Day 33: Locusts, Darkness, and Death of the First Born

Exodus 10:1-29 I have sinned against...you: Pharaoh acknowledged his sin. In so doing, his statement recognized the very nature of sin: It is an offense against God; thus, it harms others and ultimately the common good of society. (CCC 1440)


Ch 11:1-10 Pharaoh will not listen to you: God used the sin of Pharaoh’s obstinacy to bring about the fulfillment of his will. The Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart: The sense is not that God had made Pharaoh stubborn so as to make an example of him; rather, God did not force acquiescence upon him. In his infinite wisdom, the Lord accomplishes his will and at the same time respects each individual’s freedom. He invites us to freely respond to his call; nevertheless, he does not force his will on us. (CCC 312, 1993)


Leviticus 8:1 These are details of the ceremony of unction for priests under the Old Covenant. As the Epistle to the Heberws would later explain concerning the New Covenant, priests are “chosen from among men” and are “appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins” (Heb 5:1). The Old Testament priesthood, however, was not the same as the priesthood of the New Covenant; it required repeated offerings of sacrifices that were ineffective in removing sin. True redemption from sin could only be accomplished through the one Sacrifice of Christ. (CCC 1539-1543)


Ch 8:12 Oil, such as that with which Aaron was anointed high priest, was used throughout the Old Testament to consecrate someone to God for a holy mission. The priests, kings, and prophets who received the anointing in the Old Testament were TYPES (TYPOLOGY!!) of Jesus, the Eternal High Priest, King of the Universe, and Messiah (cf. Ex 30:22-33). (CCC 436)


Psalm 50 This psalm stresses a sincere mind and heart in praising God in worship. Ritual acts, gestures, and sacrifices are meant to be external manifestations of a prayerful spirit of humility and love. God is glorified by external ritual as long as it is accompanied by SINCERE PIETY and DEEDS OF CHARITY TOWARDS OTHERS. Among the sentiments that God favors is a grateful spirit and a contrite heart. He decries the hypocrisy of speaking and reciting the Commandments without practicing them. Loving God with our WHOLE HEARTS includes obedience to Divine Law as well as having the habitual desire to please God in EVERYTHING, especially in the treatment of our neighbors. He does not keep silence: At his Second Coming, Christ will judge every act, both good and evil, along with the consequences of those acts; in the Final Judgement, no human thought, word, or deed will be hidden. (CCC 1039, 1368)

(*The Didache Bible RSV-CE Ignatius Edition, 2006)


(*Walking With God: A Journey Through the Bible by Tim Gray and Jeff Cavins)




Prayer by Fr Mike: “Father in Heaven, we give you praise and glory. You reveal that not only do you love us. You continually reveal your heart to us. You continually fight for us. You continually show to our hearts that we are made for you and you alone. Yet our hearts continually make idols and we can make idols out of anything around us. Lord God, you free us from idols. You free us for true worship. Help our hearts to be free, truly free, that we do not turn to idols. That we do not turn to false worship. But that we have hearts that have the kind of interior freedom where we can offer you the worship that you ask for. We make this prayer in the mighty name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen”

ANDREW'S PARALLELS

Reading that the plague of darkness lasted three days brought to mind how darkness covered the land when Christ died. Looking at the passage, I never realized the detail that it was dark from the sixth hour to the ninth hour- a total of 3 hours. Christ as the light of the world, the light went out with his death for three days until he rose again and the light returned. Then there's the bowl in Reveation where darkness covers the earth, though it doesn't specify three days.

The anointing of Aaron the High Priest: At Christ's Baptism, he was anointed with the Holy Spirit, the Messiah literally meaning "The Anointed One." At our baptisms, we are all anointed with oil, sharing in Christ's sonship and anointing as priests, prophets, and kings in his One Body.

The blood of the sacrifice on the priests's garments calls to mind something we see in Revelation, when the multitude appear in heaven, and one of the elders mention that their robes were washed white with the blood of the Lamb, the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

A mention of sacrifice of thanksgiving and salvation in Psalm 50. Eucharist literally means "give thanks" from the greek word "eucharisteo" used at the Last Supper.