories, while God, whose presence was signified by the stone tablets of the law, was made to dwell in a tent, the ark of the covenant. David resolved to build a magnificent temple for the Lord, and although David’s desire was holy, he was reminded by the Lord that no temple David could build could adequately house God, who Himself made the world and all it holds. The same stands true for today, our Churches, no matter how beautiful or magnificent, can never adequately ‘house’ the glory of God or ‘house’ His presence. God does not need us to build a house for Him – this was the message to David that still holds true today.
So why do we build beautiful Churches like this magnificent chapel built in the 1980s by Msgr. Krische and many others who wanted to have, and to pass on, a beautiful chapel in which students, faculty, staff, and visitors to the University of Kansas could gather and worship God. God does not need this Church for Himself. It was rather a recognition on the part of those who built this Church of the need we have to give witness to our faith. We do this all the time as human persons. We give witness to who we think we are, and give witness to what we believe, by the way we dress, by the kind of houses we build, by the way we decorate our rooms. We surround ourselves with things that indicate who we are and what we believe – what is important to us. In the same way, building a Church is something we need to do to give witness to who we are as the people of God. St. Paul says to the Corinthians in tonight’s second reading – You are God’s building. Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the spirit of God dwells in you? St. Paul tells us how easy it is to forget the dignity given us by Christ. Through Him we have become the very sons and daughters of God. That is why we build Churches, so that we do not forget. A Church like St. John Lateran, the first church built in western Christianity, and every one built after it, are meant to serve as necessary reminders of who we are. They are sacraments of who God has chosen us to be, temples of His glory. It is true that each person in this Church today is infinitely more valuable than this Church itself. This Church, although extremely important because it houses the Blessed Sacrament, is here only to facilitate the transformation of human persons into becoming the body of Christ temples of the Holy Spirit. God does not need a house made by human hands to dwell in, but we need a place where we can accomplish our transformation to becoming people in which God can dwell. This is why we build Churches, to remind ourselves of what we are becoming, what our true destiny is.
If you ever visited Rome you know that there are countless Churches which are more magnificent than this Church, Churches that have a tremendous capacity to lift hearts and minds to God, and yet you also know that these Churches mostly sit empty. It is important to try to think about why this is. Jesus experienced the Jerusalem temple as a busy place, but busy not because people were coming there to be transformed by God, but because they were there to do business. So he cleared out the temple, in a fit of righteous anger. Jesus in turn warns us against turning our Churches, which are supposed to be sacred spaces dedicated to intimate and deep encounters with God, into utilitarian spaces that are more about us than about God. There is a great temptation not to build great Churches or to make Churches multi-purpose facilities, thinking that God is more than willing to come and meet us where we are, even if we do not build a great Church or if we use it as a meeting hall. The humility shown by our Lord in being born in a manger in obscure Bethlehem does indeed show that He is willing to come be with us wherever we are. Yet we must remember that the Lord came among us not only to be a companion to our humanity, but to open the gates of heaven to us, and to transform us through the gifts of grace that come from heaven. Our Churches then are sacraments of what we imagine heaven to be like. They are not so much places to celebrate our like-mindedness in having chosen to worship God in the same style. No, they are places not where we choose God, but places where He chooses us, and showers down the grace that even now is transforming us into citizens of heaven. It is a tragedy in my own mind that some of the most magnificent Churches sit empty, because people are afraid of becoming all that God is calling them to be, whereas pedestrian Churches are oftentimes packed, because this is where we feel most comfortable, expecting God to conform Himself to our expectations of who He is. Jesus in the Gospel points to a continual need we have to cleanse our Churches from utilitarianism. Our Churches are never to become places where we come to purchase God with our capital, but places where we allow Him to purchase us and to draw us to a destiny beyond our imagining. +m
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