HOMILY FOR FRIDAY OF THE THIRTY-THIRD WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR A.
HOMILY THEME: MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED HOUSE OF PRAYER
BY: Fr. Benny Tuazon
HOMILY:
(Lk. 19:45-48)
In the day’s Gospel Jesus was angered by what He saw in the temple area. Money changers were taking advantage of foreigners. Vendors of animals for offering were charging too much. Sin was happening right where prayer and holiness are expected to abound. As a result, Jesus shooed them away and reminded everyone that the temple should be respected and is a place of holiness.
God is everywhere and we can communicate with God wherever we are. But when there are designated places for worship, they must be respected and treated as such. In the temple was the Holy of Holies. It is the equivalent of the tabernacle today. It is believed to be the place where God reveals Himself and communicates His message. In the same way, we have the consecrated host, the Body of Christ, in the tabernacle. Once we are inside the church, we adopt a reverent position and attitude. We make the sign of the cross and genuflect or bow. In prayer, we kneel or sit in silence, at times, head bowed. We are in God’s dwelling place. God is present. We behave accordingly.
Admittedly, a lot of our churches today had lost their solemnity. Commercial activities are found around them. Decorum inside the church is wanting. Is it because of ignorance? Or is it due familiarity? Nevertheless, the ignorant must be educated and the familiar should be reminded. God may not mind it but we need to exhibit respect for our own sake. It is always best to be humble before God. And it must always be maintained in places of worship.
Remember, each church was dedicated for worship of the community. As much as possible, activities other than worship must be held somewhere. There had been a lot of disrespect that had been committed for pastoral reasons. Balance is not what we look for here. The church is a house of prayer. It must always be available for anyone who wanted to pray to God.
