Today's passage from the Reading Plan is John 2:13-17, the Cleansing of the Temple.
This story has always puzzled me. What is the point? The outer precincts of the temple are not the "holy areas," because non-Jews are allowed into this part. Is it perhaps one of those "the other religions do this in their temples, so we ought not to be doing it in ours" situation? Or maybe Jesus simply did this to get attention so that the conversation that comes in the next verses (to be read tomorrow) can take place?
This passage is one of those from which we could extrapolate all sorts of things. For instance, should we really be having Christmas Fairs in our undercrofts or parish halls? What about bake sales? Car washes in the parking lot? You could even make an argument against having animals in the building for Saint Francis Day celebrations! Various denominations and sects have instituted rules based on interpretations of verses that are even more ambiguous than these.
Peace,
Jeffri
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