We all know that anger is considered a negative emotion. However, suppression of anger can damage our personalities by causing a sudden breakdown of emotions in the form of shouting, yelling, or physical violence. Anyhow, we need to keep in mind that anger in itself is not a negative emotion. Just anger is necessary to establish justice in our society. If this just anger is not awakened in us, the exploitation of the voiceless will continue. The social scenario of Jesus’ time was in need of such just anger. Jesus expresses such just anger at various moments of his public ministry whenever they misinterpret the laws of Moses without the humanitarian face. We see in today’s gospel passage that when he encountered the moral and spiritual corruption in the Jerusalem temple, his just anger came out.

In order to understand this passage better, we need to discuss a bit of the history of the Jerusalem Temple. The Jerusalem temple was the only place where Jews offered sacrifices. Therefore, pilgrims from all over the world made it a point to visit the Jerusalem temple at least once a year. Jews were not allowed to use the Roman coin since it contained the imprint of the Roman emperor Augustus Caesar, who declared himself equal to God. Since Judaism strictly upholds belief in one God, using this coin was a violation of the first commandment. It was strictly followed in the Jerusalem Temple. Therefore, the money exchangers used to convert and provide denarius for the pilgrims. Similarly, animals meant for the sacrifices were also available on the premises of the Jerusalem Temple. So that pilgrims need not carry it along with them.

We may wonder: if all these are meant to assist the pilgrims, then why did Jesus get angry and mess up everything? The Jerusalem Temple is the place where the Lord himself wants to dwell. It was the Lord himself who revealed each and every detail of the temple with regard to its structure and construction. In fact, David took the initiative to construct the temple, but he was not privileged to accomplish it since he had suffered a lot of bloodshed in his regime. Therefore, the Lord chose King Solomon to construct his temple and blessed him with the wisdom and wealth necessary to construct such a magnificent temple.

Anyhow, whenever the people of Israel failed to keep the observances of Sabbath and went away from the Lord, the temple was partially destroyed twice by Assyrians, followed by Babylonians. At the time of Jesus, King Herod completed the reconstruction of the temple, which lasted forty-six years. Jerusalem temple was a holy of holies where the ark of the covenant was kept and the Lord’s presence was there. Over time, the focus of the temple shifted from divine worship to business. The busyness became the primary focus, and the divine worship became secondary. All the malpractices related to business also happened in the Jerusalem Temple. That is the reason Jesus shouts at them, saying you have made my Father’s house a den of robbers’. Jesus sent out all these merchants out of the Jerusalem temple.

In fact, this gesture by Jesus upset the Pharisees and scribes. They questioned Jesus’ authority, and to prove that he had authority, they demanded a sign from him. The sign that Jesus gave was a prophecy about future worship. Jesus tells them to destroy this temple, and he will raise it in three days. They laughed at Jesus because Herod took forty-six years to complete its reconstruction; if so, how can he complete it in three days? Jesus wanted to tell them that future worship will be a remembrance of his one and only sacrifice at Calvary. The temple, the priest, and the offering everything are all one person, he himself. In every sacrifice, the offering will be fully consummated. In his sacrifice, though he would embrace death, he would be raised again on the third day. As we reflect on this gospel passage today, let us keep in mind that we are also the temples of the Holy Spirit; we are created in the image and likeness of God. If we allow the business of the world to take roots in us, then the Lord can’t dwell in us. Let us ask the Lord to come into our hearts with his word and expel those tendencies from our lives so that we too may be the temples of the Holy Spirit.