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Sometimes we can be doing things the wrong way for so long that we no longer see anything wrong with what we are doing. In some ways, our errant practices become the norm – and sometimes, they even become our new traditions. That can be true in places of worship – as well as in our own lives.

Such was the case in first century Jerusalem. One thousand years earlier, God had given King David and later his son, King Solomon, very specific instructions for the construction of the first temple in Jerusalem. Those instructions did not include the stabling of birds and animals within the confines of the temple in order for them to be purchased by pilgrims coming to offer their sacrifices. Rather, the animals were available elsewhere in the city away from the temple….