💖 HOMILY - NOVEMBER 21 💖

First Reading - 1 Maccabees 4:36-37,52-59 

Gospel - Luke 19:45-48

There is something powerful about moments of restoration—moments when what was broken is rebuilt, what was dark is brought back to light, and what was lost is given new life. Today’s readings draw us into two such moments, inviting us to reflect on how God restores, and how we are called to respond.

In the first reading from Maccabees, we witness the joy of a people who have returned to the Temple after a time of devastation. The sanctuary had been defiled, worship silenced, and hope nearly extinguished. But now Judas Maccabeus and his companions stand in a place that once felt lost, and they begin to cleanse, rebuild, and rededicate it to God. When they finally light the lamps again, it is more than a ritual—it is the rekindling of faith, the reclaiming of identity, the renewal of a people who had walked through darkness and come out faithful.

Then the Gospel shows Jesus entering the Temple. He sees a place meant for prayer being used for profit, a place meant for communion with God turned into noise and distraction. And with a heart full of zeal, He drives out everything that does not belong. Jesus does not cleanse the Temple to condemn; He does it to restore. He wants the space to be what it was meant to be: a house of prayer, a place where people encounter the living God.

Dear friends, God desires to restore the sacred spaces of our lives. He wants to renew what has been damaged, cleanse what has been cluttered, and reignite what has grown dim.

But to let Him do this, we must first recognize the “temple” He is speaking about. Yes, it is our church community. Yes, it is our worship. But above all, it is our hearts. Our hearts are the temple God longs to restore.

And like the Temple in Maccabees, our hearts sometimes accumulate the rubble of disappointment, sin, or distraction. Like the Temple in Jesus’ time, they sometimes become crowded with noise that pushes prayer to the edges.

Yet God does not give up on us. He enters, He cleanses, He rebuilds, He relights.

Today’s readings invite us to ask:

What in my heart needs to be renewed?

What needs to be cleared away so that God has more space to dwell?

What lamps of faith need to be lit again?

Judas Maccabeus shows us that the work of restoration takes effort and hope. Jesus shows us that the work of cleansing takes honesty and courage. But both show us that God’s desire is always to bring us back to the fullness of life with Him.

So today, let us allow the Lord to enter our hearts as He entered the Temple. Let Him remove what does not belong, restore what has been lost, and relight what has grown dim. For when God restores, the light that returns is never small—it is a light capable of renewing our lives and illuminating the world around us.