Holy Week 2007-
Monday and the Challenge Continues
(Based on thoughts from Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan in the book, The Last Week.)

The challenge to the domination system continues on Monday of Holy Week. Sunday was the contrast with Roman power. Today he takes on the religious establishment. He challenges the system that allows the religious spokesmen to maintain their control on the people and their privilege with Rome.

Now we need to temper our criticism of the religious leaders with our awareness that they were pawns and as terrified of the Roman power as any one else. They were being used to maintain the calm of the people. Keep them complacent. But they were also wily and wise and knew how to take advantage of their position to make themselves wealthy. It was not a marriage of equals by any stretch of the imagination, but they at least tried to maintain the façade.

In other words they collaborated with the violence against their own people in order to maintain their part of the domination of the many by the few.

I have no doubt that in one way or another Jesus knew what he was going to do when he entered the Temple. I have no doubt that he was ready to up the ante in his move toward Good Friday. They were misusing and abusing the worship of God for their own ends. They were taking advantage of the poor and powerless as much as the Romans were. He didn’t like it- and he wasn’t going to let it go by.

And the place to get them was in the change purse. So thus the overturning of the money changers tables becomes the focus of Monday’s street theater. Here is the embodiment of the Kingdom of God already present in the world who yesterday moved against the all-too present Roman Imperial power. Today he moves against the Jewish High Priestly collaborative power.

Prayer is not an act of violence. A House of Prayer is not to be one of exploitation.

Prayer is an act of Kingdom power, bringing the nations together in this Holy Place. How sad is the collaboration of prayer and violent power. Everyone loses.

Except God.

It may not look like it today as forces gather and storms develop on the horizon. But wait. Be patient. God’s power has not been lost or taken by the Romans.

There’s more to this week than meets the eye.