This past Wednesday, we celebrated a rather unusual feast in the life of the church: The Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome. Why is there a feast day dedicated to a church? It is much more typical to have a feast that celebrates a saint, like Saint Andrew on November 30, but here we're celebrating a building.

The Lateran Basilica has great history. It was the first church commissioned by the Roman Emperor Constantine in 313. As the first church built after Constantine granted Christians the freedom to practice their religion, it is really the first place that Christians were able to practice the faith in public. It is also the official cathedral of the bishop of Rome, the Pope. Just as Cardinal Cupich has his official cathedral, Holy Name Cathedral on State Street, the Pope has his at Saint John Lateran, which has been associated with the Bishop of Rome for centuries longer than St. Peter's in the Vatican.

But even with all of that history, why do we in Chicago, and Catholics around the world, celebrate this particular church?

Of course, our church buildings are important to us. In the same manner that we all want a place to live, we also want a spiritual home in the midst of the community. It is a place to gather, to share our common beliefs, to challenge each other to become the Kingdom of God on earth. But we have to be careful not to become too attached to a building, because while it is an important center for us to gather, we'd be the exact same community if the building were to disappear overnight. The building doesn't define the community, but the other way around: Because we're a community, we have built buildings so we have a place to call home.

We're proud of our homes. We make them welcoming and inviting, comfortable to ourselves and visitors alike. The same is true of Saint Andrew. We want to make sure that this place welcomes everyone, whether they're a member of the family or a stranger we've never seen. And that falls to all of us. Do you see an unfamiliar face? Introduce yourself and welcome them!

Saint John Lateran, as the first "legal" place of free Christian worship, also reminds us of the freedoms that we hold dear. Around the world and in the United States, some of those freedoms are being held hostage to demagoguery and fear. War and violence, hatred and prejudice, fear and demonization. These are not the things that celebrate our freedom. They should not be welcomed in our homes.

Finally, I think the Feast of the Lateran Basilica reminds us that, while our buildings are important and hold memory and history, God's Kingdom isn't limited to the inside of a building. Every time we go to Mass, we're sent out into the world, because all churches - Saint Andrew or any other - don't just have impact within the walls, but when we take our community, our beliefs, our desire to make the world a great place for all humanity out into those messy streets and into the public forum.

That's why I think the celebration of a church that I've never visited, in a city nearly 5,000 miles away, is a great reminder of what we are and who we are supposed to become. Yes, it is the mother church, the center of the hierarchy, and that needs to be celebrated. But it is also a reminder that we, the body of Christ, are building something much more important when we build the Kingdom of God in the world.

Upcoming tours: November 8 at 9am and November 17 at 6pm. Please contact Anne Japsen in Admissions at annejapsen@gosaintandrew.com for more information. Come join us and experience what makes our Blue Ribbon School so special. www.gosaintandrew.com