Introduction

Each year on November 9, the Church honors the Lateran Basilica in Rome, the oldest and highest-ranking of the four major basilicas.

Built under Emperor Constantine after Christianity was legalized in 313 AD, it stands on the Caelian Hill, on land once owned by the Laterani family — hence its name. As the Pope’s cathedral and the “mother and head of all churches,” it symbolizes the Church’s freedom and unity around the successor of Peter.

When November 9 falls on a Sunday, the feast supersedes the celebration of the Sunday in Ordinary Time.

This feast reminds us that every church — and every believer — is called to be a living temple of God’s presence.

1st Reading – Ezekiel 47:1-2, 8-9, 12

The angel brought me
back to the entrance of the temple,
and I saw water flowing out
from beneath the threshold of the temple toward the east,
for the façade of the temple was toward the east;
the water flowed down from the southern side of the temple,
south of the altar.
He led me outside by the north gate,
and around to the outer gate facing the east,
where I saw water trickling from the southern side.
He said to me,
“This water flows into the eastern district down upon the Arabah,
and empties into the sea, the salt waters, which it makes fresh.
Wherever the river flows,
every sort of living creature that can multiply shall live,
and there shall be abundant fish,
for wherever this water comes the sea shall be made fresh.
Along both banks of the river, fruit trees of every kind shall grow;
their leaves shall not fade, nor their fruit fail.
Every month they shall bear fresh fruit,
for they shall be watered by the flow from the sanctuary.
Their fruit shall serve for food, and their leaves for medicine.”

In our first reading, the prophet Ezekiel sees a vision of life-giving water flowing from the temple, transforming everything it touches.

On this feast celebrating the Church, Ezekiel’s vision reminds us that grace flows from Christ’s dwelling among his people, renewing and sanctifying all creation.

The angel brought me back to the entrance of the temple, and I saw water flowing out from beneath the threshold of the temple toward the east, 

Ezekiel is led by an angel to the temple’s entrance, where he sees a stream of water flowing eastward from beneath its threshold.

for the façade of the temple was toward the east;

Temples were traditionally oriented toward the east — the direction of the rising sun, symbolizing the dawning of God’s salvation and the coming of divine light into the world.

the water flowed down from the southern side of the temple, south of the altar. He led me outside by the north gate, and around to the outer gate facing the east, where I saw water trickling from the southern side.

Ezekiel describes the stream’s course in detail, but its source and effect are the true focus. Flowing from the dwelling place of God, the water symbolizes the outpouring of divine grace that brings renewal and life wherever it goes.

He said to me, “This water flows into the eastern district down upon the Arabah, and empties into the sea, the salt waters, which it makes fresh.

The Arabah is the desert plain stretching toward the Dead Sea — the lowest point on earth, lifeless and saturated with salt. Yet when the waters from the temple reach it, they miraculously make the sea fresh.

Wherever the river flows, every sort of living creature that can multiply shall live, and there shall be abundant fish, for wherever this water comes the sea shall be made fresh. Along both banks of the river, fruit trees of every kind shall grow; their leaves shall not fade, nor their fruit fail. 

The water from the temple miraculously purifies the stagnant waters of the Dead Sea, which is now teeming with life.

This portrays the transforming power of God’s presence: what was once barren now flourishes.

Every month they shall bear fresh fruit, for they shall be watered by the flow from the sanctuary. Their fruit shall serve for food, and their leaves for medicine.”

The scene evokes the paradise of Genesis (2:10-14) and anticipates the river of life in Revelation 22:1-2. Wherever the water from the sanctuary flows, it brings nourishment, healing, and abundance — signs of the Lord’s life-giving presence.

From the sanctuary of the temple, the saving power of God radiates outward: from the temple itself, to the land it touches, to the fruit and leaves that sustain and heal. The presence of God is not static; it overflows, renewing creation in widening circles of grace.

What was once a place of death is now a place of burgeoning life and productivity.

