“Turning over Tables for Peace & Justice”
3rd Sunday in Lent – B
He made a whip out of cords and drove them all out of the temple area, with the sheep and oxen, and spilled the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables, John 2:15
During my career as a VA Chaplain, I was applying for a position in the VA Hospital in Chicago, and I had advanced far into the process to an interview with a committee of Nurses & Doctors. I was poised and confident, but nervous, and I was answering all the questions thoughtfully and thoroughly. That was until a Doctor on the committee reminded me of how Jesus turned over the tables in the temple area, and he asked what my “table flipping” ideas were. I was not prepared for that one, especially from a Doctor. I responded in vague and loosely put together speech about strategic planning and moved on to the next question. I received the Chaplain position and was able to bring about some very good changes to the Chaplaincy Department, but that question stuck with me, and I was able to revisit it as I prepared to write this reflection.
I think that in a glossed-over, candy-coated version of Catholicism, we can view Jesus through a narrow lens – focusing only on the spiritual and the divine. Of course, there is some merit to this. After all, scripture does provide ample opportunity to reflect on Jesus’s divinity.
This passage, however, is a stark reminder for us of Jesus’s humanity. Jesus got angry! He made a whip and drove out the animals. He scattered the money of the moneychangers. He literally flipped tables! What a sight that must have been in the temple square! We see another human emotion in Jesus.
Today’s Gospel reading confirms that Jesus, like us, felt emotions and responded in a human way. By challenging the economic apparatus in that time and place, Jesus redirects us to avoid the distractions of earthly rewards and to instead focus on our relationship with Him. How does our relationship with Jesus assist the poor, the needy, the lonely, the despised, the ignored, the ridiculed of society?
In today’s context, there is no shortage of earthly distractions. Just spend some time watching the 24-hour news cycle and we will see it unfold right before our eyes. And all too often, these distractions lead to grave social injustices that affect the poor and those who are the marginalized of our society. The gap between the “haves” and the “have-nots” continues to expand, and it is all too easy for us to become numb and complacent in this stark reality. Contemporary moneychangers abound, and this season of Lent provides us the opportunity to challenge systems of oppression more intentionally when we see them. This season compels us to challenge our elected leaders to take notice of the plight of the poor in our midst.
So, as we reflect on this passage, we can ask ourselves the same question that was asked of me in that job interview years ago… what tables do I want to flip? What social injustices will I confront and challenge in this Lenten season? And how will I do it? By fasting from the earthly distractions that surround us, we can more clearly see how the answers to these questions can lead us to build a more just society in support of those who need it most. In the end, serving as Christ’s hands in this way builds up our humanity far more than earthly rewards that perpetuate systems of oppression.
Exodus 20:1-17 1 Corinthians 1:22-25 John 2:13-25