In the Gospel reading for the 3^rd Sunday of Lent we hear the story of Jesus throwing the money changers out of the temple. In John’s Gospel, this event occurs at the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry, after his first miracle at the wedding feast at Cana.

This is not a very happy Gospel to read. We have not heard before of Jesus taking a whip and driving people out with desperation and anger in his voice. It is so unlike him, the one who is patient and kind and forgiving.

Do you remember the little boy Jesus, who went to the temple for the first time? He went with his mother and his father. And he was so fascinated by the temple that he stayed there with the elders, asking and answering questions for 3 days.

And now grown to manhood, Jesus walks into the temple and he sees what has happened to it. He sees a shopping area. He sees people hungry with greed to make money. He angrily says to them, “You have taken my Father’s house and you’ve turned it into a cattle market. How could you do that?” He is almost unforgiveable in his anger.

After clearing the Temple of the merchants and the moneychangers, people asked for a sign of Jesus’ authority to do such a thing. Throughout John’s Gospel, the language of signs is distinctive. Jesus’ miracles are called signs, and the people look to these signs for proof of his authority. Here we learn that the sign will be Jesus’ passion, death, and Resurrection.

During Lent we reflect upon the meaning of this sign for us and for our world. We might take this opportunity to consider the quality of our prayer and worship. In our prayers we seek to deepen our relationship with the person of Jesus. In our Eucharistic worship within the St Brigid’s Parish community, we gather to experience anew the passion, death, and Resurrection of Jesus and its significance in our lives. Jesus promises to be present with us when we gather for prayer.