NOVEMBER
9
FEAST OF THE DEDICATION
OF THE LATERAN BASILICA.
White
Ez
43:1-2, 4-7 | Ps 112:1-2, 3-4, 8-9 | 1Cor 3:9-13, 16-17 | Jn 2:13-22
Mater
et Caput
REV. MSGR.
DANIEL H. MUEGGENBORG
Rev. Msgr. Daniel H.
Mueggenborg has served as the Vice Rector for Administration,
Director of Admissions
and Formation Advisor at the Pontifical North American College
in Rome. He is from the
Diocese of Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The basilica of St. John Lateran is a
distinctive treasure of theology, spirituality and ecclesiology. As you
approach the basilica, you see an inscription across the front that says this: Sacrosancta
Lateranensis ecclesia omnium urbis et orbis ecclesiarum mater et caput (meaning
“Most Holy Lateran Church, of all the churches in the city and the world, the mother and head”). In a real sense,
the St. John Lateran is a mother who has been teaching us, as Catholics, what
it means to be Church for more nearly 1,700 years. I think it is worth
listening to a few lessons that I think this basilica, our Mother, has to offer
us today even as she first taught them to the Church of Rome 1,700 years ago.
The
first lesson is what she says to us by her sheer size. You know, when
Constantine legalized Christianity in 312/313 AD, he made it possible for
Christians to worship publicly for the first time. But temples in the ancient
world were very small, even the temple in Jerusalem had a very small sanctuary.
That’s because people in the ancient world did not participate in worship.
Instead, only the priest would enter the sanctuary to offer sacrifice. The
people stood outside while the priest worshiped for them. So you can imagine
Constantine’s surprise when he said to Pope Silvester, “how big of a temple do
you want” and Pope Silvester replied, “How big can you build it?!” The idea
that people would actually participate in worship was revolutionary. St. John
Lateran was, in first place, built for public Christian worship in the City of
Rome and as such it set the standard for all others. It taught them, and it
teaches us, that the Mass is never something we watch like spectators but
always something in which we participate. No one can do our prayer for us. Do
you see why Jesus drove the moneychangers out of the temple? He didn’t want a
temple in which others offer purchased sacrifices; He wanted a new temple in which
the presence of God dwells and those assembled are members of His body raised
up. So when we come here for our liturgies, do we watch the priest pray or are
we transformed with the priest as he leads us in prayer? If the first words the
come out of our mouths following a liturgy are observations of criticism rather
than expressions of thanksgiving, then we are more observers than participants.
But if we are participants, then every reading of scripture will speak to our
heart and every Eucharist will be a life-changing encounter with Jesus.
The second lesson of St. John Lateran is
in the Baptistry – it is the lesson of the red columns and beautifully carved
pilasters. These were taken from other imperial monuments in Rome and used to
build the baptistery. They could have used new materials when they built the baptistery
– they didn’t have to use things from other buildings. They did so for a
purpose, to teach a truth of faith. And I think the truth is this: In baptism,
that which is secular becomes sacred; that which is profane, is now profoundly
incorporated into the body of Christ. Those old pieces of marble and red
porphyry used to adorn the monuments of the pagan emperors. They are symbols of
all the forces of sin and death that tried to destroy Christianity – but
through the grace of Baptism, they become a beautiful part of the Church. That
is the power of baptism – It changes all people and makes them new in Christ.
The Church always has been a community of sinners seeking God’s grace. The
baptistery of St. John Lateran reminds us that no sin is greater than God’s mercy,
and that the waters of Baptism and the grace of Reconciliation continue to take
what is secular and make it sacred. How easy it would have been for the early Church
to become elitist thinking that people had to earn their right to be Christian
or somehow prove themselves holy before they would be accepted. St. John
Lateran shatters that arrogant illusion. If the porphyry pillars that once
served the personal needs of murderous pagan emperors could become the
welcoming public entrance of a Christian Church, then there’s hope for us, too,
and for all God’s people. St. John Lateran teaches us that the Church is where
we trust and celebrate God’s all-powerful, unbounded, transforming mercy.
Lastly, the gilded bronze pillars near
the altar of repose for the Blessed Sacrament. Constantine gave these pillars
to the Basilica of St. John Lateran for a reason – because they tell a story.
You see, in 44 BC, Augustus was named the heir of Julius Caesar. It was not an
easy transition – he had to conquer Mark Anthony. And when he did, in the year
30 BC, he set sail to also conquer the famed and feared Egyptian navy of
Cleopatra. And when it was over, he confiscated all the Egyptian ships of
Cleopatra’s fleet and removed their prows – that’s the bronze decoration piece
that was used on the bow. Augustus melted those bronze pieces and molded them
into 4 pillars which he had placed in the temple of Jupiter on the Capitoline
Hill. They were a symbol to everyone that a new day had dawned and that a new era
had begun. A new chapter in world history had opened – the Roman Empire had
been formed. Those pillars were powerful. And Constantine gave them to the
Basilica of St. John Lateran to make the same statement … but now for the
Church – a new day has dawned, a new era has begun, a new chapter in world
history is now opened – Christianity is no longer only a private, personal
experience of faith; it is now a public witness that courageously forms society
and transforms cultures and no longer hides in fear of persecution or
rejection. Those pillars are a statement to us today that we are to be courageously prophetic,
and publicly vocal in our witness of faith: That the new chapter of
Christianity is still open and the Church has a necessary voice in world
affairs. We need to remember that–today more than ever–lest we become silent
and the bronze columns of St. John Lateran become nothing but interesting artifacts
from the past.
So when you visit St. John Lateran, and when you see her size, remember
it is so, that we too can be participants in worship and not just watch it.
When you see the columns and marbles of ancient Rome reused, remember it is so,
that we too can be transformed by grace and the profane in our lives can be
made profound by Christ. When you see the pillars of bronze around the
tabernacle, it is so, that everyone may become priests and prophets of the
Christian era in a secular world.
Today, we do not just celebrate the
dedication of a church–we celebrate the dedication of that church which
continues to teach us how to be Church.
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