Monday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
Those of us who have been following along with the first readings over the past few weeks will remember that King David wanted to build a house (or temple) for the Lord. David did not want the Ark of the Covenant residing in a tent while David was comfortable in a palace. However, God told David instead that God would make a house for David; a dynasty that would be everlasting. David’s son Solomon fulfilled David’s wishes by overseeing the construction of a splendid temple that would house the Ark of the Covenant. And today we read of the great joy experienced by the people in bringing the Ark of the Covenant into such a wonderful resting place.
We might ask ourselves the cause for their excitement, since all that the Ark contained were a mere two stone tablets. Why all the celebration? This is because the Ark of the Covenant was God’s presence among them. We might recall that the Israelites even took the Ark into battle with them, hoping that God would secure a victory. And when the Ark was captured, it caused illness among all the cities who kept it. So the Ark was a powerful object; not only was it a sign of God’s presence with the people, but it actually was God’s presence with the people.
What great joy, to have God’s presence so close at hand! Imagine the sense of security and the sense of responsibility! Now, our gospel reading helps us to look at this Old Testament passage Christologically. For the in the passage from the gospel of Mark, we see Jesus’ effect on people. They recognize him and they flock to him for healing. Here now, years after the Ark was lost for good, is God’s presence among the people once more. The people may not have realized that Jesus was God, but they were drawn to his healing presence... and when we read this passage, we ought to rejoice that God blessed humanity with his presence once more! The Ark was only a prefiguring for God’s more profound presence among human beings, namely, God’s presence in human flesh, the perfect unity of divinity and humanity in Christ Jesus.
And the good news of God’s presence goes on. After Jesus’ life, death, resurrection and ascension, the Church was not left alone. We were given the Holy Spirit to sanctify us and the Eucharist to sustain us. We continue to be in the presence of the Lord, in a special way when we are at Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, or near the tabernacle that hosts the Eucharist. And while there was only one Ark for the people of Israel, we now have God’s presence in abundance as tabernacles at each church indicate.
What a blessing, and what a cause for rejoicing! God has not abandoned his people but remains here with us in our daily life. But as I mentioned with regard to the Hebrew people, having God’s presence in the Ark also brought a lot of responsibility. With God so close to us, with his grace and the Holy Spirit so abundantly available in our lives, we must respond in love to this love. God gives himself to us so freely that we might also give ourselves to others. This is what it means to live a Eucharistic life – a life of thanksgiving for the tremendous blessing we have in our salvation.
Today, take some time to meditate on the fact that we are in God’s presence. What is the significance of this for our lives? And how can we let our daily actions better reflect God’s presence?
- Maria Morrow