You are God's Temple II

Some of you may remember my post here recently entitled "You are God's Temple" where I pointed out that St Paul referred to the new Church as God's Temple, that is a building where sacrifices are offered, rather than a synagogue, used solely for reading the Word of God and prayer. I cited the New Living Translation as it best emphasises the point;

Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you. God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple. New Living Translation 1 Cor 2 Vs 16 - 17

My recent reading of the early part of Pope Benedict's second book about Jesus of Nazareth brought another development of this point home to me.

" In Marks Gospel, the false witness accuses Jesus of saying; "I will destroy this temple that is made with hands and in three days I will build another, not made with hands" (Mark 14:58) ....In John's Gospel, Jesus' actual words are rendered thus: "Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up..." 

 The Holy Father concludes this section on the Cleansing of the Temple with:

"..The rejection and crucifixion of Jesus means at the same time the end of this Temple. The era of the Temple is over. A new worship is being introduced in a Temple not built by human hands. The Temple is his body, the Risen One, who gathers the peoples and unites them in the sacrament of his body and blood. He himself is the new Temple of humanity. The crucifixion of Jesus is at the same time the destruction of the old Temple. With his Resurrection, a new way of worshipping God begins, no longer on this or that mountain, but "in spirit and truth" (Jn 4:23)" 

Jesus of Nazereth Holy Week: From Entrance into Jerusalem to the Resurrection Chapter 1