🏛️The Archbasilica of the Most Holy Savior, universally known as St. John Lateran, is the cathedral of the Pope as Bishop of Rome and holds the title of "Mother and Head of all churches of the city and the world." Its dedication, which took place around the year 324 by Pope St. Sylvester I, is a feast that celebrates not only the consecration of a material building, however venerable, but the mystery of the Church itself. This physical temple is the symbol of the spiritual Church, the community of the faithful, the living Temple of God built with "living stones," which are us. In celebrating the dedication of its main church, Christendom rejoices in the visible presence of God among men and renews the consecration of each soul, which is the true temple where the Holy Spirit dwells.
📖Epistle (Rev 21:2-5)
In those days, I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice from the throne, saying: Behold the tabernacle of God with men, and He will dwell with them. And they shall be His people; and God Himself with them shall be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes: and death shall be no more, nor mourning, nor crying, nor sorrow shall be any more, for the former things are passed away. And He that sat on the throne, said: Behold, I make all things new.
✝️Gospel (Lk 19:1-10)
At that time, Jesus entering, walked through Jericho. And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, who was the chief of the publicans, and he was rich. And he sought to see Jesus who He was, and he could not for the crowd, because he was low of stature. And running before, he climbed up into a sycamore tree, that he might see Him; for He was to pass that way. And when Jesus was come to the place, looking up, He saw him, and said to him: Zacchaeus, make haste and come down; for this day I must abide in thy house. And he made haste and came down; and received Him with joy. And when all saw it, they murmured, saying that He was gone to be a guest with a man that was a sinner. But Zacchaeus standing, said to the Lord: Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have wronged any man of any thing, I restore him fourfold. Jesus said to him: This day is salvation come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
묵Reflections
⛪Today's liturgy weaves a profound meditation on the nature of the Church, uniting the consecration of a physical temple, the Lateran Basilica, with the heavenly vision of the New Jerusalem and the drama of a soul's conversion. The Basilica, as the "Mother and Head" of all churches, is not just a historical monument but a sacramental sign of the universal Church. The reading from Revelation transports us to the eschatological reality that this earthly temple prefigures: the "holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven." This city is not made of stones, but of saints; it is the Bride of Christ, the community of the redeemed. Thus, the dedication of a church reminds us that we ourselves, through Baptism, have been consecrated as temples of the Holy Spirit. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches, "The Church is the Temple of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is the soul, as it were, of the Mystical Body, the principle of its life, of its unity in diversity, and of the riches of its gifts and charisms" (CCC 809). Today's feast invites us to renew our own consecration, recognizing that God desires to establish His tabernacle within us.
❤️🩹The Gospel of Zacchaeus concretely illustrates how this spiritual temple is built. Zacchaeus, "low of stature" and a public sinner, represents humanity which, due to its own limitations and sins, cannot see Christ. However, his desire is sincere. He climbs the sycamore tree, an act of humility and effort that attracts the Savior's gaze. Jesus does not wait for Zacchaeus to become worthy; He takes the initiative Himself: "Zacchaeus, make haste and come down; for this day I must abide in thy house." Zacchaeus's house, once a place of injustice, is consecrated by the presence of Christ, becoming a "domestic church" where salvation enters. St. Augustine comments on this desire of God to dwell in us: "He who created you without you will not save you without you. He created you when you did not know, but He will not justify you if you do not will it" (St. Augustine, Sermon 169). Zacchaeus's "yes," manifested in his joy and his resolution to repair his sins, is the response that allows God to transform a sinner's dwelling into a sanctuary of grace.
✨The interconnection between the readings and the feast reveals Christ's redemptive work in its fullness. The promise of Revelation, "Behold, I make all things new," is perfectly fulfilled in the life of Zacchaeus. His conversion is a total renewal: avarice gives way to generosity, and injustice to reparation. This miracle of grace in a single soul is a microcosm of what God does in the entire Church. Each conversion is a "living stone" (1 Pet 2:5) that is set in the building of the City of God. The Lateran Basilica, with its solemn dedication, is the great visible symbol of this invisible reality. It reminds us that the mission of the Church, summarized in the final sentence of the Gospel, "The Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost," continues until the end of time, building, soul by soul, the New Jerusalem, where God "will dwell with them, and they shall be His people."
➡️See English version of the critical articles here.
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