This is not a literal transcript, but it will give you the gist of his message.
The scripture readings were the 10 Commandments from the Book of Exodus, a section of Psalm 118 with the response 'Lord, You have the words of everlasting life', the passage from 1st Corinthians that talks about the Cross as the power and wisdom of God, and the account of the cleansing of the Temple from St John's Gospel.
Bishop Comensoli:
A few years ago an American priest, Fr Robert Barron, produced a ten part documentary series called 'Catholicism'. He comes from Chicago, and the documentary series was an initiative of his 'Word on Fire' ministry, which aims to bring the Gospel into the digital age.
The documentary series is both compelling and beautiful. The first words of the first episode are a bold statement, and a bit of a barbeque stopper. They go something like this: 'There is an either/or with regard to Jesus. He either is as He says He is, or He is a bad man. There is no middle ground. He is dangerous, and a strange figure that is not just an interesting religious preacher. We must make a choice.'
Jesus is not an inspirational guru. Jesus began and finished with the radical and unnerving claim to be the Son of God and to possess God's authority over the whole world. It was this claim that drove the apostles from the upper room to preach.
The act of anger we read of in today's Gospel must have been very frightening and confronting to witness. It is not surprising that His actions were met with 'What are you up to?', 'Give us a sign', 'Who do you think you are?'. The religious leaders knew that Jesus was someone out of the ordinary, disconcerting and challenging. There was a lot at stake. If Jesus was true, then EVERYTHING had changed for them.
To these religious leaders and to His Apostles the actions of Jesus issued a challenge, 'You need to make a choice. If I am wrong then silence Me. If I speak the truth then follow Me.'
Jesus gives us the same choice today. That choice is still meant to change everything, and to change us. In this season of Lent, we are invited to renew that choice. Do we accept Jesus as the Son of God and Saviour? Do we accept all of Him, the dangerous and the gentle? Do we accept that we are called to follow Him? The choice is ours to make.