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The gospel reading of today, the story of Jesus overturning the tables of the moneychangers
in the Temple is one of my favorites. In it Jesus expresses anger, something we can all
relate to, and he does it with a memorable “whoosh” – overturning the tables of
moneychangers. In an act of “civil disobedience” Jesus draws attention to an institutional
issue that deeply upsets him. The temple, which is supposed to be a “house of prayer
for all peoples,” is not. Further, not only is the Temple NOT a house of prayer for all
peoples, but it has become a den of robbers.
Now, you might not be surprised to learn that there is debate about whether or not this
particular story is fact, fiction, or some combination of the two. There are reasonable
arguments to support all of these possibilities. Some say, given the vastness of the Temple
complex, this couldn’t have happened. How could one person have caused so much disruption?
And, even if some type of disturbance did begin, the Roman authorities would have suppressed
it long before it could have spread throughout the Temple. Others claim that this story,
which appears in all four gospels, was invented as a literary device to move the story along.
It provides the “reason” for Jesus to be arrested and stand trial in Jerusalem.
I don’t need to know how much is fact or fiction. For the gospel stories to me are
not a history lesson. Rather they stories that inspire me, sadden me, gladden me, confound
me, and ultimately, challenge me. And this story challenges me. When I was asked to preach
today, and particularly to include reflections on the state of our contemporary institution
of health care, this story leapt into my mind as the one that would capture everything I
want to say.
I would like to fill in some details that will hopefully make this story come alive
for you, and maybe, inspire you in your own work, your own lives.
First of all, let us consider the city in which this story is set, Jerusalem.
Jerusalem, according to the Bible, was where Abraham all but sacrificed his son Isaac.
This
city is where King David, ‘the man after God’s own heart’, set up his capital.
This is where David’s son Solomon built the temple where God was to be worshipped.
This is the city which the Psalms sing about; beautiful Mount Zion, ‘the joy of all the
earth.’ This is the city the Babylonians destroyed. This is the city where grief, and
fresh hope, have lived as neighbors for one thousand years.
At the time of Jesus, the city was going through grief again, as it had been recently occupied
by the Romans.
As our story opens, Jesus and his disciples are traveling to Jerusalem for the celebration
of Passover. Over 100,000 Jewish people are making this pilgrimage, traveling in long
caravans, several days journey, for the celebration. Jesus has made this trip before (and once
was left behind! Remember that story, the 12 year old Jesus who stayed to preach in
the Temple after Passover, and drove his parents mad with worry?)
This though, will be Jesus’ final trip to Jerusalem. He is traveling now with his disciples
who believe that he is the Messiah, the anointed one. And they are traveling to the Temple,
the Temple where kings are crowned, where the Jewish high court (the Sanhedrin) sit,
where the authorities are. And certainly his claim to be king, to be the Messiah, will
be challenged.
Now let us consider the Temple. The Temple rested in the Temple Complex. From a birds’
eye view, the temple complex is a huge rectangle. Almost the size of the Macalester campus.
It is 35 acres, and built on a raised earthen mount, and enclosed with a wall of stone.
At the center of the Temple complex was the majestic temple sanctuary itself, built of
perfectly tooled and fitted white marble stones, covered with plates of heavy gold. Inside
the Temple Sanctuary were two rooms. The first, the holy place, was a large hall paneled in
cedar, the finest cedar from Lebanon. It contained an altar for incense, a table for bread, and
a menorah – all of the finest gold.
The second room, the Holy Of Holies, was separated from the first by a heavy linen curtain embroidered
with spun gold. Only the high priest was allowed to enter this sacred spot, and he only on
the annual Day of Atonement.
Expanding outward from the temple sanctuary were various courts, representing increasingly
restricted access as they get closer and closer to the sanctuary. The nearest Court was the
Court of Priests, where only priests could come, next was the Court of Men, then the
Court of Women. The furthest court, and by far the largest, was the Court of Gentiles.
This was the public forum, the marketplace, the town square, the peanut gallery. This
was where people came to buy animals to be used as sacrifice, to change their money to
Jewish shekels that could be used in the Temple, to discuss religious matters, and to just
to hang out. The Court of the Gentiles would be filled with tens of thousands of people
during the holy days. Plus animals. If you were wealthy, you could buy a bull, or a sheep
for sacrifice. For those less wealthy, there were doves for sale. And, in all likelihood,
the moneychangers and the vendors made a profit on their business in the Court of Gentiles.
On a hill overlooking the temple grounds was Antonia’s Palace, a fortress built by the
Romans to house 600 Roman troops, alert to and ready to respond to any “disturbance”
in the Temple, and connected to the Temple by an underground walkway.
15Then they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who
were selling and those who were buying in the temple, and he overturned the tables of
the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves; 16and he would not allow anyone
to carry anything through the temple. Jesus stopped commerce in the temple. He brought
everything to a screeching halt. With no vendors, no moneychangers, and no ability to carry
anything through the Temple, business as usual would come to a halt.
Why did Jesus do this? What provoked this action of civil disobedience? Jesus was not
just having a snit fit, he was teaching as he did this, and here is what he said: