18/05/2026

Monday Easter Week 7

When Jesus declared before Pilate that his kingdom was not of this world, he was not just making a "political" statement about the separation of Church and State. He was speaking to the economic/business community whose tentacles still hold even the poorest of the citizens of this world in its grasp.

All the Temples of the Middle East of his day functioned not only as places where sacrifices could be made to the Titular Deity but they were also the commercial and financial centres which guaranteed the value of currency and commercial contracts. Central Banks.

We know that Jesus "drove out the money changers (bankers) from the Temple" in Jerusalem and we too are thus told to drive ourselves out of the clutches of the Mammon into which we are all born. We have to be always aware that "the tribulations" (economies) of this world have no lasting hold on us even though they cling to us mercilessly. Mammon has been defeated on Calvary.

In Athens, Paul was preaching to the Top Universities of our day and today, in Ephesus he is undermining the foundations on which Wall Street is built.

Today in the Gospel the disciples take heart that they can understand the plain speech that Jesus is using. Jesus, however, knows that even his "plain speaking" carries a depth and weight that is far greater than its straight forward meaning which can only be learnt truly by imitating  his deeds. 

We know what is about  to happen in this drama but they are going to face a totally unanticipated  shock in the real-time of that what became the first generation of Christians.