Feast of the Dedication of the Basilica of St. John Lateran
November 9, 2025
We Christians are the Temple, the Basilica of God
John 2:13-22
Cleansing of the Temple
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.
ABOUT THE ARCHBASILICA OF ST. JOHN LATERAN, ROME
Major Papal, Patriarchal and Roman Archbasilica, Metropolitan and Primatial Cathedral of the Most Holy Savior and Saints John the Baptist and the Evangelist in Lateran, Mother and Head of All Churches in Rome and in the World), commonly known as the Lateran Basilica or Saint John Lateran, is the Catholic cathedral of the Diocese of Rome in the city of Rome, Italy. It serves as the seat of the bishop of Rome, the pope. The only “archbasilica” in the world, it lies outside of Vatican City proper, which is located approximately four kilometres (2+ 1 ⁄ 2 miles) northwest. Nevertheless, as properties of the Holy See, the archbasilica and its adjoining edifices enjoy an extraterritorial status from Italy, pursuant to the terms of the Lateran Treaty of 1929. Dedicated to Christ the Saviour, in honor of John the Baptist and John the Evangelist, the place name – Laterano (Lateran) – comes from an ancient Roman family (gens), whose palace (domus) grounds occupied the site. The adjacent Lateran Palace was the primary residence of the pope until the Middle Ages. The church is the oldest and highest ranking of the four major papal basilicas, and it is one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome. Founded in 324, it is the oldest public church in the city of Rome, and the oldest basilica in the Western world. It houses the cathedra of the Roman bishop, and it has the title of ecumenical mother church of the Catholic faithful. The building deteriorated during the Middle Ages and was badly damaged by two fires in the 14th century. It was rebuilt in the late 16th century during the reign of Pope Sixtus V. The new structure’s interior was renovated in the late 17th century, and its façade was completed in 1735 under Pope Clement XII. The current Rector is Cardinal Archpriest Baldassare Reina, Vicar General for the Diocese of Rome since 6 October 2024. The president of the French Republic, currently Emmanuel Macron, is ex officio the “First and Only Honorary Canon” of the archbasilica, a title that the heads of state of France have possessed since King Henry IV. The large Latin inscription on the façade reads: Clemens XII Pont Max Anno V Christo Salvatori In Hon SS Ioan Bapt et Evang. This abbreviated inscription translates as: “The Supreme Pontiff Clement XII, in the fifth year [of his Pontificate, dedicated this building] to Christ the Saviour, in honor of Saints John the Baptist and [John] the Evangelist.” Because Christ the Saviour is its primary dedication, its titular feast day is 6 August, the Transfiguration of Christ. It ranks superior to all other churches of the Catholic Church, including Saint Peter’s Basilica, as the cathedral of the pope as bishop of Rome. The archbasilica’s Latin name is Archibasilica Sanctissimi Salvatoris ac Sancti Ioannis Baptistae et Ioannis Evangelistae ad Lateranum, which in English is the Archbasilica of the Most Holy Savior and Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist at the Lateran, and in Italian Arcibasilica [Papale] del Santissimo Salvatore e Santi Giovanni Battista ed Evangelista in Laterano.
History
Lateran Palace
The archbasilica stands over the remains of the Castra Nova equitum singularium, the “New Fort of the Roman imperial cavalry bodyguards.” The fort was established by Septimius Severus in AD 193. Following the victory of Emperor Constantine the Great over Maxentius (for whom the Equites singulares augusti, the emperor’s mounted bodyguards had fought) at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge, the guard was abolished and the fort demolished. Substantial remains of the fort lie directly beneath the nave. The remainder of the site was occupied during the early Roman Empire by the palace of the gens Laterani. Sextius Lateranus was the first plebeian to attain the rank of consul, and the Laterani served as administrators for several emperors. One of the Laterani, Consul-designate Plautius Lateranus, became famous for being accused by Nero of conspiracy against the Emperor. The accusation resulted in the confiscation and redistribution of his properties. The Lateran Palace fell into the hands of the Emperor when Constantine the Great married his second wife Fausta, sister of Maxentius. Known by that time as the Domus Faustae or “House of Fausta,” the Lateran Palace was eventually given to the Bishop of Rome by Constantine the Great during the pontificate of Pope Miltiades, in time to host a synod of bishops in 313 that was convened to challenge the Donatist schism, declaring Donatism to be heresy. The palace basilica was converted and extended, becoming the residence of Pope Sylvester I, eventually becoming the Cathedral of Rome, the seat of the Popes as the Bishops of Rome.
