"Ark of the New Covenant" was a term coined by St. Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria, Confessor and Doctor of the Church; born c. 296; died 2 May, 373. No one doubts the orthodoxy of such an early and notable church father, nor his close chronological and geographical link with the apostles themselves. That's why I think it's not fantastic to interpret Revelation in the following way.
Let's turn to St. John's Revelation 11:19 and read,
- Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant could be seen in the temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, and peals of thunder, an earthquake, and a violent hailstorm.
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St. John is writing to Christians who were Jews, who knew Scripture and Jewish history better than we've ever known anything. The ark of the covenant, crown and glory of the people of God, victory in war and seat of God Himself, had been missing for some 500 years. For John to say that he saw it in his vision is no small thing. "Tell us more, John!" is an appropriate response. But he goes on, in the next verse, to say
- A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.
- She was with child and wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth.
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"Wait a second, tell us more about the ark, John!" That's exactly what he's doing.
The ark of the covenant was a box of acasia wood, covered in gold, with two huge cherubim on top and an empty throne-like seat, for which the box was like a footstool. Inside the ark were placed three things: the tablets of the ten commandments, manna (the miracle bread), and the rod of Aaron that had blossomed. These are what made the box holy, holier than the holy of holies in which it was kept.
Is it not apparent that Mary was made holy, infinitely holier than the wooden ark, by what was inside her? The wooden box held the word of God in stone, she held the Word of God made flesh. The box contained the miracle bread, the manna from the desert; she held the Bread of Life Himself. The staff of Aaron was the power of the priesthood; Mary held the Eternal High Priest in her womb. She was thus the seat of the Godhead, sanctified by Sanctity within her.
The similarities are endless. Mary, like the ark in 2 Sam 6, went up in haste to the hill country of Judah. David leapt before the ark, as did a preborn John the Baptist... and on and on.
It's neat to think of the holiness of Mary (St. Thomas says she's holier than the combined holiness of every creature below her) and at the same time remember that Christ gave her to us on the cross.
The ark of the covenant was a box of acasia wood, covered in gold, with two huge cherubim on top and an empty throne-like seat, for which the box was like a footstool. Inside the ark were placed three things: the tablets of the ten commandments, manna (the miracle bread), and the rod of Aaron that had blossomed. These are what made the box holy, holier than the holy of holies in which it was kept.
Is it not apparent that Mary was made holy, infinitely holier than the wooden ark, by what was inside her? The wooden box held the word of God in stone, she held the Word of God made flesh. The box contained the miracle bread, the manna from the desert; she held the Bread of Life Himself. The staff of Aaron was the power of the priesthood; Mary held the Eternal High Priest in her womb. She was thus the seat of the Godhead, sanctified by Sanctity within her.
The similarities are endless. Mary, like the ark in 2 Sam 6, went up in haste to the hill country of Judah. David leapt before the ark, as did a preborn John the Baptist... and on and on.
It's neat to think of the holiness of Mary (St. Thomas says she's holier than the combined holiness of every creature below her) and at the same time remember that Christ gave her to us on the cross.
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