THE DEDICATION OF THE LATERAN BASILICA

[cappie]

Today we celebrate the feast of The Dedication of the Lateran Basilica because it is the head and mother church in the world.  This feast helps us to better understand more about the value of church, community and us as members of the Body of Christ.  Most of us think of St. Peter’s as the official church of the pope, but we are wrong.  Since St. John Lateran is the cathedral of the Diocese of Rome where the Bishop of Rome presides, it is his church. 

 The basilica has large columns that support the structure of the church.  There are large figures of the apostles which demonstrate the role the apostles played in the foundation of the church through their witness to Christ’s life and His teachings. When Constantine converted to Christianity and issued the Edict of Milan in 313 AD Christians were allowed to practice their faith publicly.  He later donated the Lateran Palace and its property to the Pope, and it became the Basilica. The Church was consecrated in 324 by Pope Sylvester. As the first basilica to be built, it has been called "the mother and head of all the churches of the city and of the world." The feast was originally celebrated only in Rome; after 1565, all the churches in the Roman Rite began to observe this celebration.

In the Old Testament, God's Spirit dwelled in the heart of the Temple building, in a room called the Holy of Holies. No human could enter it except the high priest once a year on the Day of Atonement when a blood offering was made for the sins of all.

 You are God's building, says today's second reading, because Jesus Christ is your foundation. You are God's temple, because the Holy Spirit dwells in you.

Jesus, the ultimate High Priest, transformed the Day of Atonement into Good Friday (see today's Gospel reading). Then, he placed his Holy Spirit into the hearts of his followers.

Sadly, the door to the holy of holies within our hearts is not always open. Whatever we do that blocks the Holy Spirit's work in us, Jesus wants to overturn it like the moneychangers' tables. Is your life in upheaval? Perhaps that's Jesus overturning some tables!

  We are reminded that we are important.  We are God’s gift to others. 
Each of us has been called by our baptism to be disciples of Christ.  As disciples of Christ, we have a responsibility to live out our “calling” to the best of our ability.  In Confirmation we are reminded of our responsibilities as we grow and mature in our faith.  We learn the importance of serving others in various ways.  Through our chosen vocation we live out the responsibilities to God and to others.  Hopefully, we come to know the priorities in our lives.  It is important that we realize that God, who created us, who gave us life and who called us, must be first in our lives – only then will everything fall into place.

As a temple of God, you hold the answers to the prayers of others. Jesus wants to minister to them through you. However, we cannot be Christ's hands and feet and voice unless we first let Christ fill us with his Spirit, which comes through prayer and through the Sacraments of the Church St. Francis is sometimes credited with the following saying:  Preach the Gospel always – use words when necessary.

Our actions speak louder than words.  Thus, our actions are the most important examples of what we believe. 

 Today's feast is a reminder to clean out the dust and dirt from the cathedral of our hearts. As temples of God,  if our hearts are open to the Holy Spirit, we will soon  become a blessing to others.

 This is why today, throughout the entire world, one billion Catholics are celebrating the dedication of an old church building, because it is much more than an old building with fuzzy sentimental value:

it is the mother of all church buildings.

it is the tangible evidence of the trustworthiness of Christ's promise that by his grace the Catholic Church is indestructible.

Today when we recite the Creed, the living faith of the divine family that all of us are members of, let's recite it from the heart, remembering this great story that we are a part of, that we have a chance each day to contribute to, 
the story of salvation.

And as we receive the living Body and Blood of Christ in Holy Communion, the bond that transcends time and space, let's ask our Lord for the grace to make our lives into living basilicas,  so as to be living signs of God's power and love in this world that is so desperately looking for something, or someone, to hope in.