2nd Reading – 1 Corinthians 3:9c-11, 16-17

Brothers and sisters:
You are God’s building.
According to the grace of God given to me,
like a wise master builder I laid a foundation,
and another is building upon it.
But each one must be careful how he builds upon it,
for no one can lay a foundation other than the one that is there,
namely, Jesus Christ.

Do you not know that you are the temple of God,
and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
If anyone destroys God’s temple,
God will destroy that person;
for the temple of God, which you are, is holy.

In our second reading, Saint Paul reminds the Corinthians that the Church is God’s building, founded on the one true cornerstone, Jesus Christ. Each believer is a living temple of the Holy Spirit, and together we form the dwelling place of God on earth.

On this feast, Paul’s words call us to honor the holiness of the Church and to build our lives firmly upon Christ.

Brothers and sisters: You are God’s building. 

The Corinthian community was struggling with divisions between factions, driven by pride.

Here, Paul reminds them that they are not isolated individuals or competing groups, but part of one divine construction — the Church, built and sustained by God himself.

According to the grace of God given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building upon it.

This building, the Church, is not a finished product; it is under construction.

Paul, speaking not from pride but from a humble recognition of divine grace, affirms that he was entrusted with the role of sophós architéktōn — a “wise builder,” or more precisely, “wise architect.”

But each one must be careful how he builds upon it, for no one can lay a foundation other than the one that is there, namely, Jesus Christ.

Paul insists that Christ alone is the foundation of the Church. No teaching, authority, or movement can replace him. Every ministry and believer must build upon this one foundation, ensuring that all spiritual labor is firmly rooted in Christ’s truth and love.

Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

Paul deepens the metaphor: the community itself is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Just as God’s presence sanctified the Temple in Jerusalem, so his Spirit now dwells within the baptized, making them a holy people and the living dwelling place of God.

If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for the temple of God, which you are, is holy.

Paul warns that to defile or divide the Church is to endanger one’s own salvation. The Greek verb phtheírō can mean both “to corrupt” and “to destroy,” emphasizing that sin, false teaching, or scandal harm the sacred unity of Christ’s Body.

It’s up to the Corinthians to determine whether the temple of God, which they are, will continue to be holy or whether it might be defiled.

On the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica, we celebrate not only a historic building but the deeper mystery it signifies: God’s living temple, the Church. The Lateran stands as the mother and head of all churches, a visible sign of the Church’s unity in Christ. Yet the true temple is not built of stone — it is formed by the hearts of believers in whom Christ dwells through the Holy Spirit.

Gospel – John 2:13-22

Since the Passover of the Jews was near,
Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
He found in the temple area those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves,
as well as the money-changers seated there.
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,
and to those who sold doves he said,
“Take these out of here,
and stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.”
His disciples recalled the words of Scripture,
Zeal for your house will consume me.
At this the Jews answered and said to him,
“What sign can you show us for doing this?”
Jesus answered and said to them,
“Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.”
The Jews said,
“This temple has been under construction for forty-six years,
and you will raise it up in three days?”
But he was speaking about the temple of his Body.
Therefore, when he was raised from the dead,
his disciples remembered that he had said this,
and they came to believe the Scripture
and the word Jesus had spoken.

The gospel reading for today’s feast is the well-known Cleansing of the Temple. When Jesus drives the money changers away, he reveals his “zeal for his Father’s house” and points to a deeper mystery: His own body as the true temple.

In his death and resurrection, the dwelling of God is no longer confined to stone walls but is fully revealed in Christ himself — and, through him, in the Church.

Since the Passover of the Jews was near, Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

Passover was the most important of the Jewish feasts. According to the Law of Moses, every male Israelite over the age of twelve had to “appear before the Lord God” (Exodus 34:23; Deuteronomy 16:16), which resulted in the custom of making an annual pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem.

In John’s Gospel, the setting of a Jewish feast often frames a revelation of Jesus’ identity. Here, Jesus begins to reveal that communion with God will no longer depend on temple rituals but on himself, the true dwelling of God among humanity.

