Happy Feast of St. John Lateran!

The title of this post is a joke. There’s no saint named “John Lateran.” Today is the feast of the dedication of the Archbasilica Cathedral of the Most Holy Savior and of Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist in the Lateran. The universal Church celebrates the dedication of this church, commonly referred to as St. John Lateran, because it is the Cathedral Church of Rome, and thus the Cathedral of the Bishop of Rome, that is, the Pope. It is thus rightly known as “Mother and Head of All Churches in Rome and in the World.” The celebration of the dedication of a church is really a celebration of Our Lord. As today’s gospel says, his body is the true temple. Thus every church building represents Christ. We celebrate St. John Lateran because, as the Pope’s Cathedral, it represents Christ uniting his Church through our communion with the Holy Father. Let us pray today for our Holy Father, Pope Francis. May the Lord bless him and keep him. May the Lord make his face to shine upon him. May he be blessed upon the earth and not delivered over to the hands of his enemies. Amen.