Early Church
At thededication of the archbasilica and the adjacent Lateran Palace in 324, the name was changed from Domus Fausta to Domus Dei (“House of God”), with a dedication to Christ the Savior (Christo Salvatori). When a cathedra became a symbol of episcopal authority, the papal cathedra was placed in its interior, rendering it the cathedral of the Pope as Bishop of Rome. When Gregory the Great sent the Gregorian mission to England under Augustine of Canterbury, some original churches in Canterbury took the Roman plan as a model, dedicating a church both to Christ as well as one to Saint Paul, outside the walls of the city. The church name “Christ Church,” so common for churches around the world today in Anglophone Anglican contexts, originally came from Canterbury’s Cathedral of Christ, which was named after St. John Lateran’s original name. The anniversary of the dedication of the church has been observed as a feast since the 12th century. In the General Roman Calendar of the Catholic Church, 9 November is the feast of the Dedication of the (Arch)Basilica of the Lateran (Dedicatio Basilicae Lateranensis), referred to in older texts as the “Dedication of the Basilica of the Most Holy Savior.”
The Middle Ages
The archbasilica and Lateran Palace were re-dedicated twice. Pope Sergius III dedicated them in honor of Saint John the Baptist in the 10th century, occasioned by the newly consecrated baptistry of the archbasilica. Pope Lucius II dedicated them in honor of John the Evangelist in the 12th century. Thus, Saint John the Baptist and Saint John the Evangelist became co-patrons of the archbasilica, while the primary Titular is still Christ the Savior, as the inscription in the entrance indicates and as is traditional for patriarchal cathedrals. Consequently, the archbasilica remains dedicated to the Savior, and its titular feast is the Feast of the Transfiguration of Christ on 6 August. The archbasilica became the most important shrine of the two Saint Johns, albeit infrequently jointly venerated. In later years, a Benedictine monastery was established in the Lateran Palace, and was devoted to serving the archbasilica and the two saints. Every pope, beginning with Pope Miltiades, occupied the Lateran Palace until the reign of the French Pope Clement V, who in 1309 transferred the seat of the papacy to Avignon, a papal fiefdom that was an enclave in France. The Lateran Palace has also been the site of five ecumenical councils (see Lateran councils).
Fires and reconstruction
During the time the papacy was seated in Avignon, France, the Lateran Palace and the archbasilica deteriorated. Two fires ravaged them in 1307 and 1361. After both fires the pope sent money from Avignon to pay for their reconstruction and maintenance. Nonetheless, the archbasilica and Lateran Palace lost their former splendor. When the papacy returned from Avignon and the pope again resided in Rome, the archbasilica and the Lateran Palace were deemed inadequate considering their accumulated damage. The popes resided at the Basilica di Santa Maria in Trastevere and later at the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore. Eventually, the Palace of the Vatican was built adjacent to the Basilica of Saint Peter, which existed since the time of Emperor Constantine I, and the popes began to reside there. It has remained the official residence of the pope, though Pope Francis chose to reside in the Domus Sanctae Marthae in the Vatican City, not in the Papal apartments.
