Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise

 Then Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  And He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"

Then the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them.  But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant and said to Him, "Do You hear what these are saying?"  And Jesus said to them, "Yes.  Have you never read,

'Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise'?"

Then He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and He lodged there.

Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry.  And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said to it, "Let no fruit grow on you ever again."  Immediately the fig tree withered away.

And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, "How did the fig tree wither away so soon?"  So Jesus answered and said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' it will be done.  And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive."

- Matthew 21:12-22

On Saturday, we read of Jesus' Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem, the day which we celebrate as Palm Sunday.  When Jesus and the disciples drew near Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, "Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her.  Loose them and bring them to Me.  And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, 'The Lord has need of them,' and immediately he will send them."  All this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:  "Tell the daughter of Zion, 'Behold, your King is coming to you, lowly, and sitting on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey.'"  So the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them.  They brought the donkey and the colt, laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them.  And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road.  Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying:  "Hosanna to the Son of David!  'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'  Hosanna in the highest!"  And when He had come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, "Who is this?"  So the multitudes said, "This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee."

  Then Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  And He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  My study bible explains that those who bought and sold were traders in live animals that were to be used for sacrifices.  The money changers traded Roman coins for Jewish coins.  Roman coins, bearing the image of Caesar, were considered to be defiling in the temple.  It says that Jesus' cleansing of the temple points to the necessity that the Church also be kept free from "earthly pursuits.  As each person is considered a temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19), it is also a sign that our hearts and minds must be cleansed of earthly matters."

Then the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them.  But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant and said to Him, "Do You hear what these are saying?"  And Jesus said to them, "Yes.  Have you never read, 'Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise'?"  Then He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and He lodged there.  My study bible quotes verses from the hymns of Palm Sunday Vespers in the Eastern Church:  "Keep the feast with the children, and holding branches in your hands, sing 'Hosanna'."  It says, "Many liturgical hymns of this day emphasize the perfect praise of the children, which unlike that of adults, was innocent, fitting, unashamed, and from hearts of pure love.  We are called to glorify Christ in the same spirit (see 18:1-4).  In contrast, the adults' praise carried earthly expectations and agendas which, when left unfulfilled, led them to rebel against Jesus just five days later (27:20-23)."  Jesus Himself is quoting from another hymn:  Psalm 8:2.

Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry.  And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said to it, "Let no fruit grow on you ever again."  Immediately the fig tree withered away.  The fig tree (says my study bible) is a symbol of prosperity and peace.  It withers here because it is fruitless.  "This is a prophetic act directed toward the Jews, since after three years of Christ's preaching, teaching, and healing, both the leaders and the crowds were destitute of spiritual fruit. He curses the tree also to warn those in every generation of what will befall anyone who fails to listen to His message."

And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, "How did the fig tree wither away so soon?"  So Jesus answered and said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' it will be done.  And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive."   A note here says that, while it isn't recorded that an apostle ever moved a mountain, Church Fathers are clear that they had this authority if the need had arisen.  (Certain saints are reported to have made crevices appear in mountains.)  Moreover, everything the apostles did is not written down.  It notes, "Beyond the literal meaning, this promise is also an illustration of the power of faith and prayer in all areas of life."  Quoting Theophylact of Bulgaria (a prolific commentator on Scripture), it notes:  "Whatever we ask, without hesitation and believing in God's power, we shall receive" when we ask for spiritually profitable things.

It's interesting that we're told about the praise of the children, and also in the same reading is included the withering of the fig tree, and Jesus' comments about faith and prayer.  At once we have juxtaposed the "praise of the children" and the great power of Christ that, in this case, can also be destructive -- and is linked to faith, belief.  But in both cases there is a kind of purity of heart, a purity of intention that centers on the ability to truly love God with the whole heart -- to not be double-minded.  My study bible describes the agendas of the adults, who have all kinds of expectations of what they want and desire from a Messiah, this "prophet from Nazareth of Galilee" (see Saturday's reading).  We're reminded of nothing so much as the blessing from the Beatitudes which Jesus has preached in the Sermon on the Mount:  "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."   If such (possibly destructive) power therefore belongs to those who are pure in heart, then we can infer a kind of certainty that it won't be used for bad purposes.  Rather, as in this case, it is for instructive purposes -- a fruitless fig tree substituting as an example to human beings about what it is to bear fruit, and the state of ourselves if we do not.  A sad picture, but one made in truth and honesty and purity of intention, and love of God -- produced by a loving heart.  This gives us the paradoxical power of God, the power of the holy, which is at once appropriately "terrifying" and divinely supreme love above all else.  Whatever this power of faith, of belief, we can be certain that it is the pure in heart who will experience it.  And that's where we start our journey, with Christ's promise about our faith and our prayer.  I can't help but think, also, of the power of prayer in St. Paul's terms:  that it is the Spirit who prays in us (Romans 8:26).   Again, we come to a place where purity of heart reigns supreme:  the ability to truly love God, to be truly humble in that place where we come before God who is love.  Whatever the power of holiness, we can first be certain that it is of God who is love, and that Jesus' promise is to those who, like the children, can be "pure" -- wholehearted in intention and faith.  Where and how does God help you to see . . . even through a "terrifying" holiness, the foundation of which is love?