Letters From Home Friday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time - Dr. John Bergsma
Nov 21, 2025
Dive into the significance of November devotions as Dr. John Bergsma contemplates life, death, and the afterlife. Discover the rededication of the Temple by Judas Maccabeus and the origins of Hanukkah. Learn about Jesus cleansing the Temple and the impact on Gentile worship. Bergsma challenges listeners to reflect on their priorities, urging them to choose prayer over profit. He emphasizes the importance of personal purification and repentance before final judgment, making the call for listeners to cleanse their hearts.
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Temple Rededication Story
- Dr. John Bergsma recounts the Maccabees rededicating the temple after Antiochus IV defiled it by sacrificing pigs.
- He connects this event to the origin of Hanukkah and the cleansing and reconsecration rituals described in 1 Maccabees.
Temple Cleansing Unites Old And New
- Dr. John Bergsma links Jesus' temple cleansing to the Maccabean purification theme in the readings.
- He shows both acts aim to restore the temple's purpose as a place of prayer, especially for Gentiles.
Court For Gentiles Was Sacred Space
- The court of the Gentiles provided non-Jews a place to pray under the old covenant.
- Commercial activity there obstructed Gentile prayer and hindered the evangelization of the nations.