WWII
During the Second World War, the Lateran and its related buildings were used under Pope Pius XII as a safe haven from the Nazis and Italian Fascists for numbers of Jews and other refugees. Among those who found shelter there were Meuccio Ruini, Alcide De Gasperi, Pietro Nenni and others. The Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul and the sixty orphan refugees they cared for were ordered to leave their convent on the Via Carlo Emanuele. The Sisters of Maria Bambina, who staffed the kitchen at the Pontifical Major Roman Seminary at the Lateran offered a wing of their convent. The grounds also housed Italian soldiers. Vincenzo Fagiolo and Pietro Palazzini, vice-rector of the seminary, were recognized for their assistance to the Jews.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS: DEDICATION OF THE LATERAN BASILICA, NOV. 9, 2014 by Jude Siciliano, OP
Ezekiel 47: 1-2, 8-9, 12
Psalm 46
I Corinthians 3: 9-11
John 2: 13-22
I learned in freshman English class that how a novel begins gives clues to the whole book. So, for example, we spent two classes on the opening paragraph of William Faulker’s, “Absalom, Absalom!” Our professor said that to really do it justice we could have spent even more time on that one paragraph, “But we have to move on.” We learned that the opening paragraph reveals the literary style of the novel as well as giving hints to the whole upcoming story -- even the ending. This is not a literature class, it’s about the gospel. But the gospels are also literary creations and so our examination of them as literature can help us interpret them. Since the narrative of Jesus cleansing the Temple comes at the beginning of John’s Gospel we can look for clues, not only about the passage, but how it suggests the whole gospel from beginning to end. The story’s location, early in John, sets it apart in the chronology of Jesus’ ministry. Matthew, Mark, and Luke all placed the cleansing account after Jesus’ triumphant entrance into Jerusalem, just before his passion and death. As real estate people stress, “Location, location, location.” Which, when applied to our case, the unique location of the cleansing near the beginning of John sets the tone for the entire gospel. Jesus is in Jerusalem for the Passover, one of three Passover observances in John. He would have gone to the Temple for purification rites, as was the custom, in preparation for the feast. Jesus enters the Temple precincts and notices the merchants selling animals and changing money -- necessary for the Temple’s daily activities. Animals were needed for the sacrifices and secular money had to be exchanged for Jewish currency to pay the Temple tax. So, the services provided by the merchants were necessary for the Temple’s daily functioning. Then what’s the problem for Jesus? The clue is what he says as he drives out the merchants, “Take these out of here....” It’s another matter of location. The selling of animals and the exchange of money used to happen outside the Temple in other locations, but Caiaphas had allowed the activities within the Temple confines. But that’s not how the prophets saw Temple observance. Zechariah’s prophetic book ends with these words: “And every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holy to the Lord of hosts; and all who come to sacrifice shall take them and cook in them. On that day there shall no longer be any merchant in the house of the Lord of hosts.” (14:21) Jesus is acting out Zechariah’s prophetic vision about the end time, when there would be no need for merchants in God’s house. Jesus’ actions announced the arrival of the time of fulfillment anticipated by the prophets. The disciples observe what is happening and interpret Jesus’ actions through Psalm 69, “Zeal for your house will consume me.” It’s a psalm of lament and expresses a faith prayed by someone whose life of dedication to God has set them apart from family and community and made them an object of derision and dishonor. We will discover more of this in Jesus’ life and ministry as we move through John’s gospel. Hints of the ending are already present in the beginning. When Jesus is crucified images from Psalm 69 will return. For example, “They put gall in my food and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink” (Psalm 69:22). The Temple will eventually be destroyed, but Jesus is offering himself to us, the true Temple, where God’s presence and holiness are focused. His opponents mock Jesus; how in three days could he rebuild a Temple that had been under construction for 46 years? When the Temple was destroyed where could a seeker go to be in God’s presence and worship the true God? John, at the beginning of this gospel, has already begun to answer the question. Jesus is the place where God dwells and is the living Temple raised from the dead. We no longer look upon stone edifices is see God’s presence on earth, but upon the broken body of Jesus on the cross. He is both the high priest and the acceptable offering to God. With the physical Temple gone we Christians look to a new understanding of Christ and our community. We call ourselves “church,” yet we are not a building but a body of believers cemented together by our faith in Jesus Christ. This new “building” includes all people. No one is to be excluded or separated as the Gentiles were from worshiping in the Temple. “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” -- Paul reminds us today. Former alienations have been resolved in Christ and we are the living building whose life breath is the Spirit of God within and among us. Then how can we talk about the replacement of the Temple made by Jesus’ body and still be celebrating this feast of a “temple” of stone in Rome. Why are we celebrating a building? St. John