A large part of today’s first reading (Hebrews 8:6-13) is taken up with a passage from the prophet Jeremiah, as confirmation of the writer’s argument about the superiority of the new covenant made through Jesus Christ. The reading opens by stating that Jesus has obtained a better ministry than that of the Levitical priesthood and is the mediator of a new and better covenant that was sealed between God and us by the sacrificial death of Jesus. He is the only perfect mediator because He is truly human and truly divine. Through Him comes God’s love and complete revelation. And, in heaven, He continues to intercede for those who remain faithful to him. If the first covenant had been without fault or defect, it would not need to have been replaced. But God did find fault with it, and that is confirmed by the long quotation from the prophet Jeremiah (from Jeremiah 31:31-34).
This passage begins by quoting Yahweh’s words in which the Lord says that he is going to establish a new covenant with the houses of Israel (the Northern Kingdom) and Judah (the Southern Kingdom). This new covenant will be different from the one that was made through Moses on Mount Sinai. By not observing the first covenant, the people became distanced from the Lord. This new covenant will be a covenant in the heart and not just in outward behavior, the observance of external rules and rituals. “I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts… …I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
From then on, there will be no need for people to teach each other, saying “Know the Lord.” This is because, by their observance of the covenant and the mutual relationship it implies, they will already know their Lord in the way that really matters: finding and serving him in every area of their lives. Furthermore, God will show compassion for their past sins and even forget them entirely. This idea is central to the new covenant. As we know from Jesus in the Gospel, God only sees us as we are at the present moment. Where our past is concerned, he has a very bad memory!
Then Paul resumes his message. In speaking of a “new covenant”, it is clear that the old one is now obsolete. What are the Hebrew readers thinking by wanting to go back to a way of life that has lost its validity?
We, too, need to remain faithful and vigilant in our commitment to Jesus as our link with God, our loving Father. For us, too, it is what goes on in our heart that matters more than what we just do on the outside.
In today’s gospel (Mark 3:13-19) Jesus goes up an unnamed mountain. As I have said before in these Daily Reflections, mountains in the Scriptures are holy places associated with the presence of God. Jesus goes up mountains at more solemn moments in his public life: here, during the Sermon on the Mount, at the Transfiguration, and after feeding the 5,000. Jesus’ purpose on this occasion is to pick twelve people to the inner circle of his followers, the Apostles. They would be the ‘patriarchs’, the foundational pillars of the new community, embracing the new Israel.
They are called ‘apostles’ to distinguish them from the multitude of ‘disciples’. The ‘disciples’ are students, followers who imbibe in the teachings of the teacher and try to make it part of his or her life. However, ‘apostle’ means one who has been a witness of the Risen Lord and has been commissioned to proclaim the resurrection. Paul himself, because of his experience at Damascus, is regarded as one of Jesus’ Apostles.
The Twelve were to be Jesus’ companions. They were to preach, to proclaim his message of the Kingdom, and work with Jesus to make it a reality. They were to cast out demons and liberate people from all situations which enslaved them to any form of evil.
The list is headed—as are all lists of the Apostles—by Simon Peter. For Mark, the name Peter was given on this occasion. In Matthew, it is given later, following Peter’s confession of Jesus’ identity. In the Gospel of Mark, the list includes one man who would betray his Master and Lord.
There go I but for the grace of God.
May God Bless You and Grant You His Peace!