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RENEWAL OF
THE CHURCH
Liturgical Notes:
Renewal of the Church
Originally there were four
or five Sundays in honor of
the Church during the
Maronite liturgical year.
These celebrations were
first observed in Jerusalem
on September 12, 355, in
honor of the dedication of
the Church of the
Resurrection. Today, there
remain only two Sundays: the
Sunday of the Renewal of the
Church and the Sunday of the
Consecration of the Church.
No specific
sanctuary or edifice is being commemorated, but
rather the universal Church of Christ, the light
of the world. The Church is the leaven which
will save the world and guide it to salvation
and perfection.
The
celebrations in honor of the Church coincide
with Jewish festival of the Dedication of the
Temple (Hanukkah), which is also known as the
Festival of Lights. The
origins of the Jewish feast of the Dedication of
the Temple are found in a time of great
persecution and heroism in Jewish history. The
King of Syria, Antiochus Epiphanes (175-164
B.C.) led a movement which intended to abandon
the religious and cultural traditions of the
Hebrews and adopt those of the pagan Greeks.
Antiochus plundered the Temple treasury,
suppressed Jewish worship and installed an altar
dedicated to Zaus in the Temple. Through the
military successes of Judias Maccabee, the
Temple was recovered, purified and dedicated in
165 B.C. (1Mc 4:36-60). In order to thank the
Lord, the Feast of the Dedication was to be
celebrated for eight days. The Christian feast
of the Dedication of the Church recalls that the
Church of Christ, while constantly in need of
purification, has conquered all false teachings
and gods. The powers of darkness and evil have
no power over the Light. It is through the
Church that Christ's salvific mission is
accomplished in the world. For that reason, it
is aptly called the "Light of the Nations"
(Lumen Gentium, 1).
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