Lateran is one of the four major basilicas in Rome (along with St. Peter, St. Mary Major, St. Paul outside the Walls). The land was owned by a Roman family and seized by Constantine. The Basilica built on the land was dedicated to St. John the Baptist -- later to St. John the Evangelist, and Our Lord. Today’s feast marks the dedication of the church, but more importantly, today we celebrate the church built of living stones. “You are God’s building...”, Paul reminds us. Today Paul addresses the believing community to remind us that God’s dwelling place is not a splendid, bejeweled building, but God’s holy people where God comes to live among us. If we are “God’s building” then this is not a part-time reality. Paul is using a metaphor here for the Christian life, similar to what he said in Romans 12:1: “Present your bodies as a living sacrifice.” Isn’t that a challenge to us? Our individual survival and flourishing as a community does not depend on a place or stone building. We worry these days about the declining church participation, especially by our younger generation. How will we survive? People may not be attending church, but they do “go to church,” when they experience a faithful people in whom God dwells. So we need to be attentive to our behavior within the community of believers and among those outside, because people are listening and watching. The Jewish people including Jesus himself, had a great reverence for the Temple. Now the community is the focus of that reverence and just as believers in the past would do nothing to destroy our profane the Temple, so now our life and community must do nothing to desecrate the holy place that is the church. Sometimes we seem to have more care for how we treat vestments, the vessels and sanctuary settings than we do with how we treat those around us. If our Temple is holy then we must reflect that holiness by holy living, manifested to our world by how we treat one another.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS: DEDICATION OF ST. JOHN LATERAN BASILICA, NOVEMBER 9, 2025 by Jude Siciliano, OP
Ezekiel 47: 1-2, 8-9,12
I Cor. 3: 9-11, 16-17
John 2: 13-22
The Basilica of St. John Lateran is the cathedral church of the Bishop of Rome—the Pope. It is, therefore, the official ecclesiastical seat of the Pope. Inscribed on its façade in Latin are the words: “The mother and head of all the churches of the City and the world.” Today’s feast celebrates the unity of all local churches with the Church of Rome—the heart of our Catholic communion. The Basilica was dedicated in 324 A.D. by Pope Sylvester I after Emperor Constantine granted Christians freedom of worship. Its dedication marks the end of persecution, the emergence of Christian worship into public life, and the Church’s visible establishment in society. With this feast we celebrate the Church coming out of hiding into open mission—no longer confined to catacombs, but now at the heart of the city. Yet the true temple of God we celebrate today is not made of marble or stone—it is us, the Christian community. As St. Paul tells the Corinthians, “You are God’s building… Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” When the Lateran Basilica was first dedicated, Christianity had just emerged from the shadows of persecution. We modern believers are encouraged by this feast—and nourished by the Eucharist—to step out of our own shadows and live our faith more openly and courageously. If our discipleship has been hidden or quiet, this feast calls us to make it visible. The Lateran Basilica stands not only as a building in Rome, but as a sign of what we are called to be: a holy people, concrete and visible witnesses of Christ’s risen life in the world. Every parish church and every baptized believer shares this vocation—to be a living sign of Christ’s presence. Today’s feast invites us to renew our dedication as members of Christ’s body. We celebrate the Church not simply as a building, but as a living, holy people gathered around the Eucharistic table.
QUOTABLE
There lives the dearest freshness deep down things;
And though the last lights off the black West went
Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs-
Because the Holy Ghost over the bent
World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright
wings.
--Gerard Manley Hopkins, “God’s Grandeur”
FAITH BOOK
Mini-reflections on the Sunday scripture readings designed for persons on the run. “Faith Book” is also brief enough to be posted in the Sunday parish bulletins people take home.
From today’s Gospel reading: “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.”
Reflection: The temple of stone was eventually destroyed, but now Jesus is offering himself to us. He is the true Temple raised from the dead after three days. If our Temple is holy then we must reflect that holiness by holy living, manifested to our world by how we treat one another. To love neighbor as self is a most acceptable sacrifice to our God.
So we ask ourselves:
Do I tend to separate my life in worship from the rest of my life?
What would be the signs to the world of a holy church?
PREPARATION FOR THE SESSION
Adapted from Sacred Space: The Prayer Book 2025
Presence of God: Jesus, As I come to you today, fill my heart, my whole being, with the wonder of your sacred presence. Help me to become more aware of your presence in my life, and more.
Freedom: Jesus, Grant me the grace to have freedom of spirit. Keep me from being bound by desires and actions that are not good for me or others. Cleanse my heart and soul that I may live joyously in your love. ( 1-2 minutes of silence)
OPENING PRAYER
Source Unknown
My Lord, take my body and my life. Dwell in every chamber of my heart. Make me into a sign of your presence in this world. Amen.
