I was in Montreal this weekend and we visited several churches, and each one as unwelcoming as the next. The first one made the worst impression on me! We went in, and I was admiring the architecture. It was a stunning feat of stone masonry and mosaic work. It is actually a replica of St. Peters in Rome – the church is called Mary Queen of the World Cathedral. The walk up is impressive in its scale and grandeur. I was a little taken aback that a homeless man opened the door for us. However, we walked inside and there was that hushed silence that you always sense in a museum. There were tourists milling around, and 2 or 3 people praying in the pews. We stopped to look at the art work, at the Lady Chapel with the alter set with it’s heavy golden holy hardware. There were statues of saints and Mary, and Jesus. There were places to light tea-light candles ($1 each or 5 for $4 - volume discount!). There is a giant canopy type structure over the alter as seen in this photo…
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/2275/359/320/mary%20montreal.jpg)
As we were leaving, in what was the equivalent to the court of the Gentiles in this monstrosity, there was a little door off to the east of the hall. We didn’t notice it when we went in, but above it, in iron letters was the word “Boutique”. There was a store in the church. I couldn’t stop myself from laughing – how ironic… Not quite moneychangers and sacrificial goats and birds, but a different kind of sacrifice (one from the world of acquisition and corporate consumerism!). The words that came screaming into my mind… ‘Do not make my fathers house into a den of thieves.’
I guess we never learn... or at least we still haven't learned after 2000 years! Unbelievable.
2 comments:
I wonder if that's why much of the Israelites' history is in desert places and as slaves....to remind us not to get caught up in the trappings of the world (fancy filigree, reserved seating, etc) and to keep our relationship with eachother and with our Creator the primal focus of our lives.
What happened to your other post?
Post a Comment