He found in the temple area those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves, as well as the money-changers seated there.

Roman coins, the currency of the day, were stamped with the head of Caesar (who considered himself a deity) and sometimes with the images of other pagan gods. As such, they were unfit for paying the temple tax, and so money-changing became a practical necessity.

Likewise, pilgrims, not being able to bring animals from home, needed access to animals for sacrifice. This led to a second necessary service: the selling of animals in the temple precincts.

This trading activity had moved from the outer courts into the temple precincts, crowding the sacred space and turning worship into commerce.

He made a whip out of cords and drove them all out of the temple area, with the sheep and oxen,

The cords were likely used to lead animals, and Jesus probably used the whip to drive out the livestock, not to harm people.

As a faithful Jew, Jesus would have witnessed this spectacle many times throughout his life. Why did he wait until now to take action? This is the first Passover after Jesus’ baptism. Having just entered his public ministry, Jesus now reveals divine authority and zeal for authentic worship.

and spilled the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables, and to those who sold doves he said, “Take these out of here, and stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.”

Jesus’ anger is not against legitimate temple service, but against its corruption and loss of reverence. What was meant to facilitate worship had become a means of exploitation and profit.

Jesus’ declaration of the temple as “my Father’s house” would have been startling to his listeners. In Jewish tradition, God was referred to as Father in a collective sense — Israel as God’s children — but never in the intimate, individual way Jesus uses here. This would have sounded blasphemous to many, as it bypassed institutional mediation and placed Jesus in direct alignment with God.

In one sentence, Jesus reorients the understanding of holiness, authority, and identity — declaring himself not just a prophet or reformer, but the Son who has the right to cleanse and reclaim what belongs to his Father.

His disciples recalled the words of scripture, “Zeal for your house will consume me.”

This recalls Psalm 69:9, where the psalmist’s zeal for God’s house brings him scorn and abuse from others.

The application of this verse to Jesus can be read not only as a description of emotional intensity but as a prophetic foreshadowing: Jesus’ unwavering commitment to his Father’s house will ultimately lead to his death. His cleansing of the temple, then, is not just a confrontation with corruption but the beginning of a path that will culminate in the cross.

The disciples’ recollection of this verse suggests that only in hindsight — after the Passion — did they begin to grasp the full weight of what his zeal would entail.

At this the Jews answered and said to him, “What sign can you show us for doing this?”

In the Gospel of John, “the Jews” often designates the religious leadership — priests, scribes, and Pharisees — who represent institutional power and frequently oppose Jesus.

Their demand for a sign reveals both their skepticism and the assertion of their role as gatekeepers of religious legitimacy.

Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.” The Jews said, “This temple has been under construction for forty-six years, and you will raise it up in three days?” But he was speaking about the temple of his body.

Up to this point, John has used the Greek word hierón to describe the temple — a term that refers to the entire complex, including the outer courts and surrounding structures where commerce and public activity took place.

When Jesus says, “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up,” he uses the word naós, which signifies the inner sanctuary — the holiest part of the temple, the dwelling place of God.

This shifts the meaning dramatically and marks a profound theological turning point: Jesus redefines the temple not as a sacred place but as a sacred person. The divine presence is no longer housed in stone and ritual but revealed in the incarnate Word Himself.

Therefore, when he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they came to believe the scripture and the word Jesus had spoken.

Only in light of the Resurrection do the disciples fully understand Jesus’ words. The temple, once the visible sign of God’s covenant, finds its true fulfillment in the Body of Christ, risen and glorified.

The Church proclaims this Gospel reading on the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica because the Lateran stands as a visible sign of what the Temple once represented: God’s dwelling among his people. Yet, as this passage reminds us, the true temple is Christ Himself, and through baptism, we become His Body, the living Church.

The Cleansing of the Temple calls each believer to interior renewal and reverent worship, ensuring that the house of God — both the Church and the soul — remains a dwelling place worthy of his Spirit.