Lent B I Sunday, Feb18, 2018
“Covenant”
A mother camel and her baby are talking one day and the baby camel asks, “Mom why have we got these huge three-toed feet?” The mother replies, “To enable us trek across the soft sand of the desert without sinking.” “And why have we got these long, heavy eyelashes?” “To keep the sand out of our eyes on the trips through the desert” replies the mother camel. “And Mom, why have we got these big humps on our backs?” The mother, now a little impatient with the boy replies, “They are there to help us store fat for our long treks across the desert, so we can go without water for long periods.” “OK, I get it!” says the baby camel, “We have huge feet to stop us sinking, long eyelashes to keep the sand from our eyes and humps to store water. Then, Mom, why the heck are we here in the Toronto zoo?” Modern life sometimes makes one feel like a camel in a zoo. And like camels in a zoo we need sometimes to go into the desert in order to discover who we truly are. Lent invites us to enter into this kind of desert experience.
The first reading from the book of Genesis (Gen.9:8-15) speaks about the Covenant. The word 'covenant' means agreement, pledge or promise. Covenant is always between two or more persons. Here we speak of the covenant/agreement between God and man. There are 3 covenants in the O.T. and one in N.T.; and at every covenant there is a sign and a promise from God. In all these covenants we find God takes the initiative and this shows His love for man.
1) God made a Covenant with Noah in O.T. after the great deluge/flood. The sign of the covenant was rainbow and the promise He made was that He would never destroy the world through water/flood.
2) God made another covenant with Abraham (the second). Abraham became the father/head of a nation through which the Saviour of the world is to be born. God made two promises with Abraham: a) He would give to Abraham a son (Isaac) through his wife Sarah, and through whom a great nation would come into existence. b) He would give the Promised Land to his descendants. He gave a sign: to cut an animal into two halves and God would walk in between the two halves. This would happen to people who do not keep His word. The sign of the covenant was circumcision of all male children. God also wanted Abraham to have total trust in Him.
3) God made the third covenant with the people of Israel and Moses; Moses representing the people of Israel. God will be always their God and they will be His people; and He will protect and lead them if they fulfil all the Ten Commandments. The sign of the Covenant was blood of an animal that has to be sprinkled on the altar {altar represents God} and on all the people.
In all these covenants we find that God had been always faithful: there was no deluge/flood. A son (Isaac) was given to Abraham and the land of Palestine was given to the descendants of Abraham. He led the Israelites and protected them through the desert, gave them manna and worked so many wonders. Noah, Abraham and Moses remained always faithful but people broke the covenant, grumbled against God and abandoned God many times and worse, turned to idols and idol worship.
Now, God entered into a New, Perfect, Eternal and Everlasting Covenant with man. The person He chose for this was His own Son Jesus Christ Himself. There would not be any more of the covenant. All the covenants in the O. T. prepared for this new one. The purpose of it was, to make everyone His children. Thus He Himself became man {God became man = Immanuel – God-with-us}. He established this in the evening of Holy Thursday before He died. It is signed by His Blood on Good Friday.
Jesus at the Last Supper took bread and wine and said, “Take and eat 'This is My Body', take and drink, 'This is My Blood' of the New and Everlasting Covenant, shed for you and for all so that sins may be forgiven”.
The Eucharist is the memorial of the New Covenant. Jesus completed when He shed His Blood and died on the Cross. When He said this He meant it. “This is My Body, This is My Blood” not a sign or symbol, but He really and truly meant it. Jesus said, “If anyone eats of this Bread will live forever” and again “Whoever eats My flesh and drink My Blood has Eternal life and I will raise him up on the last day”. (Jn.6: 51f).
There will be no more covenants between God and man. The Eucharist is the Perfect, Eternal and Everlasting Covenant and this is the reason Jesus said, “Do this in remembrance of Me”. {He insists whenever we gather in His name to have the celebration of the Eucharist. That’s why the Eucharist is celebrated every day at different times in all the Churches in the Catholic Church.
When we receive Him worthily at the Eucharistic celebration, we experience, ‘I in Him and He in us’ experience’- a real encounter with the person of Jesus Christ. Those who receive Jesus worthily in the Eucharist will say like St. Paul, “It is no longer I live, but Christ lives in me”. This is what Jesus solemnly declared, “If any one loves me, He will keep My Word and My Father will love him and We (the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit) will come to him and make OUR (the Father, the Son and Holy Spirit) HOME (dwell) in him” (Jn. 14: 23).
Therefore, we need to receive Him worthily every time we go for the sacrament. Let us be faithful to the Eucharist the new Covenant of God.