COMPANIONS FOR THE JOURNEY
by Vatican News
Pope Francis celebrated Holy Mass on the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica. In his homily, he entrusted three verses from the liturgical readings to the diocesan community, to priests, and to pastoral workers: On the façade of the Basilica of St John Lateran is a Latin inscription that identifies it as “Mother and Head of all Churches in Rome and the World”. It is the Pope’s Cathedral, insofar as he is Bishop of Rome, and it is the oldest Basilica in the Western world. The Pope visits St John Lateran every year on the feast day that commemorates its dedication by Pope Sylvester I, on 9 November AD 324. In his homily during the Mass, Pope Francis chose three verses from the liturgical readings to share with the diocesan community, with priests, and with pastoral workers, asking that they “meditate and pray over them”.
For the Diocesan Community: The Pope addressed the first verse to the entire diocesan community of Rome. It was from the Responsorial Psalm: “A river whose streams make glad the city of God.” Christians who live in this city “are like the river that flows from the temple,” said the Pope, “they bring a Word of life and hope capable of making the deserts of our hearts fertile.” Referring to St. John Lateran as “the Mother Church of Rome”, the Pope prayed she might “experience the consolation of seeing once again the obedience and courage of her children, full of enthusiasm for this new season of evangelization.” Pope Francis described this as “meeting others, entering into dialogue with them, listening to them with humility, graciousness and poverty of heart.”
For Priests: Pope Francis dedicated the second verse, from St Paul’s Letter to the Corinthians, to priests: “No one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.” This is the heart of your ministry, said the Pope: “to help the community be always at the Lord’s feet listening to His Word; to keep it away from all worldliness, and bad compromises; to guard the foundation and blessed roots of the spiritual edifice; to defend it from rapacious wolves, and from those who want to deflect it from the way of the Gospel.” Pope Francis expressed his gratitude to the priests of Rome, telling them he admires their faith and love for the Lord, their closeness to the people and their generosity in caring for the poor. “You know the districts of the city like no other, and you keep the faces, smiles and tears of so many people in your hearts,” he said.
For Pastoral Workers: Pope Francis reserved the last verse for pastoral workers. He explained the Gospel account of Jesus’ casting out the merchants and moneylenders from the Temple. “Sometimes, in order to unsettle peoples’ stubbornness and lead them to make radical changes, God chooses to take strong action,” said the Pope. He pointed out an important detail in this Gospel passage: “The merchants were in the courtyard of the pagans, the area accessible to non-Jews,” he said. But God wants His temple to be a house of prayer for all peoples, “hence Jesus’ decision to overthrow the money changers’ tables and drive out the animals.” Jesus knew this provocation would cost Him dearly, said Pope Francis: when they ask Him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority,” the Lord answers saying: “Destroy this temple and I will raise it again in three days.”
Rebuilding the Temple: “In our lives as sinners, it often happens that we distance ourselves from the Lord,” said the Pope. “We destroy the temple of God that is each one of us… Yet it takes the Lord three days to rebuild His temple within us.” Pope Francis encouraged pastoral teams to find “new ways to meet those who are far from the faith and from the Church.” No one, no matter how wounded by evil, is condemned to be separated from God on this earth forever, he said. “We may sometimes encounter mistrust and hostility,” concluded Pope Francis, “but we must hold onto the belief that it takes God three days to raise His Son in someone’s heart.”
LIVING THE GOOD NEWS
What action can you take in the next week as a response to today’s reading and discussion? Keep a private journal of your prayer/actions responses this week. Feel free to use the personal reflection questions which follow:
Reflections Questions
Religious peoples have always had special places. For the Jews it was the Temple in Jerusalem. Why was that temple a provocation to the Romans in 70ce? What happened to the Jews when it was destroyed?
How important was it for the early Christians finally to have a place where they could legally and openly pray and have Eucharistic services?
How did that change their religious practices?
How did that legality change the Church?
Sacred space symbolizes the union between God and humanity. How important to me is the church where I attend Mass?What makes it important?
What Catholic buildings mean a lot to you?
How have they anchored your faith?
The church of the bishop of Rome is not the grand St Peter’s Basilica, but the Basilica of St John Lateran. Why is that noteworthy?
In this gospel, Jesus refers to himself as a temple, dedicated to God. Do I see myself as God’s temple?
In what ways have humans desecrated the temple that is their body?
In what ways have I done so?
In what ways can I dedicate my body to God?
Do I believe that after death God will raise up the temple that is my body?
To what?
From “Faith Book,” a service of the Southern Dominican Province:
Do I tend to separate my life in worship from the rest of my life?
