“The Ark of the Covenant”
One of the truths most firmly affirmed by the Catholic faith is that of the real presence of Jesus Christ in the mystery of the Eucharist. In the words of the Council of Trent (16th century), in the most blessed sacrament of the Eucharist “the body and blood, together with the soul and divinity, of our Lord Jesus Christ and, therefore, the whole Christ is truly, really, and substantially contained.” This real presence makes particularly actual and tangible the promise of our Lord before his Ascension back to the Father when he announced: “behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age” (Mt 28:20). And this presence in the Eucharist continues after the Mass is over: “The Eucharistic presence of Christ begins at the moment of the consecration and endures as long as the Eucharistic species subsist” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1377).
For this reason, from the very beginning of her history, the Church has taken delicate care of the place where the hosts were left after the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice. In the beginning this was done with the idea of bringing communion later to the sick, but little by little the importance of this place of repose became more evident. Yes, we are talking about the tabernacle. This one “should be located in an especially worthy place in the church and should be constructed in such a way that it emphasizes and manifests the truth of the real presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament” (CCC 1379).
The tabernacle was already prefigured in the Old Testament in one of the dearest institutions of Israel: the Ark of the Covenant. The Ark, which was carried by the people during the exodus out of Egypt (Ex 25) and placed in the Holy of Holies at the Temple (1 Kgs 6), had inside “the gold jar containing the manna, the staff of Aaron that had sprouted, and the tablets of the covenant” (Hb 9:4). It was a symbol and embodiment of God’s presence among his people. The holiest elements of Israel’s history were contained in it. By the time the New Testament starts, the old Ark of the Covenant had been lost because a new one, a more excellent one was coming: the womb of the Virgin, Mary herself. From the moment of the Annunciation, she became the bearer of the most Holy of Holies, the true manna, the bread from Heaven: the Word incarnate. There is an intrinsic relationship, then, among the Ark, Mary, and our tabernacles: all blessed places of God’s presence, Mary being the most excellent of them all.
Even we, for a matter of minutes, become a living tabernacle after receiving communion at each Mass. Let’s, therefore, receive the Lord with the same faith and humility as our Mother, “Woman of the Eucharistic” (St. John Paul II), did at the incarnation and with her say “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord” (Lk 1:46).
Happy Mother’s Day!
Blessings
Fr. Javier Nieva, DCJM
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Previous Letters:
May 5, 2024: Source and Summit
April 28, 2024: Rejoice Always
April 21, 2024: I Believe in the resurrection of the body Part II
April 14, 2024: I Believe in the Resurrection of the Body Part 1
April 7, 2024: Rich in Mercy
March 31, 2024: Sine Dominico Non Possumus About Sunday
February 11, 2024: I Was Ill and You Cared For Me
February 4, 2024: Why Evil?
January 28, 2024: Catholic Schools Week
January 21, 2024: Attachments
January 14, 2024: The LORD Shines
January 7, 2024: Epiphany 2024
December 31, 2023: A Family of Families
December 25, 2023: New Beginnings
December 17, 2023: Christmas
December 3, 2023: Watch
November 26, 2023: Be Healed
November 19, 2023: Sealed
November 12, 2023: Religious?