House of God | Teen Ink

House of God

December 5, 2011
By arcanine24 PLATINUM, Ventnor, New Jersey
arcanine24 PLATINUM, Ventnor, New Jersey
47 articles 1 photo 19 comments

Favorite Quote:
Everyone has a story; just some are more interesting to read than others.


Recently, my grandmother and I visited St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City after attending the Broadway show, Wicked. The site of the church takes up a whole city block, bounded by East 51st Street to the north, Madison Avenue to the east, East 50th Street to the south, and Fifth Avenue to the west. As we entered the holy house of prayer, our astonishment took over. The interior of the marble cathedral oozes with artistic vision such as the Saint Michael and Saint Louis altar, the chancel organ, in the north ambulatory, or the bust of Pope John Paul II, located in the rear of the cathedral. As our sightseeing came to an end, and my grandmother and I made our way back to the entrance of the cathedral, something horrid beamed in my peripheral vision. At first, I wasn’t aware of its origin, but as my brain processed the sight of a pre-pubescent girl walking away from an area of the Neo-Gothic building carrying with her some loose bills and a bobble-head of our Savior dressed in Kanye-West shutter glasses, a Statue of Liberty headdress, and a booger-green football foam finger, I came to a murky realization; St. Patrick’s Cathedral, sight of some of the most sacred funerals such as John Maguire and Joseph Flannelly, operates a very cheap and very offensive gift shop. How in God’s name can anyone justify soiling a house of prayer for a cheap buck, especially when they have the nerve to own a banner saying, “Some proceeds will benefit the Roman Catholic Church.” In the Bible, Jesus and his disciples travel to Jerusalem for Passover, where he expels the money changers from the Temple, accusing them of turning the Temple to a den of thieves through their commercial activities. This is the only account of Jesus using physical force in any of the Gospels. This means that the only time that Jesus lost his temper was when he witnessed profitable gain in his father’s house…yet, this church seems to believe that these stories’ morals don’t apply to it. Don’t soil one of the few holy places the Earth has left; get rid of the gift shop.



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This article has 15 comments.


on Jan. 27 2012 at 1:16 pm
emmabergman GOLD, ., New Jersey
10 articles 0 photos 18 comments
let's just post comments back and forth on each other's articles :))))

on Jan. 14 2012 at 5:35 pm
808atl19 BRONZE, Atlanta, Georgia
4 articles 0 photos 13 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Life isn&rsquo;t worth living unless you&rsquo;re willing to take some big chances and go for broke.&quot;<br /> - Eliot Wiggington

Your a great writer! N.K

on Dec. 25 2011 at 7:21 pm
_emilia_ SILVER, Somers Point, New Jersey
9 articles 3 photos 111 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;If you&#039;re going through hell, keep going.&quot;

hahahaha omg they are onto u.... kidding :)

on Dec. 24 2011 at 5:02 pm
arcanine24 PLATINUM, Ventnor, New Jersey
47 articles 1 photo 19 comments

Favorite Quote:
Everyone has a story; just some are more interesting to read than others.

i dunno lol

on Dec. 23 2011 at 8:26 pm
_emilia_ SILVER, Somers Point, New Jersey
9 articles 3 photos 111 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;If you&#039;re going through hell, keep going.&quot;

finally u can post comments! ur welcome!! and why does that person think u r a girl?

on Dec. 23 2011 at 7:39 pm
arcanine24 PLATINUM, Ventnor, New Jersey
47 articles 1 photo 19 comments

Favorite Quote:
Everyone has a story; just some are more interesting to read than others.

i would like to thank everyone who commented :), thanks for the support

on Dec. 23 2011 at 7:33 pm
arcanine24 PLATINUM, Ventnor, New Jersey
47 articles 1 photo 19 comments

Favorite Quote:
Everyone has a story; just some are more interesting to read than others.

lol thanks ;)

on Dec. 23 2011 at 7:28 pm
arcanine24 PLATINUM, Ventnor, New Jersey
47 articles 1 photo 19 comments

Favorite Quote:
Everyone has a story; just some are more interesting to read than others.

thanks! check out my other work if you get the chance :)

on Dec. 22 2011 at 5:04 am
SnehaChatterjee PLATINUM, Kolkata, West Bengal, India, Other
45 articles 2 photos 62 comments

Favorite Quote:
Two roads diverged in the woods and I,<br /> I took the one less travelled by,<br /> And that has made all the difference

Well said I totally agree with you.

Genya GOLD said...
on Dec. 12 2011 at 3:51 pm
Genya GOLD, Bridgewater, New Jersey
10 articles 0 photos 52 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Never do anything that you wouldn&#039;t want to explain to the paramedics.&quot;-Unknown Author

She, actually :)

Google said...
on Dec. 12 2011 at 2:30 pm
Well, he an post what he believe

siri13 BRONZE said...
on Dec. 12 2011 at 12:28 pm
siri13 BRONZE, Ventnor, New Jersey
4 articles 0 photos 5 comments
You go den!!!

AvaJay GOLD said...
on Dec. 9 2011 at 9:23 pm
AvaJay GOLD, Spokane, Washington
13 articles 4 photos 184 comments

Favorite Quote:
Let me not pray to be sheltered from dangers, but to be fearless in facing them. Let me not pray for the stilling of my pain, but for the heart to conquer it.<br /> ~ Tagore

I agree! Well said!

Genya GOLD said...
on Dec. 7 2011 at 5:38 pm
Genya GOLD, Bridgewater, New Jersey
10 articles 0 photos 52 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Never do anything that you wouldn&#039;t want to explain to the paramedics.&quot;-Unknown Author

I don't have a faith, and even I think this is wrong.

Too much commercialization... Really, this is deplorable.


on Dec. 7 2011 at 3:43 pm
_emilia_ SILVER, Somers Point, New Jersey
9 articles 3 photos 111 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;If you&#039;re going through hell, keep going.&quot;

Wow Den!!!! Thats amazing!! AMEN!!!!

-em