What would be the signs to the world of a holy church?
CLOSING PRAYER
Don’t forget to provide some prayer time at the beginning and at the end of the session (or both), allowing time to offer prayers for anyone you wish to pray for. Lord, take my life. I dedicate it wholly to you. Keep me always connected to you. Make my life a testament to your love in this world.
FOR THE WEEK AHEAD
Weekly Memorization: Taken from the gospel for today’s session…. Stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.
MEDITATIONS
A Meditation in the Dominican Style/Asking Questions:
From the Angelis address by Pope Francis on March 4, 2018: “Jesus’s attitude, recounted in today’s evangelical page, exhorts us to live our lives seeking not our own advantage and interests, but for the glory of God who is love. We are called to always keep present those strong words of Jesus: ‘You shall not make my Father’s house a house of trade!’ (v. 16). It’s awful when the church slips on this attitude of making God’s house a market. These words help us to reject the danger of making our soul, which is God’s abode, a marketplace, living in constant search for our benefit instead of in generous and solidary love. This teaching of Jesus is always timely, not only for the ecclesial communities but also for individuals, for civil communities, and for society. In fact, the temptation to take advantage of good activities, sometimes dutiful, is common, to cultivate private if not outright unlawful interests. It’s a grave danger, especially when it instrumentalizes God himself and the worship due to him, or the service to man, his image. That’s why Jesus used ‘strong ways’ that time, to shake us from this mortal danger”
Jesus is very clear that we should not desecrate sacred places with commercialism. What are some examples of this being ignored today (TV evangelists for example)?
Practically speaking, when do Churches and shrines have to sell merchandise or charge entry fees?
When do some churches exist to enrich their pastors and bishops?
What does The Church have to say about charging for spiritual services, like Mass and the sacraments?
What if the beneficiaries are programs for the poor?
Our body is a temple, a sacred place. When have we commercialized it with our emphasis on getting and spending in our own everyday lives?
A Meditation in the Franciscan Style/Action:
Adapted from JUSTICE BULLETIN BOARD, in “First Impressions” 2014: I wanted to find an interesting story about the Lateran Basilica that echoed the following quote made by Pope Francis at World Youth Day Rio 2013: “I want people to go out! I want the Church to go out to the street! I want us to defend ourselves against everything that is worldliness, that is installation, that is comfortableness, that is clericalism, that is being shut-in on ourselves. The parishes, the schools, the institutions, exist to go out!” And I found it in this narrative told by Franciscan Friar, Rector, and Pastor, Fr. Vincent J. Mesi, O.F.M.: “It was here [at the Lateran Basilica] that St. Francis made his appeal to Pope Innocent III to found a movement based on the evangelical virtues of poverty, chastity and obedience. The biographers tell us that the pope had a dream one night that the ancient Lateran Basilica, the home of the popes, was about to collapse. But, just then a little poor man appeared and with hands and arms outstretched held up the walls of the great church. Pope Innocent III recognized that “poverello” in St. Francis. He then approved the Rule of St. Francis and his way of life. Today, visitors to Rome can walk across the street from the Basilica to visit a large bronze statue of St. Francis. If you stand behind the statue at just the right angle, you will see that his outstretched arms are holding up the walls of the church! You will also find the tomb of Pope Innocent III, the most powerful man of his day, just to the right of the main altar. His sarcophagus depicts the pope lying down and having that dream that began the Franciscan Order and the strengthening of the walls of our Church which were collapsing!” (11/9/08 Bulletin, St. Mary Basilica, Phoenix, Az.)
A Church of the Street, walking with the poor like St Francis.
Does this sound like the Catholic Church today?
Does this sound like The Church today?
Does this sound like my local church today?
What is my role in this Church and my local church?
POETIC REFLECTION
How does this poem reflect what our response could be if we were totally dedicated to God?
You Are Hungry
Father
you are hungry
and we may be nothing in your hands
but let us at least
taste your fire:
let us be ash,
be dross, be waste
in the heat of your desire.
Let us at least
need, and want, and learn
that it is impossible
to want you too much,
to want you too long.
May the heat of our thirst
for you
dry the rivers
reduce the mountains to dust,
thin the air.
God, you who want us
more than we want you,
be a fan to our flame,
the end to our need,
the ocean we seek to drain.
—Ed Ingebretzen from Psalms of the Still Country
