The Today celebration: the Dedication of the Basilica Saint John of Latran means for us Catholics the celebration of our Catholic Church all over the world. Everybody has a home, our universal home as Catholics is this basilica.
 Basilica comes from the Greek and Latin language. Basilos in Greek means king; basilik means small king and also royal; basilica in Latin means a roman rectangular construction with great halls used for different citizens public activities.
It is also called Cathedral. The word comes also from the Latin word Cathedra, which means the principal church in a capital city where the bishop has his seat.
The Lateran church called also Basilica of the Saint Savior was the seat of the Roman emperor until 311A.D. Emperor Constantine gave it to the church no later than the above date, as we find a council on 313 A.D. against the Donatists meeting within its walls. It is then the oldest Basilica or Cathedral and seat of the popes for centuries is. It is the mother church of all Catholics. Our today celebration is then the celebration of our Catholic faith. Lateran Basilica should not be confused with Saint Peter's Basilica.
Today readings remind us of the importance of the holiness of the places where we exercise our faith. It should come from our own holiness. St. Paul says: You are God’s building … do you not know that you are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for the temple of God, which you are, is holy” 1 Cor. 3:9c-17
Jesus, tells us saint Mark “made a whip out of cords and drove them all out of the temple area with sheep and oxen, and spilled the coins of money-changers and overturned their tables … and said stop making my Father’s house a marketplace” Mark13:24-32. For Jesus, if your own temple, your body is looking for money, lust, jealousy, bribe, wrongdoings you will make from the church a marketplace for these things and more. Such places will not serve God.
If you come with the intention to look for girls, for boys, for pacing some time, for getting together, for food or treats, for self esteem or self interests, for showing or for selling your ideas or marketing your things and not to meet God, to pray, praise and thank him. Not to share the word of God with you’re the community and form a communion of love and respect, then you cannot form communion with God and take the Holy Communion.
St. Bernard (1099-1153) commenting on today feast says” If holiness shows us to be God’s temple, if the sharing of a common life shows us to be the city of the great king, and if love shows us to be the bride of immortal bridegroom, then we can say surely without hesitation that today’s feast is our feast. Nor should you be surprised hat sucha feast is celebrated here on earth; it is, after all, being celebrated in heaven too… Lets us then share the rejoicing of the angels, let us share the joy of God, and let us keep today’s feast with thanksgiving, for the fact that it is our own should make us all the more willing to celebrate it.”