Tuesday, Third Week in Ordinary Time

The bringing of the ark of God, or the Ark of the Covenant, in procession to Jerusalem was a very significant event for the people of Israel under their king, David. The ark of God was a container which held the two tablets of stone on which the Ten Commandments were written. On Mount Sinai, God had promised the people of Israel that he would be their God, and they in turn promised God that they would be his people by living according to the Ten Commandments. This container with its contents symbolized God’s covenant with his people and theirs with him. It embodied God’s choice of the people of Israel in the service of all humanity. As the ark of God is brought to the citadel of David in Jerusalem, it is celebrated with elements with which we are very family from our own liturgy, especially the Eucharist. There is music and song, there is sacrifice and there is communion, the sharing of food. At every Eucharist, we generally have some singing. At every Eucharist, the sacrifice of Christ on the cross, his loving surrender to God and to humanity on Calvary, is sacramentally present to us. At every Eucharist, we enter into communion with the Lord as Bread of Life and with each other. So much of our faith has deep roots in the religion of Israel. In the gospel reading we have another element that is central to our Eucharist, the ministry of the word. Jesus is in a house in Capernaum with people sitting around him listening to him preaching, proclaiming God’s word, God’s will. He identifies those sitting around him as his brothers and sisters and mother, his new spiritual family. We all belong to that family and at the Eucharist we both celebrate and consolidate our belonging to the Lord’s family.

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