can people who attend church answer this one for me?

Question

when i was younger i attended CCD or catholic school. i remember in the classes they told us this story about how the only time Jesus ever got pissed was when he saw people using the church like a market place. and he destroyed everything there.
i am not sure what the story was called. or where exactly you can find it in the bible. please correct me if i was taught wrong, but...

my question is,
to this day, as far as i know, at church this still happens.

i used to attend mass at St. Dennis in Diamond Bar, CA and after EVERY mass, you could go outside... buy donuts, relious theme items, etc.
why do some churches do this? is this the same thing that Jesus suposibly freaked out about?

Answer 1

Throwing the money changers out of the temple.

This story is found in Mark 11:15-19, 11:27-33, Matthew 21:12-17, 21:23-27 and Luke 19:45-48, 20:1-8.

Seems to me the issue was not just the fact things were being bought and sold, but that they were corrupt, and were cheating the worshippers.

Selling donuts and other items after service wouldn't be the same thing. Fundraising is still allowed.

It would get questionable if A) buying any of the merchandise was REQUIRED in order to attend the church, or B) The transactions diminished the sacred space of your church (like putting t-shirts on the statue of the Virgin Mary, or displaying the donuts in the offering plates.)

Of course , there are churches that do that (most notablly Televangelists.) But in most cases, people do not think their actions are dishonest or desecrating.

Answer 2

What you are referring to is where Jesus drove the moneychangers and merchants from the temple.

In the time of Jesus, Jewish Law stated that pilgrims would make an animal sacrifice. For those that did not have animals, or those from other countries, merchants had set up tables to profit from the sale of animals or profit from the exchange of foreign moneys so they could then purchase animals.

Some of the animals did not meet the letter of the law for sacrifice (sick, deformed,etc...) and should have never been sold.

Visitors had no option to participate in the process.

This is different than the scenario you detail as you do not have to buy donuts, religious items, etc...

Why do churches do this? To raise money to pay for the expense of operating a church and to offer convience to the congregation. It is easier to find the items related to your theology at the church than it is to travel across town to search and purchase.

I do not think it is the same, but it would depend on the motivation of the operator at the church where you attend.