First reading 1 Maccabees 4:36-37,52-59
Judas and his brothers purify the sanctuary and dedicate it
Judas and his brothers said, ‘Now that our enemies have been defeated, let us go up to purify the sanctuary and dedicate it.’ So they marshalled the whole army, and went up to Mount Zion.
On the twenty-fifth of the ninth month, Chislev, in the year one hundred and forty-eight, they rose at dawn and offered a lawful sacrifice on the new altar of holocausts which they had made. The altar was dedicated, to the sound of zithers, harps and cymbals, at the same time of year and on the same day on which the pagans had originally profaned it. The whole people fell prostrate in adoration, praising to the skies him who had made them so successful. For eight days they celebrated the dedication of the altar, joyfully offering holocausts, communion sacrifices and thanksgivings. They ornamented the front of the Temple with crowns and bosses of gold, repaired the gates and the storerooms and fitted them with doors. There was no end to the rejoicing among the people, and the reproach of the pagans was lifted from them. Judas, with his brothers and the whole assembly of Israel, made it a law that the days of the dedication of the altar should be celebrated yearly at the proper season, for eight days beginning on the twenty-fifth of the month Chislev, with rejoicing and gladness.
Responsorial Psalm 1 Chronicles 29:10-12
We praise your glorious name, O Lord.
Blessed are you, O Lord,
the God of Israel our father,
for ever, for ages unending.
Yours, Lord, are greatness and power,
and splendour and triumph and glory.
All is yours, in heaven and on earth.
Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom,
you are supreme over all.
Both honour and riches come from you.
You are the ruler of all,
from your hand come strength and power,
from your hand come greatness and might.
Gospel Luke 19:45-48
You have turned God’s house into a robbers’ den
Jesus went into the Temple and began driving out those who were selling. ‘According to scripture,’ he said ‘my house will be a house of prayer. But you have turned it into a robbers’ den.’
He taught in the Temple every day. The chief priests and the scribes, with the support of the leading citizens, tried to do away with him, but they did not see how they could carry this out because the people as a whole hung on his words.
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To hang onto Jesus’ words
“…my house will be a house of prayer. But you have turned it into a robbers’ den”. In today’s gospel, the people regarded making money as a higher priority than praying and being with God. The sellers and buyers saw the Temple as a place to get something for themselves, whether earning money or buying a product. Jesus drove all such trade out of the Temple to make the place what it should have been, i.e. a house of prayer. The religious leaders allowed such activities to carry on because they profited from them. Thus, Jesus’ action provoked the religious leaders to anger. They wanted to get rid of Him out of their selfishness and pride. On the other hand, the ordinary people “hung on his words” because they humbly recgonised God’s presence in Him. Today, what would our response to Jesus be?
Like the religious leaders, we can work for God but end up serving our personal ambitions and purposes. Today, let us be like the ordinary people by hanging onto His words that keep calling us to walk the path of God.
Reflective question:
What is Jesus’ invitation for me in this time of prayer?
What is Jesus’ invitation for me in this time of prayer?
Acknowledgment: Reflections are based on “Prayer for Living: The Word of God for Daily Prayer Year A” by Sr Sandra Seow FMVD.
