Today’s gospel takes us with Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem. It is here that Jesus sees God’s house turned into a marketplace before the upcoming Passover. The Temple, a beloved holy place, has been turned from a sacred place of living worship to a mundane ritual.
Sometimes our lives can be seen as a busy marketplace. We move from activity to activity thinking that true fulfillment can be found in doing our daily routine. We lose sight of the importance of spending time with God. We will make sure that our needs and the needs of our family are met through shopping, sports, and other extracurricular activities when what we really need is to take back time and focus on developing a sacred place for us to be with God.
I have seen how the RCIA catechumens have committed to devoting time each week to attend Mass and a class to learn about the Catholic Faith. I’ve watched, through the Faith Formation Facebook page at [https://www.facebook.com/ffstisidore/](https://www.facebook.com/ffstisidore/) , how families take time every week to share faith with their children. During this pandemic, I have worked with volunteers who gave freely of their time to help whenever the church called.
It is important for each of us to find our own sacred place with God and to discover a way that we can reconnect with our Lord. Once we find this place, we are encouraged to go there often. God longs to be with us and we should never be afraid to spend time with him. We are reminded that Jesus “did not need anyone to testify about human nature. He himself understood it well.” God understands how busy we can get, he challenges us to find time to make him a part of our busy lives and welcome him as father, brother, and friend.
