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The Time After Pentecost
The Dedication of a Church
The feast of the Dedication of a Church commemorates the day when a bishop consecrated
to the service of God a building of stone, which thus became the dwelling place of Christ and
the property of God. Having recited the Seven Penitential Psalms, the bishop blessed the water
and sprinkled the exterior walls of the building. Then he entered the Church to take possession
of it in the name of Christ. The bishop then went about the interior of the Church three times,
sprinkling the altars and the walls. He called down from heaven upon this temple the grace that
sanctifies, and bore the relics of the saints in solemn procession to the altar, where they were
entombed. The church now became a place of sacrifice, the dwelling of God with man, a house
of prayer, a place of blessing.
“How lovely are Thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts!” (Introit.) God is omnipresent. He dwells
in the room in which we live, and in every stone and blade of grass on which we tread. He
personally lives in our soul, drawing it to Himself with love. He fills it with light and power; He
speaks to it, admonishes it, enlightens it; He inspires it to do good and to avoid evil. But in our
church God dwells in a particular and singular manner. Here alone the incarnate Son of God
dwells in the tabernacle with His divinity and His humanity, His body and soul. Here upon
this altar He offers His sacrifice of adoration, praise, thanksgiving, and petition. Here in this
tabernacle He lives and prays continually on our behalf. Here we may approach Him, exchange
confidences with Him, open our hearts to Him, express our love for Him, and explain our trials
and difficulties. Here we may seek help for the needs and cares of those dear to us, help for those
who are ill or in danger, help for those who are on the point of losing their faith or their virtue.
Here He continues His work of sanctifying us through the sacraments of baptism, confirmation,
penance, holy orders, and matrimony. Here each day He provides sweet nourishment for our
souls in Holy Communion. God the Father and God the Holy Ghost dwell here with Him in
a mysterious and intimate union. “Terrible is this place; it is the house of God and the gate of
heaven” (Introit). “Behold the tabernacle of God with men, and He will dwell with them. And
they shall be His people, and God Himself with them shall be their God” (Epistle).
“Illuminate this temple by the virtue of Thy indwelling, and grant that all who assemble
here to pray, from whatsoever tribulation they shall call upon Thee, may obtain the blessings
of Thy consolation.” This prayer the bishop says as he dedicates the church, begging God to
hear the prayers which we shall offer up in this holy temple. God does not let such prayers go
unanswered. Such is the firm belief of the Church, and for this reason she reminds us on the
anniversary of the dedication of a church: “My house shall be called the house of prayer, saith
the Lord: in it every one that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth” (Communion). “My
eyes also shall be open and My ears attentive to the prayer of him that shall pray in this place.
For I have chosen and have sanctified this place that My name may be there forever, and My
eyes and My heart may remain there perpetually” (2 Par 7:15 f.). In this place God is especially
attentive to the prayers of men; here “every one that asketh receiveth.” A consecrated church
is a sacramental, a holy place dedicated to God, in which we may expect especially to be heard
because of the prayer which was said over it on the day of its dedication. “This day is salvation
come to this house” (Gospel), since Christ Himself has entered it personally to dispense to His
members the fullness of His grace.
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