Anniversary of the Church’s Dedication January 31, 2025
Fr. Alexander Albert St. Mary Magdalen, Abbeville
“Worship in Spirit and Truth.” What does that look like exactly? Clearly, Jesus doesn’t think it requires being in a certain location. In a single line, he completely bypasses a theological debate going back centuries between the Samaritans and Jews about which place is the right place to worship. Even while Jesus says the Jews are right, he moves past the debate to make this point about spirit and truth.
Which kind of raises a question: if the location doesn’t matter, if even the ancient Jerusalem temple built according to God’s own design isn’t the important thing for true worship, then why do we make so much fuss about this building. This Church – large, historic, and beautiful though it is – can hardly compare to the Temple. Why should we care so much about it?
Because although the Temple was eventually transcended, it still mattered. Despite Jesus’ prophecy, it was after all his own Father who gave Moses such meticulous commands about the construction of the Tabernacle and then guided David and Solomon in the building of its successor in the temple. Because, though the most important quality of authentic worship is “spirit and truth,” that does not mean we cease to be flesh and blood.
Our flesh and blood is destined for eternity along with our souls. It’s why Jesus rose from the dead and ate fish and bread to prove he had a body. It’s why St. Paul preaches so forcefully about the resurrection. It’s why we list the resurrection of the body whenever we say the creed. It’s why Ezekiel, when having a vision about the perfect future God prepared for his people, was shown a temple that poured out water which nourished trees that could provide food and medicine. For a human being to do something “in truth,” it will involve their body. For a human being to do something “in spirit,” it will affect their body.
The temple is just a building. This church is just a building. But they reveal something more than mere stone and wood. They manifest order. They are evidence of the sacrifices of human beings. They are testaments to the effect of God in the lives of human beings. And the simple truth is that, without them, our awareness of God would be less clear, our worship less tangible. I’ve been to the remnants of the temple. Even 1900 years after being destroyed, it still affects people “in spirit.”
This connection between physical and spiritual is so significant that, when looking for a metaphor to describe belonging to God, St. Peter reaches for a comparison to a church. He calls us to be “living stones” that can be build up “into a spiritual house” for God.
So, while Jesus does not expect every follower in the world to go to one specific building or mountain, he never says we should avoid all buildings and holy sites. Our God is a God of history so, scandalous as it may seem, there is something special about specific times and places, ways they convey God’s loving plan of salvation that no other place can. The great gift Jesus gives us, then, is not to take away the importance of certain places, but to empower us to make places holy wherever the human race finds itself.
God chose the Jews and salvation came from them. There’s no getting around that. Once he arrived, however, he wondrously provided us a way to extend his presence to the whole world. But he does not override human nature, either. Your house is not the only house in the world, but it is your home. To force everyone into the wilderness would not make home more accessible, but less. So, this is not the only Church in the world, not the only holy site in the world, not the only place to worship God in the world. But it is our Church. It is our holy place. It is our place to worship in Spirit and in Truth.
So this Church is more sacred than other buildings. Because it houses the Eucharistic presence of Jesus, because it was consecrated by a successor to the Apostles, because it is connected spiritually and organizationally to the “cornerstone, chosen and precious” of Jesus Christ through the Church he established, it is special. Being in this building cannot make our worship truly spiritual if we come without faith. Yet, just as truly spiritual love is shown in the bodily actions of the one who loves, so this Church is the body to the soul that is our worship.
I urge you, then, care for this Church as you care for your own body: a temporary home, yes, but still destined to be remade into an eternal dwelling. Rejoice with me to stand in this house of the Lord and may God grant that it never go empty!