Getting Angry for the Right Reasons

Homily: Third Sunday of Lent (B)

John 2:13-25

7 March 2021

Fr. Ricky C. Montanez

There is an intriguing mural by Alfonso Ossorio in the St. Joseph the Worker Chapel, popularly known to many as the Church of the Angry Jesus in the Victorias Milling Company in Victorias City, Negros Occidental. The image which the artist calls the Christ of the Last Judgment depicts a frowning Christ with a flaming heart. For many of us who have always thought of Jesus as gentle and merciful, a frowning Jesus is hardly appealing.  I showed a photo of the mural to a friend and she commented: “Scary! I wouldn’t want to get on His bad side.” 

This outburst of Jesus in today’s gospel is so out of character for Him who is rarely portrayed as angry by the evangelists. The Jesus we come to know in the Gospels is one who is always welcoming, patient and compassionate towards sinners. As a healer, He attended to those who were sick with special attention and care. He felt pity for the crowd who were like sheep without a shepherd, so He would feed them not only spiritually but physically as well. As a teacher, Jesus rarely lost His patience with His disciples who often disappointed Him by failing to understand what He was trying to teach them. Most of the time, He would respond calmly to His adversaries when He knew that they were trying to trap Him. Even at the cross where He suffered excruciating agony, He still prayed for forgiveness for all those who wanted Him dead.  Jesus’ display of frustration and anger described in today’s Gospel passage disrupts our overly-tamed image of Christ. There is however more than meets the eye. 

First of all, there was a valid reason for His anger. In the Gospel, Jesus makes it quite clear why He was seething with anger at those sellers and money changers in the Temple. “Stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.” (John 2:16) As one commentator puts it: “The space that was meant to be reserved for being with God, for encountering God, had been repurposed for carrying out the letter of the law (through sacrifice).” As the Son of God, He had the right to drive out the people desecrating the Temple area. The Jews were the Chosen People, but they had forgotten their responsibility to keep the commandment of God. They were given the Law as a gift, described by the Psalm 19:10 as “more precious than a heap of purest gold and sweeter than honey from the comb”. Such a covenantal gift was meant to draw them closer to God. Instead, they repeatedly failed to be faithful to Him and His commands. 

Secondly, you may be asking yourself if it was necessary for Jesus to express this righteous indignation in such a violent manner?  In the Old Testament, such disrespect would easily merit the wrath of God and as we know, that can be devastating…. Recall Sodom and Gomorrah and the Great Flood of Noah’s time. Jesus is God. And He was angry at what they had done but He did not make fire and brimstone rain on them. Instead, He made a bold statement by means of His actions to a people who were calloused and self-absorbed. The last lines of this Sunday’s Gospel passage say it all: “But Jesus would not trust himself to them because He knew them all, and did not need anyone to testify about human nature. He himself understood it well.”  (John 2:24-25) We take note that all throughout the Gospel of John, Jesus tried to convince His adversaries that He indeed is the One sent by God. In today’s passage the Jews asked Him: “What sign can you show us for doing this?” (John 2:18) Jesus had performed many signs but His adversaries had remained unbelieving. No amount of arguments or reasonable engagement would have convinced them of Jesus’ divine identity. This display of anger was a dramatic demonstration by Jesus to bring home His point. It was something they could understand. Some of us do learn the hard way! 

What does Jesus’ response teach us about anger? Anger is a human emotion and Jesus being fully human, knew how it was to be angry. This story must however not be used to justify our own outbursts ignited by affronts to our pride or differences in ideologies. We are far from having achieved spiritual perfection like Jesus, so our anger can be motivated by our self-righteousness and bitterness. It is clear from the story that Jesus was so irate at the merchants in the Temple because of His “zeal for the house of the Lord” (Psalm 69:9 / John 2:17) — His desire for true worship among God’s people. It was not an anger borne out of petty or trivial disagreements or differences of opinions but a righteous anger, that is, being angry for the right reasons. By driving out the merchants and the money changers from the Temple, Jesus wanted God’s people to keep in mind what ought to be their priority: a faithful relationship with God and a just relationship with one another. We recall that this is how Jesus summarises the Law of the Lord — love of God and love of neighbour. 

These days, people are easily angered by injustices — perceived and legitimate. Watching the local news, one wonders if people still live in fear of God? (“Parang wala nang sinasanto! Wala na bang takot sa Diyos?”)  In turn, people express and encourage anger through social media.  This arena easily gives one the sense of having power and influence when you are able to rally people to your cause or you find like-minded people online. According to an article I read, “Anger is the most influential emotion online inciting more responses than other sentiments such as joy or sadness.” Some say that online ranting may have cathartic value; others disagree because they have observed that it only worsens a situation. Rants often fail to obtain resolution for the problems (especially in the case of anonymous rants) but venting one’s emotions generates further negativity as hurtful comments affect all those who read them online.   For example, the national election next year is becoming a hot topic on Twitter. Many people have been hurling hurtful words to different opposing groups, possible candidates and supporters. Sadly, mudslinging does not raise the level of discourse needed for our fellow countrymen to be more discerning of their choice of leaders for our country. Rather than participate in this cycle of hate, wouldn’t it be best if we made sure to register and actually vote for worthy candidates in the National Elections in May 2022? 

It is  human to be angry. Life is not perfect. We are not perfect. We won’t always see eye to eye. But there are things, ideals we must uphold and protect. Values such as those taught to us by Jesus that are meant to uplift us and allow us to live harmoniously with God and with each other. When these things are challenged, let our anger lead us to restore things to order and not just seek to destroy people and relationships. The next time you feel anger, ask yourself “Will my anger make the situation better or worse? Am I acting out of love for the other or for myself? Can I be held accountable for the consequences of my actions?” May God fill our hearts with discernment and compassion that we may know how best to channel our anger.